Let's take this one step at a time. In order to end up with true competitive bids, all bidders will need to be bidding on the same set of plant and container specifications. This means that you must have professionally written specifications or you're most certainly going to receive bids that are all over the board!

You'll need a competent Interiorplantscaper, Architect, Interior Designer, Consultant or Landscape Architect to write your specifications. You should expect to pay a reasonable fee for this professional service.

Another option is to request that one of the participating bidders write the specifications for a fee which would be applied to the project price if they are the selected bidder. They keep the fee if you select someone else to install the project!

SPECIFICATIONS:
The plant specifications should clearly state the botanical name of all plants, diameter of the grow-pot and overall height of the plant. Plant height is measured from the bottom of the pot to the top of the main mass of the plant if the plants are to remain in their grow-pots. If the plants are to  be planted into a built-in or in-ground planter, plant height is measured from the soil line to the main mass of the plant. In all cases, plant height is stated in a range of height — for example, "5 to 6 feet".

Your specifications should also state that all plants are to be of the highest grade — usually "A" or "Florida Fancy" and that no lesser quality substitutions will be accepted.

Container specifications should clearly state the style, color and material of each unit. If a particular brand of container is required this must also be stated.

A specific date and time for receipt of all bids should be clearly stated, The bid document should state whether you are requesting pricing for leasing with horticultural services or purchasing with horticultural services, and should also clearly indicate whether or not guaranteed replacement (the norm) is required.

BID EVALUATION:
Once you have received all bids by the deadline, it's now time to begin evaluating them.

First, examine the specifications of each bid to make sure that no substitutions of plant or container type or size have been made. This is particularly important since a plant of a particular species that is in a 12" grow-pot may yield a plant of similar size as one in a 14" grow-pot. If a bidder substituted a 12" plant for a 14" one that was specified, there would be an unfair pricing advantage.

Once you have determined that each bid is in accordance with the specifications, you may begin to evaluate the pricing of each bid. Most professional Interiorplantscape companies have similar cost structures and so there should not be huge swings between your low bid and your high one. Be wary of excessively low or high bids — remember, there's usually a reason for either scenario.

Go back to the evaluation checklist that you completed in the first part of this tutorial. Score each bidder based on everything — not just price.

Make your decision and know that you did it "way one" — The OK way!