Comments regarding St. Clare Heirloom Seeds

We just received our seeds for this year's garden! We've been ordering from St. Clare Seeds for just a couple years now and have had great success with growing and seed saving. We appreciate how quickly they fill and ship our orders. We decided to expand our garden this year and are excited for the season to begin!

All I can say is: Wow! Been ordering online for a while and was immediately refreshed (spoiled lol) by this company's response to my order: Confirmation email(s); Super reasonable shipping cost - received my order quickly and well packed; I have already made a second order (I received a discount coupon with first order then forgot about it and emailed them - the response was respectful, considerate and said it will be applied!) I like the site showing how many seeds are left. I am still collecting seed, but can say simply scroll down to other comments ref the high germination rate. All this for not large $$$ orders - I heart this company and hope it prospers! I really appreciate seeing JMJ to!

Overall, this in our family's opinion is the best and most honest seed company we've dealt with. We're in zone 7 and farm all throughout the year, probably doing business with about 10 seed companies this past year alone to get a variety, and came across St. Clare just last year, which has now become our go-to-seed company. My family has been gardening for years and years. I'm not saying that St. Clare is the cheapest seed company out there because they are not, just the best company in our opinion. I can't ever see getting any old seeds (or seeds that were harvested too early) that sprout poorly from this company. For example, a very reputable company with excellent marketing (and I don't like naming names with bad reviews so I won't) has sent seeds we've purchased, that take a very long time to mature on the vine in the fruit properly, and they don't sprout well. If you've ever read an article on how hard it is to sprout pepper and eggplant seeds and how their germination rate is low, that's not true... it's probably just the fact that someone didn't get seed from a 110 day pepper that was ready for seed harvesting, or the company old seed. We sprout and save seeds, and have no trouble using heating pads and getting soils at the right temperature and dampness with the knowledge of farming we have. So when we get seed from other companies that doesn't match up to St. Clare, we really notice the difference. Over 95% of their seed seems to sprout when done correctly and I don't know if there is another company that is as HONEST as St. Clare. (Sprouted St. Clare Subright Bells, Orange King Bells and Purple Beauty Bells with top notch success rates this late winter indoors). Even with specific questions, they'll always get back to us eventually with an in depth response & educational answer. Also, might I add they are super speedy always, ALWAYS, on getting our orders processed and shipped to us. And a lot of the time they even have thrown in free seed... :), along with a 10% discount coupon code for future orders. Not the biggest company, but the best and a nice selection of rare non-hybrid seeds in our opinion. There are a few other great companies out there, but St. Clare is our favorite because of their HIGH QUALITY of seed, their HONESTY and their SPEEDY PROCESSING which is second place to none. And when you're looking for organically grown non-GMO seed, you would like to order from an HONEST company. Shalom.

i can not say enough good things about this great heirloom seed company. this is my second year ordering from them. fast shipping, good prices, low shipping cost, excellent seeds that grew beautiful plants. a nice informative news letter that came with the seeds. their prices are as cheap as a wal-mart. i tell my family and friends about them. you can see the care that goes into your order. they give coupons to save on the next order with no expiration date and they gave me a free pack of seeds. i love them!!!

We love St. Clare Seeds and have been using them as our source for seeds for three years now. Their seeds are non-GMO, heirloom, and untreated! Not only that, but they are less expensive than any others we have found. They ship immediately, often throw in a few packs of free seeds, and I love the quotes and messages on their site. We are learning more each year in our garden and have been so happy with the seeds from St. Clare's. I love that we are supporting a small business. I've recommended them to many friends as well as on my blog and hope that they stay around for a long long time!

Did not have much success with their seeds ( placed $55 order last year).
Asked for some replacements.
They sent $ 10 refund instead.
Not the best experience.

"On Mar 5, 2013 10:34 PM, St. Clare Heirloom Seeds responded with:

Dear Olga,

We do thank you for your input, and we are sorry for your disappointment. We appreciate the opportunity to share those reading here how we have dealt with a customer's complaints. We do feel that we offered a fair resolution, in light of our return policy (http://www.stclareseeds.com/contactus.html , scroll down to view policy). You state that you asked for replacements, and while you did, you actually said in your original email, "Please sent a replacement for next season or a refund." As we do not explicitly promise either replacements or refunds, due to the varying nature of gardening(climate, weather that particular season, customer ability variances, etc.), we felt that the compensation was fair.

As we stated to the customer, most of the varieties she ordered are very popular varieties, we sell many, many packets for these particular varieties, and had no other complaints last year on these varieties, rather, we had numerous compliments on their high germination rates. We also have grown a number of them in our own garden, and had great germination rates. The few more obscure varieties that she ordered are well known for being more difficult to germinate, so we feel the results are typical to seeds of those varieties from any company. Nevertheless, we still sent a partial refund. When we have a customer writing tell us even 3-5 seed packets didn’t grow well, we have no problem replacing or refunding, but in this case the customer was asking for refund or replacement on nearly the whole order, which we felt was not truly just, considering all the above mentioned factors.

Of note in this interaction is the fact that this customer just wrote to us this last week and stated that we never gave her the refund, but admits here that we did. We are glad to hear that she found that we did indeed send her the refund back in November when she wrote to us with her original request.

Olga never wrote us with a reply when we replied to her complaint back in November, never giving us any fair chance to make it further right, not telling us she was still dissatisfied. Then last week, months later she writes and tells us she checked her account, and she never got her refund, and that she wanted replacement seeds. If she had written saying she felt it was an unfair or unsatisfactory compensation, we would have willingly worked with her, but we had the sense from her emails, what she said, and her timing of writing to us(as she was getting ready to order more seeds) that this customer was not dealing fairly or in an upright way with us.

Again we are sorry, Olga, that you are not satisfied, as we truly do strive to give a positive experience to our customers when dealing with our company.

To our other valued customers and readers here at Dave's Garden, we ask that you look upon the much more numerous positive ratings as the true reflection of how we do business!

May God Bless You,

John and Sarah"

When I discovered that there was a seed supplier right here in my home state that specialized in heirloom and non-GMO seeds, I knew I had to give them a try.
Well, my large order of seeds has arrived, and I am happy to say that I am not only pleased, but surprisingly impressed. Not only was shipping very low cost, but it was also very prompt. The seeds were packed beautifully and carefully, and a free packet of seeds was also enclosed. The invoice was personally signed, which was a nice touch.
The website is very pretty, easy to navigate, and the ordering and checkout very user-friendly. All the varieties of seeds I was looking for were available and very reasonably priced compared to other sources. I truly could not be happier with this company, and plan to order from them every year.

Almost everything I've purchased over the last 15 years has been from the internet. St Clare seeds is only the second company I've bothered to write a positive review for. I have given many places negative reviews because it is much easier to take the time to do so when your mad about a lousy product or service. I don't bother doing a review for a company that sends me the product I ordered in a reasonable time because that is what I expected when I ordered it. Only if a company goes above and beyond my expectations would I bother to recommend them. St Clare seeds is that company. I keep an emergency heirloom seed storage just in case and since no seeds will store forever, I plant the seeds I've had stored in the freezer after several years and reorder new ones. I consistently get near 100% germination on my stored seeds which led me to start planting 1 seed per container instead of the 2 to 3 seeds needed from other companies. Great product! I have received every order within three days and most within two. Great service! They even throw in a couple freebies with the order. If you want a great product and great service, you can not go wrong with this company.

I found St.Clare Seeds while doing a search for non GMO seeds. I love how fast my order got here (TX), in just a couple days! And they sent a free packet of seeds! Just an added bonus that they are located in Wis., the state I'm from!

Thanks St. Clare Seeds. Hope to order from you every year!

Posted on December 29, 2012, updated January 3, 2013
So, I was planning to order about thirty dollars worth of seeds, because I like to save my own seeds from year to year, BUT last season was a bad season especially for my peppers and tomatoes and there wasn't anything to save at the end of the season. So, I needed to find a company that could sell me some seeds for this season.

Obviously since I like to save seeds from year to year I need heirlooms (I will plant a certain amount of hybrids every year, but mostly heirlooms are where it's at for me) and through Dave's Garden I found St. Clare Heirloom Seeds - they had what I wanted, so I placed many items in my cart.

Good so far, right. However, when I was asked to input my information to place my order I was warned that the certificate for http://www.stclareseeds.com was expired and that I should leave the website.

So now I need to find another company to order my seeds from, but I thought it might be helpful to drop a message to St. Clare Heirloom Seeds letting them know about this issue if they don't all ready.

"On Dec 28, 2012 11:33 PM, St. Clare Heirloom Seeds responded with:

Dear Customer,

We thank you for the review, and concern for our customers. We are actually at this very moment working on fixing this. We just arrived home not 2 hours ago from our family's Christmas Trip to visit extended family out-of-state, to find an e-mail notifying us of this issue with the Security Certificate. It was supposed to have been renewed, but somehow got missed so we are in contact with our webhost to fix this ASAP. We should have this fixed by the morning, as our webhost is very good at getting back to us quickly on things, and we plan on staying at it tonight until this is resolved. Thank you once again for your concern! Many blessings in the New Year!

Posted on June 11, 2012, updated December 15, 2012
Greatly pleased with with our order of Japanese Hulless Popcorn which was difficult to find! John and Sara sent a free extra package of the popcorn, something useful which we were thrilled to get! The order came quickly with personal thank you note. Reasonably priced. Seed germination was excellent! We will be back to try more next year!

How wonderful to have found them on the web, I have no words to describe how pleased I am with you, good delivery, good products,I will recommend you to my neighbors and friends, once more thanks

Dear folks at St. Clair Heirloom Seeds,

I could not help but write you about my recent order. I am very pleased with my recent order, everything I requested was shipped well, and arrived in record time. I am amazed not only with your service but also with the quality of your products. I can't believe it arrived in two days.

It is rare these days to receive such a level of service from any company, even a small family business. I will be telling everyone I know about your great company.

Sincerely,
Jerry Austin
3001 W Libby St.
Phoenix, AZ 85053

My order arrived quickly and was complete. All packets are well labeled. And I received an extra, free packet of seeds! Their web site is simple to use and full of good information. My impression is that this business is owned by competent and caring people. I plan to continue buying seeds as my garden grows in size.

AMDG+
This is a great company. Order was here in two days! Just as with a previous order, they included an extra, free packet of seeds, along with a discount coupon and even helpful information on seed life, storage, and planting. Such considerate folks--super customer service.

stumbled onto this website through GW, looking for vegetable seeds.
i placed an order last week and they arrived today. i love the extra tips and information they included, as well as the free packet of seed.
i am a first time vegetable gardener and most of these seeds won't even be planted until fall and then some the following spring. i read on the website how to store the seeds until planting.
i wanted seed ahead of time to get me spurred into action with the new garden section so i'm very excited now.
it will be my own fault if my germination rate isn't great but at least i have a start!
they seem like really, really nice people and i already love doing business with them.
thank you!!!

Nicely packed packages of seeds. Their website provided good information on the seeds and how to plant the seeds. They also provided info on how to harvest seeds from the plants. I'm trying to patiently wait for the seeds to germinate and look foward to the beans, peas and lettuce I planted. I look forward to increasing my vegetable plantings next year with seeds from St. Claire. And-forgot to mention-good cost for the seeds, great shipping cost and fast shipment.

I placed two orders with this company. They sent the seeds very quickly. Though I haven't planted all the seeds, the ones I have planted germinated quickly.

On the second order, they sent a free gift of Mississippi Cream Peas, much to my surprise and delight!

FANTASTIC company!! Prompt shipment and even included some extra free seeds! I am a first time buyer and would absolutely purchase again. Seeds had a high germination rate and I honestly believe the ones that didn't germinate were because of my own fault not the company. Thank you so much!

St. Clare Heirloom Seeds is a company I will be buying from again. Their website is easy to navigate and has a lot of information about the seeds they carry, and the best way to plant and take care of them. I purchased two of their seed collections, the kid's collection and the container collection. I have limited space, and these collections suited my needs. I also ordered some tomato seeds. Along with what I ordered I received 2 more packets of free seeds. I have had excellent germination rates and all of my seedlings are doing great. I look forward to this year's harvest. If I remember I will give an update at the end of the season. Thank you St. Clare Heirloom Seeds!

First time customer.
I hope that their seeds are as good as their customer service and their obvious patriotism. Several items that I ordered had more seeds per pack and half the price as Burpee's. They refunded postage on one of the two orders that I placed on the same day. Someone is obviously paying attention and treats people as they would like to be treated. Looking forward to watching my many seeds grow!

This has been my first season to order seeds by mail. I chose several different companies to try. I have been the most impressed by St. Clare's product and customer service. I received the order in a timely manner. I like the clearly labeled packages. I enjoyed the handwritten "Thank You" and signature by the owners. Also, I feel they went above and beyond by including a free package of melon seeds and bean seeds for my $20 order. My seeds germinated well. I just placed my second online order with them, and will be a devoted customer.

Fantastic company to deal with! They shipped my seeds promptly and the seed packages were well labeled. Later, they also sent me out (for free!) a second package which contained a packet of seeds that was out of stock when I placed my first order. I can't recommend this company enough!

I recently purchased a order of seed from St. Clare. It all the years of growing from seed I have NEVER had this high of germination rate for heirloom seeds nor have I purchased in recent memory tomato seeds of this quality. I have just placed a second order and will be using them in future. Buying from them would be a good choice for you.

CDA

I am very pleased with the selection of heirloom seeds St Claire had to offer. I ordered on tuesday and recieved the seeds on thursday, so the delivery was amazingly fast. Very happy about that because the planting could begin! I would highly recommend ordering seed from this company. The packaging is plain but that didn't matter to me. I like that! It's about the seed inside, these beautiful heirloom seeds that maybe one of my ancestors planted. St. Claire Heirloom Seeds is top notch.

Great selection of seeds and super fast shipping! Couldn't be happier! Thanks and will be ordering again I am sure.

Posted on May 10, 2011, updated March 9, 2012
I ordered several hard to find bean seeds from this company. The prices were every good, and the shipping was the same. My order came very quickly, and even had a free pack of carrot seeds. I would definitely order from St. Clare again.

I think I have found my new favorite seed company. I am very pleased with the fast and friendly service. They took the time time to write a Thank you and signed their names at the bottom of the invoice, both times. ( I had forgotten to order peas the first time around ) Each order came with a free pack of seeds which was great. Thank you !! I will definitely order from here again

I have placed several orders with St. Clare Seeds, and I can honestly say that I will never order my seeds anywhere else! They are my "go to" supplier for all my growing needs! All my produce grown from their seed has been of the very best quality, with very high yields. Every order has been processed quickly, not to mention their beautiful method of packaging, never any damage to product upon receipt. Customer service is second to none, emails are answered efficiently and pleasantly. I feel I am corresponding with friends! I highly recommend St. Clare Seeds for all your planting needs!

Posted on March 30, 2011, updated March 5, 2012
(sorry for the duplication) This is the second year I've gotten seeds from St. Clare's. I am really happy with this company. The seeds came prompt and nicely packaged and I had a great yield and wonder fruit and vegetables last year. I am also a new gardener and spoke to them on the phone last year and they couldn't be more helpful, nice, resourceful or knowledgeable. They have also a great variety of heirloom seeds. I would highly recommend this company, both for their wonderful service, and for the quality and selection of their products.

I was hesitant to order from this company as they do not list a phone number and I was not familiar with them. I took a chance and I have been most impressed with them. I Placed an order on Monday and I received exactly what I had ordered today (Wednesday). Emails were replied to promptly.

I truly acquired a positive impression of an honest family-operated business here. If they had to answer the phone all day, they wouldn't get much done. I get that. Green thumbs up from me!

I have just started to order for this season. Ordered twice so far. The package came quickly. Everything was in order. The hand written signature was very personable. The web site is quit impressive. Easy to understand and get around. Cant wait to get planting, and see how everything comes out this year. Have already recommended them. Thanks--- Cindy Lawnicki

I ordered for the first time from St. Clare Heirloom Seeds on Jan. 28, 2012. The seeds arrived in 4 days. The correspondence with me, regarding seeds that were not available, was friendly and helpful. I wish there was germination information on the herb packets. Hopefully they will include that soon. I really like their website and links.

"Once again I received excellent service and great germination from Saint Clare‘s vegetable and herb seeds."

Posted on September 22, 2011, updated December 21, 2011
I wanted to add you to my Seed list , but because of your Governor, Walker, and his tie's with Monsanto(ROUND-Up) and Coca-Cola, I decided not to, I have 4 Organic Garden's, 100% or as close as anyone can come, I want to believe your seed's are clean but in this day and age it becomes more difficult by the day... I enjoy my garden's daily, and want to make sure nothing tainted, enter's them...

"On Oct 17, 2011 3:56 PM, St. Clare Heirloom Seeds responded with:

We appreciate each person's right to an opinion, and especially welcome comments from our customers and/or those who have personal experience with our business. We must say that we believe it unfair to place a rating on our company based solely on who was voted in as our governor by thousands of citizens of our state. Elected officials of Wisconsin in no way affect our business, our seeds, nor our customer service, namely those things on which a rating of our company should be based. We hope that the readership of the Dave's Garden "Garden Watchdog" will only take into account the reviews left by those who have personal experience with St. Clare Heirloom Seeds, and who are rating us based on this experience. In closing, we DO appreciate that this gentleman kept his rating at neutral, instead of negative. May you all have a great Garden Season!

God Bless,

John and Sarah

Very fast delivery. All packages are clearly marked. We're happy to do business with a Traditional family.

Posted on January 15, 2011, updated October 30, 2011
It was so easy to order from their site and my order was literally on my doorstep within 2 days. Yes they are close in proximity but that means they processed extra fast! It's too early to plant yet so I don't know germination but I am confidant with their excellent service there won't be a problem.

First experience with ST. Claire Seeds and I am very pleased!

Excellent prompt personal service that is missing from so many other businesses. Please do not hesitate to order from John and Sarah (no I'm not getting endorsement favors) and support them in their endeavors, as they are providing a very useful service and doing it well. Great selection of seeds and I am particularly pleased with their Open Pollinating corn selections, and various OP short season melons.

Seeds were purchased for Washougal, WA and Nowy Sacz Poland where growing conditions are sometimes challenging.

I have to join the scores of happy customers here.

Having recently ordered 27 packets of seeds from this company, I can vouch for their outstanding performance. The order process was thorough and simple and I received follow-up email upon shipment WITH delivery tracking. The seeds arrived very quickly. Because it's so late in the year and the ground here is saturated from two months of endless rain, I wasn't able to plant all packets for my planned fall garden. The seeds I opened and planted appeared fresh and plump, and all germinated with outstanding results.

I am extremely pleased with this little company and embrace their growing philosophy and natural heirloom seeds as well. My new first choice for future vegetable seed orders! Very happy.

Ordered seeds twice - for spring and fall plantings. Both times seeds were shipped VERY quickly. Spring seeds grew great. Haven't planted fall ones yet. Will use St. Caire seeds again for all future seed needs. Great prices, good variety and low shipping cost.