I'm a bargain hunter for the most part and can't seem to pay a lot of $$$ for a plant, but my hubby spent $65 I think? on a very small plant I really wanted ( a pretty rare Hoya) at that time...several years ago...its more common now and the price has come down quite a bit. I think that's the reason I can't seem to pay a high ticket price for a single plant because there are SO many plants out there to choose from and the rare and unusual ones eventually drop in price, so I wait,lol...and if it doesn't I move on...

But there is definitely nothing wrong with spending your money on something that will make you happy, I'm all for that, if you can afford it I say "go for it" life is too short :o)

This post was edited by puglvr1 on Thu, Oct 17, 13 at 9:06

Fine with me if folks want to too, but don't remember paying more than $19 for any house plant. Do you really have house plants in Z10? I get the impression your potted plants are all outside, Gary? You and TropicB are constantly teasing us!

This is why it took FOREVER (decades) to find a Monstera. On the rare occasions I ever saw one for sale, it was big & too $$$.

I have paid a little more than that for landscape plants, but probably $25-$30 tops.

Morning,

Gary, I hope you love your seedling palm...WOW! :)

I paid 75.00 for my Gardenia tree in 1995.
95% of my plants were under 10.00.
Very seldom would I pay 20.00 these days..
The plant would have to water, repot and fertilize itself before paying over 20.00 nowadays. lol.

Pug!!! Hi!! How are you? It's been ages. My goodness, so glad you're back.
I pray you and your fam are well.

Morning Purple. Hope you're well, too. Toni

"The plant would have to water, repot and fertilize itself before paying over 20.00" I like doing this stuff, but this cracked me up pretty hard! Good rule, girl. Mornin'!

Hey Purple,

Happy to make you laugh. Laughing is good for the soul. :)

You get me thinking Philo, Pink Princess..oh brother! lol

Still have a load of plants outside that need to come in. Temps are in the 50's, nights 40's.
Don't know where plants were located last year.
And now you have me thinking PP. lol.

Stopped at HD the other day..an employee got to talking. Before I left the store, at checkout, she ran up to me, then handed me a bunch of Wandering Jew cuttings.
I can sure afford free plants now.

Hi Toni!!! Very nice to see you too, I'm well and so is the family, Thanks!! I hope you and yours are doing well also, I've missed seeing you on the forum :o)

"The plant would have to water, repot and fertilize itself before paying over 20.00"
ROFL...Love it Toni!...Hilarious!!

I'm with Toni (Hi!) on this one....The most I ever shelled out for a houseplant was about $15 and that was for a Kalanchoe 'Fantastic', which is a pretty rare plant around here (and I waited for the price to drop from $25). It died within about 3 months, which is the exact reason I don't like to pay much for even the rare plants. I would, however pay up to $30 for a decent sized (at least 6 inches) Aloe polyphylla. I guess I'm pretty cheap, but when you know what plants can be grown from cuttings, why wouldn't you be?
Nancy

I think the most I've ever payed for a plant was $15 on a Hoya carnosa 'Chelsea.' It took me a month to break down and buy it because I thought $15 was too much lol.

Planto

Purple
i grow mostly in pots due to the poor soil and many can't stay out year around so I guess you'd call them semi-house plants.?lol Even in 10 you can be a zone stretcher lol
Most of what I grow are generally classified as "house plants " for various reasons though most spend most of the year outdoors though i also grow several in the House" GH" year around in this case to avoid the heat rather than the cold lol
I was just curious if people are really paying the asking prices that i see at shows?? For example the Fairchild ramble costs 20 bucks for admission. Somebody obviously is because the shows get bigger every year lol
i can sort of understand why orchids and palms are
higher than the average plant due to the difficulties of propagation and the amount of time involved but I usually limit myself to under 20 bucks lol gary

Gary, I'm glad I asked, that's fascinating. (And informative for fantasizing about lower latitudes!)

And yes, I understand too, not saying anybody's charging too much in general for plants out there. I'm sure they're charging what the market will bear, the correct price, IMVHO. Even if it is easy to propagate something, buying one already growing in a pot means that hurdle's already been jumped, and you get the pot and the peat which, love or hate 'em, aren't cheap either. Then there's the cost of shipping and running a store.

I don't know anything about orchids or assortments of palms, but my biggest complaint about a lot of plants is that some are only ever available as a big, expensive thing, the most common being the hanging basket plants. That's what I'd like them to look like eventually, but would be happy to start with a much smaller, cheaper pot. Ficus are another common one, F. benjamina is usually braided or already a big tree, F. elastica already 4-5 feet tall, and way above my price range for a single plant (and space in the house.)

Oh, and the Monstera I mentioned acquiring recently is probably not M. deliciosa but one of the other species. I do love the one I found, but the search continues...

I like to look at it differently, in the 3 or 4 years I've back into plants, I still haven't spent a grand in PLANTS yet, add soil water and heat, and that's busted!
I think I've done pretty well, I have several hundred pots and clumps of plants, totaling thousands of individuals. I landscaped the entire yard with what I've generated over the years, I'd have put a $5000 tag on the bill for the landscaping...atleast...

I can't recall paying more that $20 for any plant, but I may have in the past.
Now if I can't trade for, ill just wait, and sell plants, not buy them!

Morning,

Pug, glad you and yours are fine.

I'm serious about a self-caring plant. :)

Nancy.. Sorry about your Kalanchoe. :(

Too bad you didn't root leaves. I'm not sure what K. Fantastic looks like but will Google.

About Aloe polyphylla. I adore this Aloe. Aloes are easy keeping, right? Not the poly.
A year or two ago, my dh purchased one from Logee's.
I went to the Succulent Forum to ask about its care. A member said to water by tilting the pot. It's a very complicated succulent.
Dh paid, 'forgot the price, lol,, and at the minimum, 11 and change for shipping. Standard shipping at Logee's.
A. poly died within a month.
I once bought A. poly seeds..they never germinated.

You chose one of the most lovely Aloes though.

I guess spending 'x' amount depends on ones income and space. Something I'm out of. lol.

Besides A. poly, I really want C. streyi variegata..Anyone know where I can find one? At a reasonable price, of course.

You're surely not cheap..Plant prices increased big time the last few years.
These days, we must be thrifty spending.

I think I paid ã800 ($1200 ish?) for a single plant once, but I buy some pretty big ones!

I was thinking and I think the most I have spent on a single plant is 10.00. The highest plant purchase at that 10.00 is Orchids. They always get me when I am shopping and see them in bloom. I have killed more orchids than probably anyone around. I buy at least 3 a year.

I am not a very diligent plant grower so I know unless a plant is a real survivor it is dead under my care.

I will not mix soils, When they are indoors for the winter they may get a sip of water once a month. They are ignored.

Because of my care mentality I will not spend a lot because it would be a waste of money and I am cheap. lol

S.Jon. WOW! Do you recall the plant? That's a LOT of money. Hope it's still alive. :))

Hi Marquest,

No matter how well you care or neglect your plants, I've seen your pics. They do beautifully.
Neglect is sometimes plants' success.

I've seen succulents priced over $1,000. If the wife would allow me, I would give it serious thought. Some of them are 50-100 years old. I could never grow something like that in my life time.

Rob

Hi
i find shopping one of the MOST difficult parts of plant collecting lol I'm blessed /cursed with a gazillion nursuries in my area so there is always temptation to impulse buy or worse shop by price lol. Huge variation in price between nurseries as well as quality . i used to get catalogs from various nurseries and then wait until the combined shows to buy . That way you know the price and that they actually have it, and best of all you get to see before you fork over the cash lol
loved the fairchild ramble but admission fee is up to 20 bucks as well as gas getting there and back so easily have spent 50 before entering lol. Even the local show is up to 10. . Rethinking my shopping theories lol
once attended the World Orchid Conf. thinking i'd be dazzled with species I can only dream about but was surprised with the variety of sales . Everything from specimen sized to 2 buck cuttings !!!
there were the 1500 dollar "cuttings " of course lol
Another interesting aspect is "haggling" lol After all if the show is over they'll have to take it back . I'm NOT very good at iot though lol gary

It would've been a big specimen Ficus of some kind with a decent stem.

In fact I think it was this pair that were about ã800 each. Bear in mind those pots are 1m diameter.

Hmm. I think the most I ever spent was $30 for my Philodendron bipinnatifidum. It was 6' wide and gorgeous. But most of my plants have been for the price of postage or under $5.

I have quite a few plants in the $20-25 range ... but those are my orchids. Most of my other plants have been under $5.

Well, if talking out side plants. I bought a tri-color beech for about $125. Then found one a year latter for $25 on clearance. Both are in my front yard on each side of the main walkway to my front porch. I trim 2 feet off them every year to keep them at 12 feet. I would go places with my friend who spent at least $200 on a tree then have no where in his yard to plant it and I end up coming home with one he had to get rid of. I have some rare jap. maples that way. Also my chocolate mimosa. A deal for $20.
Not to talk about total each year spent on plants. Now that is something no one wants to talk about.
Stush