North Creek Group Buy Part 3

Two is great for me.

The Pachysandra procumbens got moved to fall availability to purchase with those additional hellebores, right? I don't want to have those shipped, please. I don't think we have to pay for them until pick-up time, in part to avoid confusion if NC has a "crop failure" on them.

Coleup, does Aspen-Terri have a list of ALL the flats you've ordered (including ferns and monarch waystation assortments) that we need to pick up on Wednesday April 23? She needs to know, and then she can also tell me the total number of flats, as I'll be configuring the back of my vehicle to carry them. Thanks!

Oh thank you for clearing that up. I think I'm still confused about the logistics but I'm grateful that you all have if figured out!

I'm so sorry for not understanding the logistics, but I have a question!

I know I ordered geraniums but I'm not seeing them in coleup's total (although I'm seeing others from the original list, like the Oenothera).

Thank you!

hi SSG, in case this is helpful, I think Coleup was only describing the flats that she was responsible for coordinating--that is, the Monarch Way Station plants, a couple Hellebore flats, the P. procumbens, and the fern buy. There were other flats that Aspen had coordinated and purchased prior to Coleup stepping in to help when Aspen's mom became ill. I think the geraniums may be part of that prior order.

Ok, I get it now!

Critter, are we having both the ADR and NC plants on the 23rd, or is there a separate date for the ADR plant pick up?

It looks like we're going to have
coleup
aspinehill
critterologist
catmint
happy_macomb
terp
at my place on the 23rd.

Does 4 pm sound okay? Critter and aspenhill will probably get here before then. Coleup, traffic on the outer loop isn't bad in the afternoon.

I'll prepare some cold drinks. Should we have something to snack on?

Btw, I need to re-home a butterfly bush for an area that's gotten too shady. Please let me know if you're interested in picking it up at that time.

Thanks so much for hosting, SSG! It's very generous of you. I'm taking the day off from work so can be available any time to help with the Monarch Waystation plants.

Yes SSG, you are down on Terri's order for 8 Geranium Bevan's Beauty $17.20. Terri's order also includes items for Happy. Yehudith, Sequoia, and Critter. She wants to put out one invoice including mine into hers. There is a link to a spreadsheet she has but I'm out the door to a Native Plant sale atAdkins Arboretum on the Eastern Shore.

Speaking of invoices...the Dwarf Philadelpius are justleafing out! And asclepias are late to emerge--soil and nite temps around 50 degrees. You can track the first emergence of Milkweed by date around the country on the Journey North site I think Georgia is the closest so far.

Looking forwrad to seeing you and you yard at the Divy up

Oh thank you so much for that info about the asclepias being late to emerge! I need to check out that site.

I'm looking forward to seeing the dwarf mock orange! I have the perfect place picked out for it. :)

Yes to Butterfly bush Thanks.

SSG maybe you could let Muddy know the details and see if she needs your excellent directions. And perhaps CatBird can swing by, too if prompted!

Ok, I'll pot up the butterfly bush as soon as I get a chance!

SSG, the geranium I had on my order for you is 8 'Espresso' not 'Bevan's Variety'. After coleup touches base with NC on her order on Monday, I'll update the spreadsheet with all the flats and everyone's quantities and $s. Once the spreadsheet is updated, everyone can double check what was ordered for them and let coleup and I know if all is ok and accounted for.

SSG, cold drinks sound great to me. I can go either way on snacks. If we want to do snacks, we can just do something that can easily be picked up from the store, like chips and salsa, cheese and crackers, fruit...

Yes, I got Espresso, but I'm pretty sure I asked Happy for a few plugs of her Bevan's Variety.

I have no idea what I'm down for, but ssg, you are welcome to anything.

I thought my life had settled down, but my daughter at college just had her laptop stolen and meanwhile her cell phone is broken, so I have a mess on my hands to get her situation straightened up.

So sorry to hear that Happy! I hope she had her papers and other school stuff backed up!

Nope!

Oh Happy, I'm so sorry to hear about what happened with your daughter's laptop!!! Man, that is rough! I hope you're able to help her get it all sorted out soon! (((HUG!!)))

It's probably just an expensive growing experience (expensive for me, experience for her).

The North Creek Group Buy invoices are being finalized this week. The information is what is invoiced as of today, but won't be finalized (i.e. potential availability changes) until Thursday 04/17.

There are two google spreadsheets for tracking purposes. The first is a list of all flats with participant percentages. The second is a list of all pricing per participant. Please look these over asap. I will also post the google spreadsheet links at the top of this thread for reference.

Flats with participant percentages:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AvT-yEvT15A6dEg5Y3JMbEhaVlp1M1JzTklhOHQ3QUE#gid=0

Pricing per participant
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AvT-yEvT15A6dFQ5R2ctRmJySVBVWlBiR3dJakxhaGc&usp=sharing#gid=0

Looks great -- thanks for doing all that work!

Terri - thanks for putting the spreadsheets together so we can see where things stand.

yes, Aspen, thanks for pulling all that pricing info together--what a job and it looks beautiful, too--I love excel's fill-in features. :-)

Kick butt job Terri!

Thank you aspenhill and coleup for all of the hours you've put into it!

Please help me with one more detail. I apologize for not understanding/remembering the details.

What's happening with the May/June pick up? Is there a second trip that's been planned? Or are they being delivered/shipped?

Getting close! Coleup has done the hard part of coordinating everyone's interests, tallying up those interests to ensure they add up to full flats, and working with North Creek on plant availability and ordering. I have the easy part of consolidating the final info in to a spreadsheet, coordinating payment, and picking up the flats.

The May order will be a much smaller order, basically tying up the loose ends for flats that aren't available next week. The plan is to still pick up from North Creek. I will either make a second trip or more likely, take Ric up on his offer to pick up those flats and bring them to the Spring Swap.

Terri, the beauty of your spreadsheets truly pales in comparision to the beauty of you and your willingness to step beyond your comfort level and extend to all of us, not only an invitation to visit Aspenhill where you have worked your magic in the woods, but for extending the opportunity to participate in a group buy that has bourgoned from a few flats to over 70! Who knew what journeys you taking that first step would bring!

Thanks to you Terri, I have a Monarch Waystation foundation to spread and share. I have a reactibated The Plant Bus business that has met its $500.00 minimum initial order so I can order supplemental flats one at a time as needed. and a thousand other ways I discover daily that the shelter and security when the growing got rough your open arms and willingness to move forward provided this little sprout!
So this is my prayer of thanks to you dear one and for us all.

Navajo Blessing Way Prayer
In beauty may I walk.
All day long may I walk.
Through the returning seasons may I walk.
On the trail marked with pollen may I walk.
With grasshoppers about my feet may I walk.
With dew about my feet may I walk.
With beauty may I walk.
With beauty before me, may I walk.
With beauty behind me, may I walk.
With beauty above me, may I walk.
With beauty below me, may I walk.
With beauty all around me, may I walk.
In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, lively, may I walk.
In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, living again, may I walk.
It is finished in beauty.
It is finished in beauty

Coleup, that's lovely.

Every part of a group buy takes work, I know! Big THANK YOU's all around!

Thank you also to Mike, Mr. Aspenhill, because he's going to let us borrow his TRUCK to pick up the flats. No worries now about how everything will fit! :-)

I think Terri & I are planning to drive up to NC again before the spring swap to pick up the flats that will be "finished" later. Or if she's busy at Aspenhill, maybe she'll recruit Happy & me for the trip. (any trip is better with company... that's my role, LOL)

I'm going to have the following plants ready at next week's NC sorting party.

Please DM me if you'd like me to save you one!

butterfly bush (coleup)
cilantro (happy)
2 more cilantro
a large miscanthus gracillimus (I don't think this is the reseeding variety; it's never seeded for me)
Al's gritty mix for succulents (please bring a container)

I couldn't get out of work in the morning so the earliest I could possibly be home is at 2. But please feel free to come anytime after 3 and stay as long you'd like. I'll have drinks ready but I doubt I'll have any food prepped. Jill and Terri will probably arrive after 3.

I just realized I don't have any plastic cups. Does anyone have any cups they can bring?

Feel free to come around the backyard if I don't answer the front door!

Please DM me if you'd like to come but don't have my address.

I can bring plastic cups. And I'll probably have some nuts or chips or other "road trip food" with me to share... I always seem to bring along much more than we actually eat, LOL. Maybe I'll mix up a big bag of "gorp" (in Scouting tradition, GORP involves cheerios, raisins, and chocolate chips... I tend to toss in other things, too).

Thanks for hosting, Terri!

Coleup thank you for those very beautiful thoughts! I am looking forward to the MAF monarch way station planting party we will have in the meadows along your paper route and whatever other good spots people offer!

Ok, Critter and I are set to head up to pick up the flats at the North Creek distribution center this Wednesday. Sequoia will be meeting us there to pick up his plants, then Critter and I will be heading to SSG's house for the divvy up with the folks local to Montgomery County. I have plant tags all made up and ready for splitting/sorting the flats. I kept the flat cell packs from my order last year and checked them out over the weekend - it looks like they will be easy to just cut apart with scissors without any damage to the plugs. I have a few pair of scissors that I will bring and will ask Critter to bring some as well.

I heard from Coleup last Thursday (final invoicing) and she indicated that the New England aster has not broken dormancy yet, so it will be moved to the May order. I adjusted the spreadsheet accordingly. As far as I know, that is the only adjustment since the dmail blast with links to the spreadsheet that I sent last week. See everyone soon!!!

Looking forward to seeing everyone!

Come around to the backyard if I don't answer the door.

Please be careful on your way to the backyard. The flagstones have not been set down correctly and are not even.

I have one last minute request.

Could someone bring a small bag of ice? Thank you!

I can -- if I remember!!!

I don't even need a full bag, just a little bit. Our ice maker doesn't work, and I'm sure you'd all appreciate cold drinks!

Please be advised that due to an unusually harsh and long winter that some of the plants scheduled for pick up this week may be shifted to the May pick up due to readiness. issues, 'Can't hurry love and it seems also plants' I remind myself that normally NC plants would be going to growers for growing on and not backyard gardeners! Most growers don't put out late emergers like asters and goldenrods until Mid summer or early fall when they start to bloom and have been potted up once or twice into quart, gal or even 3 gal size and price.

Should know more tomorrow afternoon after dealing with NC and will keep everyone posted.
Even without some late emergers we should have plenty of plants to Divy up!

Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause to anyone's planting plans. Me, too. I want to plant when there is still some coolness about and the ground is soft!

hi, SSG. I'd be happy to pick up a bag of ice and bring it to your place on Wed afternoon!

That'd be great, Catmint!

Ric and I are planing on coming to the Wed pick up at SSG's house. Looking forward to seeing everyone.
Coleup do you have plants for us from last year? I think Ric ordered a few plants last year that we never got down to pick up?
We also have a bag of soil that Ric forgot to bring to the seed swap. I think he brought the wrong type of soil to the swap so we will bring that along with us.

Oh Coleup, can you bring all three dwarf mock oranges, as well? I think one's for me, one's for Happy, and the third one's for Aspen.