Scott, do you have a preference for this? I can imagine the forum will have a lot of scion action in the coming months and it might be helpful if we had an organized way of going about it. Does anyone have suggestions?
I was wondering too. If every person posts their own thread on scions they want/have, it might get to be a lot of threads! Maybe just one thread called āscion trades 15/16ā and everyone replies with what they want/have? And then people who are interested in trading can PM amongst themselves? Just a thought. Either way Iām excited about it.
Kate & SMC,
That is a great Idea.
Tony
It definitely makes sense to me that people who are interested in trading PM amongst themselves once they make contact. Iām inclined to think one thread for all trades this winter would be rather a mess, though. My thinking would be to recommend that each person post one thread to cover as much as he wants to trade as possible, pretty much the way it happened last year. My 2c FWIW.
A brief description on scions would be nice, nothing to extensive.
One thing that I think will be a big help is that there is a separate category for Scion Exchange. If people remember to put their offerings/wants in that category when they post, then members can open just that category when working on scion projects and only the threads related to scion exchanges will show up.
Also, since Iām anticipating this forum sticking around for awhile, it will help in the future if those post titles begin or end with 2015/2016. That will help people quickly sort them from the then current offerings when they run searches years down the road. I might actually have something interesting beyond my current āunknownā and common varieties by then.
I thought it worked OK last year, some people opened up new threads and others piled on to that. If it gets too crazy we can try to make up more guidelines. Do make sure to put all in the scion exchange; old-timers here can move things between categories so feel free to move any misplaced exchange posts.
What would the group think about members selling excess plants or scions on this forum? I feel uncomfortable when money is involved. But Iād rather buy from someone whoās a member here than a stranger on Ebay. Trading is best but some of us might not need more stuff while having excess material. Just a thought.
Steven I understand where youāre coming from, but I would hate to see us develop into
an Our Figs forum, where people become extremely mercenary. I, for one, am willing to
send free scion wood of anything I grow for postage, and I think everyone on this forum
would do the same. If there is a particular variety that someone is looking for, then, post
it, and Iām sure, if someone has it, theyāll be glad to offer it, or tell where you can get it.
There are too many scammers and mercenaries on ebay.
I will be posting my scion availability list in December, and anyone is welcome to it.
I think that posts which are blatant advertisements for cash sales would detract from the spirit of the forum. I donāt have any problem with folks posting what they have available, looking for tades and or covering shipping expenses, but perhaps cash price discussions could take place via PM or private email.
The process is simple enough. If you want something or offer something just put it in the Scion Exchange category. Do it whenever you want. I did transactions in May and August. As for cost, that should be handled with private messages as shipping and handling. Just my opinion.
Trading and paying postage is for me.
Ditto Mrs. G. I donāt have a lot of scions to offer and donāt need many (any?) but Iām happy enough to share what I have if Iām organized enough. The small number that I have to deal with makes the money issue insignificant, and Iāve always found that I get at least enough in return one way or another here. Havenāt kept track but I suspect that Iāve gotten more than Iāve given.
@scottfsmith I have seen mention of Discouse supporting Wiki topics which might be a good vehicle for users to post wants and haves in a single location.
About a month ago I started brainstorming ways to record all the brix info thatās been on a number of various threads going on lately. I started developing a simple website, and I got a little carried awayā¦
Anyway, I ended up putting a little site together do a scion exchange, track our orchards, and upload photos. The scion exchange section is pretty simple. You just create listings for what varieties you have, and what you want. When an exchange is done, you deactivate the listing to keep the main page clean.
Iām sure it could be improved on so Iām open to suggestions and can tweak stuff pretty easily if needed. Curious to hear what the opinions are.
Iām still working on making it pretty and add some features, but I think itās good to go if people want to check it out. I guess now is as good a time as any to unleash what Iāve been working on. Let me know what you think!
The website is gardenregister.com. To give you an idea how it works, hereās my profile page: My profile
Vohd, the wiki feature just lets others edit your post. Not sure how thats going to help; I guess everyone could edit a single post to include their own wants and haves, but they would have to be careful to not accidentally delete othersā posts. If anyone wants a post to be wikiād as an experiment just let me or another mod know and we can turn it into one.
Scott it looks like its going to be a huge year for scion wood in this forum this year. This is exciting and great! For those of us, like me, who might need a little instruction about sending scion wood, could you help with this? Packaging, how many branches, how long should they be etc. That would help me to prepare what I have for available scion wood this winter. As always, thanks so much.
Thats a good idea. Scionwood trading is best to wait to the new year, but around then someone should post something about how to cut, wrap, and bag them up. Here are a couple links:
Caveatā¦ if youāre going to offer a variety, make sure itās one that has fruited for you and you know itās true to nameā¦
Iāve ended up with mislabeled nursery stock and scionwood from time to time - and if Iād shared scionwood from those plants before they bore fruitā¦ someone else would be propagating one thing that they thought was anotherā¦ and potentially sharing a misidentified variety with others down the line.