As the risk of being flamed, Sanquid Im not sure I would go as far as calling it gouging. Some on the forum seem to agree that a rare fig would seem to be more expensive that one that can be bought or is no longer available, espcially if one is trying to buy potting soil, fertilizer, and considering the time that some folks take to acquire their varieties and baby them. This hobby for me is not cheap, potting soil runs me $15 and I can easily use a bag with just 2-3 large pots. Some have even gone as far to say that price is not as important than getting a good tree that is true to variety and taste. People, if they want this variety bad enough will pay for it. Other forum members also say that if it is a friend and a trade, no $$ is usually exchanged or a very tiny ammount. But if a fellow emails and wants to buy a Sal's Corleone, then he should offer a fair market price. I have people offer to buy trees from me but I hate to do so because of the very comment you give, a scoff. You might have a guy offer you $ for a tree that cost you much more than that in terms of the trade and time just to get it or loss of cuttings to get it rooted. BC seemed to reflect that in their price and many still look for their lost varieties. I know shroomwishwizard on ebay who has the mother plant of the Zumwalt. People will pay $40-80 for this tree. He has said that he can use the money because it supports his family. I have seen forum members (wink, we know who you are) who have battled on ebay for a nicely rooted Capelas that finally went for $90. I certainly dont argue with what other people do with their or charge for their stuff. Thisis me is correct with his thinking, I am on a very strict $$ budget with my wife and kids at home, if I can sell and extra tree and someone will pay $68 for it, it will buy lets see: 3 boxes of pampers, 3 cans of formula, or groceries for a week. Any of these would make my wife happy if I could sell trees. Some folks on the forum also said: ** Why should fig plants be any different on Ebay than anything else? Especially when there are figgaholics like me, happy- even thrilled to be able to purchase one? I don't expect free cuttings from the nurseries I buy from. In fact, there is a fabulous Begonia plant on Ebay I plan to purchase soon too. ** Oh my! Where has our entrepreneurial spirit gone? I checked out the Zumwalt Fig on ebay and from what I could see the person selling these trees is very honest and forthright about the history of his association with this variety, and its qualities and growth and production in his area. That's more than you get from some nurseries! You better believe that if I found an unknown fig which had some different or outstanding characteristics, I'd have no problem with trying to make a buck or two from it..... *** Just my two cents but here are some conversations about $$ figs: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/fig/msg0115390232320.html http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/fig/msg0303351621930.html http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/fig/msg0822465917936.html

Per a phone conversation I had with Jeremy Smith at UCD UCD will ship in any manner one deems appropriate. Basically if you feel 2nd day or Ground is okay, they'll ship it that way. I suggested the following to make everybody's life (including theirs) a bit easier: UCD will order free, flat-rate, Priority (not Express) boxes from the Postal Service. If you want your order shipped Priority Mail (2-3 days), indicate this choice in the comment section of the order form. Follow up by sending an $8.95 USPS stamp to: Jeremy Smith USDA-ARS-NCGR One Shields Ave. University of California Davis, CA 95616 DO NOT SEND CASH DO NOT SEND A CHECK DO NOT SEND CREDIT CARD INFORMATION UCD is not set up to handle any of these. Only send postage (your local post office will sell you an $8.95 cent stamp) or a FedEx account number to which the shipping charges can be billed. Although we did not discuss this, you might want to include shipping instructions and a hard copy of your order (label it duplicate) with your postage. This method will work for Fig cuttings. If you are asking for other material, check with Jeremy before hand to make sure they will fit in the Priority Mail box. ~james

Hi, I would love some fig plants. I live on the other end of Tennessee near Knoxville. I'm new to this forum, not sure what to do next..lol I recently moved to a one acre property behind my daughters house. I intend to build a greenhouse about 20 X 14 (also inclosing my hot tub) Thanks for any info, and I love the information I'm getting from this site..

Pomegranate?! *green ears perk up* oh wait, supposed to be a green-thumb, right? I'm working on that next! *thumbs up* You can grow Pomegranate trees in Memphis?? Does it actually produce edible fruits?? =0 Hi, I'm the newest 'newbie' here but definitely shooting for attending this event. I'm busy studying up on perfect soil mixtures as I'm going to try my hand at container gardening this year (a first for me) - trying to make sure I get it right and don't fry or drown my garden! I will have a few things to contribute to your plant-swap and definitely don't mind helping out with the church grounds donation / cleanup. Thank you so much for organizing this, I hope to learn a lot from native Memphians and veteran gardeners! -jules