Is it safe to ship plants?

[JCarnes]

I am just starting my freshwater planted aquarium and there are several plants that I would like to purchase but can not find locally. I have found several websites that will ship plants, however I am wondering what sites people have used in the past and if it is safe to order plants during the winter?

I live in PA and it is cold (highs in the teens lately). The site I am considering ordering from would be two day shipping and I would have them delivered to my work so they did not sit outside. Im worried about spending money and having useless plants...

Any experience/advice?

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[Brian_Nano12g]

I was a bit apprehensive about ordering plants online as you are now. I've ordered from the classifieds "buy/sell" section in The Planted Tank (TPT) forum without problems. What's good about that is there's a rating system there called pTrader that hobbyists use to provide feedback on smooth or bad transactions. If you choose to order plants from other hobbyists, I know a couple of guys there that have developed a good rep. There's many more, but off the top of my head, there's barthog, h4n, and plantbrain.

There's hobbyists here in the classifieds, too.

If it's going to be cold, request a heat pack option.

Any plants in particular you are looking for?

For websites, I'd go with Peabody's Paradise. A mod here in AA runs that site/company and delivers on excellent quality (plants, root tabs, etc.). Stay away from eBay when the seller is overseas (i.e. Asia). You don't want to get busted by customs. There's also an online retailer by the name of AZgardens.com. I've heard too many horror stories.

 

[JCarnes]

I have a low light low tech set up. I have java fern (narrow leaf and windelov) two anubias nana, and an amazon sword in a new 55 gallon setup.

I am trying to order more anubias varieties, sagittaria, and water sprite.

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[Old Scales]

I just got a plant order from plantedaquariumcentral.com. I am TOTALLY pleased with their service. They packed my plants in wet newspaper, then in a big plastic bag, then wrapped with the pink fiberglass insulation like in your house, then in the cardboard box. They had a tips sheet on top inside telling how to acclimate the plants by letting them get to room temp before opening and putting in your tank. It said as long as the plants don't actually freeze, them being cold is a good thing, same as coolers in florist shops. So I learned something. All the plants were thick stemmed, green and healthy. They even threw in extras. I emailed them with a question and they e mailed me back within an hour even though it was late in the day. I WILL be ordering form them again! OS.