Comments regarding Michigan Bulb

Chalk up yet another bad experience with MB. The catalogs make all the plants and flowers look so lush and healthy, but when I got my lilac, it was a dried out twig. So like a fool feeling foolish, I planted this twig on the corner of our house. It never did grow, and I think one of the kids broke the only "branch" playing in the yard. Why do these people not understand the value of good products backed by good customer service? My advice to MB as a marketing professional: First, offer a good product. If your quality is poor, fix it. Second, respond to complaints in a timely manner. Third, hire yourself a good PR firm oryou'll go under very soon.

Don't fall for the lifetime guarantee. I never did get my plants replaced; they ignored me.

I ordered the 51-piece summer bulb garden. I dug up and tried cleaning the soil from the annual bulbs (for zone 6 they are all annuals except the stargazer and gayfeathers). I'm so glad I was skeptical in the first place and saved myself a bundle. I won't be ordering from Michigan bulb. Their catalog is misleading, missing important facts, hardiness zones, and I have been wondering why don't they use the correct botanical name and correct common name? To try to confuse you, that's why.

After reading all the complaints, I now know why we are having problems with this company, our butterfly bushes arrived, we planted them and they died. No bushes, no refund, no contact. The only good to come of this, is finding your web page; thank you…

This company is the pits. I have received more bad plants than good. I'm going to request refunds for some purple coneflowers that are actually yellow!

I have ordered from Michigan Bulb for many years. However, this year is the last time I will order from them. I received about ¼ of what I ordered; half of what I received was dead when I got it. I received a voucher for the part of my order I did not receive, and they expected me to spend it on more plants. I returned it with a letter stating I wanted my money back and I was very disappointed with their service. That was 2 months ago. I still have not received my money, and I have not received any more mail from them. I am telling everyone I know about this and warning them not to order from Michigan Bulb.

I ordered Butterfly bushes from MB and got dead plants. The root system was not thicker than a piece of thread. What a joke. I requested a refund via fax and received a credit to MB. Not acceptable. Still need to dead with them. I'll stay away from MB.

In 1998, my wife and I ordered [several roses] along with some other small plants. The plants arrived in fairly good shape in a reasonable amount time; the problem started when the bare root roses started to bloom.To this day I still don't know what one rose is, Another looks like what they would start offbefore grafting. Another is of so-so quality.Just found this web site, but had I found their web page prior to this date I would have really blasted them.My advice would be to anybody that intends to buy plants by mail is stay away from these guys, they just don't appear to care about their plants they send out and unfortunately, it seems they don't care about their customers. Think they just want your check and what ever they have on the shelf they will send you, whether you ordered it or not.

Only a few plants have survived since I bought them. I called Michigan Bulb to tell them the order of roses sent to me were not the ones I ordered. They sent me a new shipment. Only problem was they all died and the other order of roses did too. My husband spent over $300.00 dollars on flowers and bulbs that have not survived. I wrote them and told them the one that did not make it. They never shipped new ones to me; I am very angry about this. When you call you get put on hold for many long minutes. When it is a long distance call I think they could get to you right away and they don't have a 1-800 number. I am very sorry I ever dealt with this company. I will no longer buy from a catalog company. What more can I say except I am very dissatisfied by their promise to replace any plant that does not survive.

I just wanted to add my experience with MBC to the list. I ordered 1 dwarf banna tree, a 5 in 1 apple tree, a fruit cocktail tree, a flame grass order, which consisted of 3 plants, and the 52 free bulb assortment. The two grafted trees showed up first not looking any worse than some I've seen at my local nurseries, next came the bulb assortment same quality, then came the banana trees (they sent an extra - both of which were beautiful specimens.) The flame grass was lagging behind in shipment until finally they sent me a notice stating that they would be unable to ship it and that I would not be charged. By the way they didn't charge my credit card for the items until they were shipped. The two grafted trees, despite a vigorous initial start have both slowly but surely died back completely. I am going to attempt to contact MBC for a refund or replacement. I must admit that when I first started reading these letters I was ready to toss all of my MBC stuff in the round file but, they seem to be about 50-50.

When we bought a new home in PA a few years back, I gleaned the catalogs and placed hefty $$$ orders with Breck's, Starks, Jackson Perkins, Wayside, Michigan, White Flower and others. I also hit the local nurseries. I so agree that the Breck's, Jackson Perkins, Wayside and Stark's arrived in much better condition than Michigan's. Many of the Michigan items were too dry or too wet. Some even smelled like pure fertilizer. I never had a problem getting a replacement or a refund. I soaked all the items in in warm water and some miracle grow for a few hours to an entire day before planting. (Except bulbs - those in baby powder) Of course all the catalog pictures looked better than the tiny things any of the catalogs sent - but I expected that. My Michigan roses actually fared better than the Jackson & Perkin's and most of the other catalogs. I planted 150 roses in all from a variety of sources including a huge 56 bush hedge. About 1/3 of everything we planted from all the sources never made it through the first year regardless of where I bought it. Although the nursery items fared the best, I believe because I selected healthy established plants that had not been tossed about by our wonderful postal system. My advice is do some home work before you select anything. Know what grows in your region and soil/light setting. Take long looks at gardens in your area that you envy. Place small orders to test quality of any catalog. If you don't have the patience to wait 2 to 3 years for the tiny cuttings to mature - spend a little extra with your local nursery for the instant gratification of knowing you have healthy plants. Even if they don't last another year - you've enjoyed them and learned. I still buy from Michigan and the others. Forget the contest. I spent mega bucks for years and could open my own portrait studio with all the Olan Mills certificates I received. I only buy what I need - those bonus plants now take up valuable space in my "postage stamp" of a CA garden.

I ordered a large variety of bulbs from MBC last summer. I thought the bulbs were very small but I've had the most beautiful flowers since spring started this year. I'm just hoping that they come up again next year. I plan to order about 1,000 more bulbs from MBC within the next few weeks so that I can thicken up my flower beds at our new home. After pricing them, even if only 1/3 of them come up, I will still be ahead of buying bulbs locally.On the other hand, I ordered two of the MBC perennial gardens. The twigs, fibers, and slime that arrived as "bare root" stock did not come up this spring. I'll be darned if I can find a single one of them. It was very hard to understand how a tiny little mass of fibers could be counted as 10 individual plants. In the future I will stick with local greenhouses and friends for my perennials.

Many plants have been purchased from MBC, and either have not survived or wrong kind of plants. None of these plants have borne any flowers, but the plants are growing by leaps and bounds.

Thus far my experiences with MBC have been good. Many years ago I ordered some Poplar trees from them. They came in as sticks but grew well. As the years went by I lost two or three and MBC replaced them without question. Last year I ordered 30 China Wall hedges. Again I received sticks but followed the directions to the letter. I lost three but MBC replaced them without question. All are doing well and some are over six feet tall in only the second season. Count me one of the lucky ones.

My very first order was for about $70.00 worth of plants. Many of them were dead on arrival or did not survive the first year; however, the hybrid poplars and the Chinese wall hedge did great and are still growing strong (some plants are 5 ft tall already). Michigan Bulb sent replacement vouchers for the plants that did not survive and I intend to use them this year. I have had good luck both contacting thecompany and getting results.

I have been ordering from Michigan Bulb for over three years. Most of what I order are bulbs, but I have also ordered perennials. In only one instance have I had plants die. I contacted Michigan Bulb, they sent a replacement for one of the plants and sent me a credit for the other that was no longer in season. They also sentme a letter of apology along with a $5 coupon for my trouble. My replacements arrived in good shape and have grown very well. This took approximately two weeks.I rarely order ANYTHING through the mail other than bulbs and native, hardy types of perennials. I would no more order a rose bush via mail-order than I would groceries. Some plants must be seen and inspected first hand by their very nature. I hope Michigan Bulb looks into these problems and tries to find a way to resolve them. Their service, product and prices are something I would miss.

Can't believe I got caught too (or at least my wife did). Same thing - ordered plants only half came in; no planting instructions; plants and bulbs looked bad. The plants are almost dead. Trying to get a refund. Wish me luck.

If you want to get sweepstakes entries in the mail twice a week, just order from Michigan Bulb! If you want to do some serious gardening, consider ordering from somewhere else. I have had several problems with every order I've placed -- bulbs that never bloom to completely wrong colors of tulips coming up. I have to admit that I was sucked in by their low prices several times when my gardening budget was tight, but in this case you definitely get what you (don't) pay for. I have called customer service and had things replaced with a fairly friendly attitude, but I still have experienced so much frustration with this company. Worst of all was calling several times to beg to be removed from the sweepstakes mailing list but continuing to get junk in the mail. It made me realize that they are definitely in the sweepstakes business and only do bulbs and plants on the side!

A few years ago I bought a lot of flowers from the Michigan Bulb Co. Many of them also died, and the ones that lived were the wrong color. I carefully planned all my colors. I ordered a Blue Girl Rose bush and after I planted it, it bloomed a bright yellow. At this point I was not very happy. Last year I though I would try it one more time and I ordered many flowers. It took months before I received them. Before I actually received them I wrote asking them to cancel my order because the growing season was half over at this point and that it would be too hot to plant new plants. I got no response. It was July when they finally sent my flowers. When I opened the box they were mostly dead. Then all the bags were marked different colors than what I asked for. I sent them another letter telling them how unhappy I was.Finally they sent me a credit for $28.00. I do not want to order from this company again. I almost don't want to use my credit because I know that that order will not be satisfactory, but I also don't want to hand them over $28.00. They have not sent me a catalog for me to use this credit, and this expires in a few months. I would stay away from this company!

I thought I was the only person disappointed with Michigan Bulb, but when I read other letters from people with the same problem, I feel better.I will not recommend to anybody to buy from them. Why? Because I spent a lot of money (to me, I'm not rich) buying from them and most of the flowers, shrubs, and trees are dead. I decide to go to some of the local store and buy from them, is more cheap and at least I know what I'm bringing home and if they die I go in my car and exchange it for the same or for another one.

Like so many others, I have ordered from Michigan Bulb in good faith. My last order was placed in February 2000. Part of my order was received; the order was to have been sent in multiple packages. The balance was never received; however my check was cashed. I wrote them on April 1, 2000 but to-date, I have heard nothing. I am going to send an e-mail tonight and if nothing comes from that, try the telephone. Over the past few years, most of the plants ordered never survived and I did receive several certificates to be applied to my next order (received in the fall), which I sent along with my check for the balance. As for as their sweepstakes is concerned, I think that is a big joke and only used to get customers.

I have probably spent over $500 in just the last year and a half at Michigan Bulb. A lot of the stuff was rotten and moldy in the mail, but they have consistently responded to my request to restock my yard. The plants that do make it are great.The way I see it is that until I am completely satisfied, and I am picky, they will continue to restock my garden for years until they actually send plants that grow. They have sent me replacement packages SEVERAL times already.

Another complaint for the Michigan Bulb Company. My husband and I ordered close to $200 worth of flowers in 1997 - again just like others, it was delivered mostly looking in bad shape. We asked for a replacement certificate and GOT it. I now fear to use it. They have asked to submit the certificate together with my request. I fear that: 1) I will not see the certificate again; and2) I will not see any flowers.

I ordered from Michigan Bulb then saw this page and cancelled my order with no problem. They sent me several flowers anyways, because they could not stop shipment in time for free. All have done well too my suprise. Doesn't anyone have anything good to say about this company? If you need a catalog or contact look at their website and email customer service. I had no problem with a quick response.

My own personal experience with ordering from Michigan Bulb was fine. If you receive something in the mail and it doesn't look good, make a phone call, they will resend it. Everything that I have planted, has grown and looks great.

I was truly shocked to see there had been problems with Michigan Bulb. I have done business with them for the past five years with no problems whatever.

I have had no problems from Michigan Bulb. I have used them for several orders of about 3000 plants will replace any and all problems you report wonderful. Plants and bulbs in good condition.

I have one thing to say about this company: who the heck taught them how to pack plants? No wonder there are so many complaints about dead and dying orders!I ordered 10 mosquito plants and 1 butterfly bush from them. They arrived at my house -- along with a mysterious "free surprise gift" that looks somewhat like a rose bush -- in a 6" wide 1 1/2' high box -- via UPS. The box was throroughly taped shut, had no air holes and there was nothing on the box that said "this side up" or any real indication that there was a top or bottom to it.Everything was packaged within cardboard holders. The butterfly bush and the "gift" were standing upright and in reasonable condition. The mosquito plants were all jammed in the box tightly ON THEIR SIDES -- I couldn't get them out in one piece and three were destroyed. The plants had a "moldy" odor (no, not the citronella fragrance, this was definitely mold) and dirt was all over the box. All of the mosquito plants were BADLY damaged and twowere dead.In summary: that was the first and last order I'll place with Michigan Bulb. I'm not going to bother demanding a refund on the mosquito plants and I don't much care for the indifference and lack of respect they show for their plants. I'll be contacting them to demand that they cease sending me catalogs and to take me off their mailing list.

I have ordered several hundred dollars worth of roses and shrubs. All of which are coming along very well. My only regret was ordering too early, after a few weeks of planting they sent a catalog at half the price. I will know better next year.

I ordered from them for the first time and so far so great. My order was on time and what I asked for, my 'Nearly Black' rose is incredible - it took off as soon as it hit the soil, and after only a month it's blooming. I live in zone 9; we have a strange growing season that nobody really understands, I believe I should have gotten my plants and bulbs a lot sooner then their policy, but climates are different. Then only real problem I had was my strazzberry and strawberry's kicked as soon as they hit the soil but come to find out the soil I was using was way too rich and the sun was way too hot for them at the time…The problems I had were caused by my ignorance. My husband made me call them to get them replaced (he loves the lifetime guarantee) and they didn't hold it against me at all; boy was I surprised when they told me my replacements would be here in 3 weeks. The lady was very knowledgeable and told me how to rectify the problems I was having she even told me that if it happens again I could either change to something different or could continue to try again. I'm sorry everyone else seems to be having a problem but I know in my heart that I will never change my mail order company.P.S. The peacock orchids that were my freebie aren't in the ground but the roots are growing out of the bag.

I am writing in response to the complaints about Michigan Bulb Co. and I think good things should also be heard, seems how people always hear about the bad in a situation. After reading all the feedback, I was a little nervous that I would become one of the angry customers and writing to complain, but the next day I received my order. I thoroughly went through the bulbs and they looked just like the ones I bought from Lowe's two days ago. I know how it is to be a budget gardener and that's why I decided to order from Michigan Bulb Co., they provide hope to people who can't or won't spend hundreds of dollars on flowers. I am a satisfied customer and I will order from them in the future. Good luck to people who aren't satisfied, I'm sure you'llhave a problem or two with any company you order from!

My father, uncle, and brother, as well as myself, have all mail ordered numerous times over the past two decades, from the Michigan Bulb company. Most of the stock received did flourish. Any that did not, was returned for replacement. Gooseberry bushes were the only item I ever had trouble with, being that we purchased a single 'set' and it did not take to our clay soil for the first two seasons. Afterwards, it thrived! Patience paid off. Their shrubs, bulbs, and fruit-bearing trees were ordered by the rest of my family and did well in their varied parts of the South East sector of the state.

In 1990, I ordered $187 worth of bulbs, corms, perennials, etc. from Michigan Bulb. Not only did most of them not flower, but most of the stock was shrivelled or rubbery. I contacted them upon receipt. Some things they did replace, but most of that was moldy. I never did get a refund from them. I was living in southeastern Pennsylvania at the time, & had ordered items that were supposedly good for that zone. When I again contacted them (after the bulk of my plantings should have shown themselves), they told me that some plants takes 2 years to flower & to "be patient". I contacted them at the 2 year point & they told me it was long after the guarantee had expired & there was nothing they would do for me. I would never order from this company again.

We have been ordering large amounts of seed, perennials, fruit and shrubs for the farm over the past decade. Michigan Bulb is a blight on the industry, although their parent company does better through their other catalogues.

I was VERY dissatisfied with MBC a few years ago. The plants looked dead when I received them! After planting them and not having them grow, I sent the required things back and never heard from them! No replacement...nothing!I will never buy from them again!

I have placed catalog orders from Michigan Bulb for over three years now and truly wished that I had read these letters from other customers likemyself. Some of the bulbs came up; however, most of them did not. The rooted plants did not come back at all. I sent a complaint to the companyand they replaced them with other plants however, none of them came up. I will not be ordering any more from Michigan Bulb.

It's great for those of you who have ordered from MBC and have been pleased. I consider myself to be a good gardener. I have tried MBC on two occasions and was disappointed both times. There is a difference in dormancy and dead; most of my plants were dead. No soaking or root stimulator in this universe could resurrectThese plants. I tried, it did not work. I hope that those of you who are pleased are not disappointed in the future.

I had the typical story as others here, with one major exception. I received over 100 miscellaneous plants and bulbs that I ordered in 1998. Very few came up in 1999. Since I didn't know any better, I called the company and told the customer service rep about my problem. She very quickly pulled up details of my order, asked which ones did come up (which I couldn't accurately answer) and then proceeded to process a full refund of my $46 order. It came as a merchandise credit, which I had agreed to. I am currently putting together an order to use up this credit. Wish me luck!

Michigan bulb company in my opinion has always treated me good. On placed orders I got exactly what was ordered except for one time in which the substitution was better. I also had a couple of bad seedlings delivered, which were replaced.On stuff that wasn't growing or out of stock I received a full credit no questions. I have ordered through them for two years and am very satisfied.