(And Why Patience Protects Your Plants)

Every winter, as plant nurseries across the country begin preparing for shipping season, many customers wonder why their orders haven’t shipped yet — especially when the calendar says it’s planting time. At Ty Ty Nursery, we pride ourselves on fast, in-season shipping, but the truth is simple: nature, not the calendar, decides when we can safely harvest and ship live plants.

Understanding why shipping delays happen helps gardeners know what to expect — and why waiting just a little longer ensures healthier, stronger plants that thrive for years to come.

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❄️ Dormancy Must Happen First — And Nature Controls the Timeline

Before we can ship even a single plant, every tree and vine must first enter full dormancy. Dormancy is what allows plants to be dug from the ground, transported, and replanted safely without shock.

A freeze event is necessary to trigger dormancy — but one freeze doesn’t mean all plants are instantly ready. Different species enter dormancy at different speeds:

• Some trees drop their leaves quickly
• Others may hold leaves for weeks
• Certain varieties require multiple freezes to fully harden off

Until leaves drop and the plant shuts down for winter, we cannot harvest it. Shipping a plant too early is one of the fastest ways to kill it — and this is why patience protects your investment.

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🌧️🌤️ Weather Conditions Must Be Perfect to Dig Plants

Even once dormancy begins, we still have to work around Mother Nature. Harvesting live trees is extremely weather-dependent, and conditions must be just right:

✔️ If it warms up too much:

The plants begin to “wake up,” and digging them risks drying out the roots.

✔️ If it rains too much:

Fields turn to mud, making it impossible to run tractors or digging machines.

✔️ If the soil is too dry and hard:

Equipment can’t cut through the ground without damaging roots.

✔️ If freezing returns unexpectedly:

Plants may be too brittle to handle safely.

Every nursery in the country faces these challenges — no one can control soil temperature, rainfall, or freeze patterns. This is why shipping timelines always depend on real-time weather conditions, not preset dates.

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🏷️ Some Plants Are Common — Others Are Rare and Dug Last

Ty Ty Nursery ships one of the largest selections of plants in the United States. Because we grow hundreds of varieties, we must prioritize digging:

1. Most-ordered, popular plants are dug first
2. Rare or uncommon varieties come later in the harvest cycle

If you ordered a unique, unusual, or specialty plant, delays simply mean your item is still awaiting ideal digging conditions. We cannot rush rare varieties — doing so would reduce survival rates.

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🪵 After Harvest Comes Grading, Sorting & Cold Storage

Once a plant is safely dug, our work isn’t finished. Every plant must be:

• Inspected
• Graded for quality
• Sorted by size
• Bundled
• Carefully transported
• Placed into climate-controlled cold storage

Only after this entire process is complete can the plant be prepared for shipping.

This step protects your plants from drying, breaking, molding, or sprouting prematurely.

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📦 Shipping Depends on Weather in Your Location Too

Even once your complete order is harvested and ready, we still must verify that:

• Your ground is not frozen
• Temperatures during transit stay above plant-safe thresholds
• Delivery won’t expose the roots to extreme cold

We check ground temperatures across the USA daily.

If your soil is frozen, we will not ship your order without your authorization — doing so risks plant death upon arrival.

If you want your order shipped despite frozen ground, you may call us at 888-758-2252 to authorize shipment.

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📆 Estimated Ship Dates Are Not Guarantees — They Are Best-Case Forecasts

On each product page, we offer an estimated date range for when we expect to begin shipping. But these dates can shift based on:

• Freeze timing
• Leaf drop
• Field conditions
• Rainfall
• Heat spikes
• Freezing ground temperatures in your location
• Rare varieties still awaiting harvest

Because nature is unpredictable, estimates are simply that — informed estimates.

Once we are fully into the season, Ty Ty Nursery consistently achieves our goal:

Most orders ship within 1–2 business days — the fastest in the nursery industry.

But it takes time at the beginning of the season to dig, process, organize, and prepare hundreds of thousands of plants for safe shipment.

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📬 We Keep You Updated Every Step of the Way

During harvest season, we stay in constant communication:

• If plants are still going dormant
• If rare varieties are not yet available
• If weather has paused digging
• If ground temperatures in your area are too cold
• If your order is ready and waiting for the green light

The moment your full order is available, you will receive a “Moving Out Soon” email notifying you that shipping is ready as soon as weather permits.

We want your plants to arrive safely just as much as you want to receive them.

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❤️ Thank You for Your Patience — It Protects Your Plants

Every shipping delay has one purpose:
To ensure you receive healthy, dormant, ready-to-thrive plants with the highest possible survival rate.

We work tirelessly to balance:

• Dormancy timing
• Digging conditions
• Weather patterns
• Cold storage
• Transit temperatures
• Your planting conditions

No nursery can ship safely without cooperating with nature — and shipping too early can ruin an entire year’s crop.

We deeply appreciate your patience, and we look forward to delivering plants that are worth the wait.