Most of the times I see big tanks winning the TOTM. I would like some smaller scapes winning (or atleast some more entries) . A lot of guys have some neat smaller tanks that should be given a fair chance. I'm not including myself, my tanks are too bushy. I've seen some nice nano shrimp scapes. That's just my opinion
there are not that many nano plants, some only being available quite recently.. so its really hard to get a decent sense of scale in a small tank without the tank looking crowded by "big" plants. hopefully now we will see much better small tanks..
@wearsbunnyslippers I understand you point of view, but with the vast amount of aquatic plant species available I'm sure there are quite a few dwarf species that would be suitable for a mini scape. I have seen some awesome mini scapes on the net and some guys on here have really nice scapes. Hopefully we will see some more nano entries. Some shrimp, a beautiful carpet and some driftwood with attached moss would look awesome.
@jurie101 ... yeah, there are some nice dwarf plants on the net...there are some lovely Betty White nudes as well, doesn't mean we can get our hands on them here in SA tho With the rand being as strong as it is...importing plants are a no go...at least for now. People will not pay R250-R300 for a plant, not to mention...there will have to be boxes (plural) coming in to make the shipment worthwhile (freight wise). So we are basically stuck in SA with what we have... Sure, some retailers are bringing in plants from the east...BUT these plants are mass selling plants. The rare plants are rare for a reason, they are for a select market. For every white anubias a retailer sells to a specific type of hobbyist, he will sell 25 Java ferns to new comers to the hobby. So out of a financial view point...it just makes more sense to buy Java's, swords, vallis, easy stems, etc.
I would, for something really special like Pogostemon helferi or the Crinums. If people are willing to pay R325 for a big anubia, why not the same amount for a rare plant?
Because @Slagter needs to import a number of boxes to meet the minimum freight requirements. You have any idea how many plants are in a SINGLE box...let alone 6 boxes. Meaning...the retailers will need to order a crap load of plants...and sell them quick (as they can't take care of potted plants for 6 months). So they will have to get plants that consumers will buy...and same as with shrimp or fish, people buy what they are "told" to by mainstream media/net/etc. Why are cherry shrimps the most sought after shrimp by the masses...or neons and guppies? Because everyone is told..." Oh you want shrimp, start of with cherries." Same goes with fish...new to the hobby, get yourself some guppies. Same goes for plants, the biggest spenders...people that's new to the game. They will buy a tank, heater, filter, substrate, lights, plants, fish, etc, etc. You as a hobbyists...you maybe buy a plant here and there, a tub of food every other month So my point...what are they gonna sell in heaps...plants people tell them to buy that are "easy and for beginners"...and THOSE plants, wont sell for R200. So the plants we are willing to pay decent money for...will be 10...maybe 15% of the shipment. As we aren't the target market
That's the going rate lately for petite, gold, coffee, monster barterii...etc. Did you NOT see my whatsapp photo last week?
I agree with Deadpool - you want a market, you got to have a market for selling a certain product. Otherwise there is no market for it. If people want something, they are going to pay a price for it @Chongkie, even if it's expensive. I know from personal experience because I was looking for this rose bush with a lovely rosey scent and it costed my mother R120 for it. My mother didn't care how much it costed her - she got 3 because it reminded her of her grandmother and it reminded me of my grandmother. It boils down to each person's preferences, they pay a lot of money for what they want. They're not going to care, as long as they can afford and pay for it.
Sad but true. Would a return plane ticket to not be much cheaper than said 6 boxes? Hmmmm......now all we need is a mule....
Imagine the said mule gets caught by customs. Wonder how he/she will explain the x-ray scan of plants in condoms stuffed up the place where the sun don't shine. Sent from my SM-G928C using Tapatalk
What @Slagter & @shihr MAYBE can do...I pre-sell plants here on APSA. Not the normal plants...nice, exotic plants...but you'll have to pay up front. The only problem then, 1 box will push up the price (as you wont get lower airfare on meeting the freight volume). So you will most likely looking at around R450 and up per plant, but at least then you'll have what you looking for. Problem is getting enough sold at those high prices...
Does the box need to contain one species only, or can members add to a (paid up) list until one box is full?
