If you do not see an answer to your question below please contact me.
Purchasing
Do you sell plants year-round?
I operate on a seasonal basis, selling plants in Spring and Fall only. There are a few reasons for this. 1. shipping tropical plants in extreme weather requires alot of extra packaging that ends up in landfills and causes undue stress on plants 2. providing dedicated time for growing and propagating during winter/summer 3. I am a small-time grower and do not have enough inventory to maintain year-round availability.
Do you offer a guarantee?
Live and healthy arrival is guaranteed for all plants regardless of carrier error. If you are dissatisfied with the condition of your plants upon arrival please get in touch immediately and we will find a solution. It is not feasible for me to offer a guarantee past the point of arrival, as your success with plants will depend on the quality of care you provide. Please also note that one damaged leaf on a plant with many leaves does not warrant replacement or reimbursement. I strive to offer generous portions of all species offered, and will never ship a plant that isn’t healthy enough to survive the stress of shipping.
Do you stock every plant each restock?
As of writing this (2023) there are about 300 species on the shop. Historically, I’ve had about half of those available during any given season. In the future I hope to increase the total number of species offered.
Do you sell seeds?
I experimented with this but will not be selling seeds in the foreseeable future. My apologies to those who have inquired about seed.
Shipping
How do you ship plants?
Plants are meticulously shipped in their pots, with cellophane wraps around the foliage taped to the pot to maintain humidity. Pots are taped to the bottom of the box and shipped with paper padding. Growing medium is covered in paper ribbons and taped down around the plant. Even very delicate plants take very well to this way of shipping.
Can I have my plants held at the post office?
Yes! This is often a much safer option when temperatures are borderline, and it saves them from sitting in a potentially hot or cold van for hours prior to arrival. If you plan to have plants arrive during a time when you are not immediately able to receive them, please have them held at the nearest USPS location. To set up this delivery option, please find the most convenient USPS or UPS location for you, and put the address in the shipping section of the order form. If you need help with this, please contact me.
When do you ship?
It is safe to ship when nighty lows and daily highs are between 40-90 for two consecutive days. For some plants more sensitive to cold, a range of 50-85 is required. Before shipping, I check forecasts in your place of residence 100% of the time to make sure it is safe to ship. I can hold plants until the weather in your place of residence is hospitable.
When can I expect my order?
Plants go out within two weeks of purchasing. I ship Monday-Wednesday to avoid weekend delays. You will receive an email notifying you when your order has shipped, with your tracking information. Should temperatures in your area be outside the safe shipping window, you will receive an email of notification with an updated delivery estimate.
What countries and states do you ship to?
I ship plants anywhere in the continental US and will be shipping to Canada in June of 2023 (once). Plants shipped to HI will be shipped bare root and certain plant groups will be unavailable (orchids).
Can you hold plants for me?
Because of limited growing space, I can not hold plants for long. If your temperatures are not suitable for receiving plants I will hold them until they are, but otherwise, please be ready to receive your plants within two weeks of purchasing. Please specify in the notes section of your order if you are unable to receive the plants immediately.
I’m local, can I pickup or get a tour?
I am not doing local pickup or tours at this time.
Account
I made an account. Can you see my personal information?
The only information I can see when you make an account is your name. I cannot view your wishlist or payment info. If you purchase plants, I can see the address you provided in the shipping section.
I don’t want to make an account. Can I still order?
All order notifications and updates are sent through your account portal. For this reason, making an account is required.
Ordering
Do you take pre-orders?
No.
Why are so many plants out of stock?
If you are viewing the store during the offseason, all plants will be listed out of stock to prevent plant purchases during the off-season.
Why do you show out of stock plants?
So that you can keep an eye on plants that you might want in the future. There is a “wish list’ feature so you can easily keep track, and a waitlist so you can sign up to be notified when a particular plant is made available again.
How does the waitlist work?
If a plant is out of stock and you would like to be notified when it is in stock again, you can sign up to be notified via email. It is not a waitlist in the sense that your spot is held. All individuals on the waitlist for a particular plant will be notified when a plant is marked in stock.
Do you offer quantity discounts or wholesale pricing?
If you are looking to purchase more than $500 of plants, please contact me. I do not offer wholesale pricing. If you are a botanic garden, zoo, or other accredited institution, please contact me. There is a small built in discount for larger orders, as shipping is flat rate.
I want to do a biotope tank, how do I find plants from a specific area?
All plants are tagged with the countries and continents they are found in. Input your desired area in the search bar and all the plants from that area will show up.
I want to find a plant of a specific size, what do I do?
All plants are tagged with their relative size. Terms include mini, small, medium, large, and giant. Input the desired size into the search bar and all plants of that size will show up.
I placed an order but want to add additional items, do I have to pay the two shipping charges?
If you put additional orders before your first order has gone out, please put a note in the order form to let me know. I will refund duplicate shipping charges so long as your plants have not gone out yet. If you do not put this note in the order form, I will not know/remember to combine shipping.
Growing Practices
How should I acclimate my plants?
All species will thrive in medium light in a humid enclosed terrarium. Keep out of direct light, so not leave outside a terrarium unless you know it is a species suited to ambient house conditions (95% of the plants I sell are not suited). Keep evenly moist.
Do you grow all the plants you sell?
Yes! I do not purchase plants for resale, only for propagation. This ensures I know enough about each plant to provide growing and care information. Additionally, it ensures that all plants are healthy and pest free at the time of sale. Plants are propagated vegetatively with leaves, rhizomes, or stems, and from seed. Every single plant is propagated from minimal vegetative material and kept separate from mother plants. Best practices and IPM are adhered to for minimizing the opportunity for pest transmission during propagation.
Are these plants ‘frog free’?
Yes!
What are these little bugs on my plant?
Most of the plants I grow share their home with various species of springtails and mites. The springtails are small and narrow, either silver or white. The mites are orangey-pink or white, and move rather quickly. They live predominantly in the soil but will occasionally venture onto plants. Some are soil mites (Orbatid or similar) and others are predatory species (Phytoseiulus and Amblyseisus) purposefully introduced. I also treat all my plants with beneficial nematodes, paper thin worms that consume pests. All these organisms help to create a natural growing environment and fight off pests.
I have a question about growing my plant, what should I do?
If you have questions about care, you can view the specific description for the plant you purchased or view that plant on the blog. Please take into consideration your microclimate, as care guidelines can vary significantly depending on your ambient humidity, temperature, and light. Feel free to contact me with any questions.
Impact
What do you do to curb your environmental impact?
Plants- I work with exporters who responsibly propagate and collect and do not illegally collect CITES plants. Stock plants are treated only with organic pest treatments, and very infrequently. Your plants will not have been treated with anything prior to your receiving them. They are safe to put in terrariums with any kind of animal immediately.
Packaging & Shipping- The boxes used for shipping are recycled and recyclable. Packing paper and padding are reused when possible and 100% recycled and compostable when I run out. Instead of polyfil, shredded paper is used. The only plastic used is the bags used to maintain humidity. The tape used to hold the box together is not reycelable but I am looking into water based tape once I run out of the current stuff. Tape is paper-based with plant based adhesive for individual plant packing. I’m looking into getting recyclable shipping labels for Fall 2023.
Waste- All unused pots, bins, etc, are washed and sterilized after use, to be reused again the following year. All used potting media is responsibly composted. ISO produces very little waste- a majority is from the plastic packaging and polyfil of plants being purchased online.
Energy- 75% of the plants are grown using energy-efficient LED lights, the remaining will be converted in 2023. All energy consumed is from renewable sources through PGE’s renewable energy program.
Do you do anything to help plants in the wild?
10% of all profits are donated to the Rainforest Trust, the Borneo Project, or other conservation organizations. All these nonprofits provide funding for indigenous people to help maintain land rights in areas high in biodiversity. In Search of Small Things is an official sponsor of the Rainforest Trust.
Payment & Returns
What payment types do you take?
Paypal. Setting up an account is easy if you don’t have one already. You can also pay through PayPal even if you don’t have an account, with a credit card. All payments are paid Goods & Services.
Can I return my plants?
Due to the sensitive nature of the plants being offered, no returns are accepted. Please contact me promptly if you are dissatisfied with your order and I will offer replacements or refunds for any plants that arrived in sub-par condition.