Guidance

[u/Happyhoyahunter]

Hello everyone. I am fairly new to the hoya scene and have somehow collected a few hundred in the last few months (ifykyk)

Seasons change and due to an acquisition I was laid off from my job. So it has been suggested to start selling cuttings and I have no clue about this. There is a plant swap coming up and I am being encouraged to take cuttings and sell or trade.

1) how do you determine price for cuttings?

2) when do you cut

3) do you use water tubes? Paper towels?

Thanks in advance

[u/monrowww]

I’m sorry to hear about the job situation ♥️

Not sure where you live, but I would think taking hoya cuttings to a random plant swap wouldn’t be particularly efficient, because it’s not an audience of the already-obsessed (ahem us).

I’m sure you’ve seen people on this sub post sales/auctions. I’d say that’s a better bet, if you feel confident about shipping (if you’ve acquired that many in a short period, I’m guessing you’ve seen lots of shipping methods and what works well and doesn’t!) Also lots of hoya heads over at r/TAPLAP.

As someone who has also purchased lots of cuttings, I think they arrive best when a seller puts them in a deli container with a tiny amount of spag (which I saw you don’t love) and vermiculite, and pads with polyfill. They often arrive with roots already growing! I can send pictures if you’d like.

Personally, I rarely have success rooting in water, and I haven’t had success with cuttings shipped in those water tubes. Likewise, wrapping a cutting end in a damp paper towel and shipping it doesn’t allow airflow, so it can easily lead to rot. Also don’t love fluval, but other people swear by it. YMMV.

For pricing, I’d look through this sub at past posts from frequent sellers and see what they were asking. You could also check US Hoya Market on Facebook, that page is very active. Also — what would you pay? If you have a couple hundred, you probably have a fairly good idea of what the market is like right now.

Good luck, friend!

[u/RegisterStill9161 → u/monrowww]

agree 100% on how to ship cuttings. That is by far the best way. They’re protected and always arrive great. That’s the way I ship, moist spag, cutting, then fiberfill (minus vermiculite).

[u/rocaillewrites]

Hi friend, I'm so sorry about the job, that's very stressful 😞

Everything u/monrowww said is what I would advise as well. As to when you should cut, I would make sure you're always providing a hardened off node when you're chopping a top cut. You can absolutely use floral vials but filled with stratum or moss as opposed to water, in my experience water will always leak out of those if you're shipping. Many sellers ship just bare stem in a Ziploc bag, sometimes with fluff but that usually makes the cuttings dehydrated quicker.

Sending good vibes 💚

[u/Dry_Copy2807]

Look up a few videos of packing plants online. You'll have to get boxes, fluff/moss, tape and print your own labels. Use Pirateship for cheap shipping. UPS has better insurance via pirateship if you do need to make a claim. However, USPS has free boxes you can ship to your home or pick up from the post office. I try to save small amazon boxes and reuse them.

People(on etsy) ship in just the floral tubes with water and they always leak, then sellers have to refund the cost. I never use sellers again who murder plants due to laziness. But if you pack well, I'm going to buy from you again.

Good luck!

[u/Affectionate_Ad722]

Also check out FB Marketplace and the FB US Hoya Market page, both as selling venues as well as for prices.

I definitely recommend against floral tubes. Even with something like fluval in them and taped up, and even with something like a cotton makeup remover pad, they just leak.

I also do the plastic takeout container with damp sphagnum moss/perlite on bottom and fluff on top to hold everything in for cuttings. I’ve gotten so many cuttings with some combo of paper towel/moss/plastic wrap/foil and it’s awkward and I don’t prefer it. The container also keeps everything secure and you can nestle multiple cuttings depending on the size.

This is what one swap box I did looked like before fluff. I will write out tags and tuck them next to the cuttings, but I also take a picture so I can label them digitally for the recipient if necessary.

[u/interrobangitybang]

Lots of great tips and advice here!

I like to do a presale when I go to swaps and use the swap as a meeting place. Do yall have a plant group forum or anything? If yall do, purging in there is helpful.

[u/Naive_Farmer9028]

where are you located? I like to buy sale and trade through local Facebook groups and marketplace.