Comments regarding Burgess Seed

I put my order with Burgess Fall 2006 for total $197.47 and it was my mistake to order too much from unknown company. Talking with their customer service I've been proven that seeds only would be send to me while winter time; all plants are going to be send upon weather condition allows. In fact, they sent me plants in February have been delevered March 1 and March 5. You know they pack plants added wet newspapers on a bottom. Well, outside was 12F(March 1st) and 20F (March 5th) here in NY, 3" of snow on a ground. Let me say "wet newspapers" were like a rock together with plant roots. I have no idea why DHL guy prefered to leave a parcel on a porch early morning even without calling my bell.
As many of Burgess customers I call them immediately and notified asking any suggestion. I understand that the general suggestion of Burgess is GIVE THEM A CHANCE.
Quality of plants. # 3046 Honeyberry Blue Velvet ($12.95) each looked good for a couple hours, but after defrost it looks dead for two weeks. Black currant( I've ordered 3) were delivered as 2- 2 years old, 1- may be just a separated part of another plant( 2" high). Major impression was done by grass "walk-on-me" : Burgess sends the 6 root-grass of that item. Never thought about such chance to get grass in number of 6 (!) single items. I'm not sure but looks like they sent me 5 raspberries instead of 5 gooseberries(significant difference from gooseberry sent by Gurney's). I'd like to say a couple words about grape. I've ordered 5 thinking about similar method of creation elite grapes to European gardeners. It is not. Burgess suppliers used to use as simple method grape multiplication as everybody is able to use. Instead of stratification(grafting) method when you engraft a desired grape brand to well growing (usually wild grape) root system, they just cut vine by parts and grow up. There is two additional years waiting the grape if you plant such growing grape.
Yes Burgess promices to replace dead plants with alive but.... when ? In May, June ? When the most of them are full of leaves and flowers ? Next year ?
Yeah, it is always a compromise between quality and price. Never expect good items from Burgess for discounted price. It looks like for me Burgess sells somebody's left-over or reject plants

I've ordered several times from Burgess and overall
would have rated them just as neutral. Plants are
inexpensive but rootsytems tend to be inadequate and
one order had nearly all dry plants. However, Burgess
has always fulfilled their replacement guarantee and due
to my comments and letters to them have improved their
overall service and especially the quality of the plants sent.
Overall I intend to keep ordering from them. My advice to
others is that the price of inexpensive plants means you
just have to expect to file a replacement claim as some
just won't survive regardless of how much care you give
them. SAVE YOUR SHIPPING SLIP to file claims. It's
hard to find other firms that offer as good prices as Burgess.
I think they are improving their operation and I won't
be suprised to see them rated as positive overall at this
site in the near future.

I placed a large order, over $150 spring 2006, items arrived and most of them looked rather pitiful, but I carefully soaked and planted each and every one quickly. I will say that all of the strawberry plants I ordered (about 200) took off and GREW FANTASTICALLY, but nearly everything else was a disappointment. Midsummer I sent in my original packing slips with request for replacement for many of the plants that did not grow and one item that was not the correct color ordered. I was sent back my entire letter and requested to specify which plants had died. HELLO, all the plants that DID NOT GROW died! They sent replacements for all the items which looked just as sad and nearly dead as the first shipment. I did plant them, but at this point it seems like a total waste of my time and fighting a losing battle... I am still waiting for one item, 5 in 1 pear tree to be shipped this spring.
The items that died: nearly entire raspberry collection-the replacements were also dead and dried up with no signs of life in the stems; 1 of 5 blackberry bushes had 2 leaves on it after growing for months; several kiwi vines; trumpet vines; climbing roses, red and pink-replacements were moldy with no adequate root system so will likely not make it through winter; 2 cherry bush trees were not much more than twigs; 9 out of 12 hibiscus bushes(3 grew huge and were beautiful); purple liatris bulbs sent with most soft and moldy, replacements were same; dwarf shasta daisys were alive but had about one leaf each and didn't live to winter.
I threw away all catalogs from this company and any of their partner companies that have arrived for spring orders. Too big of a disappointment and too much time to plant, wait for them to not grow, wait for new plants, be disappointed a second time and waste time replanting more items that will probably never make it through the winter. The only way I would ever order again is if I needed more strawberry plants. And if anyone wonders, I have a great green thumb. The neighbors will drive down the street and stop to stare at my gardens all spring, summer, and fall. If I can't get these plants to grow well, then they're not going to grow well for anyone.

This is the only company I have ever ordered plants from, so I can't compare with others. Last year I ordered 50 strawberry plants. They arrived in a timely manner, but I was surprised to find a rather dead looking mass of mostly dry roots. I didn't know plants were shipped that way. I was busy at the time, and left them sitting on my back porch in the bag for about a week. I finally got around to them--soaked for a couple days in water, then planted. I figured they wouldn't do well, since they arrived looking so dead and then I had neglected them so, but they surprised me and did very well.

So far, I am pleased with my experience with this company.

I ran across this website when searching for the Burgess Seed Co. and read a few of the statements from others. I just want to rebutt the negative comments by saying that I have ordered from most of the companies affiliated with Burgess and have never had a problem with the plants, seeds, bulbs, trees or other items ordered. Success with their items comes with diligent care and understanding that everything in nature, when brand new, like new little trees and shrubs, must be treated with the same tender care that you would give to human babies. I always take my new plants and put them into a nursery bed consisting of purchased Miracle Grow potting soil and I leave them there for one year. After the first year, I dig them up as carefully as possible with soil around them and move them to a permanent site. I have only lost a couple of trees, 1 peach and 1 apple, but it was due to the unusual heat we had one summer. I would recommend any of the Direct Gardening and Burgess websites to anyone dedicated to gardening and improving their property with the items offered by the affiliated companies. By the way, I did return the peach and apple tree order statements along with the shipping label from the package they came in and the company replaced them at the proper planting time. You must cut the shipping label from the package when it is received with your plants and save it in case an item does not survive. Then, when you send it back along with the order, the items lost will be replaced. I always make copies of the packing label and order statement, just in case. Remember, if you properly care for and plant your items, you will get results; either from the plants or from the company you ordered from. Barbara Lee Allen, Gates County, NC.

I have ordered several things from them over the years, and I learned quickly not to order too much and overwhelm yourself or you WILL have disappointing results. So now I just stick to ordering a few things, like 5 or so, that I think may have a better chance of making it, and if they don't, oh well. Some things have grown VERY impressively well for me, such as a cherry bush, dwarf fountain grass, russian olive, perennial sunflower, etc.. Some things died as well, but I still can't pass up the chance for trying something new that I can't find locally.

I ordered 500 peate pots from burgess seed on 1-18 07 I have not received them and when contacting the co rep. did not know when they would be shipped i am due to start planting some of my plants next monday so i will have to go and buy at wal-mart to get going. its the 2-1 now. this will cost me a 40 mile drive. i will need 500 to a 1000 more. they could have sold me those also plus other items.

"

Orders at this time of year take 1-2 weeks for processing and this customer's order was shipped on 2/5/07. We are sorry they didn't arrive quite as soon as he expected and needed them."

I placed an order for 18 Robinhood Rose #N5252 on March 28, 2006. I included my personal check for $74.54. Your company cashed this check on 04/10/06. I received individual rose bushes; not a hedge as advertised. All correspondence coming from you was mimeographed. I do not believe that you have a customer service department, as the reply sent to customers would not be mass-produced. On 6/30, 8/27, and 9/13/06 I advised you that I did not wish a replacement of the original order. With each reply that you send you are offering to replace my order. This transaction proves that in this day and age it is most important for the customer to beware! There are only 3 surviving plants from this order.

"

We are somewhat confused by the customer's complaint that we sent individual rose bushes, not a hedge. A hedge is formed by planting individual bushes in close proximity in order to form a hedge. Therefore, it sounds as though she received what was ordered and advertised.

Our guarantee is as follows:
If any item you purchased from us does not live, for a FREE REPLACEMENT just RETURN THE ORIGINAL SHIPPING LABEL along with your written request within 1 year of receipt. If you are dissatisfied with any merchandise, return it together with the ORIGINAL SHIPPING LABEL within 1 year of receipt for a FREE REPLACEMENT. Replacement guarantee is VOID unless the ORIGINAL SHIPPING LABEL is returned. For a REFUND of the purchase price, RETURN THE ITEM AND THE ORIGINAL SHIPPING LABEL, with the correct postage affixed, within 14 days of receipt.

We hope the customer changes her mind and sends in the appropriate information to receive a replacement or merchandise credit voucher as per our guarantee."

BEWARE!!! DO NOT ORDER FROM BURGESS or any of the other COMPANIES owned by them. THEY DON"T HONOR THEIR GUARANTEE AND SEND OUT MOLDY AND DEAD PRODUCTS. I ordered well over $100 of product from this company. When received most of it was moldy and completely dead. I planted what I could and gave it almost 1 year to see if it would grow. More than 1 month before my "guarantee" would expire, I sent out a complete package to them that included Everything their guarantee required. I included the original labels and a copy of their original order email as well as a letter listing everthing I needed replaced and why. A couple weeks later I received a letter back from them with my original info date stamped (with in the time period) asking for me to list the quantities of each item I needed replaced. I assumed they understood I wanted all replaced if listed. I sent it back, and a few weeks later they sent me my package back again stating that 3 items requested (of the 19 total) were on a package i.d. not originally included. (That is all it said). I sat around waiting for my replacements for several months and when I emailed the customer service, they said they were waiting for my request to be sent back. I sent it back stating to IGNORE my request for items that are not listed on your original package id's included. I also told them that their communication was confusing because there was no place that stated they were waiting for my response and to send the information back. I assumed they were handling my replacements for the 16 or so items that were on the original request and ignoring the 3 items listed that didn't show on the original package id's and had sent me back my original information for my records. I finally emailed them a month later to find out when my replacements were going to arrive because it is getting close to fall, they told me they are not sending any replacements because the request was received in August after their "Guarantee" expired in April.
This company received all the correct information from me and date stamped it in March of 06 when my "Guarantee" expired in April of 06. Any other LEGITIMATE company would go by the original request date if all the criteria was met. My original request met ALL their stipulations. They played around with my request sending it back and forth to me several times for more information (even though it was ALL on the original request) just to let the "Guarantee" expire. Most of the items I ordered from them arrived in Horrible shape. Most of them came moldy or just completely dead. When a company offers to give you double for free, what difference does it make if it is dead? These people are CHEESY and have NO intention on Honoring the Guarantee they flare through out their catalogs. BEWARE of E-Burgess and their many other names under the same company. They won't honor their guarantee even when you follow their instructions, and they will send out product months after ordered most likely dead and moldy. I am out of around $100 and don't want anyone to have to lose. Order from someone else reputable.

I made several calls adding and cancelling plants from a couple of their catalogs. It is understanding that things got confusing.

KARA and her supervisor were very helpful straighting things out.

If you have an issue-CONTACT KARA!

My fairy roses are doing wondrfully!

I spent well over $100 with this company since we lost many trees to Hurricane Rita. Almost all of the trees I ordered have died. I tried to get Burgess to replace some of them, and they said that I had to send them my packing slip. The way they ship trees, the packing slip is glued/taped to the green bag that all of the dirty plants came in. I hadn't saved it. They said they needed proof that I had paid for the items. I'm wondering why they sent them if they weren't sure that I'd paid for them. The order came in two shipments, so I saved the second packing slip, cleaned it off, and mailed it with a letter explaining the situation. I got the letter back stating that they had to have the packing slip from the first order or a copy of my credit card statement. They say they have a money back guarantee, but they do NOT honor it. I paid them over $100 and have only a four live 12" trees to show for it.

"

A dmail was sent to this customer regarding their posting on 9/6/06. We have not yet had a response. We do stand behind our guarantee. It is certainly not a problem to replace the items for which the customer has the original shipping label as required by our guarantee. The letter that was returned to them was an offer to replace the other items as well and was requesting that additional information be provided."

I purchased 70$ worth of merchandise from burgess and only half of my order survived. The trees were an absolute waste of time. My roses are doing well. The problem is the blue hybrid rose I purchased that bloomed deep red. I called and explained this to customer care. I told them I do not have my shipping label. They told me to mail in a letter with a petal with my shipping number. I did so. I got a letter back saying to add fervous sulfate to "help" it turn blue. I sent back a clipping of the advertisement asking them to explain where it states that I had to do such a thing. And that I would really appreciate the item that I purchased. They mailed back there return policy of if an item "did not live" and the shipping label garbage. My item did live. I just want what I paid for. I did not even bother about the trees. And can they honestly say to me that they do not have in there computers the information of my purchase. I was looking foward to at least getting more roses from them next season. That will not happen with this type of customer service. Needless to say I am giving up on getting what I ordered.

My experience with Burgess has been positive. I knew I was getting bareroot stock and didn't expect 5 gallon trees for a bargain price.
My order arrived complete and in good condition. I followed advice on soaking and planting and first year care. Despite some terrible weather this summer, my little babies are still alive. ( You really can't expect much growth while a root system is developing.)
Even the bonus bulbs and seed grew as expected. When I recently did statistics on the survival rate of mail order companies I deal with, Burgess had a respectable 80% rate ( better than a much more expensive company).

Trying to make a purchase online failed.
It was a pleasant shopping experience until I tried to place the order.
I called the number listed for "friendly helpful customer service".
I got a surly person who accused me of lying when I said "I am on the eBurgess.com website,
it says so on every page address."
She advised me to close all windows and begin all over again "It took me two hours to shop and place the order;
"I don't want to start all over again;
just help me place the order."
She hung up on me!
I called back and asked to speak with a supervisor.
The same person hung up on me again!
I searched for another number to reach Burgess, and found one answered by someone else.
They were helpful and suggested I mail in my order.
The supervisor for the rude person claimed 'she knew nothing about online support, and could only suggest I start all over again!'
In My Opinion: Burgess needs to train Customer Service personnel to actually help customers, instead of driving customers away.
The rude unhelpful *&^% who hung up on me made me very wary of ever dealing with Burgess.
I await my mail order with hopes for a successful relationship with Burgess. Asuming other employees are better trained than the useless Customer Service person;
I will report here again when/if the order arrives.

I was not lucky enough to find this site before I ordered with Burgess. I order ALOT of stuff from Burgess, everything came dried up and broke. I called they said to send them the shipping tag and they would replace them. I did this MANY TIMES and everytime I got dead or just barely alive plants. They take FOREVER to send you your replacement also. AND what you need to know is that your so called guarantee is only good for a year from the day they ship the FIRST DEAD PLANTS to you. They eat up all you guarantee time by taking so long replacing plants. My last replacement shipment, I was sent 3 blueberry bushes in the end of Sept. (Only 1 out of the 3 made it through the winter, and I covered the ground around them with mulch and cover the plant with a bush cover) When I called in the spring. They said "sorry your time it up". I also had 9 kiwi plants that were small and crappy, but did start to grow alittle this spring and then they just died, when I emailed them to ask what could be done I got the "sorry your time is up again", I then emailed them another letter saying I was going to have my family around the country put ads in their local papers to warn against buying plants from Burgess and I was going to post a letter here, I then got an email back from Burgess saying to send them my shipping labels and they would see what they could do. They have all my shipping labels, because they had to replace almost every one of the kiwi's. I did not respond, I am tired of dealing with this company. They know the problem, I shouldn't have to keep "fighting" with them to get them to do the right thing. PLEASE DON"T BE FOOLED BY THIER PRICES, THEY ARE A BAD BUSINESS. AND BEWARE, THEY GO BY MANY OTHER NAMES! If you think $5. is good for a dead blueberry bush, order away.......other wise STAY AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY.

"

The customer placed 2 orders with us in March 2005. All of the customers orders and replacements requests were shipped within 1-3 weeks of receipt except for one for 3 blueberries & 10 strawberries which were requested in August 2005 and shipped that fall as he mentions above. Therefore, we do not agree with the idea that we delay replacement shipments to stretch out the warranty. Our replacement warranty is for one year. The last replacement request we received from the customer was in April of 2006 for the replacement of 1 blueberry and 10 strawberries. In June 2006, he wrote to us that although some items looked fine in the fall, they had not survived the winter. We are not certain as to why he did not request replacements on these with the other items requested in April, but advised him that although he was out of warranty, we would take his request under consideration if he returned the original shipping labels from the replacement packages."

I ordered about 50 trees 2 years ago. (blue spruce, poplars, red maples, royal empress) It appears that they save a lot of money on packaging. My trees came in a big green bag that was stapled shut. Problem one was that they also stapled the trees to the bag. Problem two was that most of the trees were dry and britle. The Royal Empress trees are a waste of time and money, as was the Blue Spruces.

None of those first trees survived. I jumped through the hoops and got the shipment replaced. This shipment arrived in worse shape than the first. (Which I did not think could be possible) You can't blame poor selection and packaging on UPS. I think the outcome would be better if they would only take a little care and pride in the packaging.

So out of 100 trees, I have 8 that have survived. By contrast I purchased 125 trees (White Pines, Ash, Dogwood) from the local soil and water conservation folks and I have had a 75% survival rate. These trees were all planted at the same time with the same methods. In fact, the second shipment from Burgess had wonderful growing conditions. (Perhaps that accounts for the improved survival rate.)

I really loved to look at the catalogs when they came in. I will still look at them to see if they have changed anything. (Or maybe issue a mass apology and beg forgiveness.) But they have got the last penny that they ever get from me.

I may have been born at night, but it wasn't last night.

I ordered four Kiwi vines expecting them to ship this fall. They came in 1" pots in July and were tiny stems of a vine. They were moist but no green was showing. I thought sure they were all dead but I planted and kept them watered every other day. By gosh they all sprouted and are getting larger every day.

My wife odered 8 Sum and Substance Hostas on May 7th. Almost one month later after calling and sending e-mails as to where the order was she received 8 Stella D'Oro Daylilles. After sending e-mails,calling, and sending a letter with the original shipping label she has still not received her order. I sent an e-mail on June 24th as to why she still has not received her order they said they did not show any adjustments to my account and the company may have had some questions about my request. On July 10th I called back and got the same run around only now they claim our letter and label could have been lost in the mail. I now have to call back during regular business hours and talk to another person who has no business being in coustomer service in the first place. Stay Tuned to see what doesn't happen next.

After placing a large dollar amount order with Burgess, I waited a month and a half and still no order confirmation, package, or news from Burgess. I repeatedly called long distance and all I could get was a busy signal. I emailed several times and finally after getting rude, got a response and was told there was still no shipping date for my order and they could not tell me how much longer it would be. I asked to just cancel it and receive a refund since they had charged me immediately after ordering from them. Meanwhile, while I am racking up finance charges for something I dont even have yet, they told me they could not cancel an order in customer service and that I would have to call the phone number to do that. Once I finally get up with someone on the phone, they also tell they cannot cancel my order and I would have to write a letter to the nursery telling them to cancel it. I could not believe no one in customer service can cancel an order! Within two days after writing my letter to cancel, ironically my order immediately shows up. By the time I got them, they were all dormant, of course and I would not be able to enjoy them this summer if they did live. I called again and was told to send them back with the original shipping label and they would refund me. I also had to write a letter requesting a refund. Over a month later, still no refund and it turned out they lost the shipping label and would not refund me. I went through hell trying to get things straight with these people. I told them I would never order from them again. It took them another month and a half to refund me and then I was shorted $6.00. I would not have cared at the time, but I had to spend money to send this package back with a tracking number because they cannot be trusted, could not get anything straight with these people and was not refunded the shipping costs they charged me after I cancelled my order, so I wanted of my order money back! They obviously have no communication in there at all. The guy at the nursery I spoke with said he had my shipping label and then they turned around and sent me a letter saying to send it to them because they did not have it if I wanted the refund. It was a very bad experience. They need definite adjustment in customer service there!! I am glad I am finally refunded my money from them and will never deal with them again. To put in blatent terms, they truly suck.....-

"

Three refunds have been issued for this customer for merchandise returned at different times in different packages. The third refund of $5.31 was issued 6/26/06 and we believe this is the same $6.00 shortage that she is complaining about above."

I would like to be able to say that my experience with Burgess was totally positive, but that is not the case.

I received plants from them at the end of May 2006. Out of 6 raspberry plants, 1 was dead. Out of 2 manchurian apricots, 1 lived a week after planting and there was no indication the other 1 ever was alive. The stevia plant I ordered was dead in the bag. The hazelnut and cherries are all doing fine.

I sent the company the shipping labels and a note explaining my problem and desire for replacement plants as both the website and customer service told me to do on June 20th. Today, June 30th I received a 1 inch strip typed note saying to give the plants 6 weeks. This note was stapled to my labels, letter and envelope.

We called customer service and got a repeat of all the original conversations we had about sending labels, checking the bark etc. I am going to resubmit the labels with another note and hope this time I will get replacements as their guarantee promises instead of more runaround.

I will not do further business with them or any of their associated companies and my recommendation is for anyone else to really take care and do a lot of research to try to find other people to order from. I cannot in good conscience recommend them because if there is a problem, the customer service didn't give me any indication they cared.

I have ordered from many mail order gardening catalogs and Burgess is one that I will never do business with again.
I had received my original order with the majority of the order rotted and dead.
I had also ordered their Climbing Shell Plant, and they actually came in good condition. The problem is that it was not the plant that they advertised on their web site or catalog.
The plant they sent was Phaseolus caracalla and not Vinga caracalla as described. I sent them a detailed letter with the shipping label as well as pictures and descriptions of the difference between the two plants. I never received a response from them regarding the Shell Plants. When I called, after a few weeks, they said that they would replace the plants. I am still waiting.
I doubt if they will send the correct plants.

As far as the other plants that they did replace, they came in worst shape than the first shipment.
The Purple Clematis was dead.
The Flame Grass was dead.
The Lupines were replaced with rotten Dahlia tubers.
The Yukon Gold seed potatoes were so rotten that the postman made a comment that something in the bag stunk up his whole truck.
The Pussy Willow had little sign of life, but I planted it anyway. So far there is nothing sprouting from it. I will give it another week or two and then just discard it.
I am not going to bother with Burgess for replacements anymore, eventhough they have a year guarantee. It is just not worth the trouble. I will just steer clear of Burgess and any of their affiliates.

"

As noted above, a refund was issued for the customer climbing shell plant and replacements or a merchandise credit was offered on any of the replacements that did not survive. We hope the customer changes his mind and choses to take advantage of our guarantee."

I wish I could say something good about Burgess, but alas I can not. We ordered a few plants from them and then I heard some bad reports. Some Mennonites along with a few Amish in our community ordered from this company and most weren't happy with what they got. I hoped that we would be lucky because it is obviously a gamble to order from them--sometimes good, mostly bad according to our grapevine. Our plants came dead. We soaked them, planted, watered, waited. Most of them didn't live to talk about it. Since it was 14 days after delivery, we couldn't get our money back and had to settle for replacements. They came dead too so I threw them away and washed my hands of this. I am glad some folks who wrote in to this got nice plants, but it seems many more didn't. The lucky ones don't seem to care that others got cheated but that is human nature, I suppose.

"

We do have a one year guarantee on all of our product and we do stand behind our guarantee. As the customer has noted above, we did dmail offering to send replacement plants. This offer was refused. "

I ordered $50.00 worth of flowers - and THEN I found this rating website. I was really worried about what I'd done - at least I didn't spend more.

3 weeks later I found a green bag crammed into my mailbox. I was even more nervous. As soon as I got home I took every plant out of the bag. The entire order was accounted for and all plants appeared to be alive - even the bushes (resembe sticks with some roots).

I took the plants out of the bags, soaked each of them in a jar of water for a few minutes and then planted them in separate pots so they could take root before I plant them in the rocky soil we have here.

It's been a month and I might have lost 2 or 3 of the plants (my fault for not watering every day).

I am happy with my purchase and I WILL be doing business with Burgess again!

Thank you Burgess :)

I ordered a gooseberry bush and two manchurian apricots from Burgess. They all arrived bareroot in a giant bag, totally dried out and brittle with nothing wrapped around them. I emailed them immediately and they sent an email with lots of capital letters as if they were yelling that I should put them in water and plant them anyway, etc. I did that and, of course, nothing grew at all. So, I emailed them that I wanted a refund and like others have said, they want to have the packing label. Who saves that? Not me. I complained and they were so rude to me. Now, I just spent two hours on the web. I put in Burgess and complaints into a google search and now I see I am not alone. It seems 80% of the comments I have read about Burgess are negative and very similar to mine. They shouldn't even call it customer service. It is the opposite of that. I decided that I would spend a few hours a week for the next year ( I am semi-retired) Anyway, I will spend that time warning others about Burgess in every way possible. I will make it fun and creative and the few dollars they refused to return to me will cost them hundreds of thousands of $$$. Happy Day.

"

Our guarantee is as follows:

If any item you purchased from us does not live, for a FREE REPLACEMENT just RETURN THE ORIGINAL SHIPPING LABEL along with your written request within 1 year of receipt. If you are dissatisfied with any merchandise, return it together with the ORIGINAL SHIPPING LABEL within 1 year of receipt for a FREE REPLACEMENT. Replacement guarantee is VOID unless the ORIGINAL SHIPPING LABEL is returned. For a REFUND of the purchase price, RETURN THE ITEM AND THE ORIGINAL SHIPPING LABEL, with the correct postage affixed, within 14 days of receipt.

We had informed the customer of our guarantee. Unfortunately, at this time, he does not wish to take advantage of it.

We would also like to point out that although there is only an average of about 20 postings per year for our company on Garden Watchdog at this time, yet we have shipped millions of packages during this same time frame."

Well, Thank you very much for this website!
I phoned Burgess Seed & Plant Co. (Be Aware it is a toll call) and spoke to a representative about an order. I had placed an order for a special education student in my program to which I had added an order of Christmas roses. I explained to them that I had received the tree and checked the contents (thoroughly) of the package and only the 5-on-1 pear tree was delivered. My husband had found it on the porch and it looked like an old beat up discard and my roses were not included.
I was told the roses were in the package with the tree.
I repeated they were not.
I explained my particualr situation and that I had waited another week for the roses and was concerned they were never shipped.
I was told as far as they were concerned I received the roses and that was that.
I asked if I had any recourse.
The woman told me that I must produce the shipping label for them to see. I explained I had delivered it with the package to the student's mother.
The mother and son didn't remember me very strongly urging them to save the label in a safe place in case the tree didn't grow.
She replied "No label- we can't help you. Good Bye."
Click.
Please, Do not use this company...Save your money.
I would never consider dealing with this company again.
Sincerely,
Lily

"

An email was sent to this customer on 6/1 offering replacements. We have not yet had a reply to our request."

Oh, how I wish I had found the Garden Watchdog last year ! I ordered a number of 'single' bags of vegetable seeds, gardening items, and an assortment of fruit trees from Burgess in Spring of 05. .
What I did not know was how utterly frustrating their customer service and complaint dept would prove to be for me. .

My order supposedly shipped in 2 boxes. One box containing some seeds and a bottle of powder for making fruit tree spray arrived - but only half the seeds listed on the label were in the box. Worse, the ones which came contained so few seeds per bag I could barely get in a 10' row - occasionally 15'. Less than a tenth of these seeds ever germinated. FYI - I bought all new supplies from Pettitti's, a local greenhouse, and everything came up beautifully for a much more reasonable price, too!


I waited for the fruit trees to arrive. I had had the orchard area tilled, pH adjusted and laid out ready for the trees ...which never came. I called the number in the catalog & I found out Burgess WILL NOT start a search for packages until 30 days after shipping. Not one day sooner. I have NEVER dealt with any company with such a policy. UPS, FedEx, DHL, USPS all can tell you in seconds where a package is upon request using their modern technology. Burgess' customer service girl would say nothing other than to repeat over and over 'this is our company's policy. We do not begin a trace for 30 days, because the package might still come'.
The trees never came. After 30 days I asked for the search, and 15 days later was told, yep, I was right...my trees were lost in transit. I was told to contact customer service by email if I wanted a resolution. This was just the beginniing of sorrows.To my amazement, they refused to send replacements stating it was 'too late in the season to properly plant'.

I sent numerous emails and every reply was a canned response... Send back the shipping label and list what you got and didn't get. I explained over and over I'd already sent back the label still glued to the cardboard (forget about removing it from the box - it's melted/melded/welded on. NASA should put the tiles on the shuttles with whatever they're using! (USPS certified postage 2.65)

Burgess emailed me back & claimed it never got the blasted label back. USPS said yes, they did . I had a copy of the Burgess'mailing label & postal receipt which I'd made before mailing the original. Burgess stuck tight to their guns. Their next email requested me to send back the original label. [tearing out hair here] Plus, the seeds which never came up- oh well, sorry, no dice on that issue.
I sent an email to the company President- and he did not personally reply, but I was told by the phone operator that email was being forwarded to customer service. (groan!)

After months of email tag I told them I was contacting the Attorneys' General of their state and mine to report them. This did get a lukewarm response. I did not get a cash refund (they don't refund money it seems - ever!) but a certificate to purchase 93.00 of merchandise from them.. They said without that original sales receipt the items in the first box could not be warranteed, but the trees lost in shipment would be, hence the certificate for far less than I'd put on my credit card. .

So, I am forced to order from Burgess items totalling 93.00 - and after reading your Watchdog comments I doubt if what I receive will be worth the time and trouble, but it's all I have to show for my grief and hassles. Once I cash in the certificate (if they will honor it, that is) they will have seen the last of me.

I STRONGLY recommend people avoid Burgess Seed and Plant Company as well as their aliases. I believe their return policy and warranty is a series of roadblocks and hoops you have to jump through - designed to make customers unhappy enough to quit trying to get their money back and just write off the whole thing. It is my opinion you order from them at your own risk.

"

The package of the fruit trees shipped to the customer on 5/7/05. When she contacted us that she didn't receive them, we traced the package and issued a credit voucher on 6/22/05. On 11/7/05, she contacted us again and said that she had not received the credit voucher we sent in June and that she wanted a refund. A credit was issued to her charge card on 11/14/05."

We placed online order (including seed potatoes & onion sets) 2/2/06, unfortunately, giving incorrect expiration date for our credit card. Called Burgess directly (no toll-free #) on 2/6 to advise them of error and provide correct information; was told card would probably be refused and we would receive email stating such and to call back at that time to reorder. Received email 2/10 and called again (different agent); was told order had been cancelled and agent entered order again while we were speaking. Reviewed our credit card account online 3/6, discovered Burgess had double-billed on 2/14, so called again on 3/6 and spoke to 3rd agent who said she was deleting duplicate order as we spoke and that the duplicate charge would be refunded to credit card. Received duplicate packages (part 2 of 2) on 3/15; called again (4th agent) and was told duplicate orders were shipped 3/8, 2 business days after was told the duplicate order had been deleted. Specifically asked if entire order had shipped, since did not receive potatoes & onions; was told both orders had shipped in entirety 3/8. Asked to speak to supervisor; was told there wasn't one present since it was after 4 p.m. CST and would have to call again (5th time to toll #) next day. Called 3/16 and spoke to asst. supervisor who said part 1 of 2 HAD NOT shipped 3/8 as had been told the previous day and would not ship for another 2 weeks. Was also told that no refund would be made until the entire duplicate order was returned to them. Explained potatoes and onions had to be planted immediately to produce well; we went to local nursery and purchased other potatoes & onions and planted next day. Received 1 package (part 1 of 2) on 4/5, nearly 3 weeks later. Found Burgess only refunded on 3/21 the portion of duplicate credit card charge covering the package not shipped. Returned part 1 of 2 and duplicate part 2 of 2 in original packages, but have not received remainder of refund due. Contacted BBB in Bloomington area; they contacted Burgess; we got letter from Burgess misrepresenting what they had said and done and a letter from BBB washing their hands of the deal. We won't deal with them again and are advising all our family, friends, and acquaintances to avoid them.

"

This customer placed an order with us on 2/2/06 with a credit card. On 2/6/06, he contacted us stating that his card might be declined because of an error on the expiration date. He asked at that time that we reinstate the order if it were declined and gave us the correct expiration date. On 2/10, we received confirmation that the charge was declined and following his request of 2/6, we replaced the order and sent an email to him on 2/10 at 11:04 letting him know that although the charge had been declined, we had re-instated the order per his request.

On 2/10, the customer called again and placed the order over the phone. Therefore, the reason the order was duplicated was because he had called on 2 separate occasions asking us to put in the order for him.

On 3/6, he contacted us and requested the duplicate orders be canceled. We were able to stop 1 of the 2 packages and refunded $70 of the $100 order. The second package had already shipped. Customer was advised to return the 2nd package if it was not wanted a refund would be issued. "

I recieve a shipment of roses from Burgess in which most were dead and the few which were alive were in terrible condidtion. Some of the ones which were already dead were dry to the point of being brittle while others were covered in mold. Even after planting these "dormant" plants per the instrustions, they are all obviously dead now. I did return the shipping label and a letter with three emails ahead of that explaining the condition of the shippment. My label and letter were returned saying the "dormant" plants need more time and only need proper care.
On the return of my label I called Customer Service and was told that my emails were a waste of time and so was calling as they had nothing to do with such issues. The CS rep was kind enough to let me know I was wasting both of our time as she could have been taking orders instead of talking to me, a current customer. On that, i dug every thing up and shipped the order back in its original packaging with the shipping label a new letter and now await a response.

"

For our replacement guarantee, the original shipping only needs to be returned with a list of what is dead. Keep in mind that our stock does arrive bare root and dormant and thus may appear "dead" on arrival because they will not have green leaves. Typically they just need to be planted and watered and they will come out of dormancy.

For a refund, we request that the plants and the original shipping label be returned within 14 days of receipt of the order. A refund was issued for this customer on 5/26/06."

I ordered about $165 of plants from Burgess in August, 2005. I live in the Boston area and was promised immeidate shipment - in time for early fall planting. They finally arrived in October and in terrible condition - rotted or dried to a powder. Nothing was salvageable. I have experience in botony and have access to indoor and outdoor gardening facilities. I planted these dusty roots and bags of loose soil(which they said, when I called them were "dormant" in perfect "hospital" garden site. Every particle was planted, labeled and eventually mulched for the winter. Nothing came up. They suggested that I wait until spring to re-order, so in April, I sent the original packing labels and the letter back to Burgess for a replacement (no money back because it was over 14 days!). They indicated they would replace and ship within two weeks. I've been checking frequently and some customer service reps say, "They are on the shipping dock", some say, "They are in shipping - they may be there for as long as 4 weeks" and today one said, "There are a number of people ahead of you. We really cannot guarantee shipment, even as soon as the end of the month. You may get them at the end of the month, but may not". I asked to speak to the owner, whose name was told to me as "Mr. OWENS", but the rep refused to provide me with a contact phone number and indicated he only corresponds by mail. I asked to speak to a manager and was told the only manager AT ALL on site was "GRACE AVERY, but she could not do anything to expedite the order and she doesn't come to the phone. She only communicates in writing. She also will not know where your order is, when it will ship or how complete it will be when it ships". I then asked for their computer manager to see if more information is somehow stored in the computer and was told that "There is no one running their computers". Give this information - an owner who isn't available, no one running their computer systems, and one manager who cannot speak to customers, I would say STAY AWAY from this company. They obviously have someone to take your money and but do not deliver as promised. The plants are bad, unhealthy or non-existent and even the most dedicated person cannot reclaim the mess they send. I am looking towards legal action and contacting the Better Business Bureau. Perhaps a class action suit might get their attention. Any takers out there?

"

The customer returned the shipping labels as per our guarantee and requested replacement of dead items. The replacement request was received on 4/19. At that time, we were running about 3 weeks for shipping and the customers order shipped in multiple packages on 5/6, 5/15 & 5/22. The 4th package contained daffodils which are not available until fall. "

Ordered multiple bareroot trees from eburgess.com site and received the shipment in plastic bag without shredded paper or any other protection. One Royal Empress tree of the 2 trees I ordered was broken severely. Contacted the Customer Service. Was told to mail in original shipping label, describe damage,etc. Did all they required. The original 2nd tree and the broken one were each about 24" of tree stem and 5-6" of roots. Replacement Royal Empress "tree" arrived yesterday - NO TREE STEM AT ALL, 3-4" of tiny root strings. THERE IS NO WAY WHAT I RECEIVED COULD BE CALLED A TREE. I plan to write one last letter to Customer Service but I will not ever buy from the company again. Wouldn't recommend to anyone.

"

This customer placed a $50+ order with us in January. The only item she has complained about is 1 royal empress tree worth $5.48. We replaced the tree once and were sorry to hear that it did not arrive in good condition. A second replacement was processed on 6/9/06. We hope that the customer will be pleased with this shipment."

May 2005 I ordered $38 worth of plants and bulbs. Planted everything and nothing came alive. Wrote the company and they refused to refund my $38. After several letters and phone calls they sent me a gift certificate for $18. NOT $38 - $18.

So I ordered again.

Received package 2 of 2 5/9/06. One lonley purple trumpet vine - DEAD!! I took a digital picture and plan to send it to the company not that it will do any good. As soon as I can clear this up with this company I am DONE with them.....

"

A d-mail was sent to this customer on 5/13/06 offering assistance, but she has not yet responded. "

I was worried about my merchandise being slow, so I emailed the company. They responded right away, and were very helpful. I got my plants and stuff today 5/9/06...and they all were live, healthy, and are now enjoying some rich Iowa soil.

I will continue to order from these guys in the future. I see nothing wrong with them.

- Kitt Stormbringer

I decided to place a small order with this company to see what all the fuss was about. I ordered a couple apricot trees, a couple of pawpaw, and a dwarf nectarine. They came yesterday. I read here about their poor packaging and when I saw it with my own eyes, I literally laughed out loud. The trees were all broken in half. Another complaint with the packaging is that the trees were provided no moisture in the shipping bag. No wonder many peoples trees arive dead.
I will say for the price payed, the trees weren't that bad and they were all alive. I trimmed the jagged edges where they had broken, planted, and watered well. So we'll see.
My only suggestion for this company is to buy some shipping boxes and shredded newspaper.

Burgess refused to change an order for me that I had made earlier the same day, stating that the order was already being processed and couldn't be changed. In addition, my order of Mediterranean Pinks wasn't included in the box I (finally) received, and to receive compensation, I'd have to send them a copy of my credit card statement. There is no one available to talk with to try to resolve problems, and the call center staff is extremely unhelpful. Stay as far away this company as you can.

"

A d-mail was sent to this customer on 5/3 offering assistance. The customer responded, and although she refused to give us information, we were able to locate the order and let her know that a replacement of the mediterranean pinks was being processed.

We did check our stock on walk-on-me's after the customer's later posting and found that our stock all looks very good. It is shipped out bare root and dormant, often having the dead leaves of last year's growth left on them. They are shipped as root systems and can therefore appear to be dead, but simply need to be planted and given a chance.

If the customer would prefer to have her money back, she does have the option of our refund guarantee which simply states "For a refund of the purchase price, return the item and the original shipping label, with correct postage affixed, within 14 days of receipt". Of course, we also have a one year replacement guarantee the customer could choose instead."

I ordered some shrubs and perinnials from Burgess 2 months ago. (Beginning of March) After 4 weeks I had still not recieved anything from them other than a catalog that said thank you for your order on it. I then checked my bank acct. and found my check had been cashed 2 weeks after I sent it. I then called Burgess to find out where my order was. The first person I spoke to told me that they had shipped the same day they cashed my check. I explained that I had not recieved the order. She told me she would put a trace on the order and reship with new plants, satisfied I hung up and waited 2 weeks. Still no product! I then made a second call and spoke to another lady who told me they had indeed reshipped my order and I should be recieving them in the next few days. I waited another week and still no product! I contacted my post office and asked them to help me locate the missing package. I was told to contact Burgess and obtain either a delivery confirmation# or tracking # to trace the order. I then made my 3rd long distance phone call to Burgess and to my surprise was told that they never resent my order and would not until they found the original order. This was news to me since this was never mentioned in the previous 2 calls. I then asked for the information the post office asked me to get and was told that I could not have access to that information! I then requested a refund, which I was told they would grant after they found the missing package! They have had a trace on this "missing" package for almost 3 weeks and still can't find it! I then contacted my postmaster general and explained the situation. He could not understand why a company would refuse to give the package information to the customer that wanted to help trace the "missing" package. He said in his experience companies that operate like that usually don't send the packages and claim them lost and refuse to refund the customers money. He then suggested I file a mail fraud complaint.
I then emailed burgess to let them know of the actions I am taking and never got a response! By the way, I am a network admin and I know how to set spam filters. They just ignored me. I am also filing a complaint with the attorney generals office and the BBB.
THIS COMPANY RIPS PEOPLE OFF AND DOES NOT SHIP PROMISED PRODUCT! BUYER BEWARE!

I urge anyone else who has had problems with Burgess to do the same.

"

The customer emailed us on 4/27 and posted on garden watchdog on 4/28 at 6pm. We had responded to his email at 4:24pm, but apparently he hadn't received our response before his posting. As posted on our website, emails are usually responded to the next business day, sometimes on the 2nd business day.

Since then we have had correspondence with the customer. The package was traced and the carrier has classified it as a lost package and a refund has been issued."

Plants arrived in good condition except one blueberry bush, it was broken at the stem during shipping (still green). It was replaced with no hassle. I Will deal with them agian.

Ordered over $600 from Burgess. None of the roses, trees or Canadian Hemlocks survived. Complained to company and replacements received. Same story. Tiny hemlocks . Not one single plant survived. Half of the fruit trees did make it. Numerous frustrating calls and follow up letter asking that my money be returned. No reply. This is not a company that one should deal with if you want to landscape a big garden. I thought buying in bulk would be a great way to begin my new garden but I now buy from local nurseries and reputable mail order companies that are recommended.

I ordered some plants early in March. They cashed my check over a month ago and still I have not received my order. I sent their customer service an email on March 31 and never got a reply. I think this is what gets me the most, they ignored my request for info on my order. This was my first time to order plants and not pick them up myself at the nursery and after reading all these comments about this company I am not expecting much. If I ever get them at all! Not good customer service, that is for sure. They seem to have the time to type in a response on this forum, but not the time to answer a question about my order!

"

A d-mail was sent to this customer on 4/17/06. We do respond to our emails usually the following business day, but occassionally some will not be answered until the 2nd business day. It seems the most common reason that customer's will not receive our reply is because they forget to add our email address to their address book and the customer's spam filter will block our response.
At any rate, we are more than happy to check on this customer's order and hope they will respond by d-mail with more specific information so that we can do so."

After reading all the negative comments, I too was leery. But I am also one of those gardeners that has to kill things off before I figure out what I'm doing wrong. LOL!
I placed a rather large order (about $80) and received everything in 3 shipments: my roses in one, a few plants in another and then a very large order. I was shocked at receiving the large order in a big green bag; however everything arrived in great condition. Exceptions:the shamrock bulbs that I got free with my order were rotten on arrival and I'm concerned about the Black Eyed Susans that were very wet. Also dry seed packets (also freebies!) were in the huge bag and arrived damp but not sprouting. As a comparison, about a month ago I bought "fresh" Stargazer Lily bulbs from Wal-Mart. Opened them up as soon as I got home and they were rotten to the point that they crumbled in my hand.
In my humble opinion, I think maybe people expect too much from this company. Sure my trees and shrubs arrived as sticks, but based on experiences with other companies, these were beautiful. Every woody plant (and the roses) had an incredible amount of new growth/shoots and good roots. I did encounter a minor issue, I was shorted on my Privet Hedge (packer miscounted?). I emailed the company and within 24 hours I received a response and a promise to correct it. Their customer service is awesome.
If you are a meticulous gardener and everything must be "just so" and the exact color, etc. then maybe you should go to another company and pay $20 -$30 for a rosebush or another $30 for a tree that has foliage already. For the prices that are offered, I would highly recommend this company for the novice/casual gardner. My mother would see a plant that she liked at her neighbor's and take a small cutting or grab a handful of seeds on the ground. That's the kind of gardening I enjoy. BTW, I purchased the Privet to fill in spots in a hedge that I planted from "sticks" about 5 years ago. I plan to repost as things "develop" (sorry for the pun). I would definitely place an order with them again. To avoid alot of the shipping delay problems that I've read about, maybe make sure it is time to plant the things that you ordered? I learned the hard way you can't plant tulips in summer, etc. Happy gardening!