I'm thinking that quality interesting and consistent plants will be the winning business plan, along with good and prompt communication regarding offerings and orders.

hh

Consider printing out classy 3x5" cards with information on about the hosta, (Include your company's name, a picture of a grown specimen, cultural requirements, pests/disease, parentage, etc.) For those people that keep track of what they buy, this could be a way to keep your company's name at top of mind. It could be written in an elite/contemporary style or even as if the hosta wrote the message...it all depends on the image you want your company to present.

Free plants are okay, but if they buy from a lot of places, it may be hard for the customer to remember who gave them the gift, and you've gained nothing.

A tiny bag of slow release fertilizer may be a nice gift. It sends the message you care about the plant even after it leaves your nursery. It wouldn't cost much, and depending on how many sales you make, you could order bags with printed instructions on how to plant/fertilize a hosta.

Good luck!

And, if you wanted to the fertilizer thing, might I suggest that you just send a little bag of compost? That way, you'd be sure to catch the attention of the more organic gardeners out there!

I personally love getting the free plant. The vendors I buy from that include a free plant seem to make the extra effort to select something special - I have not received anything too common. With all the wholesale TC labs - you should be able to select some "new" options to offer. I am not as concerned about the size of a free plant as I am for the plants I paid for...

Cathy

Deanna

As you can tell be my handle I'm a little addicted to daylilies. I don't have nearly as many as others but I do have quite enough of them.

Here is my take on the mail order and "bonus" plants. I'm ordering what I am ordering because I like that specific plant variety. I'd much rather receive, in the case of day lilies, an extra fan or 2 of the varity I ordered rather than some plant that the grower decided to include.
This also happens with iris orders. Most growers send you extras but most are plants that I didn't pick, ie not the color I wanted.

However, that being said, I have received some very nice "bonus" plants.

that being said, it's a nice thought and the end user can do whatever he/she wants with the bonus plant(s).

IMHO, I DON'T THINK THAT YOU SHOULD SEND FOOD. TOO MANY LIABILITIES WITH FOOD ALLERGIES, etc.

I specialize in minis, although I have hundreds of hostas in other sizes, so I will often send a mini if that is a size the person clearly likes. Rather than risk duplicating something they might already have, I keep a couple of varieties on hand specifically as gift plants that are very uncommon, not commercially available, and that most people will not have heard of, much less have in their gardens. Although many these are solid colored hostas, they also are very pleasing little plants. I often sent Sweetheart, Special Gift (particularly appropriate), Tot Tot, Jade Sceptor, Flora Dora, or Nakaiana. People who clearly prefer somewhat larger hostas might get Dark Star, Alpine Aire, or Golden Spider. None of these are rare or particularly expensive varieties, but they definitely aren't mainstream hostas, and all are very nice when they reach maturity.

If I know someone likes companion plants, I may send an astilbe, an unusual fern such as a tatting fern, a primrose, or perhaps a variegated Solomon's Seal. I've also sent Stargazer lily bulbs, which are generally very well received. I have found that regardless of what I choose to send, a freebie is generally appreciated for what it is--a thank you for ordering hostas.

On more common, prolific hostas, most reputable sellers will send multiple divisions, and root systems should be good. However, some of the better known nurseries routinely send a single division, and when you look at the Hosta Finder, the price listed is always for a single division. If you do mail order, always be sure you specifically ask what size plant will be shipped to avoid disappointments.

Like most people, I prefer to buy my hostas in person, so I can see exactly what I'm getting. And I'm the sort of customer who does not hesitate to gently tip a hosta out of it's pot to check the root system before I buy a plant. You will too often find that large, lush "bargain" hostas sold by places that don't specialize in hostas will have very poor root systems in spite of having multiple divisions with profuse foliage. This generally indicates that the plants have been treated with a chemical such as DAP that forces heavy foliage growth, but at the expense of root growth. And it's the roots you are really buying, not the foliage. Finally, if you prefer not to receive any free plants with an order, by all means let the seller know. I think most sellers would be delighted not to waste a plant on a customer who doesn't want it.