I love growing from seed, too. It's a repeat miracle with every season and every crop and one of the most joyful of winter activities. I started tomatoes every week from November onward the year I first put up a small hoop house. Duh. I unwittingly created a monster. When the plants grew to transplant size the daytime weather was warm enough to harden them off but temperatures were still dropping below freezing at night. I was moving a few hundred plants in and out every morning and evening. The hoop house was full, the sun porch was full, and so was the kitchen table and all of the chairs. By the time of the final potting up, I was leaving some plants out all the time, in translucent Sterlite storage tubs with snap-on tops that I put on religiously every night. I thought I had found a wonderful cold frame alternative, but though it worked in the short run, it wasn't the best and greenest idea I've ever had. Bright sunlight turns cheapo plastic into that brittle, decaying plastic good only for land fill after a couple of seasons. Fortunately, there is a year-round growing climate just down the mountain from me, and I had no trouble selling the many many extras for $2.00 each, via Craigslist and (later) with a For Sale sign on the street and a table in the yard. I also enjoyed talking about tomatoes and their different habits and sharing growing 'tricks' with tomato novices or those who had never been able to get their plants to produce. I still have people ask when I am going to offer some more of those great tomato varieties again. I would like to think I made a profit, but if you add labor to the costs of potting soil, pots, sterlite containers,and Christmas lights to keep the hoop warm during the coldest months I am sure I ended up in the hole. If I ever do it again, it will be with more foresight in the planning and a business license in hand! Jan

Here is the way you need to think about it, if you really want a certain brug, say 1 cutting, and they want $10 to ship, you have to decide is it worth it to you. If it's not, forget it and move on. Sometimes $10 for 1 is a deal, other times it's not !! Just depends on how bad you want it. Smokymist, I did see the post in " list your wants part 2", and I agree with you. There was a person that complained about someone wanting $10 to ship 2 cuttings. Then they turned around and did basically the same thing. I think most of the forum readers missed that post. I send either free or charge the exact postage. But that is just me. I will say this, unless you have sent out tons of cuttings, you can't imagine what a pain it is. I sent out 4-5 boxes on Monday, and it took me all day. I really liked the people I was sending to, so it was worth the effort on my part. If a total stranger is sending you cuttings, that is another story. They spend money on paper towels, baggies, go cut them, wrap them up, box them up, get the address correct, go to the post office, then pray that they get their postage back ... LOL This is just my thoughts.

A couple of ways to look at this. Is the florist calling you and requesting you to come? If so, then definately charge at least $8 or more. Or are you driving to them and hoping that they will buy? Also how large of an inventory are you carrying? FLorists will not want to pay a delivery charge just to receive two or three different types of flowers. An easier way to get that money may be to raise your price 50 cents or a dollar per bunch. For the last four or five years, I have charged a five dollar fee during my peak season, usually July thru September.

I grow them and charge $2 a pound. The other potatoes I charge 1/2 that. Keep some potatoes for seed for next year so you don't have to pay the high price of fingerling seed potatoes (IIRC they cost us around $90 a 50LB bag compared to the Yukon golds and reds that were around $18 a 50LB bag)