Comments regarding Dutch Gardens

I ordered 5 sets of plants. One was substituted with a plant which I hate and I am still waiting for another set after 2 months. So I am not happy about that at all.

However, the correct plants which i did receive are doing really well. I am very surprised that they grew from the tiny ballroot plants. They are astilbe's, bleeding hearts and ballon flowers.

So the plants are good especially for the price but you'll probably get subsitutes especially if you order late (like May).

The Dutch Gardens staff was exceptionally friendly when I placed my order and again later when I called to check the delivery status. I ordered one each of 16504 Double Begonia Mix (8) and 16605 Flamingo Casgading Begonia (8). The bulbs were uniform in size and of seemingly good quality. I ordered them in January, received them the first of March, and planted them immediately per the instructions. All bulbs have produced beautiful leaves, though some quite sparcely, only two (one each) have actually flowered. I rate the experience moderate because I took great pain in properly caring for the plants but remain sadly disappointed in the results. In hindsight, I suspect the problem is the climatical difference; therefore, will not order from Holland again. I live in zone 8b.

Mixed success. I ordered Razzmatazz Coneflower "NEW FOR 2006: Our Blooming Power! perennials —the largest size we offer! These beefy, extra-large plants are guaranteed to fill out quickly and bloom this summer."
and recieved a letter stating that the seedlings needed more time to stretch and that they would be late. No biggie. But when I received my "beefy extra large plant" it was under 1" tall had two leaves and was severely shrivelled. Knowing that tender things may not travel well I have babied the surviving item. The two leaves are still there - but it hasn't grown and its definately not the *beefy* potted plant I was promised or paid for. I admit I haven't called because the item is no longer available and I really don't care for anything else from them.
On the flip side - I also ordered some Fanfare Gaillardia. These did indeed come in 3" pots and were hardy and healthy and getting ready to bloom despite our "flood season" in the northeast. They do have some unique items and the jury is still out whether I would order again.

In 2003, I ordered a very expensive Goldmine Yellow Peony from Dutch Gardens. I e-mailed them in 2004 saying that although the peony came up, it didn't bloom. They responded for me to give it more time -- that it can take a couple of years for a peony to bloom -- and to keep in touch. In 2006, it bloomed. I e-mailed Dutch Gardens and told them that it bloomed, it was very pretty, but was a pale yellow, not the bright yellow pictured. And that the plant itself was beautiful. Much to my surprise, they gave me a $20 credit, since the flower wasn't as yellow as expected! I was very (happily) surprised and can't wait to choose more bulbs!

Even though there were quite a few Negative and Neutral ratings, I decided to place an order because they had Hakonechloa Aureola which is a yellow and pink hued grass. Their price was low and they offered free shipping, so I thought I'd give them a try. I kinda braced myself to be disappointed because of some of the other buyers experiences, but I was pleasantly surprised. The plants were really excellent and I was impressed with their superior packing. I ordered three plants and they were each enclosed in a cardboard tube to protect the blades of grass. They were nestled into another box for secure shipping. They arrived moist and showed no sign of wilt. I ordered in March and received the plants in May - which is Ohio's planting time. The grass is healthy and growing.

I was very happy with my purchase and I definitely would buy from them again.

I have periodically ordered from this company over the years and been satisfied. However, this year I ordered two sets (6) of a new lily (Salmon Star) which they apparently ran out of; instead of consulting about substitution they choose to send me 10 lilies of their choice (Muscadet). I've plenty of them already so I informed them that I was not satisfied with their policy of substituting without consultation and didn't really want what they decided to send. They told me to keep their choice and to tell them my preference. I responded that my choice would be Black Beauty. When these arrived late last month there were three sets totalling 9 Black Beauties. The end result- a still satisfied customer.

This spring when the tulips bloomed, I was dismayed to find that some of the bulbs I ordered fro Dutch Gardens were not true to name. They were very nice about it and refunded me my money. Later, after seeing a plant I wanted on one of the forum threads, I went looking for it and Dutch Gardens was the only place that had it. I ordered 3. Upon receiving my order, I was very happy to find 3 very healthy plants packaged very similar to orders I received from Lazy SS Farm. They also sent me 3 bonus Regale Lily bulbs and this was on an only 18.00 order. I'm very leery of most of the "dutch" bulb sites, but I think Dutch Gardens tries to do a good job. I will order from them again.

I will say this is another great company. Last fall I ordered hundreds of bulbs and my spring garden looked outstanding. Very healthy and large bulbs. Also I ordered two rose bushes and they are doing very well. I can't wait to seem them blooming over the summer.
I will order again from them. Thank you

The bulbs I recieved from them were big and healthy. The perennials looked a little rough, though I was able to revive most of them. However, my bare root geranium was dead. When I contacted them, they did get back to me pretty quick. However, the shipping for the season was done. So I could either wait until spring for another one, or I could get a credit on my account. I took the credit on the account. Unfortunately, there isn't anything "seasonally available" on their site that I want right now, and I won't be credited for the shipping and handling charges on the geranium. I don't think that's fair at all. Especially since the shipping and handling obviously wasn't good enough to keep the plant alive. I think when I use up my credit I will probably not order from them again.

I have had mixed success with Dutch Gardens. I have placed orders with them for three years. My orders have always come on time and in pretty good shape. But, sometimes their stuff doesn't grow. I know this is normal. Plants weren't designed to live in a box for a few weeks and then expected to grow. I have still kept a positive rating because they have great customer service. My emails are always answered within two days. If I am not happy, they refund my money. Another plus, their dahlia bulbs are great.

Although I normally order bulbs and lilies from smaller specialist nurseries, in 2004 I decided to give Dutch Gardens a try because they had one particular variety of Dutch iris ('Delft Blue') that I was looking for. In the same order I included Crocus 'Bluebird' and several varieties of tulips (separate, not a collection).

The following spring I found that 2/3 of the 'Delft Blue' were something else entirely; some of the crocus were instead a mixture of white, lavender and a screaming schoolbus-yellow varieties; and two of the tulips were not as labeled/ordered.

I would not order from them again, as their quality control in the picking/packing department clearly isn't what it should be.

I ordered 2 things last week from Dutch Gardens. The first part of my ordered arrived looking really bad. I ordered 3 clematis plants that had no growth and really didn't look good. I'm waiting to see if any growth appears before I contact the company with my complaint.
The second part of my ordered arrived yesterday and boy was I surprised. The bulbs looked excellent! They were nice and healthy and even had babies on all of them except 1.
I chose a neutral rating because the first part of my order looked bad, but the second part was definitely positive.

I have had fairly good luck with Dutch Gardens bulbs in the past. This springs order was no exception. The bulbs look good and are already starting to grow in my garden, even tho our weather has been unseasonly cold and WET!!!
My problem is this:
I had ordered a dinnerplate dahlia collection and recieved two bags of red and none of the purple. Disappointment.
Next, I had ordered a new salmon colored oriental lily. They sent a substitution of a Muscadet oriental lily, I already have the Muscadet lily. I think I should have been notified about the new lily not being available and given the chance to cancel. Disappointment again.
I have tried to contact Dutch gardens three times! I haven't even heard one peep. Disappointment x3.
Third times a charm- I won't order again!!

I am a 5 year Dutch Garden fan. This year I decided to add
a more enhanced tulip area. I call it tulip mania. I blew the
neighbors away. I added 250 bulbs to the mix. I can not
hardly give the cuttings away fast enough. Today is Mothers day and the late spring Tulips are still kicking. Much thanks to cool weather. 1 Tulip is little. I will blast my yard with
crocus for next year. The Roses are a knock out also.

This is a good BULB company, I wouldn't order many perennials from them. I ordered a whole deluxe starter bulb kit and I was amazed at the quality, all bulbs big fresh and beautiful. They all bloomed the first year. This year some pink daffs didn't bloom and my emperor tulips didn't come up at all, but I guess that was my fault, I thought they were a type of rockery, let them stay in the ground types, or at least TRUE emperor tulips do....so I'm up in arms. Sometimes they get the "type" of plant and hardiness wrong, so I reccomend doing some research on certain bulbs, but have confidence in ordering their bulbs, top quality.

Their perennials though are a bit...lacking. I ordered some violets from them and they never made it to the fall, or bloomed. The canna I ordered died as well. They seem to branching out into all the other plants and roses and stuff, you can find those at better places.

I've ordered from Dutch Gardens for years. Last year I ordered a new peony eye. When it didn't send up a shoot in april, as expected, I e-mailed them. Their response was that they will send out a new eye in the autumn (which is what you do for peonies). In March, I ordered a David Austin rose and a lilac bush. I planted both whern they came in April. Some canes of the rose turned black. I e-mailed them for advice (trim the canes? wait and see?). Their response-- they shipped out another rose right away, and yes, I should trim the canes (and now the rose is doing better).

I was skeptical of ordering from this company because of some of the feedback in GW but was pleasantly surprised. I had just finished a new bed on the side of my house and ran 3 roses short. I was using Home Run exclusively in this bed and the vendor I ordered my original stock through had sold out. I took a chance on Dutch Gardens because the price was MUCH, MUCH lower than my original vendor. When I received the plants, they were waxed and in body bags(double yuck), but the canes were very nice and the roots good. Much to my surprise, the growth on these Dutch Gardens roses has now surpassed the other roses which were planted three weeks earlier. I also had a very attentive and helpful representative when I placed my order, the shipping was fair and faster than anticipated.

While the customer service reps have been very helpful through several emails, the web site does not really inform the customer that all plants are ordered and shipped internationally; bulbs from Holland and other plants from Canadian growers. It would have been helpful to know that when anticipating delivery/planting times. Not a negative, just a 'wish I would have known that before I ordered' comment.

I ordered an assortment of bulbs and bareroots from Dutch Gardens, which arrived yesterday, packaged nicely. The bulbs look great, all large and firm, and I was blown away by the Mallow and Foxtail Lily roots-VERY large and healthy looking. I'm still waiting on my Bicolor Butterfly Bushes and Climbing Hydrangea, which should ship seperately. So far I am very happy with this company-great quality! I will order from them again.

Just this spring I purchased the bicolor butterfly bush and the border dahlia mix. I actually mailed in the catalog order form, so for doing that they seemed to arrive quickly enough. The butterfly bush arrived first and seemed healthy, though small. it is in the ground and so far it is doing fine. The dahlia tubers arrived a week or so after, and I am waiting to see how they do. Part of one of the tubers was a bit soft and damp. I removed that part and planted the rest. We will see how things turn out. I will update later.

I ordered some Pereinnals from them in Feb. They arrived last week. I thought that the plants were awfully small for the prices they charged. 2 of the plants didn't look to happy. I called the Co. Explained that I was unhappy with the 2 plants not doing well, they are sending out 2 new ones, ASAP.
Other than the plants being puny, the service was good, & they seem willing to please.
I probably would not order from them again if this is the size of the plants they send. I will follow with 2 pics of the two plants in question.

This year is the first time I have order from Dutch Gardens and as I have read through here I have seen a lot of people have had problems with this company. I just wanted to say I have been very happy with the products that I have ordered from here. They arrived on time and I have been very happy with the results so far. Maybe I am not as picky as some people, but I am very happy with this company.

Last year I put in my first order with Dutch Gardens, after having received one of their e-mails with special offers of day lilies that I just couldn't pass up. Shortly thereafter, they arrived, and the roots were huge! I planted them and they started growing immediately. Despite our very dry summer (it stopped raining in April and started again around October) my day lilies grew and grew and bloomed beautifully. I can only image how gorgeous they are going to be this year. When I sent Dutch Gardens an e-mail to say how happy I was with their plants, they send me back a thank you e-mail, plus a 10 dollar off offer on anything else I ordered. Later this fall I, again, couldn't pass up their offer on some gorgeous peonies. Unfortunately, they arrived too late to be put in the ground, and I asked the company for advice. They said, try putting them in the ground anyways, and if they don't come up by spring, let us know, and we'll replace the plants. Well, I planted them in pots instead, and so far two out of three have come up and are doing great. I am still waiting to see if no. three comes up, but if not, I know I will get another plant from them. I will consider them for all my purchases as each experience with them has been great. Most other stores should be this good!

In 2004 I ordered a number of bulbs from this company on Nov 8th. They didn't arrive til a few days before Christmas. Since the ground was not frozen I took a chance and planted them. Not one came up. In April 2005 I ordered some day lillies and perennials. One Stella d'Ora appeared for a few days; the others disappeared into the ground. The Apricot Mallows were not apricot as in the picture but a dirty white. The other plants didn't even survive the summer. Again this order was so long in arriving. When I complained I was told that bulbs had to be ordered from Europe. I would never use this supplier again.

In Spring 2005, ordered a trio of roses (Everlasting Love, Moonstone, and Full Sail) for my parents' 50th anniversary.

Roses arrived promptly. Everlasting Love and Moonstone thrived, but Full Sail was a dud and died.

Contacted customer service in Dec 2005 via e-mail asking when I could order another one and they happily said they would replace it and put in an order with the shipper for me.

As it was too late to get a new one in 2005, will have the replacement in 2006.

I got my bulbs right on time and they were packaged very well. I had a problem with one kind of bulb and e-mailed them. They returned the e-mail the next day and it was taken care of. In fact I ordered more of the same bulb and they put a very generous credit on it. Joan

(10/30/05.......I had placed an order earlier this week. Today, I found a website that offered discounts, ie. $25 off $50 order. I emailed Dutch Gardens today (Sunday) and asked if they could credit me with the $25. I recieved an email the same day stating they would give me the credit.

Now, that's GREAT service!!!!!

I recently ordered several types of bulbs and 2 iris tubers. The bulbs were great, but the iris were VERY small and dry. However, when I contacted customer service, I got IMMEDIATE feedback and a credit to my credit card for the disappointing iris. I am VERY pleased with this response.

VERY HELPFUL IN PROVIDING A REFUND FOR PLANTS THAT DID NOT GROW. I APPRECIATE A COMPANY THAT STANDS BEHIND THE QUALITY OF THEIR PLANTS.

Spring 2004 was definitely neutral/border-line negative. Living half-an-hour from Gardener's Supply in Burlington, VT., I wait until they fill bins from Dutch Gardens at reduced prices. (Gas then, cheaper than shipping.) I selected
bulbs and others. I didn't pay w/credit card, nor keep my cash receipt. Mega-people were digging through the bins, sawdust/peat everywhere. A wk. later when I got to plant, I noted many of my bulbs were soft and/or molding --- I planted some, not all came up. Bare root plants in peat were barely there, so I planted "lumps"with little success. I
E-mailed them twice, no response.

However, back to neutral/jump to positive spring 2005. Used credit card for a record, and of course lost my head at Gardener's Supply as always and bought and bought.
Casa Blanca bulbs hurriedly tossed into 2 huge pots (such a rainy spring) as were others. (No more bare-roots for me from anywhere.) Not only were bins in store neater, but bulbs much healthier, the "hometown" price is unbelievable. To top this story off is this: I lost the little plastic bag holding 8 or 10 green Gladioli bulbs. Behind the stunning, potted Casa Blanca lilies in late July, were these strange, tall & pointy "weeds" ...... right through the plastic bag, at least 5 of
them 'broke free', rooted to the dirt and bloomed like crazy. Bulbs decidedly healthier - - - I think now Gardener's supply has taken over Dutch Gardens for these last 3-4 yrs., that I can see a noticeable improvement as Gardener's Supply is nothing but the cream-of-the-crop for gardening supplies, and anything to do with plants, the community, & composting is totally organic . . . a place where a old lady gardener w/a credit card can into fierce trouble in less than an hour. I can't wait until next spring for more bulbs from Dutch Gardens.

Another little aside: For those of you that recently rec. your Dutch Garden Holland Bulb fall catalog, look on page 14 and 15. Exciting new biodegradable trays with spring bulb designs all installed for one-stop planting. (Gorgeous!) Look at the price for each tray, then look up on top of page 14 at the photo of the box the bulbs come in. What is the sticker price on the box? I called them tonight, and the most friendly gal said she didn't have a clue what that meant and said she would leave a msg. for the daytime crew and for me to call tomorrow and they would have an answer.

I too ordered the Blueberry Sundae daylily from this company. After it arrived and I had planted it, I received a letter saying the supplier had mixed up the lilies and they would no longer accept anything this supplier offered. Enclosed with my letter, they included a gift certificate for $15 or $20(forget which) and an apology for my inconvienience. I later e-mailed them and said I misplaced the certificate and would they still honor it. The reply was that they would honor it even though they could not verify my order. I was credited for $25 off my next purchase. How much more could you ask from a company ? I would rate them as "super".

I've bought bulbs and roots from this company several times. The fall bulbs I ordered in Fall 2004 (daffodils, crocus, hyacinth, and iris) were large, basically mold and mildew free and grew well. My garden was gorgeous in March! The roots I ordered in Spring 2005 (coneflower, phlox, salvia, malva, and columbine) did fairly well, considering that I let them dry out and waited 3 weeks to plant them after I received them (very cold spring); I only had a 40% mortality rate. The coneflower did especially well.

Maybe this should be a neutral, but I'm making it positive because Customer Service ("John") was so nice. Three hollyhocks and a buddleia I ordered were shipped in posterboard shells, and three daylilies and an iris were shipped bagged. So far, so good, but all eight items were then just tossed in a large cardboard box with no tape nor crumpled newspapers to keep them from thumping around, so they did. The buddleia and two of the daylilies took a particular beating. The hollyhocks were yellowing, but I blame that on the late purchase (mid-June) rather than the shipping.

"John" assured me that this is NOT the way they ship things as a rule and vowed to track it down, and meanwhile gave me what I asked for: 66% refund on the shipping. He probably would have given more, but I thought that was all that would be fair. The plants will live, but not flourish as quickly as they ought. So -- shipping mistakes can happen anytime anywhere, and the customer service deserves the positive for making it right.

My plants arrived promptly. I ordered 2 kinds of perennial phlox and 2 different hardy geraniums. The roots on all seem to be generous, but there isn't much sign of upper growth. I've planted them and will be watching them. This is my first time ordering from this company and if these plants start to grow I would order from them again. I liked their catalog.

In the fall of 2004 I ordered 350 " Pastel Tulip Bulbs" for a mass planting. I dutifully dug out the area, planted the nice size solid bubs I received from Dutch Gardens. Low and behold. the spring brought me 350 predominatley red and yellow tulips with a few pastels thrown in. I emailed them digital pictures of the results and an automated reply said they would be in contact with me. I waited six days and finally called them. They could not locate my email but did issue a refund.This seems to be a recurring theme from the messages above. I have ordered from them in the past and the product (tulips and Daffodils) are always high quality but you may not get what you ordered!

I ordered 2 packages of bareroot sea holly. All of the rootstocks were huge, and 5 of the 6 have done extremely well. When I had determined that the 6th had rotted, they immediately started an order for a replacement. The "replacement" just arrived, and is actually a package of 3 very large rootstocks, and they all look very healthy. Will definitely order from them again.

I ordered Lady Elsie May rose from Dutch Gardens. It
was received well packaged and healthy. It is already
leafing out and has buds on the rose. However, I too do not like the wax on the canes when it is received. I have ordered many roses this spring and this is the only
company that does this practice. After about a six weeks
it finally melted off. I will rank the company positive because the rose is performing well.

C&NN

I recently got 4 roses from this company. I ordered from them because of the ratings here on GardenWatchdog. I was happy with the roses, they have large canes, look healthy and seem to have pretty good roots. The only thing I didn't like was that they were sent with wax on them. They are all breaking dormancy and seem to be very healthy and the price was right.

I haven't ordered any perennials, bareroot or potted, but I did order a vast quantity of bulbs last fall. This spring I was in awe, everything I ordered has either bloomed beautifully, or is well on their way to blooming. (Daffs, Tulips, Crocus, Mountain Lilies and Erythronium)

Most negative feedback seems to be over the one mixed up Daylily, so I took a chance and ordered some perennials for this year. I will report back on how they fare!