Comments regarding Spring Hill Nursery (aka SpringHillNursery.com)

Ordered couple of roses this year, all came in time I specified, good quality, growing well. Quite satisfied!

I was shocked when I read all the negative comments about Spring Hill. I'd been buying from them for years and had always received top notch plants and service. After reading the comments I contacted Spring Hill....here's the answer I received:
*********************************************

Dear Customer:

On June 30, 2001, our previous owners declared bankruptcy. Their
financial interests were "frozen" by the bankruptcy law. They had many
business interests and had made choices that put them so deep in debt
that they were not able to pay back their loans.

Because the debt of our previous owner was so great, no one could afford
to buy our business, keep it operating, and assume the debt so that all
suppliers could be paid what was owned to them, and customers could be
shipped their order or given refunds. As a result, our business was
sold at a bankruptcy auction hearing, and on October 26, 2001, we began
the reorganization process under new ownership.

We are honoring the merchandise that has perished or never arrived with
replacement certificates. I can offer a replacement certificate for
next season. Please provide me with the amount paid for the merchandise
and your complete mailing address. We are offering the certificate with
a maximum amount of $200.


Sincerely,

Toni
Customer Service

-----Original Message-----
From: LaNell Beil [mailto:labeil@albanymo.net]
Posted At: Monday, January 20, 2003 5:25 AM
Posted To: Spring Hill Customer Service
Conversation: Spring Hill Nursery Feedback: Placing an Order
Subject: Spring Hill Nursery Feedback: Placing an Order


1/20/2003 5:24:31 AM

Email: labeil@albanymo.net
First Name: LaNell
Last Name: Beil
Order #:
Account #:
Category: Placing an Order
Message: I'm not placing an order this year. Perhaps you should read
the reviews of your company on Dave's Garden. What has happened to the
Spring Hill I used to know? Has there been a huge corporate take over
or something? I was literally shocked to read the awful things about
your plants.
*******************************
I don't know if this will help any of you with getting a refund but please feel free to copy their message back to them if it'll help.

Until last year, I have had good experiences, ordering thousands of dollars worth. However, ever since new ownership, they have been a frustrating ripoff. Having ordered roses that died, they said I would need to fax proof of purchase. This I did five times. Still no replacements. Last early spring I ordered more roses and many other plants. Some roses that arrived were about three inches tall, many quickly dying; others arrived in June dead. Other plants that arrived soon died. No replacement for anything. How do they stay in business?

I too received mushy, rotten plants. I have not been able to get a refund or anything at this point in time. The plants I ordered were received last fall. What a joke! Stay away from this place. If you order you are throwing your money away.

save your money! They messed up my order several times! Sent dead plants and never sent replacements. Never got a refund either.

I have placed one order with Spring Hill Nursuries. Everything arrived accurately, on time, and healthy. Each plant has grown well since planting.

i have been purchasing plants from spring hill for many years. i have also, purchased plants from them for people for whom i work for. in all the years of ordering from them, i think that they are wonderful! i have many plants that i have growing in my yard that i have purchased from them, and any time i have had a problem, spring hill, has ALWAYS followed thru with their guareentee! i was just issued a certificate, for the amount to cover the plants, that did not live. and just for the record, there weren't that many. i give spring hill 4 stars!

I feel bad reading all the negative experiences. I've had 3-two ok and one alittle less ok. All orders were thru QVC and arrived timely, well packed, alive and well cared for. From there the problems started. 12 mini roses were bought 2 years in a row. I now have maybe 10 of them ( 24 originally) The 3 HT's I ordered have never responded the way they should have but I still have 2 of them.
Their stock is just not the strongest and could have spent another year or two in the ground before stressing by shipping. I don't plan on using them again. Do enjoy the catalog though

Although the first order I placed with Springhill arrived in relatively good condition and are growing well, my overall experience since then has been poor. One item in that first order, a Double Mock Orange, arrived with a large split through the main stalk of the plant. I hoped it might be able to heal and survive, but it didn't make it. By then I'd placed a second order, and nearly everything was dead or dying on arrival. Many of the plants were so tiny they would have required months of care in a pot before they could have been planted in my garden even if they hadn't died before reaching me. On two occasions I've even received tiny pots with nothing in them but wet dirt: no plant. I also had a lot of difficulty placing orders on their website, not receiving confirmations and not finding orders I'd placed in my order history, followed by slow and not very helpful customer service. I ended up with some duplicates of some plants because it appeared an order had not gone through when it had. I'd rather not do business with them again, but they refuse to reimburse for the shipment of dead plants and will only issue a credit. Since in all it came to nearly $100 I guess I'll try again in the autumn. Maybe bulbs; they're not as easy to kill in transit.

I have ordered from Spring Hill prior to the bankruptcy issues...and never had a problem. I stopped when I read all the problems. The website is back up and this is what the company is saying on their FAQs page: Q. I heard that Spring Hill Nurseries went out of business. Is this true? A. A few years ago Spring Hill was sold to a much larger direct-mail-oriented company, Foster and Gallagher. This summer, Foster and Gallagher declared bankruptcy, unfortunately putting thousands of people out of work, and leaving tens of thousands of loyal Spring Hill customers with no place to turn. A group of lifelong mail order gardeners bought Spring Hill at a bankruptcy hearing in September, and, with your help, we'll restore it to the glory days of old. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience you've experienced over the last couple of years, particularly over the last couple of months. Please bear with us, and stick with Spring Hill. Together we'll make 2002 an historic season as we bring back Spring Hill back the way you remember it in the '90s and before. Q. I had problems with the handling of my order by Foster and Gallagher (also known as myseasons.com) last year. How do I know I won't have problems this year? A. We have heard reports that some customers weren't treated well by the former owners of Spring Hill, particularly those who ordered over the summer. Again, we apologize for this. Although we only took control in late October, we've done a top-down review of everything about Spring Hill. We've improved the quality of the plants and seeds we'll ship this year by being choosier. We've improved customer service because we're focused on just gardening (the former Foster and Gallagher had businesses from toys to gifts to prepared foods). Together, the group restoring Spring Hill have several hundred years of mail order gardening and nursery experience. We promise you won't be disappointed. Q. I ordered from Spring Hill last summer (when Foster and Gallagher/myseasons.com was running the company), they cashed my check and never shipped my order. What can I do? A. Unfortunately, when Foster and Gallagher declared bankruptcy, they owed several banks a lot of money. The final bankruptcy decree ruled that the banks got to keep the cash customers sent in, even if Foster and Gallagher never shipped an order. If you're one of the customers who had this happen, again, we apologize. We don't have your money . . . the banks to whom Foster and Gallagher owed money do. If you're one of these customers, you'll receive a catalog from us with a special savings certificate to allow you to make up at least some of your loss. Q. I bought a plant from Spring Hill (when it was owned by Foster and Gallagher/myseasons.com) last year. It hasn't done so well. What can I do? A. Again, unfortunately, when Foster and Gallagher declared bankruptcy, the courts put aside no money or resources to take care of customers who needed plants replaced. We promise you two things: 1) We're gardeners who have, together, several hundred years worth of experience shipping plants to customers. The quality of the plants and seeds you get this year will be better than 2001. 2) If you have any problems this year, we'll stand behind what we ship.

I placed my order through their website on 5/28/02 and had a problem receiving confirmation. I followed up with a phone call and the following e-mail.:

RE: Order #XXXXXXXXX

"I spoke with Sandy with your customer service (long distance call) today with regards to my recent order. I was told that even though my order is not showing on your website that it is indeed in your system and on backorder.

I was further told that some of your backorders date back to January, 2002 and that if your company could not ship by June 15, 2002 that the order would be not be shipped, without notification. This is unacceptable. Therefore, I am requesting that you cancel the above referenced order.

I orderred from this company through QVC on television I got the one apple-apple pie trees the ones where they're supposed to bear fruit larger than that of regular apple trees well it looked so convincing that I had to try it i got two and recieved two they grw well in thier first year and this spring they were loaded with blossoms and I'm hoping for apples this year if not this year then next but the trees are healthy and growing like they said they would I'm glad i orderred them they are a nice addition to my yard. I wish there were other comapnies like this one it pays to go through the companies that are represented on QVC they check them out so you don't have to.

I bought from SH last year before their bankruptcy. It was a positive experience. They replaced a hydrangae immediately. I bought from them again this year (they are under new ownership) and the plants seemed fine. The only negative about them is that they lack a toll free number. Beyond that things have gone smoothly:)
Caspia

I have placed a number of orders (close to $2,000) with this company over the last nine years and never had a problem. The plants are packed well and I have never had any trouble getting replacement plants. They stick by their one year guarantee-even when I've admitted to "killing" my plants through my own mis-handling. The plants are definitly starter plants, but if you know that going into it, you should be happy with the final results.

I hate to throw a word of neutral into a company everyone loves to hate, but although I haven't had personal experience with them in the immediate past, several years ago when I ordered perennials from a sister company, Brecks, the plants came from them. The plants were lousy quality, of course, but the company did refund the entire price on two separate lousy orders with no problem.

They happen to be located in my state. I belong to a volunteer herb society that had expeditions to their Springhill gardens in 2000 and 2001. While I did not go on either trip, some of my friends brought back plants for me. The plants were beautiful in size and quality. Of course, they were grown in normal size pots, etc. instead of bareroot. On site, they had many plants that are very difficult or impossible to find elsewhere locally, and all were the same price as comparable plants in their catalogues, minus, of course, shipping charges. Very different to dealing with them mail-order. Many of our volunteers would only deal with them in this way: never by mail. Since the bankruptcy, I have no personal knowledge of this company's on-site garden. Some of my friends are planning an expedition next month: I will add comments then. In the meantime, if anyone can drive there (Tipp City, OH, near Dayton) it might be well worth the trip.

They are terrible. The plants that actually lived are junk. Like other people mentioned they were misnamed. Do not order from them.

Again, tiny, tiny plants that were totally lost in the garden or took several years if potted up to reach a size ready to plant. I will NOT order from them again.

I stopped doing business with them too. I placed a large order for carnations years ago with them. I recived tiny, mostly dead plants. They replaced the entire order free, but substituted an envasive form of yarrow and labeled as carnations. They replaced the order again for free, and after many years the plants are large and healthy, but they do not have the same clear markings as the carnations pictured and I suspect they are an inferior variety.

I ordered the carnation collection from Spring Hill last summer. They arrived in great condition and have flourished over the last year. They have doubled in size. I am going to order more from them as I had a good experience with them.

I ordered roses, hostas and shade plants from Spring Hill Nursery, using their on-line website on February 20. I received confirmation of the order, but with no indication of when it would ship on the 21st. An earlier e-mail had informed me that all products ship UPS. I called the next day asking about shipping and was told that the order would not be in the system for a couple of days. I eventually called about a week or 10 days later and was told that the climbing rose would ship on March 17, and everything else on March 31. (I live in Central Virginia - we are well into spring at this point). When plants did not arrive, I called on the 20th. I was informed that they were running "1 week behind" on the rose, but that it would ship in the next couple of days and that everything else would ship on the 31st. I was also told that the order did not get into the system until February 28. I called again today (26th) as I had received not any indication of the rose going out. This time I was told that "they" were running "2 weeks behind" and that my order did not get into the system until March 1st. When I pressed to find out if any of the other plants would ship on the 31st, she checked the hostas and noted that "72 were available and 2000 were backordered". She went to speak to someone and came back and told me "72 were available, but 116 were committed." I asked if that meant that I would receive mine, and she said that she had no idea. When I chose to cancel my order (I am putting my house on the market and need to get plants in) she hung up on me. When I called back to ensure my order was cancelled, the person I spoke with confirmed that all plants are very backordered and there was no guarantee as to when I might receive anything. However, they apparently do not provide this information to customers willingly. Personally, I will never order from them again. I understand that things get back ordered, but had I known that this would be the case, I would have made alternative arrangements 3 weeks ago. Every phone call resulted in a different story. I have little doubt that had I called next week, things would have been running "3 weeks late".

I ordered several plants over the years, some of which have bloomed beautifully, others of which have simply died. I called them recently for a refund, and they said they'd filed for bankruptcy and could offer me a double my money back replacement certificate. I'm waiting for it now.

I contacted SpringHill today and asked them if they were honoring any of the left out in the cold customers from SpringHill prior to the bankruptcy. They are offering what they called double your money back. It is in all reality a rather odd way to phrase it. I lost let's say $25.00 in a replacement for an iris collection. They are giving me the option of spending an additional $25.00 in order to get the original $25.00 back. I am not losing the original $25.00 this way but in order to recover it I will need to spend that same amount again. They said this is the only way they can try and make nice to the old customers without going bankrupt themselves. At Least it is something.

Absolutely the PITS of the live plant material world. Haven't ordered from them in years after similar "dead plant" orders received and no replacements/refunds offered. The few plants that did survive shipping were very small and unimpressive. Their "ready-made" garden plans cannot be taken seriously......they include plants that will not grow in specific zones, etc. SHOP ELSEWHERE!!
p.s. funny part about SpingHill....even after all this time, I still continue to get their pitiful cataologues.

Ordered from this company last year. Plants were extremely small and some were dead when I got them. Because of the money back guarantee, I wrote two letters and received no response. I contacted the credit card company that I paid and they researched and found the company had gone bankrupt. Fortunately, the credit card company refunded me my money. But now I've received a new catalog from them. What's wrong with this system. Why is there a "star" on your rating of this company with so many negative comments. It seems someone should be checking into this company for fraud!

SpringHill will be re-opening this spring. I believe the garden center in Tipp City, Ohio is opening on March 1st. I worked in the garden center last summer, so it is nice to see the place re-opening. The new owners have promised better plants, and better customer service. You can visit their website at http://www.springhill.com

I have had wonderful turnout from all orders with Spring Hill and Breck's. I have ordered a variety of Roses, Ivy, Creeping Myrtle, and many others from Spring Hill and several collections of bulbs including tulips from Breck's. All have come up beautifully and made it through our sometimes not-so-springy spring time. I have just received another order of over 200 bulbs and have always received any bonuses that were promised. I will continue to be a loyal, very satisfied customer of Spring Hill and Brecks. Good prices and lots of bang for your buck!!

I am completely shocked at all the bad comments I read about Spring Hill. I spent hundreds of dollars with them last March/May 2001. I ordered six hedge roses of which one died but was replaced within two weeks after I called with three more! I have the most beautiful hedges in the entire subdivision. I am new to gardening and thought they were dead because they looked like sticks but I planted them any way and with weeks I had more flowers than any of the neighbors who by the way keep asking me how I did it. My flowers finally died about 3 weeks ago and it's February. I have not seen any other roses in bloom in town in January! I have had this much success with all my plants from them and I was expecting to lose a lot of my plants due to the fact it is the first time I have tried to plant a flower garden. I would spend my very last dime with Spring Hill!

Ordered from this company some time ago and was very dissatisfied. Plants were very small; some were rotten when I received them. Asked for a replacement or refund, but received none.

I only placed a small order/everything was very healthy and grew nicely. I thought the packing was great too.

What a nightmare. I ordered about $150 worth of plants, using a combination of a gift certificate my mother-in-law purchased from them and my own credit card. Many of the plants arrived out of season and dead or almost dead (not dried out as you'd expect, but rotten from excess moisture or freezing during shipment), and all but a few were pitiful in size. Few survived the year guarantee, but I was to frazzled from starting a new job and having a baby to pursue a complaint.

To make matters worse they billed me for the entire amount, forgetting to credit the purchase for the amount of the gift certificate (which was substantial). We went back and forth for months, them telling me I hadn't paid my share, trying to get them to replace the dead plants. During this time it turns out they were ALSO billing my mother-in-law for the same order! (We share the first same and last names, but different middle initials and live on opposite coasts of the U.S., different credit card numbers, etc).

I ordered from SpringHill I have really good luck and I am enjoying the fruits but I have not seen it advertised since.

Last Fall I ordered $400 worth of roses and many hundreds of dollars worth of other flowers from Springhill which came ON TIME for proper planting in staggered shipments which allowed me time to set the arrivals before more came to the door. All were packed flawlessly but there were a few mix-ups on quantities, colors, etc. One email later I got a response that they would reship the whole order again! Two reshipments later I have so many plants my yard can't handle them and I am landscaping yards of family and friends. The important thing here is that there was no stress, pain, or annoyance at Springhill because they were prompt, courteous and very generous in their replacement policies. Out of all of those roses, many dozens of them, all but six are thriving today. The six that died were planted in an improper area and their demise was predictable but that's my fault not theirs.

We ordered six rose bushes, a navel orange tree, a red clematis, and some japanese irises from Spring Hill Nursery. Everything was shipped in a timely manner and well-packaged, but the plants were disappointing. The clematis was tiny and fragile, and for a plant that was advertised as being an exceptionally rapid grower, it took months of coddling to even grow a foot. When it finally bloomed and created its one and only flower, it turned out to be purple and NOT red as we had ordered. The japanese irises grew leaves but no blossoms. The navel orange tree has grown but has not produced any fruit, which is again disappointing, as it was advertised as being a rapid grower and capable of bearing fruit its first year. Finally, the rose bushes were of average quality overall. It took a great deal of nurturing and exceptionally harsh pruning to stimulate them to grow, but when they finally did, they were lovely. Three of the rose bushes were supposed to have yellow flowers with red fringe, but ended up having yellow flowers with orangy-pink fringe. Not what I wanted, but still pretty. In view of Spring Hill Nursery's bankruptcy, inability to send correct plants, average to low quality plant stock, and poor customer service, I would not recommend ordering from this company.

We ordered from them once and that was enough to teach us a lesson. They sent plants that were half dead when we got them.(they died soon after arrival) They kept billing us even though we had paid them and even sent a report to the credit bureau. They never replaced the plants and kept sending us bills for the dead ones. They also assume that anyone who orders from them is stupid and won't notice if they switched what you ordered for something else and even changed the name tags on it to match what you ordered.
I have a customer that worked for them years ago and she said they would pack an order and use whatever was available to fill it. She said they sent her to the grocery store once to get apples to fasten onto a tree to take a "fake" picture for the catalog.

This used to be a great company to order from and if something did fail, they would replace it right away if possible. Now, they send plants that are way too small to survive for an outragous amount of money and they can't keep their records straight as to whether they have been paid or not. I stopped ordering from them about 2 years ago and in the past few months have received demands for payment of plants that I never ordered from them. Bad way to run a business.
Jackie

VERY GOOD EXPERIENCE. IN FACT THREE QUARTER OF MY PLANTS CAME FROM THEM. HAD FEW FAILURES,AND THEY REPLACED EVERYONE! SORRY TO SEE THERE PARENT COMPANY IN BANKRUPCY.

I have been trying to contact both Springhill and Breck's for months. I was able to talk with both companies last fall after receiving a busy signal all summer. They both assured me that my orders would be sent. One was to be sent last fall; I never received it. I have several things that are to be delivered this spring but since the busy signal is back in business I guess I like a lot of other people are out of business. I am very disappointed in companies that supposedly have lifetime guarantees not having any guarantee.

I ordered bulbs from Springhill, approximately 30% never bloomed. I requested a refund by mail and never heard from them.

I also ordered some perennials from SpringHill about that same time, and everything arrived slimy, rotting and moldy. Out of some miracle the silver lace vines survived, but that's all. I have never ordered from SpringHill since that time, and it doesn't surprise me in the least that they're in bankruptcy with such poor customer service, poor packaging and misrepresentation of products.