It is a good Idea, you could run an add in the local area and a lot of those ads are free here, and see the response you get.

Mark

I price mine $2.50 each, what I would sell them for at a Farmers' Market or whatever, or five for $10, with an heirloom cherry as a bonus. Ten for $20 dollars, with the heirloom cherry plus an Aunt Gertie's Gold (or comparable nicety) as bonus. (My carriers hold six plant cups.)

I have a set number of varieties, five, that you get in my variety pack. No substitutions. I use something of an assembly line to put the packs together and it's too easy to make mistakes by customizing each pack.

You can also order five of a single variety for $10.00 with an additional plant of my choice included. 48 plants to 95 plants of the same variety, with no extra plants included, cost $1.75 each. 96 plants minimum cost $1.50 each.

I also offer a six pack mixture of modern and heirloom cherry tomatoes for $10.00.

I deliver to central locations; delivery to anywhere else is $5.00 within a 20-mile radius and is made sometime the week following the central distribution. Plant people being as they are, I seldom have to make a delivery; people seem eager to get their plants.

Ray

Ray, Could I ask what size pots your planting into? I am assuming that those are larger than the typical 606 Jumbo inserts. I don't seem to have much luck selling 4' pots of tomatoes. I usually stick with the jumbo 6 packs. HEIDI

I use faux-Dixie cups. I put holes in the bottoms of a stack by using a nail gun.

Ray

This is an interesting idea. What have you guys found to be the best way to find people who are interested? Last spring and this spring I sold/will sell seedlings at the FM, so I could promote this for next year to my current customers.

Kevin

I collect info from my customers at any selling opportunity--a sheet with name, email, gardening interests, would you be interested in receiving a newsletter, would you be interested in more info on heirlooms--whatever comes to mind, but keep it short and have one sheet per person. I use them as the base of my mailing list.

I also piggyback with my friend's nursery newsletter

I make the rounds at any market, etc., and collect business cards from everyone. I make notes on what they sell, strengths, weaknesses. That's where I found several of my most consistent commercial customers.

Ray

Ray, out of curiosity, is farming/growing etc your full-time job?

and, what are faux-dixie cups?

Kristen

I'm the full-time stay-at-home parent for ten kids, three of them pre-school, and farming/gardening is done as I can do it. It's one of the reasons I don't even try for a weekly market.

"Faux-Dixie cups" are just generic paper cups with no logo on them, the kind used by local or non-chain establishments. Less expensive, just as good.

Ray