Just looking for any references for this DG'er. I have been burned in the past. This is for a trade where they will reimburse shipping. So, I thought I'd ask around. Thanks.
Erin
Have you traded with user agravation
Do they not have any feedback on their Member Page?
Edited to add:
Never mind, I see there isn't any. I hope you find someone that can validate for you. It's no fun not to be reimbursed when promised or to be otherwise stiffed on a trade. That just happened to me but it was only some seeds. It hasn't happened much. Still, not a good feeling.
This message was edited May 5, 2013 8:00 AM
When shipping for "postage only" I think it is only fair to ask for the shipping fees up front. I too have been burned more than once and that is the only way I will ship and actually prefer to pay first when trading with others.
I agree.
I second that. I been burned to many times myself.
It's a live plant trade and I have no idea how much the box will end up weighing. I think you are all right about shipping up front. I guess I'm going to have to estimate. Thank. :)
Erin
I wonder how they do it on ebay? Maybe you could go to the post office and have them weigh it and tell you the shipping cost before you actually ship it?
Well, because they are live plants I don't want to dig them up before I'm going to ship them. If I'm waiting on receiving the money for postage they'll die. On eBay they know how big the size they are providing is and then weigh it. Then they reuse this weight and make sure the size they provide is uniform. I have a scale to weigh with and you can calculate postage online. I'll get it worked out somehow.
Erin
Oh, I see, that makes sense. Good luck, I hope it all works out great!
tarziesgirl,
If you ok with going to the trouble, go ahead and dig them and weigh. Pop them in a pot in the mean time, then if they don't pay you can put them back where they came from.
You can weight the box, then go to the USPS website, there you can enter the "From" zip code and the TO Zipcode and the weight, and calculate the shipping.
This message was edited May 5, 2013 4:19 PM
Yeah, that's the problem I don't want to dig beforehand. I may have to though.
Erin
P.S. Howdy neighbor!
I'm new to DG and am wondering if this happens often? One DG'er got the cuttings, iris and canna I sent, said she's "have it out in Monday's mail". That was several weeks ago...I've emailed a couple times (nicely) but I guess it's time to give up. One feedback left says this was a good trader, though, so I'm actually a little concerned for her.
So far all the other trades/communications have gone well.
I actually have another member I sent seeds to on the promise of hearing back from him this spring. This person had great recommendations from other members here. I just sent him a pm the other day and still haven't heard back. Leaves me scratching my head.
Erin
Use a flat rate box and you will know the cost before you dig. They have small med and large. I don't trade anymore without money up front. It is too much work to send plants for postage. I am looking for local people who want my extras unless I get a request on here and then I will trade for something I want or an looking for. It gets really old when you can't get your postage for free plants.....You buy them, you dig the hole or pot them, you fertilize them, you nurture them, then you dig, wrap pack and they don't pay postage....No thanks. I love to share and give away plants but local is so much better unless you collect money first. Remember the little red hen? replace one of her friends with the lazy cheap gardener :) I will offer sometimes but I do collect my side first. Do they want me to plant them for them too rotflol I don't mean to sound like an old prude but on disability or even those who are still working it is hard to have extra money to play in the dirt and buy plants....Don't let someone steal your joy....If they want them they will send their end first.
The Little Red Hen
Once upon a time, there was a little red hen who lived on a farm . She was friends with a lazy dog , a sleepy cat , and a noisy yellow duck .
One day the little red hen found some seeds on the ground. The little red hen had an idea. She would plant the seeds .
The little red hen asked her friends, "Who will help me plant the seeds ?"
"Not I," barked the lazy dog .
"Not I," purred the sleepy cat .
"Not I," quacked the noisy yellow duck .
"Then I will," said the little red hen . So the little red hen planted the seeds all by herself.
When the seeds had grown, the little red hen asked her friends, "Who will help me cut the wheat ?"
"Not I," barked the lazy dog .
"Not I," purred the sleepy cat .
"Not I," quacked the noisy yellow duck .
"Then I will," said the little red hen . So the little red hen cut the wheat all by herself.
When all the wheat was cut, the little red hen asked her friends, "Who will help me take the wheat to the mill to be ground into flour ?"
"Not I," barked the lazy dog .
"Not I," purred the sleepy cat .
"Not I," quacked the noisy yellow duck .
"Then I will," said the little red hen . So the little red hen brought the wheat to the mill all by herself, ground the wheat into flour , and carried the heavy sack of flour back to the farm .
The tired little red hen asked her friends, "Who will help me bake the bread ?"
"Not I," barked the lazy dog .
"Not I," purred the sleepy cat .
"Not I," quacked the noisy yellow duck .
"Then I will," said the little red hen . So the little red hen baked the bread all by herself.
When the bread was finished, the tired little red hen asked her friends, "Who will help me eat the bread ?"
"I will," barked the lazy dog .
"I will," purred the sleepy cat .
"I will," quacked the noisy yellow duck .
"No!" said the little red hen . "I will." And the little red hen ate the bread all by herself.
They have an updated version of the story with the hen making a pizza. She shares it with them after they won't help make it. Then in the end they help wash dishes. So, a little different.
Erin
LOL I love happy endings :) mmm Pizza sounds good I'll wash the dishes :P
LOL! Me too. I dislike washing dishes. So, works for me! :)
Erin
Cool :) lol
I have really only run into generous people and a few trades that didn't work out. One where I'd received my end and they kept pushing my send date back due to heat, then all the sudden I never heard from them again.... Makes ya wonder.... (⌒-⌒; )
I would never be offended if someone wants shipping upfront, on the other hand I will also only send money orders unless it's someone I absolutely KNOW I can trust. Can't really be too careful. I dunno... I guess it's just the way the world is today. Kinda sad.
Seems as if getting burned is occuring much more frequently lately, sad to say. Several times I have sent my half of the trade, only to have the person say they never got there. so I resend, and guess what, the second envelope never gets there either. guess I am just gullible, or the post office is that inefficient. This has been happening to me with trades mostly outside the US, so I have totally stopped doing those trades.
I got burnt and reported it to Dave's admin. Others had complaints also. Admin does help. Contact them
risingcreek,
If you are sending plants/seeds or cuttings outside the US I would highly suspect customs didn't allow it to go through because you didn't have the proper stamps and permits.
I agree about the post office and customs. I sent seeds to Maylasia the other day and it cost me almost 7 dollars plus I had to declare what was in it. I don't do that often as on the other side they can open and destroy them. It depends on the country it is going to what you are allowed to send. Most will not allow plants. Sad but there was no way to even track it to make sure it gets there. I would stick inside US and I would take to post office as you will have the reciept saying you mailed it.
Several months back I did an SASE here in the states. I was told out of 100 free seeds none sprouted. I told them I would replace them but they had to buy them as I had sent out and to many and gave seeds local and they had a 100 percent sprout rate. Told them they must have done something wrong and never heard from them again. There is always someone out there trying to pull a fast one. If you send a bubble envelope you can send it with a tracking (delivery confirmation) here in the states. It may cost around 70 cents but pass that on to the person or request yours be sent the same way.
You can print postage online and get a receipt. If not through USPS, through PayPal. The receipt prints with the label. I was leery of trading with someone in Brazil recently, but everyone said it would be fine. I too figured declaring plant matter would automatically mean it wouldn't get through customs. I never did do the trade. The person never would respond. So, I guess it worked out.
Erin
Erin the post office told me I could send seeds but not plants. I was afraid not to declare what was in it for fear it would come back on me if I lied and they opened it.
Yeah you probably are better off they didn't answer you back. The trader I had in Malaysia has kept in touch and waiting for the seeds to get here and the ones I sent to get there.
I had another person want something I had recently from here in US. I ask for them to send to me first and they did. I then sent what they wanted. I find that is the best way for me as I was bit before and can't afford to just give postage as high as it is away.
If you are shipping out of country the customs forms automatically print and are part of the label. You declare right there on the package. It's gotten loads easier to ship over the years. You get a price break online too because you are saving them by not coming in.
Erin
Erin, did you get the seeds I sent? My pond lilies have buds, soon....soon. Envy, big time over your tower garden.
I did Mittsy! Thank you! I had a mini lily that I think died. Mittsy, don't be jealous! You could grow a Tower too! I need to take pictures of the whole Towers because they've gotten so full! They're in front of my house and I can't see past them anymore to the street! Have you looked at the pictures I've put up on my DG blog? A small tomato monster was outside yesterday eating up wild everglades tomatoes faster than anything! I had to stop him because I didn't know how his digestion would take so many as he had already had a handful earlier with his lunch. :)
Erin
Erin, the best thing to do is charge the flat rate fee- I think it is $13.00 for the small box and you can fill the box without worrying about the weight and the distance.
Tracking number is now free with priority mail. I would ship it in the largest flat rate box even if too big. You can ship up to 70 lbs in it. Even if too big of a box it is up to them if 14.00 is too much for the plants. Otherwise tell them to buy online or at a nursery and see if they can do better. It is a little cheaper if postage bought online.
I wouldn't ship before you are paid. Money is too hard to come by today with prices rising on everything. You don't have to be rude just wise :)
I ship with the smallest box possible. Even make my own box to fit, if need be. The reason.....I don't like plants rattling around in the box while en route. Too much stuffing bring the price up. I recycle what my paper shredder produces. Great to use as stuffing. I also use a digital postal scale so know the exact weight of everything I ship.
I don't ship until I am paid.
You are doing it all right, blomma. I ship over 100 plants spring-fall, and I do pretty much the same thing. I seldom use flat-rate though. The boxes are simply too small. Every penny counts when one has a small plant business.
Ken, www.tropicalplantsandmore.com
It's very interesting reading all the examples , because I did my first mailing of seeds to someone since early August and sent the person two Dmails and have not had a response.There are lots of nice people on this site because two people send me seeds and did not want anything in return and I made sure that I thanked them.
Ken you might want to remove your link as it is against the rules of DG to advertise your business. Just wanted to tell you before they might. Sorry
cytf sorry to hear that. Maybe from now on you will ask first for postage. I am appalled that a small bubble envelope with 100 tiny seeds cost 1.90 something to send. :(
This message was edited Sep 12, 2013 9:25 PM
Thanks, ILJ.
I'm curious to know if Erin ever got her postage payment from 'agravation'.
kirkkr you're welcome. I am curious. Leaving bad feedback would help as she has none.
I know I am going to sound dumb but if I would have read it slower I would have realized it wasn't that Erin was aggravated but the users screen name. *blushing* May I say her screen name becomes her.
Erin leave her bad feedback I know it is not the same as getting your postage but it does help you feel a little like you could do something about it and helps protect others.
I did not want any money, all I wanted is to have the common decency to let me know that you received it . The person knew that I did not want item for trade.
I know it is not right.I have through years of therapy come to know and believe that some people have no feelings toward anyone but themselves. While I would never say anything for fear I would hurt someones feelings I have found most of these people have no feelings. If they admit they got them they also have to admit they owe you. I actually have first hand knowledge of persons like this as my son is one of them.
Last night I ask him if he had his dad's (died 7 yrs ago) star saphire ring as I was going to tade him for money he owes me. Nope he replied. I cried....Then I ask if he still had his paw paws ring we didn't want him to have as we figured he would pawn it. My husband gave it to him 2 days before he died (od'ed) No doesn't have it either. Sad as he always protested we just didn't trust him....well as always we were right. I don't know why I still am affected by what he does but I am and still cry when I know what he will do. Take it from me as in my lifetime and 11 yrs on here I have finally figured out to get my end before I do any trades or for postage. Don't have money to throw away or I would do it on myself.
Again I am sorry about this happening to you :(