Plant Sale FAQ
A. Saturday, May 13, 2023, from 9am to 12noon, at the North Stonington Elementary School at 311 Norwich-Westerly Road (Route 2) in North Stonington. It takes place rain or shine. If you miss this one you will have to wait till 2024! Our plant sale is typically held the Saturday before Mother’s Day each year, so mark your calendars now!
A. May we humbly suggest that it is one of the best?
- In addition to perennials dug from our own gardens, we offer annuals, herbs, heirloom tomatoes, vegetables, hanging baskets and perennials from the most reputable local dealers. These are all sold at a very small mark-up above cost, and so are less expensive than retail.
- The expert advice of our members is yours free, to help ensure that your purchases thrive in your garden. (Members are the ones in the red aprons.) We also have a Master Gardener booth onsite to answer your questions and offer soil tests.
- In 2023 we will have a representative from Wild Ones on site to advise you on incorporating native plants in to your home landscaping.
- If you have too many plants to carry, store them in our Holding Area, and keep shopping.
A. We gladly accept cash and personal checks. We regret that we can no longer accept credit cards as we have in recent years.
If you prefer to pay by cash and/or don’t have your check book with you, there is an ATM at the Chelsea Groton Bank at Holly Green Shopping Plaza, about a mile north of the Elementary School on Route 2. We are happy to hold your plants in our Holding Area if you need to make an ATM run.
For your convenience, once you have your chosen purchases tallied, you do not have to haul them around with you while you go to pay; you can leave them in the Holding Area while you take your tally sheet to a cashier. Once you have paid, our Holding Area volunteers will help you transport your purchases to your car.
A. Glad you asked!
- The gate opens at 9 am. No early birds! Not even ‘window shoppers’.
- We provide strawberry boxes to use as trays for your plant selections. There are also a limited number of carts, but these are always in high demand, so consider bringing your own. If you use one of ours, please return it after you are done.
- When you finish shopping and are ready to pay, locate a tallier (look for the”Tallier” sign or for members with clipboards and green aprons), who will add up the total cost of your purchases and give you a tally sheet to take to one of the cashiers. (This way you don’t have to haul all of your plants through the cashier line.)
- During our busiest period, (typically from about 9:30-10:30 or 11am) there is often a line at the cashier desks. We appreciate your patience.
- If you have more plants than you can carry, you can leave them in our Holding Area while you continue to shop. A member will give you a numbered ticket that will correspond to your assigned spot in the Holding Area. You can continue to drop plants off there until you are ready to pay. There is a tallier and a cash desk in the holding area, for your convenience.
- Once you have paid, the cashier will stamp your tally sheet ‘Paid’. Hand this sheet to the member at the exit as you leave.
- We are happy to help you load plants into your vehicle. If you used one of our carts, please return it. These are always in short supply, so please feel free to broing your own.