Comments regarding Michigan Bulb

I ordered two hydrangeas and five knockout roses early in the spring. They were delivered about a month and a half ago. All were small, which is normal for Michigan Bulb in my experience, but all were healthy on arrival. I planted them the next day and all plants have survived and grown. All knockout roses have bloomed or are budded and one of the small hydrangeas is blooming, which was unexpected. I always expect small plants from them, but I have experienced good results with Michigan Bulb orders over the past few years. I will use them again.

i had been with the company for at least five years and my latest, I had order at least 8 plants from this company on special sales since we love to collect all kinds of plants and when i got them slowly one by one.. few didn't last long after plant them in ground.. they hardly grow at all and i had took great care of them and spend near 150 dollars on all this and only two make it alive while rest went to trash. i am so dissappoint how they send me a "shock" plant that they may not have pack it up well enough to keep it from bounce around in box that can kill them easy and they also were dry when i got them. I recalled they send them to me late after i order them. I did left them voice mail and no one return my messages. so i didn't order anything from them anymore. i cancelled their book as well. i am flower/plants/garden lover.. i enjoy take the time to take cares of those beauty and very disappointed and heartbroke when i had to burden them deeper that they didn't get chance at life. i will not buy it from them anymore..

"On Jun 3, 2013 2:34 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problem with your plants. I apologize the plants were not in good shape and for all your inconvenience. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information."

I shopped with MIchigan Bulb years ago with no problem so in early May I decided to shop there again. What a huge mistake. I ordered plants on May 7. Two weeks later I sent an e-mail asking why my order had not shipped (according to their account page) and two days later I received an automatically generated e-mail indicating my order had shipped followed quickly by another e-mail indicating that one plant was not availalbe. Another ten days went by before I actually received my plants. The worst part? I live in Indiana and they ship from Lawrenceburg, Indiana. My order was for 6 primrose, 1 lilac and 1 weeping cherry with a free foxglove thrown in - the cherry is not available and of the remaining plants shipped two were dead on arrival. I planted them the same day I received them and after two days in the ground only the lilac looks as though it might survive. Their customer service is non-existent because I have received NO response to any e-mail sent or to the survey I took two days ago. This is the last money they will ever receive from me.

"On Jun 3, 2013 2:33 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problem with your order. I apologize the plants were not in good shape and for all your inconvenience. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and take care of this for you."

Posted on March 26, 2012, updated May 30, 2013
Posted on March 21, 2012, updated March 26, 2012
Posted on March 16, 2012, updated March 21, 2012
I placed my order and was double billed that was the first problem. now every day when I check the shipping status it tells me another date it will be shipped , I have started to look and see if I can find the flowers local at this time and if I can I will cancel my order

"On Mar 23, 2012 1:27 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

I checked on your order for you and it is in the process of shipping. It should ship today."

I also ordered several shipments from Michigan, which are still coming in staggard shipments. My only complaint is the timing. I still have plants that havent shipped for some reason. I realize they are huge, but I guess I'm confused why all my plants arent shipping at once. Regardless, I've ordered a lot from them and have had one issue that was kindly resolved by their customer service rep. One of the peonies came dormant, recently. Why send most plants in containers and not all? The peony tuber came in horrible shape, but they promptly gave me a refund when they couldnt find a master gardener to explain why they sent it that way. I understand sending this format for some plants, but it didnt make sense to send a tuber of a peony in late May.

Note: they seem to use India for their CS after hours and I didnt find them to be curteous or articulate at all. I recommend calling during business hours if you want good CS.

The bottom line is that I appreciated the quality of the plants, the awesome CS rep I got (after a bad experience with India), as well as their shipping method. The plants came in slick cardboard sleaves which really protected the plant well and since they werent horribly mangled from mutliple staples and tape (Farmers Seed!), the boxes were in excellent shape and compostable. Especially considering the low prices and the comments above, I would definatelyh order from MB again. Thanks!!

"On May 30, 2013 12:21 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for sharing your experience with our company. If you ever have any problems just let us know. Happy Gardening!"

I ordered three times from Michigan Bulb. One order in March, one in April and one in May. The first plant arrived DEAD. The plant was dry, flat, and crumbly! I contacted them and they did send another, which was better, but still too dry. The second shipment's plants looked great. It is very obvious that the plants are being mailed by the grower, as the method of packing was very different each time.

My complaint is that I had to wait so long for the shipments. The first shipping date was in March, but the first order was not actually shipped until mid May. Some plants arrived in May, some are due June 6th, but about half of them have not been shipped yet. My columbine are arriving June 6th, but all the columbine in my gardens have already bloomed and are dying back. So I guess no blooms this year.

"On May 30, 2013 11:30 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your feedback. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and check on the remainder of your order for you."

Live plants order in April. Original shipping date showed early May. Shipping date is now showing end of June.
Requested order to be cancelled. Request refused advised order being processed -- What !! Every time I check the shipping date keeps getting pushed back. Refusing to cancel order is totally unacceptable.
I can not recommend this company .

"On May 30, 2013 11:27 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problem with your order. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and take care of this for you."

I purchased 3 Josee lilacs and 3 white lilacs from this company on April 24th. They advertise heavily with coupons and major discounts. However, if you do your research, you will realize that this is all a gimmick and most other reputable online nurseries sell the same items at lower costs anyway.

Shipping took a long time. I did not receive my first package until more than a month later. It had nothing to do with the 'appropriate zone shipment time' - it was late April when I placed the order - the perfect time to plant the items I have ordered.

The size of the items received were very small. I have purchased lilacs from eBay stores at 1/5th of the price and received bigger, healthier plants.

Will not buy from them again.

"On May 30, 2013 11:18 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problem with your order. I apologize for the delay in receiving your order. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information."

Posted on May 16, 2013, updated May 21, 2013
I ordered from Michigan Bulb in early February for my Zone 8a garden. They sent so many emails with great deals, I ordered again in early March. THEN, I looked them up on Garden Watchdog and realized I'd made a mistake but hoped for the best. In the meantime, I joined Dave's Garden because of the information here and I started ordering from Watchdog top vendors. Orders I made arrived a week later with everything in excellent condition. Literally hundreds of flowers and plants were put in my front and backyard and were growing like crazy. Finally, I got one item from my February order and bit by bit, the 4-5 items in my February order got here---in MAY! Got home yesterday and the first items from my March order arrived. But of course, there are still several items pending delivery. Please, save yourself the aggravation and don't bother ordering from these people. Although all the plants that have arrived have been in good condition (mostly bulbs), the wait is not worth it. In the interim of waiting, I've already purchased almost all of the plants I've ordered from Michigan Bulb from other sources and they're growing like crazy. Meanwhile, all the plants I ordered FIRST this year haven't even arrived. USE THE HIGHER RATED MERCHANTS AND READ THIS FORUM PRIOR TO ORDERING---let the buyer beware!

"On May 18, 2013 10:04 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problem with your plants. I apologize the plants did not arrive in a timely fashion and for all your inconvenience. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and take care of this for you."

I have ordered from MB at least 4 times in the past 6 years and have nothing but positive experiences. Sure a few plants have not made it but they have ALWAYS replaced anything simply with an email telling them what has died. I have had plants bought locally die too from one reason or another. Some of my most gorgeous, lush healthy plants today were $5 starts from MB a few years ago. Major Wheeler's honeysuckle, fern leaf bleeding heart, toad lilies, orange butterfly weed, and clematis, to name a few, all have been great. Nothing has developed any diseases or problems. If you want to pay way overinflated prices on common perennials, be my guest. But I have saved tons of money buying from MB and will continue to do so.

"On May 21, 2013 1:41 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

We really appreciate you sharing your gardening experience with our company. Thank you, and enjoy your plants!"

As a child growing up in rural Illinois, I remember this company, along with Henry Fields and Gurney as being very reliable with quality products and one that my family regularly used. That is apparently all gone now. I have had an order in for my Zone 7B since April and, as with many other postings, the delivery date keeps getting pushed back. It is now getting past the time to begin these plants and I am ready to cancel the order. I am going to take the sage advice and buy local. I should have checked here first. So sad how these once-respected companies have been destroyed by corporate greed! No matter how good the deal looks, paying for and not receiving plants is throwing away your money. I will never be giving any of these Scarlet Tanager, LLC companies another chance!

"On May 21, 2013 1:36 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your post and I apologize for the delay with your order. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and check into your order for you."

After waiting months, continuing to get the delivery date pushed back, and finally getting the run around from customer service, part of our order arrived today. Maybe I don't read thoroughly, but I did not expect the plants to arrive in the form of sticks, some with a leaf or two, or plastic bags with a little soil and a couple of roots. I feel completely ripped off. I really wish I had found this forum before I ordered from MB. As a previous poster said, I would be better off just planting the $100 in the ground. At least my expectations for the survival of the plants is low, so I won't be disappointed.

"On May 18, 2013 10:09 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problem with your plants. I apologize the plants did not arrive in a timely fashion and for all your inconvenience. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and take care of this for you.

"

I first ordered from Michigan Bulb this spring. It was a large order and the order was broken into several smaller orders to better optimize planting time. My plants were packaged beautifully and the stock was very healthy. I love that MB sends me updates regarding when items are to be shipped and updates if items are held up. I would not hesitate to buy from them. I am a very experienced gardener. I simply have nothing bad to say.

"On May 11, 2013 10:45 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for sharing your experience with us. Enjoy your garden!"

I wish I had seen this page before I placed two separate orders with Michigan Bulb. Although I received one item from my early-April order--and it was well-packaged and healthy--getting MB to ship the other five items is like pulling teeth. As others have mentioned, the dates keep getting pushed back and back, so I'm now looking at some mid-June deliveries. Which is ridiculous. Customer service has responded to my multiple emails, but they keep making shipping promises they obviously don't intend to keep. (To be fair to them, they probably have no idea what goes on in order fulfillment and are simply paid to make reassuming noises to angry customers.) Meanwhile, MB emails me almost daily with new promotions--as if I'd buy anything else from them!

"On May 11, 2013 10:44 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

We appreciate your feedback and for letting us know about the problem with your order. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and check on the status of your order."

Posted on April 21, 2013, updated May 5, 2013
I ordered 5 daylilies from Michigan Bulb and per the email I received back, the daylilies would be shipped in April. At the beginning of March, I received my daylilies which was a surprise to me since I live in Nebraska and our winter was not over. Neverless, I planted the daylilies right away per their instructions. I noticed that the daylilies were very dry and I was concerned about the root systems. I planted the daylilies and sure enough we had two more snow storms and freezing rain with temps dropping into the the teens. Needless to say, my daylilies are not doing well and two have very withered roots with no growth or sign of life. I know the daylilies would have survived if Michigan Bulb would have shipped the plants in April rather than in March and made sure the plants were packed in moist soil. I was really looking forward to watching these plants grow and bloom. I am disappointed.

"On Apr 23, 2013 2:44 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your post and I apologize the lilies are not doing well. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and we can reship them to you."

Posted on April 29, 2013, updated May 4, 2013
Posted on April 27, 2013, updated April 29, 2013
Placed my order in March (which is pushing it for South Texas) and was given an April delivery date. Was then updated on my delivery date and given a May delivery. My request to cancel my order have been ignored and I have been told that my order will be open once my zone has opened….. I can't help but notice that their are people here that are in the North whose zones have already opened so I am confused where the hold up is and why I am not able to cancel an order that will not survive.

"On May 8, 2013 1:08 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

I apologize for the delay in the shipping of your order. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and take care of this for you."

I ordered several plants on 03/25/13. Kept checking the status of my order on their main site about every other day and noticed that the shipped dates were constantly being pushed back.

By mid April I decided to call and find out what was going on. I was told that several things I had ordered were on back order, that he didn't really have a set date of when my plants would be shipped to me, though to resolve this he mentioned sending my plants in multiple shipments as soon as possible, even listing several dates my plants would be likely shipped.

Two of those suggested dates have already come and gone (along with their website still steadily pushing back the shipping date), and going by all the bad reviews that I see here I'll be lucky to get what I bought at all.

I plan on giving it to the end of this month for them to actually ship my order or I am requesting a cancellation. Which is why this feedback of mine is currently rated Neutral, though will change for better or for worse if/when I hear back from them.

I placed my order 3/11/13. On 4/1 I received an email with delivery estimates that were much later than appropriate for my zone, so I emailed and asked that the items be shipped sooner. On 4/2 I received an email from "Greg" who stated that my order was being processed and would be shipped within 2-3 days. On 4/22 I received another email giving estimated delivery dates between 5/6 and 6/10. Really? It appears that these people have no idea what they are doing and really don't care anyway. I cancelled the order, requested a refund, and will not be ordering from Michigan Bulb in the future.

Posted on April 17, 2013, updated April 26, 2013
Posted on April 12, 2013, updated April 17, 2013
This was the first and last time I will ever order from Michigan Bulb. I received one of their catalogs in the mail and placed an order in January, with full knowledge that they wouldn't be shipping yet. The website says they start shipping to my area in mid-February, which is close to the proper time to plant bulbs here (early March would have been the right time for planting bulbs). February came and went with no shipment. In early March, I got an email update with an estimated delivery date in mid-March. That estimated delivery window came and went. At the end of March, I received another email with another delivery estimate. Same thing. In all, my delivery date was pushed back 5 times with no explanation. My order has finally shipped now that it's mid-April (and all the bulbs I planted at the proper time are already up and blooming), and they can't even get their delivery estimates right. Their website says my delivery estimate is this weekend, UPS says next Tuesday. Four different emails to customer service trying to find out why shipping kept being pushed back were ignored, as was my email demanding that they cancel my order and refund my money. Their call center has extremely limited hours and I can't call them while I'm at work, so that's useless to me.

In short, Michigan Bulb is run by incompetents who can't even get a shipping date right or answer an email. After reading other reviews, I'm not holding out much hope that anything I ordered will even be alive when it finally does get here. I probably just threw away a bunch of money for nothing.

"On Apr 26, 2013 4:25 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your feedback. I apologize no one had gotten back to you yet. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and we can reship to you.
"

I placed a large order with Michigan Bulb on April 13. The original shipping estimate was April 27. I monitor the order status every day and every day it keeps getting pushed back one day at a time. The shipping estimate is now May 6. Upon calling the company, they explained to me that "some of the items I purchased must have been popular items because they are now on back order". No, it is EVERY one of the 14 items I ordered. When I asked them how they did not know that they would run out of the items shortly, she explained that "we don't know that we're going to be out of something until we go to ship it and we're all out".
... What?
How does this company not have a current inventory list that indicates how much of each plant is left in stock? Or how about a courtesy call or email after they have found that they cannot ship my products as originally stated and offer a refund or other products that are actually in house instead of pushing my ship date back EVERY day? Now, after this company has taken my money, I just get to sit here and WAIT until they get around to shipping ALL of my plants. Who knows what condition they will arrive in after that.
So I will sit here and stare at TWO blank flowerbeds until probably sometime after Memorial Day and then STILL not have any blooms because I planted them too late... all because one company cannot get their act together.
I am disgusted.
This is my first time ordering from this company.. and it will be my last.

"On Apr 23, 2013 2:42 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your post. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and check on your order for you."

My plants and bulbs arrived in excellent condition. All the plants were healthy and have continued to grow. Michigan bulb let me know by email the approximate shipping dates and then emailed me again when they actually shipped. I was able to be ready to plant immediately when they arrived. I couldn't be more pleased with their service and I will try them again.

"On Apr 23, 2013 2:45 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you, we appreciate your feedback. Happy Gardening!"

Shipping dates kept getting bumped up so that the plants took about a month longer to get here than I was originally told.
They had no clue what my growing climate was like even though they claim that is what determines their shipping.
Waited so long for these plants that I ended up going to local vendors to get them. The akebia I got locally, for the exact same price Michigan was charging, was about 4' tall and in full bloom. The one from Michigan was about 4" tall. Some had moldy dirt, and they even packed a slug in with the plants.
I still haven't received the rest of my order, but after what has come so far, I sincerely do not hold out high hopes for what is coming. I will NEVER buy from Michigan again, and would NEVER recommend them to anyone else. Buying locally you get better deals, better plants, and not all the frustration and headache of dealing with their "customer service" reps, who really don't know much of anything.

"On Apr 23, 2013 2:46 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your post. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and we can check on your order for you."

I ordered plants on 4/2/13 and the ship date keeps getting pushed back. I have emailed customer service and I have not gotten a reply, therefore no answer. Every day when I check on the website to see the delivery date it has changed, and now it's into mid-May. It's 80 degrees here every day now! I'm ready to cancel if I don't get them this week but I don't even know how to do that at this point.

Twenty years ago I ordered Cardinal Flower from Michigan Bulb and they sent me Bee Balm. Their fine print says they have the option to substitute anything, but you don't see that very fine print. So I gave them another chance a few weeks ago and my Toad Lily arrived dead. They don't have an 800 number to call. They only have email or (customer pay) fax as a contact. They just aren't real people friendly. I really don't know how they stay in business....

"On Apr 17, 2013 4:23 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your feedback. I apologize for the problems with your order. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and reship your order to you."

I ordered a PurplePeople Eater Trumpet Vine a month ago and it arrived DEAD! I contacted them with a compliant and, surprisenly, they sent me a replacement several weeks later. The replacement arrive a couple days ago and it was destine to never bloom as there was more potting soil lying loose in the shipping box that was around the root system. Oh, and it was dry as a bone. I think under the circumstan ces they should just refund my money and we'll both go our separate ways. I wrote them the same hour as the plant arrived and they've yet to contact me. BAD experience. Don't waste your time or money with them.

"On Apr 17, 2013 3:28 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

I apologize for the problem with your vine. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and take care of this for you."

I'm a "new" gardener coming up on the 1yr anniversary of buying my first home. Tired of looking at my bare yard and on a tight budget, I looked for something cheap to help start my landscaping. I found Michigan Bulb. I placed my 4th order with them this morning and so far, I've been very pleased with them. Their website is incredibly easy to navigate, discounts abound and the plants I've received were well-packaged and healthy. I got my first order about 4 weeks ago and the growth is simply amazing. No better way to boost a beginning gardener's confidence than seeing your plants more than double in size in 4 weeks. Although I'm sure the climate helped (Savannah, GA), it's only further inspired me. I purchased several types of plants, including hydrangeas, butterfly bushes, lilac, rhododendron, hostas, grasses, hens, foxgloves...the only "bad" plant I had was the Liriope I ordered. It was dried out when it arrived, but I planted it anyway and then it just went kaput. The really great thing was, after giving it sufficient time to thrive, I emailed MB and they immediately issued an order for more, no questions asked. I don't expect miracles. They are plants after all. So if a few don't make it, I'm happy to know that MB will replace it. That's just good customer service. In any case, I noticed in many of the reviews of the plants on their website, there were several complaints about size or things arriving as "sticks". For this price, I wasn't expecting much, but I am truly amazed at how well, and quickly, everything has grown. My hostas, for example, arrived as lumpy potato-looking things with roots. Planted them and after only a few days, green leaf "spikes" were up out of the ground. Now, my pots are filled with big green bouquets of leaves. That's satisfying.

"On Apr 17, 2013 3:25 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you so much for sharing your experience with our company.If you do have any issues just let us know. Happy Gardening to you!"

Posted on September 23, 2012, updated April 6, 2013
Excellent Experience! Healthy plants. Great packaging! Placed my order early summer(I did know that plants won't ship until fall). You do pay for your plants upfront,but they don't forget about you, they send you an email every month with an order status update. I appreciate that!
Just recieved my order of different kind of pholox,zebra mallow,tidal wave clematis & blue bird rose of sharon. Plants are not as small as others say. They are normal young plants that are ready for planting. Each packaged plant had
lots of green leaves on them. I will buy from them again.
I ordered from Forest Farm,Antique Rose Emporium,Garden Harvest Supply and Park Seed and now will buy from Michigan Bulb also. They are all excellent companies!
S.V. Salisbury, NC

"On Apr 10, 2013 9:04 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for sharing, we truly appreciate your feedback."

First year of gardening , and this is my fourth mail order received from my fourth company. :)

Very VERY pleased with what I've received for the most part. Some of the dahlias I ordered are HUGE (need two hands to fit the tuber system in!), others are 2-3" tubers of 2-8 in each bag. Very happy. I also ordered irises, daylilies, hydrangeas, roses, gladiolus, daffodils, lilies, and strawberries. Everything looks great - even one daffodil bulb has a bit of green showing, and will be potted right away!

The roses look great even through they are small (totally expected from the description) - lots and lots of new leaves and healthy growth on them. They will also be potted right away, likely kept in pots for a season while I wait for them to grow. :)

All but one hydrangea look great, all will still be potted up for one season to baby them a bit. That hydrangea that doesn't look too good is the biggest of the ones I received and likely is just dormant, so not a concern at all - all the others are green and growing though!

Only two concerns.

1) The gladiolus bulbs are TINY! They are supposedly 8cm bulbs (I'm guessing that's around the outside of the bulb?). End of my thumb tiny! I had recently purchased bags of 50 mixed color glad corms from Walmart that are ginormous in comparison for about the same price! Oh well, not too big of a deal. :) But the flowers will be a lot smaller from those than the other glads for sure!

2) One of the dahlia tubers ( 'Deutschland', large red) I'm not sure of survival. In the bag is a 2" stem connected to a tiny 1" tuber and a GIANT tuber that is currently about 6" long, over 1" thick at the widest, but the end of it was chopped off - so I have no idea just how big that tuber might have been in reality! I don't know if a chopped tuber will grow or not, but I'll try it. :) There was also a thin stringy tuber that's about 3" long but maybe 1/4" wide that is connected, but will need feeding up before it could flower I'd think. Considering the other dahlias I received, it's not a huge concern. The other red dahlia clump received is a cluster of about 6, 1/3" to 1.5" ROUND tubers (like a ball!), and I am fairly sure I'll get some decent flowers from them this year anyways.

Very happy with my order overall. I'll update if I find need to (outstanding results, bad results, that one tuber still grew, problems with future orders, etc), but I'll be ordering from them again for sure! :D

Oh, and only other concern? My ground is still frozen, and I'll not be planting for about 2 weeks. Luckily I have a cool area of the garage I can store them in! :D I can't wait to plant and see them grow!

"On Mar 28, 2013 12:04 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your posting. Just let us know if there are any problems and we will take care of them for you. Happy Gardening!"

Another company whose products have gone downhill over the years. They have replaced some plants--with more inferior plants that do not thrive. (recently 6 raspberries & a gogi berry).
they also owe me an amsonia, but am unsure I will receive it since their replacement policy has apparently changed.
Might as well plant $10 bills.

"On Mar 26, 2013 4:28 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your feedback. I would be happy to check on your reship for you. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and also help with anything else you may need."

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I ordered a miniature rose collection. 5 roses times 2 and the roses are beautiful! The plants are healthy and green and one has a bud ready to open. In addition I also ordered a miniature climbing rose. That also is a beautiful young plant. All of the plants are of good size and very healthy!

Thank you so much!

"On Mar 14, 2013 11:21 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

You are very welcome. Thank you for sharing and enjoy!"

I have used this company many times in the past with no issues. This year I ordered a number of tuberous begonias bulbs. These bulbs are not inexpensive for the average gardener. When they arrived I found a few of them had rotted to the core with mold. Of some 15 bulbs 4 or them had rot. I emailed them on a Sunday and Monday morning they advised a complete reship - more than I expected as I would have been happy with them replacing the 4 bad bulbs. No, ship it back to us, No hassel, Prompt service by Kelly in customer service. A reason to go back.

"On Mar 14, 2013 11:20 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you very much for sharing we do our best to provide quality service and quality products. Enjoy your garden!"

Products are good !
Mail innovations shipping for southern states (UPS transfer to USPS) is not a good choice , since it takes extra 2 days in transit when package is in the same city . (Don't you dare to miss USPS carrier and miss delivery because You have to call for redelivery and add more days to transit time ).
You need to ship customers choice to meet customer needs.

"On Mar 11, 2013 8:39 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your feedback, we appreciate you suggestions and I will pass this along."

Posted on February 1, 2013, updated February 2, 2013
Posted on September 30, 2010, updated February 1, 2013
I, too, have been dumped by Michigan Bulb. Apparently, through no fault of my own, they have determined that I requested replacements or refunds for 80% or more of my orders. It is not my fault that the plants did not survive or thrive. In addition, what am I expected to do if the company sends me less than healthy plants or mushy bare roots. One example was 6 poppy plants (bareroot) for $2.99. Cheap, yes. But, should I as the customer expect that a company in the gardening business would send mushy, rotted bare roots? The replacements were even worse. I wonder why they even bother. As a friend said to me - they're not selling plants. They're selling dreams. It was a dream of mine to have a beautiful garden with plants that I was not able to find locally. Now, while my friends are enjoying their gardens with locally purchased plants, I am still dreaming about the garden I hoped to have - the dream that the Michigan Bulb catalog promises. They do offer the guarantee, which is great - but I want to enjoy plants - not constantly asking for replacements and refunds. I have requested refunds for everything I ever bought from this company - so that we can stop the nonsense. If there is anything that I've missed - I hope they will kindly refund all of my purchases. I will no longer have to worry about asking a company to stand behind its products for as long as I garden.

Michigan Bulb customer 01084102

"On Oct 6, 2010 2:10 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for feedback concerning the problems you have had with your orders. We regret that we have been unsuccessful in satisfying your gardening needs. We do strive for 100% customer satisfaction, and in most cases, achieve it. A customer service representative will be contacting you and check into your account for you."

Posted on May 28, 2011, updated January 30, 2013
Posted on May 23, 2011, updated May 28, 2011
Posted on May 23, 2011, updated May 23, 2011
I bought butterfly and humming bird garden as well as three seasons cutting garden from them. The shipment was supposed to arrive by mid April according to their website (Zone 5 MI) but few weeks later suddenly their website is showing they will arrive in June. We are already running behind on planting, and we have very short summer in Michigan. I'm not betting on my gardens doing well/surviving after they arrive. Too bad I was going to order some more from them based on the service and quality of the plants. But I don't think I will ever order from them again.

"On May 23, 2011 12:31 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for letting us know of the problem with your order. A customer service representative will be contacting you for your account information to check on your order and find out when it will be shipping."

I have been buying from michigan bulb for over 10 years and they have been a good company to deal with providing a nice variety of plants at a decent price. But oh to my suprise they know longer are offering the lifetime guarantee and any plants you bought in 2012 are now subject to a 30day guarantee. I called to find out when this happened and all I was told is that it happened in 2012, I asked why old customers like myself weren't notified about the change but could never get a concrete answer. 30days just does'nt cut it for me

"On Jan 24, 2013 3:46 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

We appreciate your posting. Our change in our guarantee is listed in our catalog as well as on our website. We do our best to ship healthy quality plants and bulbs.We understand that there are exceptions to our 30 day guarantee. We also understand that items such as bulbs and bareroots may not show signs of life until the spring, if planted in the fall. Also, these items may take longer than 30 days to break dormancy and begin to grow, if planted in the spring. When dealing with plants and bulbs there are certain characteristics of the plants that may not be known within the 30-day guarantee timeframe. If you purchase plants or bulbs and after 30 days find that the color or type is not what it should be, we would make every effort to satisfy your request. "

I've ordered from Michigan bulb for years. Last time I ordered was last spring. I ordered a 3 in 1 apple tree, 2 banana trees, strawberries, and dahlias. When you first get them they don't look like much, but once you plant them they take off and look great.

"On Jan 16, 2013 4:31 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

We appreciate your feedback. We do sell the "value size" plant but our plants do not suffer from transplant shock and are easy to plant and you will be amazed at the growth and how well they adapt."

I've ordered several times because they have great clearance sales. I've always received healthy items. The only drawback is that they occasionally break up orders and an item might arrive much later. But again, always good quality, healthy plants.

Here's why I like Michigan Bulb... I mixed up some daylilies and (wrongly) thought that Michigan Bulb had sent the incorrect item. I posted this on their website in a review of the product. Months later, someone at Michigan Bulb read my review and issued me a credit to be used in my next order. I never asked for a credit or replacement. They simply took it upon themselves to make it right (even though I was actually wrong -- oops).

"On Jan 16, 2013 4:27 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for sharing, we appreciate you letting us know. We always strive to have the best quality plants and service for our customers."

I'v been reading the reviews on Michigan Bulb.

First, for those who got plants that were dead or died - the company does have a lifetime guarantee and will replace any item. They don't grow their own stock, or didn't when I was ordering, so what you're getting is coming from their provider direct to you. I have noticed that they have changed some things since I last ordered so that may not be the case now. As for ordering from other online sites like Gurney's, if you read the small print and do some research I think you'll find that many of them get their product from the same place as MB did when I was ordering a couple of years ago. If ordering a large amount and wanting high quality guaranteed then order from one of the more expensive companies. Also, as with anything mail order product, inspect and contact the company immediately with any problems. Contact with MB should preferably be by phone rather than email for a quicker response.

Second, Yes, they are cheap compared to most other nurseries, but remember you get what you paid for. If you want large plants that will almost always have no issues you have to pay for it - order from those more expensive companies. Cheap means you'll likely get the culls or smaller plants and that's only fair. I don't know any company or product where you can get high quality cheap. Buying plants is like buying groceries, clothes and furniture. The difference between MB and almost every other company is their LIFETIME guarantee. Other companies may offer a 1 year replacement but then make you feel like a fool/idiot if your plant doesn't grow even though they will replace it. Oh and if the replacement doesn't take then you're out of luck because the 1 year guarantee has expired. MB will replace and not make you feel like it was your fault, and if the replacements don't all make it they will replace those. And yes I've had to have items replaced over the years and ordered from various places and MB has always been helpful and pleasant. Also, keep in mind if it's on sale really really cheap then you will not be getting the same product as the regular priced item, as this may be their way of clearing the weaker plants to make room for new plants. If you look carefully you'll notice that the penny items or super sale items are also listed as regular items and there is a big price difference. You won't get the $5.00 plant for pennies on the dollar so don't expect it. Be realistic.

Third, out of stock issues and unhelpful customer service is not the norm. Since their provider is also providing to several other nurseries and orders are coming in all the time from different places it isn't unlikely that some will cross or arrive at the same time and create an 'out of stock' situation. Be graceful and either wait patiently or cancel and get from another source (keep in mind your new source may have the same provider). Only so many plants are grown and once those are sold the nurseries have to wait until a new batch is grown. If your experience with customer service is not up to par then call and ask for a supervisor. People always assume if someone is working customer service then they will be pleasant and helpful at all time and know what they are talking about - not true. Just as with any job sometimes the person hired is a dud and unless the supervisor is informed will continue to give the company a bad rep. Sometimes the person contacted is having a bad day and while that should not affect their job it's not always the case so again the supervisor needs to know. No company or person is perfect, take the bad with the good and go higher up the chain if necessary.

I have personally ordered several times from MB. One year I ordered from 4-5 different companies. Upon getting my orders I noticed that MB items were better packed than some of the other more expensive companies and of the same size or quality. One of the higher quality, more expensive companies did not have my item and issued a refund without contacting me to see what I wanted to do. I would have been more than happy to wait until they got more even if it meant a longer than necessary wait, but wasn't given the choice. Since this item wasn't carried by my usual nurseries I was out of luck and not happy.

As one reviewer said, the plants may be smaller than expected and need some babying, but be patient and you'll see growth and your garden will flourish.

Not trying to say MB never makes mistakes or messes up, just recommending an open mind and realistic expectations.

"On Oct 9, 2012 12:24 PM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you so much for your review. We truly appreciate you taking the time to share your experience with our company."

Posted on May 21, 2012, updated July 24, 2012
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Today I received an email which indicated that the Rose of Sharon Bush I ordered in March is unavailable. No explanation, though they did apologize for any inconvenience! (I planted a garden with the bush as the center piece) I called customer service, the gentleman was
nice, but he basically could only make nice for the administration of MB.
I would expect at the very least, an apology, an explanation, and profuse apologies. I cancelled the order.
Also emailed customer service a week ago to let them know some of the plants I received were so tightly bound together, I could not separate them. (I plopped them in the garden as one)
I still have two outstanding orders...I am now concerned they are in jeopardy.
Any company expecting to be succesful must understand customer service. I am of the opinion, Michigan Bulbs does not.
I will not order again. So disappointing.

"On May 22, 2012 10:04 AM, Michigan Bulb responded with:

Thank you for your feedback. We apologize for the inconvenience but unfortunately the Rose of Sharon Bush is out of stock for the season. A customer service representative will contact you for your account information and check on your remaining orders and will help with anything else you need."