Plants that arrive by courier or freight have spent anywhere from one to six days in a closed carton or on a truck, in the dark and without water. Nearly every plant we ship comes through that without trouble. What decides whether it settles in quickly is what happens in the first two days after delivery. This is the routine we give every customer.
Unpack on the day of delivery
Open the carton as soon as it arrives, even if you cannot plant for a week. Take off every sleeve, bag, tie and piece of tape. The packaging protects the plant on the road and harms it afterwards, because a sleeved plant in a warm room or on a sunny porch heats up fast.
Check each plant as you unpack it. Bent stems, a few yellow lower leaves, dropped buds or flowers and light scuffing on the bark are normal after freight and will not affect the plant. A snapped main stem, a root ball that has come out of its pot, or potting mix dried to a hard block are not normal. Photograph those on the day, including the packaging, and email us the photos with your order number.
Shade first, out of the wind
Stand the pots upright in a sheltered spot with bright shade. Not full sun, even for sun-loving plants, and not indoors in an airless room. A covered patio, the shady side of the house or the ground under an established tree all work well.
One deep watering, then only when needed
Water each pot slowly until water runs from the base, wait a minute, then repeat. If the mix has gone hard and the water races through without soaking in, stand the pot in a bucket of water for twenty minutes, then let it drain. After that first soak, push a finger into the top few centimetres of mix and water only when it feels dry. In shade and mild weather that may be every second or third day. Constant watering in the shade is the quickest way to lose a plant that was perfectly healthy on arrival.
Hold off on fertiliser. Nursery stock is already fed, and feeding a plant that is recovering from transit pushes soft growth it cannot support. Wait until at least two weeks after planting. Seaweed solution at the label rate is optional and does no harm.
Into the sun over a week
After a day or two in shade, shift sun-loving plants to a spot with morning sun and afternoon shade, then into full sun a few days later. Shade plants stay in shade. By the end of the first week the leaves should have firmed up and the new tips should look glossy again. That is the sign to plant.
Planting
Dig a hole twice as wide as the pot and no deeper. Wet the hole, loosen any roots circling the base, backfill with the soil you dug out, water in well and mulch to about 50 millimetres, keeping the mulch clear of the stem. Water deeply two or three times a week for the first month in warm weather rather than a little every day. If planting has to wait, plants will sit happily in their pots for several weeks in the shade as long as they are watered.
Tubestock first
If your order mixes sizes, unpack and water the tubes before anything else. A 200 millimetre pot carries enough moisture for the whole trip. A tube can dry out in two days.
If anything about your delivery does not look right, email us on the day with photos and your order number. We assess every case promptly and sort it out.
Further reading: Angelo Eliades at Deep Green Permaculture has published a longer version of this advice, how to care for plants after shipping, the first 48 hours, including what happens to a plant on a long freight trip and why advanced plants often recover faster than small ones.
