Why do cuttings travel better than rooted plants ?

http://aleyagarden-hoya-list.blogspot.com/2013/05/you-over-watered-my-plants-when-you.html

When we take plants out of their normal substrate and wash their roots, or take cuttings, they go right into shock and start a kind of survival program. The more material they have to sustain, the more energy it will take, and roots are a very precious part for the plant so it will try to save them. When plants/cuttings have light, they can produce energy (in the form of sugar) in their leaves by photosynthesis, which will be transported down to the roots for feeding them. An uprooted plant will survive if it finds itself somewhere on the soil where it can grow new roots into. When plants are in a box with no light, however, they will "suck" the energy from the leaves which will thereby be harmed. For traveling in darkness it is better to not have roots, so the unrooted cutting remains in a state of shock; it will be dormant and the leaves sustain themselves for quite some time, so when times become better (i.e. the cuttings arrive in loving hands that pot them up and give them light and humidity) they still have enough energy to put into the formation of new roots. Without enough humidity in the surrounding air ( that can be provided by a terrarium or a large plastic bag ) plants or cuts will shed their leaves in the hours that follow unpacking.

You over / under / watered my plants when you packed !

We don't add water, we squeeze the coco or moss that contains the roots and let the water evaporate, at the same time evapotranspiration occurs through the stomata, several hours before closing the parcel :

 

 In reality a " perfect humidity " does not exist before the plant is shipped because we can't predict the meteo data with enough accuracy.

Only after arrival can we say : " the plant has rot so the bag was too wet " or  " it has dehydrated so it was not hydrated enough in the bag. " Such statements are never wrong, they are just tautological.

So how do we know that humidity is in the best possible range ?  We know it from visual data, from touch, from pressure exerted on the coco, from the weight of the bag : after several hours of transpiration our index should need to exert a slight pressure on the hydrated paper in order to pierce it. If the finger passes through too easily, it's too wet; and rot will have more chance on rainy days during the travel : the roots or other parts may rot and lyse as would do a clean and dry cucumber inside a perfectly clean plastic bag after a week or so ...  but this packing may be perfect for dry and hot air. If the exerting pressure is too high dehydration may start too fast ... but this packing may be perfect for cold and humid air.

Hoya , Fern and other plant collections are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com Find all Aleyagarden posts on this page, address : http://aleyagarden-blog.blogspot.com/

Can you send parcels with reinforced cardboard ?

We use standard parcels of the post and we can reinforce them if you notify us when placing your order; but the weight and postage would increase accordingly.

 However in some situations even much stronger and heavier reinforced cardboard could not challenge exceptional smashes or energetic opening / closing below standard of parcels by  postal staff at the customs.

 

Hoya , Fern and other plant collections are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog.
Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com Find all Aleyagarden posts on this page, address : http://aleyagarden-blog.blogspot.com/

Risk of mishandled parcels by the Posts

The risk of mishandled parcels by the Posts seems to be lowering with time; is this improving situation linked to the fact that the tracking systems are also improving ?

However a risk always exists ( the picture below shows a report of incorrect arrival at facility ) and some sellers tend to believe that mishandling at Posts and Customs is more frequent with EMS than with small parcels, ( hence, they think that Small Parcel is a better option for the price.)

Is it because EMS parcels go more often through customs where some operations cannot be automated ?

As long as tracking is not fully reported and available online the users of the postal services cannot compare the frequencies of mishandling, from Small Parcel Air to  EMS. But they are low.

Hoya , Fern and other plant collections are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com Find all Aleyagarden posts on this page, address : http://aleyagarden-blog.blogspot.com/

Hoya cembra and Hoya odorata leaves look similar, however the new leaves of Hoya cembra are reddish, those of Hoya odorata are always green

Hoya , Fern and other plant collections are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Find all Aleyagarden posts on this page, address : http://aleyagarden-blog.blogspot.com/

Hoya brevialata, Hoya incurvula : different leaves and flowers

It may happen that Hoya brevialata and Hoya incurvula are identified as a single species, but they are really different : brevialata on the right below has light green leaves and its tips are often more rounded. The flowers are larger.

 

 

Hoya , Fern and other plant collections are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Find all Aleyagarden posts on this page, address : http://aleyagarden-blog.blogspot.com/