New; need advise of transporting by car

[Philw135]

Good Morning!
Last summer we relocated to the Rehoboth Beach area of Delaware, into a townhouse, with no yard. So we thought orchids just might replace our need to handle plants. We have about 6 Phal.; all have bloomed and have been cut back and at the present are in thecare of our daughter while we are away for the winter.
In mid March we will be traveling back to Delaware from Texas, about 2000 mile spending at least 3 nights on the road.
I bought 3 beatutiful orchids with multiple blooms while here in Corpus Christ, aPhal with about 22 blooms, an Oncid with 2 large stems full of bloom, and a Cymbidium with 2 stems full of bloom.
I will take these back to delaware in our SUV. I would move then into the shower in a motel at night.
Need any and all advise about this move. Should they be bagged inthe car. I can carry then in the rear of the SUV with a differnet temp setting.
Phil

[Ellen]

Have you thought about shipping the orchids to yourself or your daughter rather than transporting them in the car? Since you only have a few, this would probably be the easiest and safest method. If you send them by US Postal Service priority mail they'll get there in 2-3 days, and it's not terribly expensive. Just tape something over the top of the pot to hold the medium in (paper towels or newspaper strips work well), wrap the whole plant in newspaper, and pack the plants in a sturdy box with some styrofoam peanuts and/or crumpled newspaper to keep them from moving around in transit. If you've ever received orchids by mail order, this is how they're packed. They will be fine in the box for 10 days or more. If you request delivery confirmation, they will hold them at the post office for you until you can pick them up. If the plants are very large, you might want to ship them bare root - it won't hurt them. That way you don't have the headache of taking a road trip with plants in the back seat of your car and your motel room.

[mayres]

You will probably get a lot of ideas on this one. Personally, I would just place them in a good sized box with air holes and everything will probably go swell. The main thing to be afraid of is sunshine coming through the windows for any significant period of time on the leaves - burning them. If your cym will not fit in a box you could even put a sheet of cardboard or papers, etc. between it and rays of the sun to shield/protect it if necessary. Otherwise I don't know why they would make the trip just fine? mike

[Philw135]

Thanks for your help. If the weather at the time appears to be too cold I would consider using UPS or other; if not large box will work.

[Ellen]

If you decide to ship the plants, DO NOT use UPS. They are unreliable. Packages can take 2 weeks or more to arrive and often go astray. Ship by the US Postal Service or Fed Ex.