Plant and seedling sale

Outdoor: weather matters

Pre-sell or stall-sell seedlings, herbs and potted plants grown by members or bought from a local grower.

Typically raises

$800

$200–2,000 per campaignest.

About $57 per organiser hour

Based on about 400 punnets sold

Is it right for us?

Money: $500–2,000
Work: A few evenings
Helpers: 3–6 people
Lead time: 1–2 months
Red tape: None

Fairly common: a regular spring stall at many schools

People: 4-8
Organiser time: 8-20 hours (estimate)
Lead time: Spring (about Sept-Nov) is the main window; 6-10 weeks if growing your own (estimate)
Up-front cost: $100. Pots, mix, seed; nil if pre-sold from a grower (estimate)
Risk: Low if pre-sold; plants are perishable.

Suits: Primary or intermediate school, Church, Community group, marae or service club

Less usual for: Kindy or early learning, Scouts or Guides, Charity

When: Autumn (Mar–May), Spring (Sep–Nov), Labour Weekend

How big a job: A few evenings, 3–6 people

How it works

The money, as an example sum

Take about $900, pay about $100 of costs, and you keep about $800 per campaign: the typical result for about 400 punnets sold.

From the typical figure on this page. Your result will differ.

Where the money figure comes from

an NZ fundraising guide worked example: 400 punnets at $2 profit = $800 (illustrative; an NZ fundraising guide). Low and high are estimates.

Last checked October 2026. Ran this? Tell us what you raised and we’ll use real results to improve the figures.

Step by step

Choose a grower or start seedlings in school or member gardens.
Pick a short list of sure sellers (veg punnets, herbs).
Check the pest plant list.
Take pre-orders with payment.
Collect from the grower close to pickup.
Set up in shade; water the morning of.
Message no-shows by mid-afternoon.

Getting the word out

Even a well-run plan fails if nobody hears about it. There are two asks, and the first one goes out first.

Ask for help: Families to bake, give stock or take a shift on the stall.
Ask people to buy: People to come and buy on the day.
When to start: Ask for helpers first, as soon as the date is set. Start the public ask about 3–4 weeks out, and book newsletter and paper notices before that: small newsletters close early.

Where to put it

School, club and church newslettersYour own newsletter is free and read by the families most likely to say yes. Check when it closes.
PostersPosters at the school gate, the clubrooms and shop windows, with the date, place, price and how to pay.
Local Facebook pages and community groupsPost in your town’s community page and local groups (check their rules), and share from your group’s own page.
Billboards and roadside signsYour school’s or club’s own sign by the road, a banner on the fence, or a sandwich board on the day for passers-by.

The full guide to getting the word out: every channel from flyers to the evening news, with lead times and costs.

What you’ll need

Place: NeededYour own grounds or hall
Landowner’s permission: Not needed
Council permit: Not needed
Food rules: Not neededNo food sold
Alcohol: Not neededNo alcohol sold
Gambling rules: Not neededNot gambling

No permit on your own grounds. Check donated plants against the National Pest Plant Accord list; banned species cannot be sold.

Make more from it

Sell seed packets too
$1.50 a packet (Kings Seeds)
the same gardeners
Baking table
$100-300 (estimate)
low effort beside an existing crowd

Stack it: on its own, about $800. With the 2 priced add-ons above, roughly

$1,000est.

What you can get donated

Cuttings and divisions from members' gardens; seed via Kings Seeds' Seeds of Support discount (20% off retail for verified schools, ECEs, charities and community groups).

Tips

Paekākāriki School's gala is run with a local plant-nursery group.
Kings Seeds suggests growing seedlings from bulk seed for gala stalls.

Watch out for

Selling a banned pest plant (e.g. some climbers and ground covers) without realising.
Seedlings wilting at pickup.

Sources

Researched October 2026. All fundraising ideas

* General fundraising information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Money figures are examples and estimates, not promises. Check current official requirements before you commit. About this guide