Linda, I am interested too.

Pauline

Hm....where is everyone? I know at least 4-5 of you who do plant sales! LOL

Linda

I want to know also!!

I'm having a sale later this week (Friday, in St. Cloud), so I can report.

I was away for a while, kept meaning to check here this spring, but between my private practice and my garden, I've missed the swap and happenings. I'm planning on having a sale in a couple weeks. Did it for several years then took a hiatus.

To answer your questions:
I make some nice pocket money...doesn't compare to the day job at all in terms of hourly rate, plus it's much more physical work, which with my increasing years plays a role in how worthwhile I find it. However, I do love seeing the plants go to good homes rather than the compost bin! And talking with other gardeners is so enjoyable. I send out some emails and ask people to share the info with other gardeners they know (seems the days of bulletin boards are a thing of the past, at least here in the twin cities). What's popular changes from year to year and predicting what will be "hot" is tricky. Good labels and pictures of the plants in bloom helps.

One idea you might like to try, is to discount what's left during the last hour, to minimize leftovers. Or, you could find a worthy cause to donate them to.

Is that helpful?

Here is a link that might be useful: The return of the garden goddess plant/garden sale and tour

Is it worth the time and effort? Depends on your location. If you have a home near a high traffic area then go for it. You will need approx 300 plants to have a sale. I have approx 30 to 40 varieties of hosta plus about 25 different perennials. Prices vary $5 to $10 with most at the $5 range. Today was the first day of my sale and it seems a little slow this year. But a bad day of gardening beats a good day at work!

A thought .. for a second day of a sale. I marked everything left at 2$, put some envelopes out and had people go on the honor system and put the envelopes under the cracked garage door. Nice to come home and find lots of money... didn't need to stick around as the signs posted told all the details.
If you have a sale ... signs are the way to advertise!

I'm not surprised to hear about slow sales. If you look on craigslist, seems like everyone's having one.

It also depends on what you're selling. Can't ask as much for daylilies as for epimedium, for example.

Signs are an excellent way to advertise but check your neighborhood for how common they are and the city ordinances about them; if it's not a common practice and a slow day, you might get a cop stopping by to tell you to take them down.