Please check your spam folder.
Unfortunately, due to time pressure we do not reply to emails about the following:
Plant identification
Advice regarding plants purchased from other retailers
Insurance quotes
Landscaping advice
Tree removal
Selling trees (to us)
Anything already covered on our website
Yes, but only rare or in demand species.
Please be aware that in most cases seed may be obtained from our own gardens or from existing contacts at reasonable
prices so be sensible in your expectations.
It is likely that we would wish to test the viability of seed prior to agreeing price.
Thank you, that’s very kind of you, but please don’t.
Ordering Plants
Plant sizes are defined using:
Height (from the top of the bag to around the middle of the tallest leaves). We don’t measure to the very tip of a newly emerging spike or anything devious like that.
Bag size (as PB or in litres)
Yes, at present all online orders must exceed $500 (incl. GST). Below this the cost and effort of handling shipping becomes uneconomical.
Unless it's an extra-large palm where there's considerable variability, then unfortunately no. Please see the photographs on our website for an example of the species and grade.
Yes.
We shall contact you directly with a personalised quote for your order.
To assist us please provide your full delivery address along with a contact name and telephone number (for the quote and if different for the recipient).
Freight quotes are subject to the carrier's validity period (usually four weeks).
Plant quotes are valid for one month but are no guarantee of availability until a deposit or payment is made.
Payment for online sales may be made via bank transfer.
We are still arranging the best payment method for onsite sales and will advise accordingly.
We endeavour to do this for a week or so whenever possible.
To ensure that a plant is put aside for later purchase for up to two months we require a non-refundable 10% deposit.
Longer periods require a non-refundable 20% deposit.
If it's not listed on the website, then it's not currently available.
All of the larger grades currently available are listed on our extra-large grades page.
Smaller and lower value products take up too much of our time to prepare and ship so we've taken the decision to only offer
these onsite and/or through a specialist retailer.
Some plants are proscribed as problem plants by the Auckland Regional Council. We make no comment on the politics behind this but abide by the regulations accordingly.
No.
Delivery
Yes. We do not move plants or arrange shipping until payment has been made in full.
In most cases we ship within a week, but this is subject to availability of transport, road closures, weather conditions and other factors.
Where possible we shall communicate this to you at the time of ordering.
Since freight to some destinations (particularly the South Island) can be very expensive we are examining bulk shipping as an option.
In such cases it may be that plants are freighted only twice a year to these locations.
Again, this will be communicated at the time of ordering.
This is a minefield and one that's best left to the customer and carrier to agree upon.
We shall notify you of the carrier used and (where applicable) the tracking number.
It is your responsibility to arrange a delivery time that suits you and the carrier.
Note that this is entirely subject to the carrier's conditions of carriage.
For most smaller grade plants this isn't required.
For extra-large grades we shall discuss delivery and unloading with you directly.
Any other requirements will be communicated at the time of ordering.
Unbelievably we do get asked this on occasion by customers all over the country.
No, sorry, we don't. Please contact a local garden contractor.
Problems
Please get in touch with us within 48 hours of receipt of the plants with clear photographs and a description of the damage.
We shall do all we can to refund or replace the plants as appropriate.
We try to carefully pack all plants but on occasion leaves get bent or damaged in transit.
We will not replace or refund plants subject to minor, reasonable damage.
We make a strenuous effort to minimise the amount of insecticide used at the nursery.
Since most plants are grown outdoors or in shade-houses nature does a good job of keeping most pests at bay.
That said, minor infestations of mealybug, aphids and similar pests do occur.
We're quick to eradicate these and generally pick this up before shipping any plant.
Should you discover a pest (either on leaves or in the soil) they can invariably be eradicated using available treatments from most garden centres
or from Kiwicare.
If the plant came from us within a reasonable time period, then of course we shall try to help.
Otherwise, please contact whoever you purchased the plant from.
Miscellaneous
At present the nursery is open by appointment only. Please get in touch if you'd like to visit. If you can't make it, then do please let us know.
We intend to open regularly for onsite sales in the near future. Please refer to the onsite sales page for more information.
Yes, to the best of our knowledge.
Some species are extremely variable so we might add additional detail (e.g. 'blue form').
Be aware that many species have multiple synonyms. We don't always use the current approved synonym where the plant
is better known under a different synonym. For example, the familiar Butia capitata is in fact Butia odorata
whilst the true B. capitata is unlikely to be present in New Zealand.
All plants sold are permitted by the MPI Biosecurity Index. Note that the Index is somewhat out-of-date, and the species
name we use may reflect a more recent synonym.
For some plants the true variety (subspecies or cultivar) is something of a mystery. For example, we have various
Phoenix dactylifera which look quite different from each other. In a variable species such as P. dactylifera
– not to mention one that hybridises so freely – only an expert can advise on the true nature of a particular plant
(they're also likely to disagree with each other). For this reason we sell these with a photograph and description of the form
and leave the buyer to decide based upon the aesthetics alone.
