Frequently Asked Questions
Online Sales
Can I purchase plants online? Generally Payless Plants does not do online sales, and online sales off this website has been disabled. Near all sales are onsite only. On a rare occasion we may do a sale remotely using eftpos and credit/debit card details supplied over the phone but it is not something we encourage. Our preference is for the customer to visit onsite, check availability of what is wanted, and the quality of the product is OK.
Freighting of Plants
Will you deliver plants? The transport of plants is the customers responsibility. While we can assist with delivering plants in close proximity to our nursery, we do not deliver over an extended distance, and have no means in place to commercially deliver stock. In our experience the delivery of stock to all corners of the country is difficult. The stock is perishable and easily damaged if mistreated. Many courier firms decline to freight plants for this reason, and if they do freight plants it can be expensive, often doubling (or more) the stock price.
Holding Plants
Will you hold plants to be collected on a future date? Sometimes we are asked to hold stock as a customer may not quite be ready, or cannot visit our site for a few days. Every request to hold stock will be assessed on its merits. Holding stock for a few days is not really a problem for a few plants. Our willingness to hold stock will decline with larger quantities, and/or for long time periods. In these situations a customer will need to purchase the stock and store it at their own site. However we may be more flexible in holding plants if the plants are paid for at the time of order, a specific collection date is provided, or the customer (e.g. landscaper) has a good history with us.
Credit Sales
Can I buy plants on credit? If credit is required the best means is via a credit card. Sometimes Payless Plants will provide limited credit to specific customers but our approach will be conservative and cautious. Credit may be extended to government/local government agencies including parks and reserves departments, government controlled education entities, and retirement villages. We will not supply credit to someone unknown to us, and has no purchase order and identification with some other business. Where credit is supplied ( a sale by invoice) the maximum credit term is 30 days but in most cases will be 10 days. Every requested credit sale will be assessed on its merits and the customer’s history with our business and the wider nursery industry.
Hedge Planting
How far apart to space plants for a hedge? It really depends on 2 factors. The choice of hedge to plant, and the required height of the mature hedge. A good guide is a 2:3 ratio – meaning for a given height divide the height by 3, and then multiply the number by 2. For example a hedge at 1.2 metres height might require plant spacing at 80cm (800mm). However this is a guide only but can help with estimating the cost. If hedge plants (or any planting job) is planted too close to each other then plants compete with each other, possibly for sunlight, and plants can elongate and deform loosing stem strength in their main trunk. At the least measure the distance for a proposed hedge and discuss with us at our site.
Cost Estimation
How many plants to plant up an area and the cost? The easiest estimation is 1 plant per 2.5 to 3 square metres. Multiply the estimated number of plants by $8 to get the estimated cost. The estimated number of plants and cost can be greatly influenced by plant selection. For example 1 Mexican Orange Blossum (Choisya ternata) may cover the same area as 3 lavander. The lavander costs less per plant compared to a Choisya, but the cost for the job would be 3 x $7.00 for the lavander, compared to 1 x $8.00 for the Choisya. Over a large area product choice can greatly influence cost.