After you've unboxed and unwrapped the plants, hydrate them! In order to avoid possible cross-contamination of things like HVX and foliar nematodes put each plant in an individual container and put the roots in water up to the crown for at least an hour before planting and like any newly planted plant make sure you water regularly for the first 6-8 weeks!

Pieter

unwrap ... with a ballpoint pen.. write the name on the tallest leaf ....

put in a pail with an inch of water for a couple hours ... no more ... put a small towel of paper around the plants ... the roots need to be damp .. but they are not aquatic.. so they shouldnt be left in the pail for an extended period ....

moisten some potting soil .. and pot them up ... couple per pot if need be.. its temporary ... just jam them in there ...

in MN ... the trick might be the time between receipt and when they can actually go outside.. frost/freeze free ... like mid to late may for me in MI ....

i would hope you bought from sellers who do not ship diseased plants ...

when they can go out ... bare root and plant in native soil ...

back in the day.. when i got WAAAYYYY to many ... i had a wheelbarrow full of damp media... and had about 100 plants in it ... lol ... but i had a heated garage .... and kept it rather cool... i didnt want them starting to grow ... i wanted them in near suspended animation ... if they do start growing.. you will need to harden them off when they go outside ....

if you are ordering stock which might be limited.. take earliest delivery.. or you might be SOLD OUT.. by the time your delivery date might come .. but then you are stuck with them indoors until they can go into the garage ....

ken

Thanks guys!

Ken - yup I only ordered from places like Hallsons, Naylor, LOTG, In the Country, Northern Grown Perennials, Glenbrook.... Awesome tips - I really appreciate it!! Should also should put masking tape around them to hold them up a little?

M MW - lol, if you ordered from all those guys you did order quite a few indeed! Good for you! You'll have a fun time this spring!

yes.. tape them right out of the box.. after you write the name on a leaf ...

now listen.. naylor is z8 ... and hallsons is z5 like me ... naylors first shipping date is probably late feb early march ... and hallsons ground will thaw some time in early april ... but they wont pop out of the round until late april at best l... and im pretty sure chris likes to see a leaf.. to insure ID .. but i could be wrong????

so dont go expecting hallsons.. when you see naylors ... eh ... weve been thru that before.. lol .. same with northern grown.. and land of the giants ... we be the north peeps .... i dont know where glenbrook is ...

whats the next thing i forgot?????

ken

OMG, Ken. Write the name on the tallest leaf! Brilliant. That will save me so much aggravation! Thank you!

Hallson plants will always come with instructions. If you get them early in Spring, they might still be dormant. Mine from Hallsons and Naylor came with just little white eyes. No leaves on them yet. Just dormant eyes. If in doubt always contact the seller and ask what to do. Early orders will almost always still be dormant. You can pot them up inside to give them an early start or keep them cold until you are ready to plant them outdoors.

Hey Ken.....There won't be any leaves on them to scribble on.

-Babka