Heya! Sorry to keep shifting our location, but I think here is good. :-)
We discussed doing a spring order for Lilies and possibly also dahlias from Ednie this year, rather than ADR... mostly just to try another supplier with different varieties to offer. The idea pretty much got shoved to the back burner while we put together our fall orders, but it's time to put it into gear! I don't think this will become a really big group buy, but I think we can put together enough orders for a crate or two.
As with our other bulb buys, this will be for LOCAL PICKUP ONLY, hopefully timed for distribution at the spring swap (which I'm hosting). Sorry, but I will not ship bulbs. The usual disclaimer applies -- I'm not a retailer, so I can't afford to absorb a loss if something really unexpected happens. With group buys, we all share the risk. If something goes wrong and I can't get a refund, you will still owe me for your share. If anything comes up at your end, please let me know. Communication is key!
That said, Ednie Flower Bulb (
http://www.ednieflowerbulb.com ) has a solid reputation. I have not organized a group buy with them before, but I have participated and helped juggle numbers for a couple of co-ops they've supplied. They advertise the same bulb size as ADR (whom we've used for lilies in the past), are slightly cheaper, and offer some different varieties. So, I thought we'd give them a try. I do have some credit with ADR, so we'll place at least one more order with them... maybe for fall bulbs and amaryllises again. :-)
Dave Dowling, my sales contact at Ednie, has offered us a capped/reduced shipping price of $10 per crate (a crate generally holds 6 or 7 bags of lilies, a "bag" being 25 bulbs). If we do not go over $250 for our order total, we'll incur a small order charge of $12.50. With asiatic lilies at 59 cents per bulb and orientals at 85 cents per bulb, even with those additional charges, their prices look like a heck of a good deal. So, let's give this a try!
He says the Dahlias are starting to sell out, so we need to move quickly if we want some. (UPDATE at the seed swap, we didn't seem to have any interest in dahlias, so for now I'm not listing them in this swap... LMK if you are interested in them.)
We're getting these great prices by buying wholesale, in bulk bags of 25 bulbs. We can't order 34 bulbs, it has to be 25 (or 50). So this is a co-operative effort, and I expect everybody to be flexible and willing to help each other out. If there's a variety you really want, be sure to talk it up!
I'll start a running list of varieties under consideration in the next post. If one or more people express interest in at least 10 lily bulbs or dahlia tubers (out of 25 in a bag), I'll put it on the list. Starting out with multiples of 5 will help us make numbers... it's also helpful to me if you indicate min. & max. numbers that you would take of a variety, if you are willing to be flexible. We generally juggle numbers to make everybody pretty happy in the end.
Post your interest and your order numbers ON THIS THREAD. Do not Dmail, Cmail, or tree-mail me with orders.
Thanks!!
'Sedna', an OT or orienpet hybrid lily, photo from Ednie
