What: 2017 Spring Plant Swap
Registration Begins: Wednesday, February 21, 2017 at 7:00pm
Trading Begins: Tuesday, April 18 at 7:00pm
Trading Ends: Wednesday, May 3 at 7:00pm

What: 2017 Spring Plant Swap
Date: Saturday, May 6, 2017
Time: Noon to 4:30 pm
Where: Jan's place in Pennsville, NJ (Just across the Delaware Memorial Bridge). Directions will be posted at a later date.
Who: NGA Members and their guests (scroll down thread for list of party-goers)

VERY IMPORTANT NOTE
You will notice that trading ends Wednesday evening before the swap. This is to allow those persons that may begin travelling on Friday enough time to prepare their swap items.

This thread is for chat about the 2017 Spring Plant Swap. We'll use the seed swap tool to make pre-swap requests. A link to the swap tool will be provided at a later date.

As with the seed swap in February...

• I know a couple of people may just keep lists on the side and not utilize the online tool, and some may simply bring their plants to the swap. That’s fine! There are even a few people each year who come just to catch up with friends and “talk plants” with people whose eyes won’t glaze over in 3 minutes. It’s all good!

• Instructions will be posted below on finding and using the seed swap tool.

• Once you've put a variety on your list, remember you need to click the box to "activate" it for this swap. (The online tool saves the descriptions so you don't have to re-enter them for different swaps.)

• The seed swap tool limits the number of requests you can make per day. This helps "share the wealth." Within a few days of the swap starting, you'll have more than enough 'dibs'

• You can use the “wish list” feature of the swap tool at any time to make note of seeds you’d like to put “dibs” on during trading.

• Please respect the start date (TBA) and the way seed swap tool works. Don’t ask people to set aside plants for you ahead of time, and don’t promise listed plants to people before they have officially called "dibs" on a packet.

• Please use the tool to request plants. The discussion makes this pre-swap-day trading fun and exciting, but making requests in multiple ways defeats the ease of using the swap tool. Use this thread to chat up what you have, ask questions, gauge the interest in a particular variety, or to say, “I just put dibs on your purple firecracker seeds, thanks so much!”

• If somebody wants to offer seeds in a different way, that’s fine, but please be considerate and use the tool when requesting seeds from the online list.

Remember that there are tolls on #95 and the Del. MEm. BRidge. Easier if you have EZ pass.

There is a one way $4 tool on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge for those who choose the scenic route 50./301! EZPass works for that too.

I think the Scenic Route would be interesting--but I am NOT driving....
Hate to drive I-95 on a weekend! Half the world seems to be cruisinf here or there.

Sally--what do you think? Would route 50./301 appeal to you? It is closer to Judy and you too.
Keep us up to date. Gita.

Jan--Do you want to post a "What foods are you bringing" Thread as we get closer to the Swap date? It helps... The "TOOLS" are waiting...forks, spoons, knives--spatulas, etc...

Looking forward to seeing you all... Gita

That is the plan Gita, hehehe. Think I'll wait til April to do that.

Allison(one wish) and Jen(flowajen) are planning on coming.
I replied to Wind's gardencuizine site and told her. Hopefully she'll see it.
Also rosesarered said she hoped to make it.

Gita,

I was planning on combining the food list with the "who's coming" list when we got closer.

Also, I found Allison (OneWish1), but couldn't find Jen (FlowaJan). I'v added to the "who's coming" list.

She may be flowersjen here. I just remembered her DG name.
Thanks for your help, Rick.

Here are the two threads set up for the Mid-Atlantic Gardeners 2017 Spring Plant Swap being held at Jan's place in Pennsville, NJ.

The first thread is to let us know who is attending and what food or beverage item they are bringing for the pot luck lunch.
2017 Spring Plant Swap

The second thread is for general chat about the swap. This thread also contains information on how the swap will be conducted.
2017 Spring Plant Swap CHAT

If you have any questions, please feel free to post them to the chat thread.

If you've never been to an in-person swap, don't be shy! After all, where else can you go and hang out with a bunch of people talking about plants with enthusiasm?

More and more of us are experiencing warm spells that are allowing us to get out and play in the dirt (YAAAAY!). As such, we're starting to sort things out as to what we want to offer.

By opening registration early, people can start building their plant lists in the swap tool and use it as a way of keeping track of their planned offerings. It will also allow us to start figuring out what we may be looking for.

Because of the really screwy weather we're having this year, I am going to open the registration for Jan's May swap on February 21.

I realize that this gives us 2 months before trading actually begins, but I think it will help people stay organized.

Also, for those that are unfamiliar with the swap tool, it will give them plenty of time to play around, ask questions, etc.

Date Reminders:
- Registration NOW OPEN at https://garden.org/apps/swap/view/10/
- Trading Begins Tuesday, April 18, 2017
- Trading Ends Wednesday, May 3, 2017
- In-Person Swap Saturday, May 6, 2017

This swap is being hosted by Jan and Jeff in Pennsville, New Jersey. Directions will be posted the week of the swap.

There are two threads set up for the Mid-Atlantic Gardeners 2017 Spring Plant Swap.

The first thread is to let us know who is attending and what food or beverage item they are bringing for the pot luck lunch.
2017 Spring Plant Swap

The second thread is for general chat about the swap. This thread also contains information on how the swap will be conducted.
2017 Spring Plant Swap CHAT

If you have any questions, please feel free to post them to the chat thread.

If you've never been to an in-person swap, don't be shy! After all, where else can you go and hang out with a bunch of people talking about plants with enthusiasm?

Love your last point, Rick... most people's eyes glaze over after a couple minutes of plant talk!

Joyanna and I puttered outside a bit yesterday... I cut back the black pussy willow a good bit. It's a gorgeous rounded shrub, but it was never meant to stay on the edge of the dining room bed... it just got too big to move when I wasn't looking! I want to put tomatoes in that bed this year, so it had to be "slimmed" LOL. Of course that means lots of cuttings! I stuck some big branches in the ground for a "pea fence" along the basement stairwell... they probably won't root, but we stuck some other pretty big cuttings that might. Then I took a couple dozen cuttings inside and ended up cutting shorter pieces off them for use in arrangements and as amaryllis supports (yes, I'm really really late getting them going this year!). I left the "stubs" in water, and since they have plenty of leaf buds, I bet they'll root. Plus the pieces stuck into amaryllis pots might root also. So, with any luck, I'll have a bunch of rooted cuttings to offer at the swap!

I dug out a few dwarf bearded irises when I was puttering around a couple weeks ago and will stick those rhizomes into pots also -- that's the white and yellow one you might have seen blooming by my mailbox last spring. Those clumps are still way too dense; hoping I'll be able to dig and divide properly this summer.

The above led me to updating my list for the upcoming swap. I put some things like basil on the list even though they are newly sown... if there's a "crop failure" I'll remove them, but I sowed plentifully so am hoping to have lots to share. it's been several years since I've had a nice variety of basil for my gardens and containers, so we're concentrating on them this year.

How many people are interested in hot peppers? I've sowed just a few so far but will probably get more going, and when I up-pot them it's useful to know if people want the extras or if I should toss some... LMK also if you like super hot or milder varieties. I think I have a few 'Mariachi' and 'Pizza Pepper' seeds that are about at the "use them or lose them" stage.

Sweet peppers are in more limited supply, since I use hybrid seeds and didn't order more this year. However, if I get good germination I should be able to offer extra 'Sweet Pickles' peppers, which are adorable enough to put into landscape beds and tasty enough to eat off the bush (seeds & all).

Critter, I would love some of the dwarf yellow and white iris, and Jamie and Deb are looking for any type of peppers. Not sure if they will make it to the swap but peppers are on their wish list.
I haven't used the Swap Tool yet. When can we start filling that in?

Holly,

Registration is now open. Once you register, you can start building your list... Swap Tool
Click on the "Mid-Atlantic Gardeners 2017 ·· Spring Plant Swap (IN-PERSON)" link

Dave has a great tutorial on using the swap tool now... easier than going through the instructions I've posted previously (I write lots of little steps 'cause I don't want to miss anything -- but that makes for a long list that can look intimidating before you try it).

If you look at the list for the swap, you'll get the idea of how we're using the fields for the seed swap for plants... instead of number of seeds per packet, describe the plant (tree in 2 gallon pot, seedling not hardened off, etc), that sort of thing.

It's pretty intuitive, and Dave has tweaked it to be more user-friendly yet as we've gone along. :-)

If you enter things now, people can check out what you think you'll have, chat here about them, etc. You can also look at what other people have on the list and mark items with stars to put them on your "wish list" before trading starts... that helps you know just where to "spend" those first few dibs!

I had some "down time" today and went looking for a daylily I want ('Christmas Carol' -- bec. that's what Dad calls Mom around the holidays, his "Christmas Carol")... search led me to Smokey's in MI, a place that's been on my radar for an order for years now. He has some specials on double fans and on 10-fan bundles. $15 for 10 fans is a great deal (assuming it's something you love LOL). Specials are under the "clearance" tab. https://smokeysgardens.com/ind...

If anybody is interested in splitting a bundle of 10 fans, here are the ones that jumped into my cart. (If nobody wants to split, I'll just get a DF for myself). Other than the specials, I'm looking at purple or pink varieties that rebloom & are fragrant (don't want much, do I?), so no problem getting to the $40 for free shipping LOL. Anybody who splits one of the bundles with me is welcome to add something else to the box. If a couple of us want the same DL, there's some savings available in ordering 10-fan bundles, but the "clearance" bundles and double fans (DF) have the best prices.

King of Hearts Daylily (Hemerocallis 'King of Hearts')


Ultraviolet Mood Daylily (Hemerocallis 'Ultraviolet Mood')


Mystical Rainbow Daylily (Hemerocallis 'Mystical Rainbow')


Renaissance Fair Daylily (Hemerocallis 'Renaissance Fair')


I'm also really crushing on

Purple Many Faces Daylily (Hemerocallis 'Purple Many Faces')


Black Fathom Daylily (Hemerocallis 'Black Fathom Depths')


Palace Garden Beauty Daylily (Hemerocallis 'Palace Garden Beauty')


Anybody who finds themselves drooling over DLs... please tree-mail me! I'll get a group tree-mail going so we don't take over this chat. If there's a lot of interest, I'll start a group purchase thread. :-)

There are a couple of big DL clumps in my garden that I could try to split this spring also... and I'm hoping to get a bunch of seeds started soon from a generous packet from Hemlady (Cindy), so I'll have seedlings to share this spring or fall as well. (I'll start all the seeds... between us, we'll find room for them!)

We're up to 26 people and untold hundreds (or maybe thousands) of plants!

Attending (User ID, From) / Food or Beverage Item:
~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~
- Jan and Jeff (Our hosts)
- Allison (OneWish1, NJ)
- Donna (Shy_gardener, Mid-shore, MD)
- Donner (Donnerville, Damascus, MD)
- Ecnalg & GreenThumb99 (Pat & David Lucketts, VA)
- Frenchy (Frenchy21, Falls Church, VA)
- Gita (GitaGal, Baltimore, MD)
- Holly & Ric (HollyAnnS & Eric4Home, S Cntral PA)
- Jen (FlowaJen, via Gita)
- Jill & Joyanna (Critterologist, Frederick, MD)
- John (UncleJohn)
- Lisa O & DH (5601Lisa Washington, DC)
- Mike & Joe (EvergreenMike, Baltimore, MD)
- Rick & Larry (RickM/LarryK, Derwood, MD)
- Robin B (RobinBunch5, Odenton, MD)
- Sally (SallyG, Central MD)
- Susan (Muddy1, Vienna, VA)
- TanteFrancine
- Terri (AspenHill, Lucketts, VA)

Rick, just so you know, you have Pat and me repeated on your list. That's fine though, we'll just go through the dessert line twice.

OOPS! I can fix that. But hey, I'm totally with you on the dessert line.

Sorry to say I won't have much to swap .. unless my seeds grow well...new house I am in need of fill .. if you guys want to.load me up I would be more than grateful

Oh, I think we can manage to spare a few things.

Are you looking for anything in particular?