Comments regarding Gilbert H. Wild and Son

I ordered a couple of peony grab bags last year ($12 for three roots). The roots they sent me were huge. Three to four times bigger than ones that I bought from home centers, and the price is so much less. The glab bag even included krinckle white and Leto which bear Japanese peony like single white flowers that I like. They thrive in the garden (all of them I planted in full-sun had flowers this year). I will buy from the company again.

WONDERFUL! Is how I would rate my experience with this company. I really feel that I must come to the defense of Mr. Jones. My mother and I started our daylily collection some 20 years ago after I got my first starts from an aunt. When she gave me the address of her supplier I sent for and received a Gilbert Wild catalog...and the rest, as they say, is history. In the past 20 years I have purchased close to 300 varieties of Daylilies from this company and I have been consistently amazed! Wonderful, sturdy rootstock, generous numbers, and amazing beauty. I was so pleased that one year my husband and kids took me to their farm for my birthday (we live in Kentucky). I've also built a website in honor of my Daylily gardens! Go here to see how we display the pride of our gardens. //www.stjosephky.com/Garden/daylily_contest.htm

A couple of years ago we ordered all of their Lillium collections as well as a Mouse Ear hosta. They are blooming now and my garden is the envy of everyone who sees it. Be kind, people! Everyone makes mistakes but these folks really know what they are doing, are generous to a fault, and more than make up for any very rare error they might make. Family owned businesses are close to extinction these days. God bless this family for having the work ethic to survive!

Posted on May 27, 2010, updated June 9, 2010
I ordered a "lily special," and received undersized, sprouted bulbs. When I contacted customer service to complain, I was told I'd have to return them at my own expense for credit.
It cost $10, 33% of the original order value, and valuable time to return the bulbs. I did get credit promptly, but my request for reimbursement of postage was refused.
I wrote directly to the owner, who has replied to other complaints in this forum, but have received no reply. I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, and the company has not responded to date. Go to //southwestmissouri.app.bbb.org/complaint/view/118606/c/eekkr8 if you want to check this.
I used to order regularly from Wild but I will not deal with them again.

I ordered quite a few asiatic and oriental lily bulbs. They were very nice, with sprouts already to go into ground. They were packaged nicely, easy to open, and easy to plant. The selection was extremally nice. I also received a day lily for free, orange in color, was very large in size for being a bare root plant. I just now placed a new order for their sale. I was extremally pleased with my first order. I would highly recommend them to anyone. I will be ordering from them again in the future.

i ordered about 20 varieties of day lillies and one hosta (to see what the condition was before I ordered more from them).

The day lilly sizes were all very large - especially for the prices. They gave me 3 or 4 root divisions one some of the plants even though I only ordered 1 plant. The hosta was large too with 4 eyes (about what I get from my local garden center for $10 I got from them for $5).

I am very satisfied and will be ordering more hostas from them (i've already got too many day lillies but would definately order more from them)

Posted on April 19, 2010, updated May 15, 2010
I recently received my first order and I was pleased to find the day lilies cleaned, banded and packaged appropriately. For the price I paid I am completely satisfied with the order. I have purchased from many online vendors through the years and frankly, I think they are one of the best so far. I will order again!

I placed a large order with them this year, which included daylilies, irises, lily bulbs, dahlias, and perennials. All the daylilies were fine except one which was very small, but I think it's going to make it. The lily bulbs are small compared to some companies', but they were all healthy. Same for the dahlias. The perennials are all doing fine. I was worried about the irises, because they didn't send whole rhizomes; rather, they chopped a piece off each rhizome and some were very small. But each piece did have leaves coming up out of it, and to my surprise they are all growing well. They did omit one iris that was on the packing list, and when I called they promised to send it, and they did, along with another bonus daylily. One thing you should know is that it says on the packing list that if you are dissatisfied with any of your plants, you must return them to the company. This is a hassle, of course. But the way I look at it is this: their prices are low enough that even if a couple of things didn't make it, I still got good value for my money. I've ordered off and on over the years. The peonies on their sale flyers have been a good value in the past. They are certainly nowhere near the incredibly plump peonies you'd get from somewhere like Klehm's Song Sparrow Nursery, but they do grow and bloom, and if your money is limited, that's what you need to know.

Over the past 10 years, I have ordered more than 50 daylilies from Wild. Most have arrived quickly, in good shape, and have flourished. In recent years, the size of the plants went down and the cost of shipping went up to the point where I stopped buying from Wild's.
My only real complaint is that I have bought 2 daylilies that did not look like the catalog picture or description. I did not ask for a replacement because it had been 4 years since I had bought them. Yes, they were so small that it took 4 years to reach blooming size. My fault for ordering from the year-end clearance sale.
I am now buying plants from a local source. I can see the daylilies in bloom before I purchase them, they are already big enough to divide in some cases, and the price is more reasonable.

I ordered a group of bare-root hostas last summer. They arrived very promptly. I planted them and kept them well watered. They all produced leaves surprisingly quickly, and most bloomed. They were all correctly labeled.The plants were smallish, but that is to be expected with mail ordered plants. Thank you, Gilbert Wild for an excellent service and product.

I had made a purchase of a dozen iris and planted them in the fall and noticed that for whatever reason, nothing came up in the spring. I notified the management at GH Wild, and after a few phone calls and emails everything was resolved to my satisfaction. In this tough economic environment, the last thing you want is to pay for something and be disappointed. GH Wild did the right thing by me and I will continue to buy from them in the future.

My sister and I put in a joint order this spring for daylilies,hostas and iris.Our order came promtly and everything was in good shape and looking quite healthy. All plants have done exceptionally well. 7out of 8 daylilies bloomed nicely this summer and the 8th plant is quite healthy and should bloom next year. The hostas have all done very well and 2 of them have bloomed. I have just recently received the iris and they look very good. I have, in the past, had an occasional mix-up on variety, but the prices, service and nice plants will keep me coming back for sure.

BEWARE!!!!! The absolute worst experience. I placed a sizeable Daylily order with them. Now one is blooming an entirely different color than it should be. I called them and was told they would give me a credit of the value of the plant ONLY and THEY WOULD NOT SEND A REPLACEMENT!!!!! If I wanted to order another plant I would Have to pay ****$7.50***** for the SHIPPING!!! That is NOT an honorable policy and is not a company which stands behind its merchandise. NEVER AGAIN!!!! Dishonorable at best. There are plenty of GOOD companies out there to purchase from. I should have known better.

"On Jul 31, 2009 10:35 AM, Gilbert H. Wild and Son responded with:

Sorry - we do screw up from time to time....Call me directly with any problems - Greg Jones, Owner 1.417.548.3517...I am usually in from 5 AM to 4 PM. I am pretty dumb, so speak slowly and I'll try to help you out.

PS - We shipped 27,000 orders so far this spring, we had how many complaints? Funny that this "customer" didn't mention that we resolved the problem and sent out a replacement for 1 plant order on July 2 and was already blooming....we do respect our customer and ask they do the same....sorry I'm just not very bright!

I ordered a collection of daylilies. They arrived in good shape with several extra plants. Fans were good size and included many doubles. I am very pleased with the plants and will order again.

I read the reviews on the company before ordering daylilies. I was concerned with the comments on this forum. I was very pleased that when I called to ask a question about ordering the owner of the company answered the call and fully answered my questions in a very business-like manner. I will be ordering daylilies with confidence from this company and plan to report on my order after it arrives.

I had previously purchased from Gilbert Wild and received big, healthy fans. My last shipment were spindely, single fans or even just root clumps. I called to complain and was told just to plant them, they'd grow. The least of them are only now producing thin tips of green shoots above the ground. At least one had been something I didn't order, but tagged with what I did order. It was apparent as it flowered with under 3" blooms, which I didn't order. After seeing how Greg Gilbert seems to monitor this site, I've sent him an email and vm, and now waiting to see if I get resolution. If so, I'll buy again. Like I said, previous orders were exceptional. Last order makes me wonder if they're contracting convict labor to work the garden and the phones. No offense to convicts.

"On Jul 13, 2009 9:33 AM, Gilbert H. Wild and Son responded with:

We have attempted to grow daylilies in greenhouse pots so that we could please our customers with quicker shipping, we planted the newer more expensive varieties in pots in January. The plants grew slower than expected and we ended up sending out smaller plants than we would like to...so we have learned our lesson and are now potting for next year (6 months longer growing). If your not happy let us know and I'll send a replacement or give full credit. No we don't use convict labor...just good ol' Missouri hillbillies who take great pride in their work! Greg Jones - Owner"

I've traded with this company several times and have never been disappointed with their irises or peonies. Daylilies are another matter. The plants are all healthy, ship promptly, and the prices are quite good. However, it's a crap shoot whether you will get what you ordered. The plants are always labeled as ordered, but about 20% of daylilies turned out, when they bloomed, to be something completely different from what I ordered. Not a problem if you're just looking for generic plants at low price. A BIG problem if you are looking for specific varieties!!

"On Jun 30, 2009 2:13 PM, Gilbert H. Wild and Son responded with:

We are so sorry that we messed up...please contact me Greg Jones the Owner and I will make it right. You may contact me at 1.888.449.4537 or gregj@gilberthwild.com we do not want to do business this way. "

I have ordered from gilberthwild.com many times now and I haven't yet been disappointed! I started out skeptical due to their really low prices and I have been hooked ever since. I adore hostas and so far I have ordered more than 600 hostas from them (many for my yard and some for the church plant sale) over the past four years. My favorite hosta is 'Dancing in the rain' (appropriate for our area). :-)

Last year and this year I ordered 300 daylilies and they were wonderful (especially the stella d oros that were huge). Now I have ordered some peonies, irises, oriental lilies and asiatic lilies and I am so eager to see them. I have only had a couple issues with plants from them and they immediately replaced them. I recommend them to friends with no hesitation.

Jana Goad in Redmond, WA

I received my daylily order and was very impressed with the
generous size of plants. I could not plant immediately so I followed the company's suggestions and kept the roots moist until I could plant and all seems to be fine. You cannot beat the selection and price of the plants that Gilbert H. Wild and Son offer. Maybe some of the other garden companies
provide fancy packaging with their tiny plants they send but often the plants are fragile and a waste of money in the long run. I have recommended Gilbert H. Wild and Son to others and will definitely order again myself.

I have now ordered their Hosta - 100 Mixed Hosta for $100.00 TWICE - that should say it all! I know I have had at least 125 divisions in each order when all is said and done. Quality is excellent! I am covering 600 feet of creekside and my 2.5 acre homesite so I will be back many times. I have also ordered daylilies from them, and again - Excellent. Takes them a little time to ship but it is well worth the wait for quality and value for the dollar.

Dr. Richard H Knee

Received my hosta and daylilies a month ago and was pleased with the size and great condition. Ordered 10 daylilies and 10 hostas in collections. Received 18 daylilies including the free bonus plant, and 19 hostas! Planted them the next day and decided to wait a while before commenting, to see how they did. At this point, every plant is alive and doing well, so I am extremely happy with the results. I will be buying more from Wild as I have the need for more plants. Great experience!

Positive is an understatement!!! I don't know about those negative comments, but I am going to gush over my order I received yesterday. I would have posted this sooner, but couldn't wait to get my ENORMOUS daylilies in the ground as soon as I opened the box. I ordered these about two weeks or less ago. Every step of the way, (I had called a few times because I am anal about being home when the plants arrived, and wanted to order more items). I was given great customer service. But I was skeptical about ordering with the EXTREMELY LOW prices. I thought I might get some dead crap in a box. However, I received these giant sections of daylilies that were still green on the tops, and a lively salmonish tan color on the roots. I was expecting some pitiful size that I would have to wait three years to notice in the garden. I am waiting on Iris to ship in the end of season, and I can't wait to see what they ship. I am going to add on more items to that order too. I think I found a goldmine, but don't mind sharing my good fortune with all of you too! Happy Planting!

2 years ago I placed an order for the 100 unlabeled hostas for $100. I had just bought about 10 hosta bulbs from Wal Mart, and when I saw the price from Wild and Son's I thought I would give it a try. I thought I would have some time after I ordered them, but they showed up early. I was in the midst of my daughter's wedding and couldn't plant them for 2 to 3 weeks. I kept them cool in my garage during that time but was afraid that I would lose a lot of them because of the delay in planting them.

That was 2 years ago. Out of the 20 bulbs I got from wally world, 2 came up, and they quickly died. Out of the 100 I got from Wild's I have over a hundred beautiful healthy hostas. Not only would I buy from them again, I would recommend them to all my family and friends.

Holy Daylilies! I just recd my Surplus Daylilies. I expect may be a small piece - goodness! What a wonderful surprise! I am so pleasantly surprised! I can't wait to get my irises and order peonies!!

Daylilies were huge and in great shape! The lilly bulbs were huge with no rot and firm. The prices and quality cant be beat! Thanks for the great plants : ) + a bonus plant need I say more.

My order arrived today and I am very pleased. The daylilies were freshly dug; in fact, the roots had not even dried out. After reading some of the previous feedback, I was a bit skeptical, but I thought at these super low prices, I just can't go too wrong. I was right, and I even received a bonus plant too!

I have been buying from Gilbert Wild & Sons since 1969 and have never been disappointed, in fact I am always overwhelmed by the quality of the plants. I have moved 12 times since then and the fist thing I do at a new home is place an order for daylillies and irises. I just received my order for 100 daylilies and the plants were so large and freshly dug that I am sure I will have a beautiflul garden here this summer. The iris will be shipped in the fall and I am know I will,as always, be pleased with them also.

I ordered about 150 daylilies from Gilbert Wild last year as I have for the last 8 years. I also ordered many other daylilies from several high priced sources throughout the last summer. I am now assessing my garden after a very cold and long winter. Once again each of the Wild daylilies have multiplied from two fans to 4-5, have great foliage, and are extremely healthy. The fancy daylilies look weak and have barely multiplied. I've seen this same result year after year. The roots arrive and look dried and sometimes smaller than those from the top hybridizers, but after an overnight soaking and some basic care I have found the Gilbert Wild daylilies outperform every year. When you consider the price- I can't imagine a better opportunity to add so much beauty to a garden for so little cost. I'm ordering more again this year.

I ordered hostas last year and received a free daylily. The hostas did OK for their first year, and while that free daylily wouldn't have been my first choice, based on how well it looked and performed for its first year in my garden, I placed another order last Fall for several daylilies that I did like. I decided to wait to do my review on those daylilies until Spring. I can now say that I am pleased with my purchase. All the plants are coming up strong and healthy. The free daylily I got a year ago is looking great, too, so I'm happy about that as well. I am easy to please: healthy plants + good price = happy customer. I will definitely consider purchasing from this company again.

I ordered daylilies and hostas. All arrived quickly and in fine shape. They are growing rapidly, lots of leaves, very healthy. I found Wild's selection and pricing is excellent. I will definitely order again from this company.

I work long hours and am sometimes a neglectful gardener. I have let their daylilies plants sit in a hot garage for up to two weeks and they always bounce back, and bloom beautifully.
Their customer service is awful though, the woman who answers the phone (I think it's always the same woman, or maybe the operators all just sound alike) is very crabby and rude. Once I called to take advantage of a promotion, and she nearly bit off my head, practically yelling that the promotion had expired. (The expiration date was posted in small print and hard to find). When I've asked questions about the plants, she has been very unhelpful. Good plants, lousy customer service. I'd like to place an order this year, but don't want to deal with her... I supposed I could place an internet order, but if there is a problem, I don't want to deal with this woman.

"On Mar 30, 2009 6:46 AM, Gilbert H. Wild and Son responded with:

If you have any problems, and we hope that you don't! You may call and ask for me, Greg Jones. I have been the owner of GH Wilds since 1991 and I am a horticulturist. My direct number is 417.548.3517 or just call toll free at 1.888.449.4537 and ask for me. I'm usually easiest to get hold of before 8 am, I usually get in the office 5-5:30 AM....I am so sorry you feel this way about our customer service and we will work on that as well!"

I have ordered Lily bulbs from them over the past 3 or 4 years and they bulbs have been acceptable. When I received my order this Spring I was stunned. The bulbs were so puny that I am not sure that they will even bloom this year. Additionally most of the bulbs had sprouted, even though mine were among the first ones shipped. What has happened to them? Gilbert H Wild use to provide reasonable bulbs at a very nice price.

"On Mar 24, 2009 7:05 AM, Gilbert H. Wild and Son responded with:

Give us a call and we will replace them...The bulbs should be the same size as we always ship - 12-14 cm bulbs, mistakes happen and we are sorry! we would like to make this right wilth you. Not sure why you wanted to give us a negative before giving us a chance to make it right? Greg Jones - Owner GH WIlds"

I bought 10 daylilies very cheaply, and received a bonus plant too. They were a little dry, probably because there was very little packing material in the box and they were shipped by UPS, which took four days. I soaked the plants overnight and they did not look bad. At those low prices I think you get good value for your money.

I have relied on Gilbert Wild for years. The peonies may be a little smaller, but then I can buy more than I could at other sites. I love their sales, especially their last sale of the summer when peonies seem to be at their lowest price. Also, I love their mixture prices. I am going to order a hosta mixture and several other things for this spring.

From what I have read on the "comments" section, it does appear that there is recourse to higher ups if one is not satisfied with the telephone response to a complaint. I do like that they moniter the comments and try to correct them. They have my vote for reasonable prices for the general gardener who is not into expensive "collections." I moved here and received orders last fall. I cannot wait to see what happens when things start coming up.

I have ordered from Gilbert Wild and Son for years and always received good plants. Sometimes the plants do arrive dry, but I just soak them in water a few hours and they come right out of it! I will continue to order from them, as their prices are better than any other nursery around. Yes, some companies might send out a larger plant, but it will cost twice as much too! I see some negative responses on the site, but I know that you can never please everyone! But I have been very pleased.

Sent very poor quality plants. They were so small and most of them were moldy. Will not respond to my emails or any other form of communacation. All my plants died.
I will not recommend this company nor will I buy from them again.

"On Feb 11, 2009 10:45 AM, Gilbert H. Wild and Son responded with:

Please contact me, Greg Jones the owner of Gilbert H Wild and Son. I cannot find you in our customer list and I would like to work with you in correcting the situation. I can be contacted at gregj@gilberthwild.com or 417.548.3517"

Reading some of the negative comments worried me so asked my super gardener sister if she had ordered from Wild in the past and she had. Her experience was that the peonies from G.H.Wild would be blooming and growing wonderfully at the same time as peonies from more expensive sources planted at the same time. Based on that I bought a bunch of peonies and popped them into the ground. My soil is terrible, I'm new to the zone, never was much of a gardener and the backyard was completely bare when we moved in last Oct. If my view changes I'll post but the roots were huge and after 2 weeks the eyes are already peaking at me through the soil.

I ordered 25 mixed Daylilies which I received within 2 weeks of ordering. They were slightly less than half the price Oakes charges for 25 mixed daylilies. I did this as an experiment to determine where I wanted to buy a bunch of named varieties.

The plants I received were bare root packaged with shredded paper-which is fine for daylilies and just how my Oakes order came packaged. However, the plants were less than half the size of oakes and not as fresh. Some were single fan and none of them are anything I would've divided. It's been 6 days and most of the plants have sprung up with new growth. I suspect they will all make it, but I'm not sure about a few.

You do get what you pay for and Wild's is not a bad choice for someone on a budget that doesn't need large plants. I'll make my formal decision based upon how the plants do in the next couple of weeks.

I read feedback before ordering but wanted to give it a try simply because of the prices. Packaging is horrible; plants were dried out and lifeless. Soaked them for a day and planted them. I am watching them carefully as they seem so fragile. If all goes well, I may change my rating but, strongly suggest that this company review its' packaging methods. Shreading paper for shipping daylilies is useless. Might as well put nothing in the box. With such a name and reputation in the daylily world, this company needs to examine their integrity.

I recently received an order of 9 daylilies (actually turned out to be 11 including the bonus offered with purchase and another surprise bonus). When they arrived, they looked a little dried out, but I put the fans in water for about 8 hours before I planted them. I am happy to say that all of them are showing new green growth. It's true that this company's plants aren't the healthiest or largest I've seen, but you just can't beat the prices!

I ordered from them in the spring and while those fans arrived in the same condition, all of the plants have bloomed, which is more than I can say for some other companies.