Here is how plant delivery works: we pack your order at our Queensland nursery within three business days, and the courier takes three to five business days to most metro areas. Quarantine rules mean we can only send plants to QLD, NSW, VIC, ACT and SA. Below: packing, timing, arrival day and the 30-day guarantee.
On this page
- The short version
- How do we pack a plant for a courier?
- How long does plant delivery take?
- Where in Australia can we send a plant?
- What should you do when the box arrives?
- What does the 30-day guarantee cover?
- How the seasons change the way we ship
- Shop with delivery in mind
- Plant delivery FAQs
The short version
- Packing takes under three business days from the time you order, then the courier takes three to five business days to a metro address.
- Regional addresses take longer than metro. Add days rather than hoping.
- We currently deliver plants to metro QLD, NSW, VIC, ACT and SA. Check regional postcode eligibility before ordering.
- Through the hotter months we dispatch Monday to Thursday only, so no plant spends a weekend in a mailroom.
- Every plant is backed by our 30-day plant guarantee, and repotting inside those 30 days voids it, so leave the new pot in the cupboard for a month.
How do we pack a plant for a courier?
A plant is an awkward parcel. It’s top-heavy, it’s alive, and it will be handled by people who have no idea which way up it goes. So the packing is built around three problems: keeping the plant upright, keeping the potting mix in the pot, and keeping the leaves off the walls of the box.
The plant travels in its nursery pot. Over the top of the mix goes a layer of coconut fibre, which holds everything in place through the trip and can stay on afterwards as a topper if you like the look of it. The box is marked to travel upright and taped so you can open it without cutting into the plant, and the printed care card for your plant goes in with it.
Orders are packed at our Queensland nursery. Plants are living things, so size, shape and leaf patterns vary from the example photographs.
What packing can’t do is make the trip invisible. A plant that has spent four days in a dark box arrives a little tired, and the odd bruised or creased leaf is normal on a parcel that has been through a courier network. Actual damage is a different thing, and that’s what the guarantee is for.
How long does plant delivery take?
Two clocks, one after the other. We pack, then a courier drives.
| Stage | What happens | Typical time |
|---|---|---|
| At the nursery | Your order is picked, checked and packed by hand | Under 3 business days |
| Courier to a metro address | QLD, NSW, VIC, ACT and SA metro areas | 3–5 business days from dispatch |
| Courier to a regional address | Same network, longer legs | Longer than metro — allow extra days |
| Hotter months | Dispatch Monday to Thursday only, so nothing sits in a mailroom over a weekend | Order early in the week |
Ordering online, there’s no same-day or overnight option. A plant has to be packed properly and then handed to a courier who has their own timetable. Brisbane orders may be eligible for local drop-off, so check at checkout if you’re nearby.
Holiday periods stretch everything, and the last week before Christmas is the one to plan around rather than gamble on. If a plant is a present with a date attached, order a fortnight early and keep it somewhere bright until you hand it over.
Read our Brisbane plant delivery guide for local ordering advice.
Where in Australia can we send a plant?
Our current plant delivery areas are metro QLD, NSW, VIC, ACT and SA. We do not currently offer plant delivery to WA, the NT or Tasmania.
Biosecurity rules vary by destination and plant type. Our delivery limits describe the service we offer, rather than a blanket legal ban on every plant entering a state. Check your postcode at checkout; for regional addresses, contact us before ordering.
Current service areas and conditions are on our shipping page.
What should you do when the box arrives?
The first fifteen minutes matter more than the first fortnight. Work in this order:
- Keep the box upright as marked while you carry it inside.
- Cut the tape along the top, the bottom and the side, then open the flaps out rather than lifting the plant through a small gap.
- Lift the plant out by the pot, never by the stem or the trunk. A wobbled root ball sets a plant back further than a bent leaf.
- Take the coconut fibre off the top of the mix before you water. Leave it on and the water runs off instead of soaking in.
- Check the drainage before watering. If the decorative pot has no hole, water the nursery pot separately, let it drain and return it to the cover pot.
- Read the care card that came in the box and find a spot that matches the light line on it before you unpack anything else.
Then leave it alone for a week. A plant that has come out of a greenhouse, gone into a dark box and landed in your lounge room has had three environments in a week, and it needs to settle into the third one before you start adjusting anything.
A droop on day one is common and usually just thirst after a few days in the dark.
“I’m happy in medium light with a drink when my topsoil dries, and I’ll droop dramatically when I’m thirsty.” — from our Peace Lily Power Petite care card
More on the first week → Welcoming Your New Plants Home
What does the 30-day guarantee cover?
Our plants carry a 30-day guarantee. If yours arrives damaged or unhealthy, photograph it and email hello@thegoodplantco.com.au with your order number promptly. Keep the plant while we help.
The returns and plant guarantee policy sets out the terms, including the restriction on repotting during the first 30 days. Contact us before repotting a newly delivered plant that appears unwell.
How the seasons change the way we ship
Southern-Hemisphere seasons drive all of this, and it’s the part imported advice gets wrong.
Summer, December to February. Heat is the real risk, not cold. A parcel that sits in a closed mailroom or the back of a hot van over a weekend cooks, which is why our orders go out Monday to Thursday through the hotter months. It costs us a shipping day and saves plants.
Autumn, March to May. The easiest months of the year to move plants around. Mild both ends of the country, and the plants are still in growth when they arrive.
Winter, June to August. Keep deliveries away from cold overnight conditions, particularly in southern states. Growth and recovery can be slower in cool, dim rooms; choose a sheltered delivery location and bring the box inside promptly.
Spring, September to November. Warmer conditions often support new growth. Continue to match watering to the mix and give a new plant time to adjust.
Shop with delivery in mind
Browse our indoor plants collection and check each product’s size, availability and delivery information before ordering.
We’re a family business that has been in the nursery and plant industry for over ten years, and every order is packed at our Queensland nursery rather than in a warehouse somewhere else. The full terms, including current shipping costs and the states we serve, live on our shipping page, and the longer version of who we are is on our roots.
Everything ships in low-waste, plastic-free packaging with a printed care card, and every plant carries the 30-day guarantee.
Choosing where it goes → Indoor Plants for Every Room
Plant delivery FAQs
How much does plant delivery cost?
There’s a flat shipping rate on all orders, currently $30, regardless of how many plants are in the box. It’s the same figure for a single Peperomia and a full room bundle, so a larger order spreads it further. The current rate is always on our shipping page, which is the version to trust if this post has aged.
Can you deliver to a PO box or a parcel locker?
No. Plants need a physical street address, because a box that gets stood on its side in a locker arrives as a pot of loose mix, and lockers aren’t checked often enough for something living. A work address is usually the better option if nobody’s home during the week, as long as someone will bring it inside.
What happens if nobody is home when the plant arrives?
The courier will follow whatever instruction is on the order, so leave one. Once a parcel has been delivered to the correct address we can’t cover it going missing, and a plant left in the sun on a doorstep for a day is a plant in trouble. Nominate a shaded, sheltered spot, or send it to an address where someone’s in.
My plant arrived droopy. Is that normal?
Usually, yes. A few days in a dark box with no water is enough to make most plants sag, and they lift again within a day or two of a drink and some light. Water when the top 3cm of mix is dry, keep it out of direct sun for the first week, and send us photos if it hasn’t picked up.
The Good Plant Co nursery team · about us · Last updated 12 September 2026