I'm glad you confessed, since I can now agree and say I've done the same thing. That competition thing just takes over, doesn't it?

Usually I feel profound relief when I'm outbid, because I've bid too much already and regret my impulsive overspending!! And on several occasions, I find out I can buy the daylily for less from a regular vendor!!

I am not very aggressive. I know certain sellers and have a good idea what the final price will be before I start bidding. Also, you don't have to worry about me outbidding you as I only bid on items with no previous bids.

Edward

When I bid I usually try to win several things from the same seller in order to reduce shipping costs.

I almost always only bid on things that have not been bid on before. One exception is when I am outbid on something that I really wanted I will sometimes run the price up to what I know is the going price before I stop trying to take it back from the person who outbid me.

I won't usually try to take a different bid from them and certainly not from a different seller. Once in awhile I see they are winning a bunch of other things from the same seller and I don't have enough wins to make shipping worth while. Sometimes in that case I will find something that they have bid on where the price is still very low (ie. they are the only bidder) and I'll make a run at outbidding them. If they have a lot of bids out on the same seller I figure they really wanted the one they outbid me on but may be willing to give up on something they didn't want as badly. I don't do this in anger or competition, it is really just trying to get enough wins from the seller to make shipping worth while.

I too have felt that relief when somebody outbid me and sometimes I've let someone outbid me on something I really kind of wanted especially if I see they don't have a lot of wins under their belt. I don't know why. You can't assume somebody is a newby just because they don't have a lot of wins showing. I noted that my wins went back down to 0 after I took a break from buying on the auctions. There is some kind of reset timer on it.

I bid what Im willing to pay for it. If Im outbid, I usually think that the other person is insane =).

Silverkelt

I've learned to keep it under control from my pocketbook of "lessons learned". Before I bid, I check around to see what the going price is and then place my highest bid. If I really want a certain daylily I may go over the market but typically not. I've seen the frenzy that happens on the LA.
I don't take it personally when I am outbid and hope that others don't either.

Julia

I quit bidding and buying there 2 years ago. I got really disgusted when I had a high bid with a high reserve bid and people would make 5 or 6 bids and just inflate the price on me. I had a plant go from $30.00 to $50.00 because one bidder made a bunch of bids, not one mind you, it almost looked like they were trying to see how high I was willing to go. I don't mind being out bid, but if you are going to bid, bid the full amount you are willing to pay, please don't bid the minimum bid over and over until you think the price is too high. If you are willing to pay $50.00 bid $50.00, you will only be really bidding enough to outbid the other person. The bargins also became few and far between. Combined shipping seldom worked, more than once I got outbid at the last minute on the item I really wanted, and I ended up with plants that I was interested in but not what I really wanted. The other problem was the impulse buys, I no longer purchase plants that I look at and wonder what I was thinking when I bought them. After spending lots of money on TET LAVENDER BLUE BABY seed one year, and wondering if any of it actually was, I quit buying seed too! Not 1 seedling our of many looked like it was form the cross it was supposed to be. I think the people had some TET LBB seed and discovered how well it sold, all of a sudden they had all kinds of crosses with TET LBB, and they were bringing big dollars. I don't think I am the only one that got took, of course with seeds there is no way to prove anything.

Thanks all of you for sharing your experiences. It's better to know how some others are thinking and approaching the process on the LA. I too try to place a bid that I am willing to pay the first time. It's just hard for me to let it go when I really want it. I also check to see the going prices on some and quit when it nears that price.
On the subject of seeds that may or may not be the cross they are supposed to be...I have learned after a few years that there are a select group of sellers that have gone to great lengths to communicate with me and I have learned to trust them. I only buy seeds from these trusted sellers. I've also kept records of condition of seeds and success rates with germination from different sellers, and that has helped me to decide which sellers to ignore and which to trust the seeds I am getting.
It's the same for the plants, Some people send great plants with nice fans(not just talking about the southern giant fans), and some send tiny little fans that take three years to recover and bloom. I only bid on plants from sellers I know and trust as well.
I guess that makes it hard on someone just starting to sell items, but I make new acquaintences by asking questions of the new seller and getting to know them. If they don't seem to have time to bother with me, I don't trust them.
It's just my method, but like so many of us, I also have to get away from it for awhile. I'm out of space until I cull last years seedlings.
Nina

Question for Edward - Are there Canadian sellers on the lily Auction?

There are some Canadian sellers and there are some US sellers who ship to Canada. Mostly I just have them shipped to a US address and have relatives bring them over.

Edward

PS most seed sellers will ship to Canada no problem.

seller punch123 is in Canada and has plants listed now.
Nina

I like to bid multiple small increments to make the item show up as "HOT."

If someone outbids me, I run up their bids on other auctions so that they have less money to bid against what I really want.

I only bid in the last 5 minutes.

Sometimes I bid on toothed flowers I don't even like to make them appear more popular, and don't bid on plants I like, to make them less popular and cheaper for me. I'm the reason that ugly teeth have become all the rage.

If a bidder sends me a really nice bonus, I bid on stuff I don't want just to thank them. Hopefully I'm outbid, but they make a bit more money.

I wish, hahahahahaha.

Bambi too-

Everyone has their own way of bidding. When I want to bid on something that already has a bid on it I always start bidding by putting in the minium next bid. I don't sit there and wrack my brain trying to figgure out how high I would go before making any bids, there is no need to do it that way. Then I usually leave a trail of bids until I am either the high bidder or I decide that I do not want to pay anymore.

I don't feel the least bit guilty if I bid up an item and then finially decide not to go higher. I have no reason to. It is an auction. Each time I put in a bid, I am willing to pay that price. If the current bidder did not have a higher maxibid in, I WOULD be paying that price. No one makes you pay a higher amount, they simply are willing to pay whatever they bid themselves until they reach their limit.

HMMM... I see there are a few aggressive bidders I need to watch out for. Be careful with these confessions.
I must say, I'm glad I made my original confession. I just was outbid on seeds, and I did want them, so I bid one more time. The other bidder waited to the last 5 minutes and outbid me again, so I just smiled and moved on.
Confession was 'good for my soul'.
Nina

Nina,
First, let me say I know it is an auction, and bidding is the name of the game.

But I laughed out loud when I read your post! I too get annoyed when a "last minute" bidder pops up. What really annoys me, is when someone bids late on a plant I really want, but bids only once or twice, and the end effect is the plant costs considerably more, but they don't actually seem to want the plant.

There is one particular bidder who has done that several times. Usually, she is bidding on 6 or 8 plants. Very late in the bidding she suddenly places a bid (may only make mine go to the top amount I have entered as my top) then she doesn't bid again, but my $25 win is suddenly a $40 win., for example.

I too have done retalitory bidding in that case. And if that bidder is bidding fairly aggressively on something I might really like to have, I will bid on and win it.

This is not aggravation about someone being aggressive in bidding on something they want (Donna Jack, for instance :-))...that's what an auction is. I love that you are as bad as I am.
Kay

Bad or good it is an AUCTION LOL.

I say if that type thing aggravates you, don't use the auction....LOL

There are SO MANY PLACES to buy daylilies from that there is no need to pay an astronomical price, the same cultivar will come around sooner or later, plus you could always email the seller a question to ask if there will be more listed. Be smart and don't let a fun place like the auction raise your blood pressure. GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
Nancy

Yes, all good points. And I knew I wasn't the only one whose blood pressure and heart rate goes up watching those last few minutes, and hoping to get what you are bidding on. I have emailed sellers several times about selling more of same, and even have one seller who will post reserve auction for me, and another who will email me when he is putting on new items, at my request. There are some great really nice sellers, who will help you out if you talk to them. I like to get to know the sellers. I also send them pics of seedlings that come from their seeds or unbloomed seedlings. Everyone I do this for seems to really appreciate it.

Nina

Newyorkrita,
I see no point in bidding on the same plant multiple times. You either want to purchase it or not if the bid is $10.00 for example, and you are willing to pay $20.00, why not just bid $20.00 then if you get the winning bid it's yours. You'll wise up when it costs you $20 or $30 more for a plant because someone bumped you up a few dollars at a time and decided they really didn't want the plant. I have returned the favor a few times, and in most cases it cost them a lot more than it did me in the end, but they won the items. I have often wondered if some sellers don't have people do that for them. There was one person that did it to me on a regular basis, I had a lot of fun with him once I figured out how he bid. I got to the point where I could lose every auction by just a few cents. It's not an issue now since I don't bid, if it's not a Buy It Now item I don't even look twice. I have better things to do than sit around and watch auctions end too. I have also found that I enjoy visiting gardens and purchasing plants while I am there.

Honestly, I don't want to start an arguement. Everyone should bid however they think best. My point is that I do not sit there and decide on my highest price before I put in a bid. My other point is that there is no reason that I should bid that way, just because it is your preference to do so.

Newyorkrita, After some thought I guess it can't happen to you if you're trying to snipe for some bargins or just bidding until you have the high bid or decide the price is not right. I agree to a point on the auction style bidding, but how hard can to be to decide what you are willing to spend on a plant? I usually check and see what it is selling for from a grower, and go from there. If it is fairly common and sells for $30.00, I would usually bid $20.00 or $25.00 which would be a deal. Sorry I just don't see the point on bidding just to see how much the original bidder is willing to pay, which is what you are doing when you do that. I have a good laugh though when the newbies spend a bunch of money on $5.00 plants. I just like to put my maximum bid out there and like I said resent people that bid up like that without buying it. It just shows me they weren't serious.

I guess each person has a bidding style. If I really like a plant, and I do not have the time to watch, I set my maximum amount. Of course, as bambi_too mentioned, I usually end up paying close to the maximum, as someone always seems to come out bidding to lose, just cents before overtaking my maximum bid.

If I have the time and the plant is not a difficult to get 'must have', then I try to get it at the lowest price that I could get it, by not putting in my max bid immediately. And then, making subsedquent bids, until I reach my maximum price limit. Otherwise, I hunt for that bargain another day. In this case, I am also trying to avoid feeling victimized by another 'maximizer to lose'.

I am not so aggressive anymore because I have learned that it benefits me to lose, as I usually end up getting the plant cheaper next season. Or, if I decide not to bid for it anymore, I then find something better in the latest offerings of hybridizers.

Carefree,
Or you might get the plant the same season, a week or two later, and cheaper!
kay

Yes, indeed. You're right, Kay!
And it really feels so good getting that plant cheaper than the previous winner's price!
:)

I don't usually get invloved in these arguments BUT, I fail to see why anyone would bid just to up your bid and make you pay more money. If they bid and "accidently" go over your bid, then they are responsible to pay for the auction.
They must want it or they wouldn't bid at all. They could run up quite a tab bidding this way, and getting things they didn't really want to begin with. Of course some people just refuse to be reasonable.
I don't usually bid in one dollar increments, I usually just bid what the maximum is I'm willing to pay. BUT I might think about it and go back later, if I really want the plant real bad, and bid more.
That being said, I do not get into bidding wars and pay more money than I intended to pay, just because someone outbids me. I refuse to let emotions guide me just because I have bid on a plant. It is not mine until the auction is over, the bill has been paid and the plant is shipped to me.
Just bidding on a plant does not make it mine. It will be listed again in the future and I can bid again if I want to.
And if I put in a maximum of 50.00 and the auction ends for 49.99, I was the person putting in the maximum and no one else. It is my fault that I paid my own maximum.

Another point I might make is that some people just love auctions and bidding and love the excitement of bidding at the very last minute, it gets the adrenaline going. I have been known to do this at times, when I'm bored I just sit and watch what people are bidding on at the last minute. Yes I'm retired and bored and a hemoholic.

Sniping on the Lilyauction is not as easy as on Ebay. You always have 5 minutes from the last bid before it actually closes. So if you have the time to hover over your auction, you can actually bid until someone gives up and quits bidding. I like this feature.

This is just my two cents worth on an apparently touchy subject. And it's worth just that, two cents.

Now just watch, the time will come when I will have to eat my words. I'm sure glad I only paid two cents for this opinion.

Dot

I don't like putting my max bid from the get go, because when all is said and done, it's the most expensive way to bid. You will spend a lot of money that way. I know, because that's what I used to do.

Now I always start with a low ball. If someone else wants the product, they can outbid me with 50 cents. Then I check everyday on my page, and sometimes I see something better and don't bid more on the original item I've been outbid. I've let a lot of stuff go that way, from something better coming along.

But sometimes I decide I really want this item. If I do - I don't bid more until the last 5 minutes. If I can't be there in the last 5 minutes, then I forgo further bidding on the item entirely.

I got some really nice crosses from Dot that way, Sometimes I check the ending auctions, and find some really good stuff that wasn't bid on at all. I've swooped on a few like that.

My goal is to pay as little as possible, but since space is limited, to also make sure I don't clutter my grow lights and garden with suboptimal choices.

Sorry, I just found it real annoying to bid on an item, watch it go with no other bids until it's about to close and end up paying three times what my original bid was just because someone decided to try and snipe the auction and bid a bunch of times before deciding they really didn't want to pay what the plant was worth. I do understand trying to find a bargin but multiple bids come on. That my friends is why I no longer bid on the auctions. I would have no problem at all if someone was to place a serious bid, but when you see they bid the minimum over and over it's not right, I remember seeing 10 bids once from the same person. I still don't understand how it's hard to figure out what you would want to pay for something before bidding. It's easy to see what the plant is worth before bidding, just by googling the name if you don't have a Eureka. I was never upset because I lost a plant to a another bidder.

greetings all you wonderful DL folks!!

I'm better NOW.--I'm just not bidding! LOLOL!!
Promised myself and daughter that I would enjoy the beauties I have for awhile. We have also done some breedings so soon we will have some of our own crosses to check out.

Yes, I have also felt the adrainaline kicking, it's great. I'm just going to be more careful about what I buy and from whom.
I also got some tiny nothing plants and miss labled cultivars.
It's a bummer when you think you growing something and it's totaly the wrong plant. NOIDS????
Bidding is great and you can really get some bargins.
you just have to do a little homework--
I still love looking----and drooling.
best always colette

bambi_too: I think many people don't do research before bidding. It is impulse buying which isn't a bad thing just something I try to avoid (hopefully).
As an example: WATER DROPS sold on the LA for $192 and $204 (looks like DF) back in late September. A single fan sold for $81.00. You can buy a double fan at Watermill Gardens 2010 catalog (Trimmer) for $60.00.
I've been tracking this particular one since I was interested in getting it. Trimmer's catalog came and there it was. Probably if I googled enough, I would have found it online as well not only from Watermill but other growers as well.

I think that everyones opinion on this subject is how they like to bid on an auction. No right or wrong to it. Annoying maybe to some but just the way human nature is.

Julia

I so agree that people don't do their research...and that includes me!

When I was working part time to fund my habit, I was a lot more free in my spending. Now that I don't and have zero space left, I tend to be more choosy.

However, if I want it, I will go for it. If not, I'll let it go. Sometimes, it was just a whim or like others have said, I see it come up later from a seller I like better...

Bambi, noting personal, but I no longer bid as you prefer. Several years ago, I did just that. Put my huge max bid on a plant I really wanted. Problem was that the seller had several offerings. Shortly thereafter, someone bid mine way up there....while the others sat there with much much lower bids. Strangely, the person who bid mine up didn't bid on the others...not even in the final minutes. The others did go up, but not where mine was....that taught me a big lesson. (Never show your cards, as it were...)

So, now...if I want it, I simply want to outbid whoever has it (if). When I do that...if I really want it (and for some sellers, it is worth it to me, even to pay a bit more, because their plants are superior to others), I will add another bid or bids as I feel necessary.

Of course, let's face it....if you really want something, you have to pay attention...as there are always those who like to bid at the very end. I lost seeds recently from someone who actually placed a bid at the exact time (to the fraction) at the time it said the auction closed. Huh? So, they really close one second after they say?? Whatever. My bad, as I should have been watching...

These days, I'm finding that I order/buy more directly to get what I want...when I want. But, hey, I do like to play on the LA some. I mean, I need zero seeds as I have thousands of my own...but I like to buy some from favorite sellers for old times sake...and I will take a chance or two to get seeds from something I don't have...yet (lol)!

I'm glad it's there (the LA)...I've been mostly a buyer but I'm sure my time is coming to be a seller (like with all those seeds...lol!)...

I do agree, Bambi (back to you!), however, about filling your garden with plants that don't wow you. Too much work and too little space....I'm in the process of reorganizing (please hold off Mr. Winter!) now....maybe I'll actually make some space (I doubt it!) I can fill next spring. (At least, that's what I'll tell myself!)

What seeds were these, gonegardening? Maybe it's me...

If it was, no worries. Like I said, I have seeds practically coming out of my ears! Seriously, I remember one day when I took off my clothes and seeds were all over the floor...and cleaning out the dryer vent and there were seeds in there!

Here it is (from closed auctions): http://daylily.com/cgi-bin/auction.cgi?closed&seedsdaylily1253493427

Look at the first bid (by the other bidder) placed at 17:37:07...which, I thought, was the closing time. Apparently not. (Does that mean the closing time is actually 17:37:08???) Wasn't even an adequate bid. However, it obviously extended the time (and I wasn't paying attention...)....By the time I checked my email, the five minutes had elapsed and the bidder had time to outbid me....

One needs to learn auction fine points....anyone can then jump in and bid once an auction is extended. I didn't know that either. That happened one time when I thought I had prevailed over a late bidder..quit watching...only to find someone else swooped in. Oh well. I figure it gave them a thrill (picture: hands raised in victory! I outbid them at the last second! Yea me!)....and maybe they needed it. It's all okay.

You gotta keep watch! (if you really want it)

Phew, that wasn't me. Last minute jumping in is my style, though... but this guy's laser is more accurate than mine, haha.

I've been building up mostly dips this year, that's where you should watch for me!

Gonegardening,
To my way of thinking 17:37:07 is the closing second and at 17:37:08 the auction would have closed. Apparently their bid hit it AT the very last second, lucky them.

Dot

I also don't bid my maxiumum amount right away. Why should I pay my highest amount if I don't have to?

And I tend to do my research and stop bidding when I see that I can get that particular plant from somewhere else for my max bid.

The way I see it the point of the auction is to either get a daylily that you can't find or easily find, in which case you pay whatever you want to get it. Or the other point is to get a bargain for a daylily that you want, but not if you have to pay full price. Maybe not if you have to pay anywere near the going rate. Putting in the minimum next bid makes the most sense to me because you can then stop and decide if you want to go higher without having committed to anything but your current bid.