I won some great plants from Muletowng. I have visited his garden in TN once before and knew that he has a very well kept garden. The plants he sent are large, very green and healthy. He sent extra fans and plus a couple of bonuses! I will be busy tomorrow. I will be posting POSTIVE feedback for Greg.

I don't understand why people bid and then don't pay. I always try to pay quickly after the auction is won, but that is just me.

I, too, pay promptly and I do expect the seller to send promptly. Most do. The ones that don't, don't get repeat business from me.

I've had a buyer (over the past few months) bid against me at the last minute on something I really wanted. I have a limit that I stop at. But it really bugged me that a buyer will jump in there in the last few minutes right before the close of that particular auction to get into a bidding war with me. Often the bid goes higher than I can afford and they win the auction. I've had this happen several times against the same buyer. I've watched this buyer bid & win on quite a number of auctions and always wondered if he/she paid and what they were going to do with so many wins. Were they starting their own nursery? Other times I wondered if it was an alias name used to up the bid for a particular seller. Those things go through your mind when you run into such a situation. A lot of money was spent on various auction wins by this buyer. I am talking probably thousands of dollars in auction wins. It was for seeds, seedlings, and named daylilies. I hope this isn't the same buyer that duped sellers on the LA.

Paula - Thanks for your LA seller name. I've added it to my list.

Teresa - Thanks for Greg's seller's name, too!

Every now and then I do bid at the last minute. Its only because thats when I happened to sign on and see something I want. It irritates me a little when it happens to me,and Im not checking, but it is an auction. Also, with Mikes 5 minute rule, I dont really see the point of waiting. I wonder if people ever check the closed auctions link. I have never lost something, that I didnt eventually get a better deal.

I feel bad, that you that sell, have to put up with some of this stuff. I guess the same people I run into just about every time I go out, are also bidding on the LA

I don't use the daylily auctions, but at all other auctions bidding people up, and late bidding were just considered part of the game of winning the bid, you bid people up on stuff you don't want trying to make them spend all their money before they get to the things you do want, then if you see the bidding has slowed down and the high bidders have dropped out on something you want you then jump in at the last minute trying to catch someone off guard, just thought that was par for the course so to speak. I thought it was part of the attraction and thrill of the chase at auctions. I thought that was where the term "winning at auction" came from, not just being the highest bidder but actually playing the bidding game.

Seedfork,
I do think a lot of people do play it that way.

One funny thing about the auction is that sometimes you can buy them direct for less

I agree, Teresa. Especially when the bidding war gets out of hand.

Believe me, I know that auctions are all about bidding against others. This one particular buyer seems to be buying up quite a bit of seeds I am interested in. It's rather frustrating. I wonder if he/she is turning around and selling them somewhere else? I see the name constantly. I kept hoping this buyer would get their fill so that others get a chance, but that isn't happening yet. Buying now is often cheaper than during the Winter months. The bidding wars really get crazy during the non-gardening days of Winter! LOL!

Thats why the closed auction link is so important...IMO at least.

Im sad to report, my second arrival of soft seeds this week. Its a real joy buster. It always seems its the ones you really wanted....money comes second in line of irritation, altho will pull ahead before long.

Daylilydreams mentioned the new LA message system, I wonder how much of the non payment problem is related to the change from email notification to needing to find the contact info on the LA? After not winning anything since July I just had to relearn the new way of finding the seller info again this past week. For me email was easier, the message was right there in my inbox with everything I needed to contact the seller and pay.
Sorry to hear about all the problems. I've bought and sold on the LA and in the past 10 or so years only had one negative experience purchasing where I sent a plant back for being to small.

Char said:Daylilydreams mentioned the new LA message system, I wonder how much of the non payment problem is related to the change from email notification to needing to find the contact info on the LA? After not winning anything since July I just had to relearn the new way of finding the seller info again this past week. For me email was easier, the message was right there in my inbox with everything I needed to contact the seller and pay.
Sorry to hear about all the problems. I've bought and sold on the LA and in the past 10 or so years only had one negative experience purchasing where I sent a plant back for being to small.

I'm not sure about the non-payment since I think the info is in the invoice though not all sellers use that feature. What I think it is absolutely contributing to is the lack of communication between buyer and seller regarding payment. It seems that those who know will send a message saying 'I'm paying by check' while others may be replying to the e-mail and that word is never relayed to the seller.

I agree. I found the change confusing at first and still forget to use the LA message system until I realize I haven't received a message yet from the seller. Then I check and see that they sent me a message confirming my payment and when they will mail out my purchase. I just have to get used to checking my messages on LA.

I wonder if Mike did that to better follow-up on business transactions and any issues on the LA between sellers and buyers?

I have had one seller send me a fixed price item. I was out bid on a couple of the plants she was offering. She then sent me an invitation (fixed price) on the same plant priced at my last bid. I did buy both items that way.

Oh that is really cool! I didn't know some sellers do that.

I have had 2 seed sellers send me a bonus packet of seeds of one or both of the parent crosses I lost a bid on. That was a really nice surprise! They actually noted who was in the bidding war and who lost yet won another auction of theirs. That kind of seller really stands out from the rest. You can tell they go that extra mile for their customers. I know many sellers don't have the time to do that. But it sure stands out in my mind the next time I go looking at seed auctions or seedling auctions.

Cindy (Hemlady) was one of those sellers. I like getting seeds from her! She is always very generous. And for those that may not know ... she is currently offering FREE seeds for postage: http://garden.org/thread/view_...

The main reason Mike added this message system is because sooooo many people would say they never got the email from either a seller or buyer. Mike had heard this I'm sure more time than he cares to count and most of the time it is an excuse on the non-replier's part. This system was so there would be a record of the contact. It is a good system if people use it, but some don't know how. Part of that is because some don't read the "do not auto-reply" part of the message. If I send a message through the LA and don't hear back I will send another. If I don't hear back on that one I will send an actual email since the buyers email is on the invoice.

I think the second most used excuse for not communicating, etc is that their internet was out. That could very well be true but when I see you bidding on the auction yet can't shoot me a quick note to let me know something it is so irritating. I have learned the ones who buy too much and then will take awhile to pay and they are good for it and I tell them as long as they communicate with me I am fine with them paying a little at a time.

No problem with the new system for me. I get a notice in my regular mail that I've sent one or received one. I would pay instantly if I could, but feel I need to confirm the amount with the seller since I pay by personal check. Still, that check is ready to go as soon as that happens. After that it's a matter of USPS doing what they are in the business of doing. I'm such a low usage participant, there's not a lot of experience. When I balanced the old check book today, I saw that the check cleared my account in 7 days. Since payment was supposed to be within 10 days, that seemed okay. I like having the paper trail where a third party can weigh in. That's as long as the transaction is within the LA, of course. If things are added or outside of bidding and selling, then it wouldn't be reasonable to involve the LA admin in that. IMO.

I cant say In all these years, Ive had to really communicate more than once or twice with a seller. This year has been a bit different. Mainly Ive written sellers to se if they mind you not paying, until your done bidding. Ive gotten responses from all of them. For the first time, Ive written a seller telling them I got bad seeds. Those, Ive heard nary a word. For that reason alone, I like the new system. Even if I never hear back, there is a trail, and Mike will know, and that makes me feel somewhat better. Heck, I dont even really expect my money back. I was mainly wanting them to check their other seeds. One of the sellers, gets good reviews, but there is something amiss. He has great crosses and a couple pages of listings, but never gets more than one...maybe two bids out of his auctions. I would love to have some more of his seeds, but that aint happening. To bad too, because most are probably good seeds.

A random seedling, put it up to not make it look like I didnt talk too much

That's a very nice seedling -- love the bright green throat with those colors!

Sometimes, I pay later than the expectations.

None of the four venders have ever given me a negative comment. I have established a very good relationship with them.

This last spring, two venders contacted me about the loss of four plants because of the winter. Michele offered a list of great plants for me to select replacements. Mark sent me a check and an explanation.

I was most satisfied with both.

Does "Oldrelicsse" have shipping issues?
A recent buyer states "The plants finally arrived yesterday...thank the Lord!"

Ive only bought seeds. Havent had an issue with those. Ill have to go check his auctions