Effective way to give away seedlings

[indysun]

Anyone know of an inexpensive effective way to give away extra seedlings?

[eyegrotom]

I take some to the American Legion Post. also to the Local Medical Center that we go to and give them to the Nurses.

[Tormahto]

It depends on what is meant by inexpensive and effective.

A GOOD "home grown" compost usable for starting seeds costs nothing. It may not be as reliable as the store bought kinds of seed starter.

Just before giving away the seedlings, carefully transfer the root ball from what may be a relatively "expensive" container, into something inexpensive, like a free small plastic shopping bag (the bag should be snugged up tight to the root ball, to prevent the root ball from breaking up. A twist tie can be used to keep the plastic bag from loosening up. Even if left in the original container. I recommend the plastic bag, for various reasons that can be figured out.

As for the actual giving them away, pick up or delivery is dependent upon whom they would be donated to. Finding others who would take seedlings in quantity, and having them work on the logistics of final pick up or delivery might be the most effective way on your end.

[MissS]

You can drop them off at a community garden. Leave them outside a food pantry. Offer them on Craig's List and leave them on your driveway. I always unpot mine and put them in cheap baggies then use a Sharpie to write the variety on the bag. The pots are just too dear for me to give away.

[Paulf]

In our little village everyone has to go to the Post Office to pick up mail. I put seedlings on a window ledge for people to take. Also in Facebook there is a section called Marketplace where when they are ready to be planted I put in a blurb that folks can come to my house a take home tomato plants. In Marketplace I ask for a free will donation to help offset expenses. For fellow townspeople at the Post Office it is take them for free.

[slugworth]

community gardens only plant 1 or 2 days out of the year in this area
so you have to hit it just right or they chase you with a hoe.
I even tried giving away horseradish one year and no takers.

[rossomendblot]

I put spares into small, second-hand pots and find people to give them away to on local Facebook groups.

[habitat-gardener]

I have given away hundreds of extras most years. All year I accumulate small pots, so I pot them up in pots I can easily part with. This year and last year I participated in a plant sale in someone’s driveway (made $46, but only about $15 from tomato plants). Last year I offered free plants on NextDoor, Buy Nothing, and local gardening sites on fb. It does end up being a lot of work to reply to requests etc. This year I’ve been trying to plant my whole yard with natives in addition to growing stuff for the community garden plot, so I don’t know if I will find time or energy for a big giveaway.

[Toomanymatoes]

Dropped mine off at two different community gardens not far from me. They have drop-off spots for freebies. I was planning to drop some off at an assisted living retirement home as well. The retirement communities often have small communal gardens.

I up-pot into Solo cups. So, that part is not too expensive. Potting mix.....that is relative. Total cost of potting mix+cup for me this season is about 18 cents. You can definitely get that cost down as already mentioned.

[foxtailferns]

I try to collect as many plastic pots as possible throughout the year from friends and family who buy plants. I also buy trays and inserts from a wholesale nursery supplier--there's a bigger upfront cost, but it ends up being slightly cheaper than solo cups in the long run for me. The potting soil is my most significant cost. I amend it with my own compost and worm castings.

We live in a pretty walkable neighborhood, so I just made a sign that says "Free Plants" and put them out on the stoop. I give away 100-200 plants every year this way and now my neighbors know to watch for them in April and May. Sometimes I post on the Next Door app, but like @habitat-gardener mentioned it usually ends up being a lot of work messaging back and forth and I've had issues trying to reserve plants for people who may never actually make it by to pick them up.

A lot of food banks and pantries have gardens or work with agencies that have gardens and would love to have extra vegetable plants. Our program grew seedlings for community gardens, senior centers, schools, shelters, and we also had several pantries whose clients were so excited to get plants for their home gardens. This was especially true for elderly clients who loved gardening but were living on really tight fixed incomes.

[Tormahto]

I try to collect as many plastic pots as possible throughout the year from friends and family who buy plants. I also buy trays and inserts from a wholesale nursery supplier--there's a bigger upfront cost, but it ends up being slightly cheaper than solo cups in the long run for me. The potting soil is my most significant cost. I amend it with my own compost and worm castings.

We live in a pretty walkable neighborhood, so I just made a sign that says "Free Plants" and put them out on the stoop. I give away 100-200 plants every year this way and now my neighbors know to watch for them in April and May. Sometimes I post on the Next Door app, but like @habitat-gardener mentioned it usually ends up being a lot of work messaging back and forth and I've had issues trying to reserve plants for people who may never actually make it by to pick them up.

A lot of food banks and pantries have gardens or work with agencies that have gardens and would love to have extra vegetable plants. Our program grew seedlings for community gardens, senior centers, schools, shelters, and we also had several pantries whose clients were so excited to get plants for their home gardens. This was especially true for elderly clients who loved gardening but were living on really tight fixed incomes.

At some point one just has to cut out the back and forth messaging. Just forward a message supplying all of the info needed for people to know how to get the free donations. Only respond to messages if you find out your info may be incorrect or very unclear. Upfront, explain that all messages can't be responded to. Reserve plants only for those that have a track record of picking up plants every year.

[Cole_Robbie]

Annual spring plant sales are usually fundraisers. I have seen them at churches and schools. I would think that they might welcome donated plants to resell.

[Tormahto]

All of these responses tells me that there needs to be a plan, and likely a backup plan, well in advance of having seedlings ready to give away.

[slugworth]

They were snarky pre-covid,I don't know about now.
No lettuce,no cabbage,The guy said they have problems with bugs.
I told him to put in a fall crop,he looks at me like I have 2 heads.No pun intended.
No potatoes,which you would think would be a staple for soup kitchens along with the cabbage.
A shame,since I would give them tomato plants that have ripe tomatoes in july instead of august.

[indysun]

Thanks for all the comments/suggestions. I will definetly have 200 or so to pass on and was looking for better ways than I have "given" in the past and you'all helped.
Thank you

[indysun]

Opps, it will be down from 300 given last year, and only 45 plants grown for myself this year rather than the 120 grown last year. If i do NOT decide to put 2 plants per hole

[Toomanymatoes]

Opps, it will be down from 300 given last year, and only 45 plants grown for myself this year rather than the 120 grown last year. If i do NOT decide to put 2 plants per hole

Two plants per hole? Definitely curious about how that has worked out for you. Considered that myself.

[Tormahto]

There's a thread somewhere discussing 2 per hole. I've done it many times. To sum it up, bad weather magnifies problems.

If you're looking for high production from each plant, it is not recommended. If you are looking to sample as many varieties as possible, it is recommended. You may be getting a relatively small sample from each plant. I do not prune, so I do not know if heavy pruning of two plants to a hole would be the best way to go.

My biggest recommendation is to never go "all in" in trying something for the first time. Some single plants, and some 2-to-a-hole plants would be the safest plan. My own method is to usually have the favorites, perhaps about 10 varieties, as singles, and the 100+ others doubled up.

[foxtailferns]

I try to collect as many plastic pots as possible throughout the year from friends and family who buy plants. I also buy trays and inserts from a wholesale nursery supplier--there's a bigger upfront cost, but it ends up being slightly cheaper than solo cups in the long run for me. The potting soil is my most significant cost. I amend it with my own compost and worm castings.

We live in a pretty walkable neighborhood, so I just made a sign that says "Free Plants" and put them out on the stoop. I give away 100-200 plants every year this way and now my neighbors know to watch for them in April and May. Sometimes I post on the Next Door app, but like @habitat-gardener mentioned it usually ends up being a lot of work messaging back and forth and I've had issues trying to reserve plants for people who may never actually make it by to pick them up.

A lot of food banks and pantries have gardens or work with agencies that have gardens and would love to have extra vegetable plants. Our program grew seedlings for community gardens, senior centers, schools, shelters, and we also had several pantries whose clients were so excited to get plants for their home gardens. This was especially true for elderly clients who loved gardening but were living on really tight fixed incomes.

At some point one just has to cut out the back and forth messaging. Just forward a message supplying all of the info needed for people to know how to get the free donations. Only respond to messages if you find out your info may be incorrect or very unclear. Upfront, explain that all messages can't be responded to. Reserve plants only for those that have a track record of picking up plants every year.

Exactly. If I post this year, I plan to say that I won't be able to respond to any messages and will delete the post when I see that the seedlings are gone. Despite a few hassles most people are very nice and appreciative. We've had several neighbors stop and thank us if they walked by while we were working in the yard or sitting on the porch. And I love anything that leads to more gardeners in the neighborhood!

[rxkeith]

work, and church are good places to disperse extra plants.
i brought several micro tomatoes to work last year and had them growing in the front window.
they weren't for sale, but i had several requests to buy them. you could try selling some plants.
that would help defray cost of seeds, dirt etc.


keith