I realize that asking that question here is like asking an alcoholic if it’s okay to have another drink, but at least gardening is good for you. Have you ever seen Apple fanboys videotape the “unboxing” of a new gadget and then upload it on You Tube? Well, I did that today with a box of veggie starts from Annie’s Annuals. Well, minus the video. I just took still pictures.
A week or so ago, Elayne of Annie’s Annuals asked if I’d like to be a guinea pig for their new shipping materials. They’re testing out the possibility of selling veggie starts through their mail order business, and wanted to beta test the packing materials they have on four plant cell packs. Well, the box arrived today, and I had a little unboxing party at my office.
The tape has been sliced open...
My first glimpse inside...
Viola! Everything looked beautiful!
Golden Beets
Of course, those of you who know me, know that my eye zoomed straight to the dark plant in the bottom right corner. That’s a variety of mustard. Also in the box were peas, golden beets, and lettuce. Everything looked so fresh and lush. To be honest, I can’t believe that it is possible to ship vegetable plants and have them arrive so nice-looking. The plants in the box from Annie’s looked better than the plants at my local garden center!
By the way, Annie’s Annuals is fun to follow on Twitter (@AnniesAnnuals). I love it when companies act “real” on social media, actually engaging in conversations and becoming part of the community. It’s neat to get a feel for the culture of a business and to hear little tid bits of insider information.
And speaking of geeking out on plants, I’ve been oogling bearded iris photos lately. On Rainbow Iris Farm’s website, you can look at irises by color, and I like looking at all the pics and imagining pretty combinations. I’d need several acres of land to accomodate all of my bearded iris dreams!
I even bought a book on irises so that I could understand why my ideal iris is difficult to create. Not that the book helped my brain wrap around the idea of punnet squares for organisms with four sets of chromasomes. But hey, I’m trying!
What do you love obsessing about?
{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh how fun! Those plants do look healthy. I am jealous! Annie’s was a fun place to visit, and the people there are great.
haha! I did the same thing when I got my order of plants from Annies. Impressive isn’t it? I don’t think I have seen better looking starts at a nursery, let alone straight out of a shipping box.
Katie–I’m jealous that you live close enough to visit!
Kat–It is impressive. Makes you realize what poor quality we tolerate because we don’t realize better is possible.
I always geek out when plant arrive. I literally start jumping up and down in the street when I open my mail box and find seeds or a favorite catalog have arrived.
By the way — I can explain punnet squares for four sets of chromosomes if you want (I’m not in Grad school for plant breeding and genetics for nothing!) Shoot me an e-mail (engeizuki at gmail dot com) and I’ll try to put together a coherent explanation (I’d post it on my blog, but somehow I think no one else cares!)
fern: your plant geekiness is what makes you an excellent beta tester! all of the feedback and photos you gave us will help us make sure these tender little fellows migrate to their new homes succesfully. a hundred thanks!
-elayne
I love how Annie’s Annuals ships their other plants- so I’m excited to hear that their veggie starts arrived in awesome condition too!
Joseph–Sent you an email!
Elayne–Glad to be of service!
Do geek out to your heart’s content! What else when you receive such a bright and fresh shipment?
I found your blog a couple days ago via the White on Rice Couple blog. I’ll definitely be back for more plant geekiness. I love it…
Glad to meet you Angela! I look forward to checking out your website too!
How far did Annie’s veggie starts have to travel to reach you? I have had wildly different shipped starts experiences, based (it seems) entirely on the distance they had to travel in a box. Did the little plantlets have to spend much time in the cardboard?
Jess–We’re both in California. I’m sure spending a week in a box wouldn’t have been good, but I’m sure the fact that these plants were exceptionally well taken care of and thoughtfully packed would make a huge difference if they traveled to a location that would have taken a two or three days to get to.
The plants look delicious and what a great idea to take photos of their unboxing
If I were to order anything from Annie’s Annuals it would probably take a week, or longer, to get to me, assuming the plants were allowed across the border.
Wow, so beautiful! Just looking at these plants makes me so happy.
Also, is Annie’s still testing out these veggie starts or can they be shipped to others?
Kamala–I am pretty sure they will be shipping veggie starts in the Spring.
It is so fun to get things in the mail, but free vegetable plants are beyond my wildest dreams! They look so healthy. Did they ship them overnight?
Fern, I don’t think one can obsess too much over anything plant related. My obsessions are heirloom sweetpeas, own-root antique roses, and clematis. None of these are particularly great container inhabitants, which may be why I obsess about them.
PS A visit to Annie’s Annuals is better than good sex. You really ought to try to get there sometime.
I love cross-country skiing but these pics of healthy plants makes me want to get started in the garden!
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