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General => The Shed => Topic started by: manicscousers on May 05, 2007, 16:28:28

Title: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 05, 2007, 16:28:28
that's what we're up to, in just over 3 hours..mind you, we've got it earmarked..90.00 for the 60 ton mountain of poo, 90.00 for flags for the new plots, 10.00 for an adaptor for the gas bottle in the shed..still, we've still got 2 days this weekend and, if necessary, next weekend as well.. ;D ;D
everyone had a lovely time, we met lots of new people from the community and they got plants that are well looked after at a reasonable price  ;D
and all my 10 hanging baskets sold out in the first hour  ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: sarah on May 05, 2007, 16:46:36
well done you guys, you deserve the success. glad you had a great day. :)
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: Tulipa on May 05, 2007, 16:48:09
Well done after all your hard work.  It all looked wonderful on the photos. :) :)
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: tim on May 05, 2007, 17:12:01
Where there's a will ..........
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: honeybee on May 05, 2007, 17:41:15
Are you lending?  :P
I can be there in half an hour or so  ;)  :D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: Jeannine on May 05, 2007, 19:56:25
and you beat the frost too...Well done XX Jeannine
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 05, 2007, 20:38:43
some of the 'clientele' on the way
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: mc55 on May 05, 2007, 20:56:35
how satisfying - well done. 
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: cambourne7 on May 05, 2007, 23:47:29
Really great!!

Its given me insperation for next year for our site.
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: emmy1978 on May 06, 2007, 10:45:41
Yay! That's brilliant manics. Bet you're well chuffed with that. I knew your baskets would go quick. How fantastic!!!  ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 06, 2007, 16:41:40
got another 300.00 today, this is sooo brilliant..we should just open a nursery  ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: sarah on May 06, 2007, 17:42:16
you should!!  i would. i really would. if i had the money to buy a plot of land and some tunnels and if this area wasnt already swamped with nurseries i would go for it. i could work with plants all day every day.
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: kitten on May 06, 2007, 17:52:29
Sounds like you've found your 'niche' manics, i'm so pleased for ya!  Would love some more pix ...  ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 06, 2007, 18:14:13
not much left to photo, kitten, we spent today ferrying baskets and plants to cars..
we've still got 40 trays of busy lizzies left out of 92 so tomorrow's bogof for them and nemesia..we got 100 nemesia from a 19p pack of seeds from lidl and only sold about 10..
we've got 11 baskets left out of 60 and people kept turning up with baskets to be filled..even a firm wanted 4 re-fills and a large basket to match, we charged them 40.00, no problem
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: saddad on May 06, 2007, 18:21:41
We took over £1000 with the two NGS open days (combined) last year and the £400 from the plant sale was the only thing that stopped us running at a loss for the second year!
Well done Manics.
8)
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 06, 2007, 18:33:31
our costs came to just under 300.00, we've taken just short of 1000.00, but someone owes us 40.00 so, we've done good  :D..I'm just relieved it's over, everyone's really up at the mo and is thinking of what to do for next year , I'm just thinking of a rest and being able to weed our plot  ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: Hyacinth on May 06, 2007, 19:21:23
Many many congrats to you all!..I've loved reading all this just now,
all the best
Lishka 8)
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 06, 2007, 19:28:31
just a tad worried now, ray's just told me our cash collector is bringing all the money each day..he's over 80 and a bit doddery on his pins, how do we stop him?.. :-\
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 07, 2007, 16:48:12
final day today, final total..1, 017.00, less 290.00 costs..wow,  :o
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: lorna on May 07, 2007, 18:40:17
That will teach me to read through posts before asking questions :o What a result, well deserved after all the hard work you have put in to it. Time for a rest now Manic or is that a silly thing to say? Well done.
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 07, 2007, 19:43:05
lorna
zzzzzzzz, and housework, well, washing, at least..we're running out of clean clothes   ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: emmy1978 on May 07, 2007, 21:17:22
Quote from: sarah on May 06, 2007, 17:42:16
you should!!  i would. i really would. if i had the money to buy a plot of land and some tunnels and if this area wasnt already swamped with nurseries i would go for it. i could work with plants all day every day.
Me too Sarah!!
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 12, 2007, 17:13:06
we opened on the off chance this week, we were there, anyway..
steve bought ANOTHER 10 BASKETS, I made him fill them..still, waremart by us is closing down, they were 75p each and 49p for the liner, also, b&m were selling wicker ones with liners for 2 for 2.00, we got 10, supposedly for next year
we made 80.00, that takes the grand total takings to 1100.00, costs 350.00..not bad  :)
so, if anyone wants to make money, sell baskets  ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: Marymary on May 12, 2007, 18:44:09
That sounds a really good idea MS.  How much do you sell the baskets for [if you don't mind me asking?  :)]
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 12, 2007, 18:52:41
single colour, 8.00, 8" basket, double colour, 12.00, 10" basket, 14" basket..14.00, multi coloured..single has 3 plants, cost to us, 56p basket, 1.50 plants..possibly less but we round it up to 50p each..double 5 plants and a geranium in the middle, basket 1.00..large, 6 plants, 3 alyssum, 1 large one in the middle, e.g, fuschia..basket 1.00, liner 49p..hope this makes sense
of course, lots of the plants apart from bacopa and surfinia were grown from seed  :)
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: Twospot Ladybird on May 12, 2007, 19:53:39
Sounds like you've been having fun, and working hard too  ;)

Were the Buzzie Lizzies grown from seed too? I've not had any luck with these or Lobelia from seed. Any tips?
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 12, 2007, 20:05:46
lobelia, yes but the busy lizzies were plug plants, we got 400 of them, not getting as many next year..mind you, we have sold out now  ??? :)

next year, EVERYBODY is going to pot on and plant the baskets, we sold 55 last weekend, only 6 this weekend but we now have 9 left..we're going to do a 'fun day' on june 17th and sell stuff again..gluttons for punishment, us  ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: Twospot Ladybird on May 12, 2007, 20:36:27
So it's not just me that doesn't have luck with the buzzie lizzies. My Lobelias, first lot of 24, only 3 germinated, next lot, about 18 germinated but collapsed within a week. My fingers are obviously not as green as I thought nor as green as yours   ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 12, 2007, 20:48:41
we tried putting small pinches in each cell of moist compost, covering with plastic and watering only from the bottom once they'd germinated and keeping them dry-ish, maybe we were lucky, I usually drown stuff  ;D
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: Twospot Ladybird on May 12, 2007, 20:57:45
I think I know where I went wrong now. I covered my second batch with plastic, this is the lot where about 18 germinated, then I watered them from above just like I do with all my seedlings and most collapsed. I do have a total of 5 plantlets from both sowings, these I started watering from below when I realised that the other way might be wrong. I wasn't going to try Lobelias again but now I might. Thankyou  :)
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: manicscousers on May 12, 2007, 21:10:19
if it helps, eric grows his busy lizzies the same way, he always waters small seedlings from the bottom, sorry, that sounds wrong, put the pots in a container of water and lets it get wet..and never uses water from the butt, always tap water, he reckons it can cause 'damping off'..he's been gardening for 65 years so, as far as I'm concerned, I listen

anyway, good luck  :)
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: Twospot Ladybird on May 12, 2007, 21:36:04
Thanks for the tips, I'll give them a go  :)
Title: Re: 400.00 + profit in one day
Post by: Marymary on May 12, 2007, 22:58:11
Very enterprising MS & lots of hard work.  I was talking to the man who runs a local garden centre todasy & his baskets were about £9 - he said he started the plants for them last September - not sure how he keeps them going overwinter. 

I managed to grow loads of lobelia from seed by putting a pinch in the middle of a small pot - then following advice from here not trying too thin them - just let them grow in clumps & they are doing fine.  Busy lizzies were a total disaster with pathetic germination & those which did are still at the 2 or 4 leaf stage months later.