I picked my plants up from Tammys today and I must say that you guys did a great job packaging them up. Everything that I received was in great shape. And Tammy did a great job sorting and keeping everything straight. Thank you!

Tammy it was really nice to meet you and your two little ones. They are both so cute. The youngest is a little aunry. I can just tell. Not that he was being bad but he just has that look in his eyes. LOL. I wish I could have stayed longer. I think Brooke wash just starting to warm up to them when were leaving.

Bhnash, I just looked up the peony you sent me and it is beautiful. Thank you!

Thank you everyone for the plants!!! This has been a great swap.

Denise

Denise - I'm so envious that you have your plants already! But so happy that Tammy will get ours in the mail tomorrow.

~CA

It was mailed 3 or 4 days ago i would hope it can be there by tomorrow. I sent 20 to you, i dont have paypal. But i can send more cash to you if i need to. I sent it in a card i hope u get it tomorrow.
I have the biggest box omg i am so excited a couple neighbors are going to help me plant.
Let me know when you get it!

Ignore that lol it was mailed out Wed morning i think i added a few days there :) long week. I hope i didnt do this wrong that mail date snuck past me. I am sorry about that. I hope hope hope that it gets to you tomorrow! Maybe i should do a postal service chant or something. Lol

Tammy, you don't need to separate the sedums. I sent one big clump instead of two smaller ones. It's no big deal to ship one out to you...I have plenty of em'. :0)
I am SO getting excited about my box! vina

I already had the boxes ready to go so I was not going to open it up and divide it but I do appreciate the offer Robin.

Gettting ready to go to the PO ... :-) Will post the dc numbers as soon as I get home.

Yeah! I am so excited everything went so smoothly.

Denise- you are sooo right he is most definately ornery. He helpped me clean my floors yesterday. He took his water bottle and keeps dumping some on the floor and took my towel hanging` on the frigde and was wipeing it up and he just kept doing that and looking at me so proud. So what is a mom to do.?? Of course I told him thanks and praised him then told him it was very clean and put the towel out of his reach. LOL. He is always coming up with stuff like that. :-)

Heather I will mail yours out as soon as I get your envie. Hopefully it is in the this evenings mail.

I will be posting reviews for everyone in the swap and I would appreciate the same for me as your host, and your fellow swappers :-)

Yeah!

Tammy

Tammy, I am so glad everything went smoothly and you got my box last night. If you need me to paypal a little to help cover Heather's box, no prob. I sent a lot to her and loved every minute of it, but no biggie so let me know.

Thanks to everyone again for sharing your gardens and yourselves over the last month or so as we got to know each other.

Tammy, thank you for all your hard work and to you and Fran for creating this fun group. I hope she can come back soon, but understand what she is going through with all that mess. Thanks again Tammy.

Nichol

OOOOOOHHHHHHHH I am gatting excited. My box is on the way, my box is on the way. Yippee.

Oh nooo it still didnt come? Tammy i am so sorry.

Good News..... Bad News.....

Good first. heather I got your envie just in time as I was leaving.

Bad News. I made it to the PO with an hour to spare but it was locked tight. The town was packed and one of the ladies said the postmaster is one of the judges in the parade that was going on and she closed early... Ahem... I am sure she must have gotten it approved but boy did it mess up my day.

Anyway Now I still have the boxes and have to open them all back up and let the plants breath a little but they will most def. be going out Monday Morning.

Other Good News... My kids got to see the parade, it was a short one and they had a lot of fun chasing the candy flying around.

Boy I was NOT Happy though. I was soooo excited about getting them out earlier than planned. I will be posting on Monday with shipping confirmation... (unless the parade continues through the whole week.... nightmare parade.... LOL) Don't worry I will take good care of your plants until they get to you.

Tammy :-)

I am so glad you got it i was worried!
Darn parade. :)
Well as long as the kids enjoyed it that is all that matters.
Do you think i had enough postage for ya?
I am sooooooo excited i have spots all cleared for everything!
Thank you all again.
Heather

LOL! Of all things...a parade!
Thats okay...I still have to get another load of dirt anyway...that gives me one more day!
I can't wait to tell DH...a parade held up my box! :0)

Oh! and I will be sending out a sedum on Monday...don't want to hear another word about it :0)...looked in the bed and those things are everywhere!

Have a great weekend everyone! vina

Tammy, so glad you and the kids had a nice day at the parade. I look at those kinds of things as meant to be. Ya know?? So glad it was a nice thing for the kids. Monday is just fine. Have a great rest of the weekend.

Nichol

Great New Everyone...

All boxes are out and flying! (no parade today. LOL)
(I stopped by my moms and am trying to add this post quickly) I will post the DC numbers tonight.

All the change for those that sent too much was returned in your box. Please be careful when you open the box top as I slipped it into the top of the box as I paid for each of them.

Ok a couple of yall didn't send enough it adds up so I will send you an email later tonight so you know who you are and how to get it to me. I did go ahead and send the box out because I didn't want it to hold up your plants and I figure most of you I have swapped with before and can trust you for a couple dollars :-)

Let the suspense begin!

Tammy:-)

Please post when you get your box and let me know how everything faired.

Yay! Boxes arriving soon!

can't wait.

~CA

I wonder how far my box made it today....

Tammy, do you have the DC #s?

~CA

Hi all...just checking in. Yeah!!!Boxes are on the way :0)

Tammy, your sedums are on the way to your house. I'm sorry I couldn't get to the post office yesterday, but mailed them out this morning. I forgot the DC.

Thanks all...I am SO looking forward to receiving all my new plants...:0)

Talk to you soon!
vina

OK... DC Numbers..

Nichol - 0308 3390 0001 1229 8319
Toni - 0308 3390 0001 1229 8289
CA - 0308 3390 0001 1229 8265
Heather - 0308 3390 0001 1228 7566
Vina - 0308 3390 0001 1229 8272
Kamil - 0308 3390 0001 1229 8296
Robin - 0308 3390 0001 1229 8302
bhnash - 0308 3390 0001 1229 8258
Denise - Stopped by
Me - got them all and finished planting today! Thanks everyone for a wonderful swap

Robin - The one labled corkscrew (in the main box) is the wistera right? I just want to make sure I get it planted in the right spot. Also the mothers tears had 6 blooms on it. I am amazed! I love this flower I do believe it is one of my favorite house plants now. I know I already said it but Thanks so much for that again.

Heather - Thanks for all the card for everyone. That was nice I slid them into the boxes when I got them.

It has been so busy here i just today planted all the plants. (How bad it that!) I normally do it asap but they all still looked great. I am amazed that they were all doing so well. I do think next year I will do an early spring one and a late fall one. Think I will skip the summer one as it didn't do as well with shipping because it was just too hot.

Next month is the "Unusual seed swap" Be sure to join if you are interested in the unusual. I would like for everyone to send 1-20 packets only 2 of each type so that I don't get a ton of the same as I would like to keep it unique and each person list their top 5 seeds they are looking so if you get one of them I will be happy and yes I do know that is hard to shorten it to 5 but I would like to really narrow down your favorites.

I will be posting it up early october.

:-) Tammy

I have all my plants in the ground too:) I took my time getting them in the ground because they were all in great shape when I got them.

You guys there are some great deals out there. I found all kinds of plant sales in the past few days. I bought an echinacea 1gal pot of meringue for $5. I have really been wanting one of them. I did see a Mango Meadowbrite for $7 but I didn't buy that one:( I did splurge a bit and buy the new for 2010 huechella Sweet Tea. They also have other new for 2010 heucheras out. Check out Berry Smooth, it is so pretty.

Denise

Sorry, Heuchera Berry Smoothie was new 2009. Fire Chief is new for 2010 and it is so pretty too.

Denise

just checked usps - my box should be here tomorrow - yippee!!

Too bad I won't be home to plant until Thursday. Oh, well. I'm sure they'll last one more day....

~CA

Good morning all...I just checked my box and its already in Rochester! WOW! I should get it today! yeah :0)

Thank you so much everyone for such a fabulous trade...and thanks Tammy for hosting. This has been such fun!

I'm thinking of joining the October swap...I have never swapped seeds before?? If I collect them from my plants how many should go in a baggy? I put Frans (the ones from this swap) in an old prescription bottle, that way they wouldn't get crushed. Is that acceptable too? Just curious...don't want bad seed swap manners :0)

Any info would be appreciated...thanks...and have a great day...vina

Hi! Just checking back in and I have my box...THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH!!

Tammy, Holy water plants...thanks a bunch!!

The pink geranium is gorgeous!!! I can't wait to see it flower!

CA~ I do have purple iris~~but I named the one you sent me CA's iris...thanks!!

Did someone send me water iris? They look like water iris?? I don't remember requesting them...but they are fantastic down by the pond...can anybody tell me what color they are?

And...someone sent me some iris in a bag marked "V". But it doesn't have a color or name on it. Does anybody know the color or who sent it?...

I just want to really THANK EVERYONE AGAIN! I think these plants are better than last month (the heat and all)..they are already in the ground/pond and watered.

THANK YOU AGAIN!! vina

No box today maybe tomorrow! I am so happy everyone included me thanks a ton. Tammy thanks for hosting i know there is a lot of hard work involved and it is much appreciated!

Vina - Glad you liked the water plants. Alsos I think I added a water iris in your box also so am not sure if that is the one you are talking about. I was told it is purple but I am not sure as I have not had mine bloom yet.

Heather - I am glad you are going to be getting some plants. It was no problem at all.

Everyone else - Tomorrow or friday is going to be the lucky day! :-)

Denise - Thank you sooo much for the begonia - it is absolutely gorgeous. I do think this is going to be my new obsession. I have never had an angle wing before and I love the foliage. Do they bloom also? I went and bought a new pot for it that is silver so it will bring out the silver spots in the leafs. Love it!

Tammy

Tammy, It does bloom. The flowers are a pinkish color. I know that it likes a lot of bright indirect light. I love begonias and I use to have alot. I ended up giving them away when I moved one time. So, I want to start to enlarge my begonia collection again. The great thing is they root easily.

Denise

Got my box today,box was 90% open,one side was open all the way the other side was one fouth the way closed. the tape was not sticking to the box.left over postage was gone.
All the plants were in the box, and all were in good shape,really good shape. All in pots now. Spring and fall are much better for plant trading,i think.
Thanks everyone who shared with me, and thanks to Tammy for all the hard work. I enjoyed this swap
Toni

OH MY GOSH !!! I had to sit with my sick(last stage of lung cancer)uncle today and when I returned home my box is here!!I can`t believe how great my plants look!!THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!

Tammy,Yes ,the plant marked corkscrew is actually the wisteria vine.I`m so glad you like the mother`s tears.I`ve never seen it anywhere else except what was handed down from my grandmother`s plant.Thank You so much for hosting this swap.I can`t wait to see my flower beds next summer!!It`ll be so cool!!YAY!! Robin

my box arrived today - yay! I got home too late to do anything with it, but of course I *had* to open it up. Most everything looks great, and I look forward to planting tonmorrow. Toni, that's some of the best looking coreopsis I've seen. I'm thrilled! Got a few *extras* I need to figure out how to care for. Kamil - what's a stevia and what do I do with it?

Thanks everyone!

~CA

Good morning all! Just checking in...so glad your boxes are all coming in too!

Heather, I forgot to post yesterday, thank you for the card that was very thoughtful.

Tammy, thank you for the poem. I love fall, was married in the fall I love it so much. My whole wedding was fall flowers,leaves, pumpkins and gourds. And that poem is beautiful.

And thank you for the water iris...such a surprise! I traded, this last summer for black and yellow. Now I can add purple. Maybe next summer I'll be able to split what I have??? (Already looking forward to next years swaps, I am addicted!):0)

And does anyone know about my mysterious "v" iris bag??? They all look so healthy...I am just impatient to see what color they are. :0)
Thanks again! vina

Vina,I had mysterious bag of iris marked "R" too.I love surprises!!Whoever did this"THANK YOU" Robin

Vina and Robin - I suspect they are the mixed iris from bhnash. I had a similar bag labeled "CA", and it took half a minute to figure out what it was.

~CA

I GOT MY BOX YESTERDAY!!!

All the plants came in perfect condition, I spent 2 1/2 hours yesterday planting everything, I am so excited to see everything bloom next year!!!

Thanks for hosting the swap Tammy!!!!

CA- Heres a link on the Stevia.

Kamil

Here is a link that might be useful: Stevia

WOW! Everyone i am so overwhelmed by your generosity! I love every last bit! I was AMAZED by the size of the box! Believe it or not all is planted. Cant wait until it is bloom time!
What color is the hibiscus?
Thank you all again so much!
Heather

My box arrived today, thanks everyone! Most look pretty sad, but I'm sure they will be fine (crossing fingers), a few may not make it :(

A few things I noticed:

The plants wrapped with twist-ties or rubber bands were soooooooo much easier to unwrap. Now I'm sorry I taped mine (sorry everyone)- lesson learned, LOL.

Plants with newspaper or paper towel that stuck out more than just a bit from the plastic were all dried out, while plants that had all or almost all of the paper enclosed in plastic fared much better (the moisture wasn't wicked out).

Groups of plants that were gathered together in sealed paper did better than those in open ended bags. The sealed paper kept the leaves from getting all crispy.

Labeling: Popsicle sticks got wet and moldy and made it hard to read the plant name, plastic spoons worked great!

These observations are in no way a dig on anyone, just thought I'd share. I learned so much! I will keep these in mind for future plant swaps :)

Again, thank you everyone for the swap, it was definitely fun!

Heidi

P.S. Yes, the bags of Iris are from me :) They are either white/yellow or amber/pink, you'll have to wait for spring to find out LOL.

Heidi - thanks for the wrapping feedback - I'm always looking for ways to improve my packaging! Don't worry about the tape - while rubber bands are easier to remove, a handy pair of scissors makes short work of the taped ones.

I received more plants this time shipped with peat or potting mix rather than bare root, and I have to say they arrived looking the best. I've never shipped this way, but I may give it a try for a future swap.

Vina - I got some rose of sharon that was labeled to be for you. I have it in a pot so I can send them to you in the next swap we happen to be in together. But to be honest it doesn't look very good and I'm not sure I'll be able to baby it back to life. I'll try my best.

I got all the plants planted today. I think most will live. Each big swap I've done I get a higher proportion of viable plants than the last. We're definitely improving our packing. And the cooler temperatures this time around could only have helped.

Tammy - one of the tomato cuttings you sent in the No Limit swap is flowering already! I couldn't believe it when I was that today.

Thanks everyone for an enjoyable swap, and especially Tammy for being such a great hostess!

~CA

Good morning all...

Heidi, so your the mystery iris giver? Thank you so much...white/ yellow or amber/pink...either one sounds beautiful!

CA, I forgot all about the rose of sharons...I got so many plants that were "extra" you can keep them. I have to go on my "nature walk" around a couple of towns where I live soon anyway. I always go this time of year. That is how I got all of the ROS I have now. I bring baggies and scissors...snip a few seeds here...snip a few seeds there...
There are so many color variations! I even have a blue one...just waiting for the little thing to flower so I can see if it looks like the mama plant.

Heather...you are so welcome! You have been such fun on this swap... and introduced me to the games! :0)

I always use scissors to remove even the rubber bands or tape. My fingers can't take small things apart...so a quick snip takes care of any wrapping. :0)

Have a great day all...
vina

ps. still considering the seed swap in October...just wondering about how many go in a package...what package to ship in...and do you want store seeds or my harvested seeds? or both...

Toni - I am so sorry that happened with your box! The po is slipping so much I hate using them anymore. Let me know what your postage was that was missing and I will personally refund it to you. When I first read your post I first though "Oh MY I bet her plants were demolished" until I kept reading. Whew. That is a relief to read they were ok.

CA - Stevia is a Sugar plant. You eat the leafs (or use them in teas or desserts or whatever) They are very sweet when you chew them (better than sugar) I had to have a couple plants because my kids kept eatting the leafs like candy. It is an annual unless you bring it in.
I agree about the plants with the peat moss they did wonderfully.

That is awesome about the tomato plant. I still have to get some cuttings inside for mine. I think I will keep that one as a cutting. Who knows I may get a tomato in the winter :-)

heidi - Thanks for the tips on the packing I am always taking tips also. I agree with you on your observations too. :-)

Vina - I got the sedum! Thank you so much it is very beautiful. I will be planting it tomorrow.
For the seed swap. It will be any seeds you want to share. I have found the best seed packs to be made of paper. Especially if hand collected that way if they are not 100% dried they don't mold (like they do in plastic) numbers would vary I would say a fair amount. What you would like to recieve if you were getting them. Now on special/rare seeds would be fair with a couple.

I am sooo glad everyone is getting their boxes and they seem to be if good shape (with the exception of tonis box being opened)

Sorry I have been mia. I have had a really bad chest cold and it was all I could do to do everything I had to do with the house and kids.

Ugh! I got frans box back in the mail. The addy was all messed up. This is the second time this happened to me in a swap. I have to resend it tomorrow (sometimes I wonder what the heck they do to the boxes!) In the last swap it looked like charcoal was smeared all over the box that was returned. So now I always put tape over the addy and use your address as return so if it happens it still gets to you. But this time it like removed the whole priority mail lable! (and my address was underneath because it was a recycled box that someone sent me something in, what luck!

Thanks everyone for a wonderful swap. I really had a fun time hosting.

:-) Tammy

Hi Everyoe. SOrry it took me so long to get on here and post. I rec'd my plants Thursday evening and everything looked great. It is planted now and hopefully everything will do well. Thank you so much for sharing your gardens with me.

HEather, the hibiscus i pink. It was here when I moved here and it had never occured to me befre to split it up. I thnk it will do well, and plan on splitting up the rest of it. It has a lot of old dead stuff in the middle and I think it will do really well.

Thank you again to everyone. God Bless.

Nichol

My prize arrived today for the game!Heather sent me a beautiful bird feeder with flowers around the outside of it and 2 bubble envelopes.Heather , How did you know I love bird feeders? THANK YOU SO MUCH!! Robin