Dicon Posted July 20, 2009 Report Share Posted July 20, 2009 Today I received with some excitement, a delivery of a couple of Helli's from a recent trade. A good strong box and inside a lidded plastic container similar to the ones I use for sending small Neps and cuttings etc. Opened the box and.......... Carnage!........nutans Giant folded in half at the base. ionasii similarly trampled Unfortunately, they had been subjected to the "crash test dummy treatment."! Also they were not wearing their seatbelts and the air bags were not deployed. The plants were wrapped in kitchen paper and were complete with a heavy rootball of compost. This was their downfall. If particularly fragile or brittle plants such as Helli's are sent complete with heavy rootball, unless they are wrapped in a rigid roll and secured so that they cannot move within the package, the sad consequenses can be seen above. It is surely much better to bare root them so that they are not crushed and trampled by their own boots. If the crash test dummies wore seat belts and were cushioned by airbags, they would survive the test. I guess the sender did what they thought was satisfactory but it has unfortunately led to the near destruction of 2 nice plants. I have conversed with the sender privately and I have told them that I am not angry, just sad for the loss of the plants. I hope also that they may survive with a little TLC. (the plants that is) I think Andreas posted a similarly sad situation recently. So a message to all those lacking proven mailing experience..........IF IN DOUBT, PLEASE SEEK ADVICE BEFORE SENDING. Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexis Posted July 20, 2009 Report Share Posted July 20, 2009 A shame, but sometimes even the most diligent packaging isn't a match for the Royal Mail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyoliver Posted July 20, 2009 Report Share Posted July 20, 2009 I hope you can nurse them back to their full splender. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Andreas Eils Posted July 21, 2009 Report Share Posted July 21, 2009 I think Andreas posted a similarly sad situation recently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-=Joel=- Posted July 21, 2009 Report Share Posted July 21, 2009 (edited) The best way to pack fragile plants is to make sure they CAN NOT move around while in transport. Fill in any gaps with newspaper or bubble wrap and make sure the roots are kept damp. Where possible I bag my plants to keep in and moisture and where this isnt possible I bag the roots of the plants. I have had plants survive a whole month in the post after they got lost. When they got to the buyer they may have lacked a little colour but soon began to grow. If in doubt, give the box a shake test once wrapped up. If you hear anything moving around inside it isnt packed well enough in my opinion. Hope they grow for you Matt. Edited July 21, 2009 by -=Joel=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LJ Posted July 21, 2009 Report Share Posted July 21, 2009 Very good advice from Joel - I definitely agree, the best way to prevent damage is to make sure the contents cant move around inside the box. Good luck with the plants, hope you manage to nurse tem back to health. Heather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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