Comments regarding Gardener's Choice

Wow...At 46 years of age you'd think I'd have learned about "As seen on TV" scams. I ordered the Giant tomato tree, and some of the multi-colored Bell Pepper plants. What I received was 1 inch square peat-pots wrapped in cellophane, which allegedly contained seeds. The soil looked much like dry beach sand, and the peat-pots were crushed. I followed the start-up instructions, and waited for the miracle to happen.....and waited....and waited.....and waited. Of the 12 peat-pots, 1 lonely Pepper plant sprouted, reaching the staggering height of about 1/4 of an inch...before unceremoniously wilting to dust. None of the Tomato plants sprouted. This company is a complete fraud, and I will be contacting the proper authorities in Michigan.

Unfortunately, I found this site AFTER I had already placed orders with both Autumn Ridge and Gardener's Choice, so you can imagine my horror when I read all the comments for both places. Fortunately, I called the number for the other nursery that scotsman put on here. The customer service rep was actually angry when I said that I had found their number on here, but she looked up my order for a weeping japanese maple and a weeping cherry, and said that she saw where it was shipped, but she couldn't pull up enough information to track it, so she would just refund my money to my credit card. She said that could take 7-10 days, so I guess we shall see.

They canceled an order of mine with one credit card company. I called that company and they said there was no a problem with credit and Gardener's Choice had not tried to contact them. So I made another order with a different credit card. Since the only way I could communicate with them at that time was email which after my second order they quit responding. I do have an email where they said they canceled my first order. But after that date they charged my credit card that order. So I had 2 orders.

Not knowing this where the boxes came I opened them. I didn't receive everything they marked on the invoice. They did this with both orders. The watermelon plants were thrown in a plastc baggy and were dead in both orders and the catalopes were packed the same way in a little better shape but they have all died since. I have other plants that have died from them and not sure about the others. I have spent time planting, emailing and calling them with no response since April 3,2008. I have filed disputes with both credit card companies. From how I have been treated I can not see how this company makes money with the service they provide.

I bought the so called tomato tree for 10 dollars.

But they billed me an additional 90 dollars for stuff I didn't order. Big Scam

tomato tree was just seeds

Call 269-621-2259 for customer service. This is actually Spring River Nurseries, which is a parent company.
Nice friendly person on the phone who helped me immediately with correct information.

As far as original GC numbers and website,
I had not received my order, no response to emails, phone number busy or canned music.
I was getting quite annoyed and came across this site.

I found the information and number from a posting on May 12. They have been quite helpful and will be replacing one of my plants that didn't make it.

I will say that the advertising is a little misleading. I expected my blueberry bush to be at least 10 inches or so, not 2.
Last year I ordered the "tomato tree". Supposed to be plants. Not. What showed up was dessicated peat containers with a few seeds, which would have been fine if I'd ordered seeds.
The indoor banana tree seed was obviously planted about the time they hung the phone up from my original order as it was 2 months from order time to see the plant. That's about how old the thing was, about 2 months.

Anyway, I will probably find my seedlings elsewhere, or just buy seeds and start my own. The seedlings they do send are usually so very young, I could easily do these in my greenhouse.
The reason people usually order plants instead of seeds is to save time. Not much time saved when the plants are only 6 weeks old and need more time to recover from shipping and transplanting than an older plant would.

Well, enough rattling on.
Good luck and hope the phone number helps people.

Active member of the Convert Your Lawn To Garden club.

DEAD PLANTS... PARTIAL ORDER... BUSY SIGNAL... FINALLY A PERSON, ERIN, SAYS SHE WILL SEND ME NEW PLANTS TO REPLACE 14 DEAD ONES, BUT THE REST OF MY $365. IS ON HOLD BECAUSE THEY RAN OUT OF STRAWBERRY PLANTS. MY REPLACEMENT PLANTS FINALLY ARRIVED... AGAIN IN BAD SHAPE, BUT AT LEAST THEY HAD ROOTS AND YELLOW LEAVES. BUT THE REST OF MY ORDER IS NOT HERE AS PROMISED FOR THE SECOND WEEK OF MAY... THIS IS THE LAST WEEKEND OF MAY. NO RESPONSE TO EMAIL EXCEPT FOR ADVERTS IRONICALLY FOR THE VERY PLANTS I HAVE ALREADY ORDERED! NO ANSWER ON PHONE THO I DID GET THROUGH TO THE CANNED MUSIC LINE ON HOLD FOR OVER 30 MINUTES BEFORE IT HUNG UP ON ME! NEVER WASTE TIME OR MONEY ORDERING FROM THIS COMPANY!!!!

I ordered grass seed by phone from Gardener's Choice several weeks ago. The cost was $19.95 plus shipping and handling. I paid with my debit card. I haven't received the grass seed. I checked my bank statement this morning and saw where they charged me $67.70!

I've tried to call but only got a busy signal. I've fired off an email, but haven't heard back.

They have fraudulently charged an outrageous price for grass seed which I haven't received. I'm contacting my bank, but since I've used a debit card, I don't know if there's going to be anything I can do to get my money back.

DON'T BUY ANYTHING FROM GARDENER'S CHOICE!!!!!

I've also read on the internet that other's who have made purchases from this fraudulent company have been overcharged. I wish I'd had the foresight to check out their reputation before ordering from them.

I ordered $623.61 worth of items from them 3/28/2006. I was not a member of Daves garden back then but found Daves looking for a customer service number for Gardener's Choice. To find out about the service I recieved look in Vegetable gardens forum and type in Gardeners Choice. All I recieved was twigs and dead or dying stuff. I ordered several bags of grass seed. They advertized each bag seeds 500' but when I recieved them I noticed a sticker saying 500'. I peeled them off and noticed the manufacturer of the bags advertized for seeding 200'. Largest by mail ripoff I have ever experienced.

Here' the deal..I think this companies customer service is terrible..I called for several days and just got busy signals. I did manage to get through on the phone after persistently dialing (269)621-3303 then pressing (1) for ordering. They sent me the wrong Item and said they will replace it..(I'll have to wait and see). Also well over a month ago I ordered the quick grass seed and it hasn't arrived yet..they told me today 5/22/08 is was being shipped and it will arrive next week(again we have to wait and see). Also my ticket was pulled for the replacement item and hopefully that will arive next week also.I don't have a lot of faith in this company and will most likely never do business with them again. If I hade found this page first I would have never ordered from them in the begining. Let's face the facts..NO company is perfect but this company has to many bad stories. Also we are only hearing from the people who have found this page..Who knows how many other people have the same problems and didn't write here or don't know this page exist...Well I'll let you know how it all turns out soon..

I, too, was duped by Gardener's Choice. Ordered 12 "plants", got 12 small boxes supposedly containing seeds - I dug through four of the boxes and saw no seeds whatsoever. Same problems with the phone - constant busy signals and disconnects, no humans EVER. I want my $34 back! I plan to pursue this as far as I can take it. If we create enough stir with the city officials, we may be able to either put these scammers out of business and/or get our money back.

I ordered grass seed on 4-17-08, still haven't received it. I have tried and tried to reach them via phone, always getting busy signals. The 1 time I did get through, I was on hold for 1 and 1/2 hours. They cut me off when it was closing time. Go figure. I too will never order from this company and will never recommend it to anyone. If ever asked, I would have to say NO WAY.

Hey, just got an answer, finally!!! They told me my grass seed was on back order and just got it in. I don't believe that, anyway, if you keep trying you may just get through. I finally used the # that was posted along with the address the BBB has, and got through. You all might try that and see if you have any luck. GOOD LUCK TO ALL OF YOU!!

I ordered three Cherokee Purple tomato plants from Gardener's Choice. Heirloom tomatoes can be hard to find locally and I thought I would give this company a try. The order of 3 plants took over 3 weeks to arrive and when they did the plants looked terrible. They were received in a plastic bag, they were about 3 inches tall, including roots, and they were not in a pot or any dirt to speak of. I do not know if they will survive or not, but it will take a while to recover if they do. Thankfully my husband found a local gardener who has heirloom tomatoes and was able to purchase large, healthy plants for $2.00 a piece. I would not recommend using Gardener's Choice and would not have used them if I had known before ordering that their ratings were so low.

I also received the two white packs, some peat mossy stuff-and some plastic cups May 12. I live in Northern Ohio... we have to start seeds in March not May. I would like my $21.90 back please..... we need an attorney to start a class action law suit.....$22 dollars is 5 1/2 gallons of gas!

When I order a product, I expect customer service. Gardener's Choice falls extremely short. Can't contact them via e-mail or phone. They should just remove the "Service" tab from their web-site. Was able to contact one of their affiliates and she was very polite and helpful. She too made the comment that Gardener's Choice's "Customer Service" was lagging extremely.

Don't buy from this company!!! You'll thank me...

My wife spent $60.69 for their "tomato trees." I was skeptical, and for good reason: The seeds sprouted and promptly died.

She has tried calling the company, to no avail. I sent an e-mail seeking replacement or refund. No response. She followed up with two more e-mails. Again, no response.

I will NEVER do business with this scam again and would recommend anyone else do the same!

Rating: 0 out of 10!

I, too, fell for the big tomatoes. My (online only) bill of sale clearly stated that they would be sending 6 plants. Also, their shipping and handling chart states that sales under $20 cost $5.95 to ship. They charged me double that. I received 2 plain white packages of seeds, some 1-cent-value seedling pots and some weird brick of pre-fab soil. I immediately sent them 3 or 4 emails complaining. I went to the BBB site, but found THIS:

The BBB reports on businesses, both accredited and non-accredited. If an organization is a BBB Accredited business, it is stated in this report.

Name: E S Enterprises Inc.
Phone: (269) 621-2447
Fax: (269) 621-3276
Address: 81961 County Road 687
Hartford, MI 49057-8606
Original Business Start Date: January 1978
Principal: Mr. Bryan Paxson, General Manager
Customer Contact: Ms. Debbie Parker, Customer Service - (269) 621-2447
Incorporated: MI
Employees: 12
TOB Classification: Fulfillment Services
BBB Accreditation: This organization is a BBB Accredited business.

BBB Accreditation Status

This company has been a BBB Accredited business since April 2003. This means it supports the BBB's services to the public and meets our BBB Accreditation standards.


Nature Of Business

This firm provides order fulfillment for several mail order companies including Direct Source, Gardener's Choice, Guaranteed Distributors and Spring River Nurseries. Separate reports are available on each of these companies upon request.


Customer Experience

Based on BBB files, this company has a satisfactory record


with the BBB. A satisfactory record means a company has been in business for at least 12 months, and properly addressed matters referred by the BBB. The company does not have an unusual volume of complaints, o r any government actions involving its marketplace conduct. The BBB understands and has no concerns about the company's products, services and type of business.

When considering complaint information, please take into account the company's size and volume of transactions, and understand that the nature of complaints and a firm's responses to them are often more important than the number of complaints.

The BBB processed a total of 1 complaint about this company in the last 36 months, our standard reporting period.Of the total of 1 complaint closed in 36 months, 1 was closed in the last year.

Delivery Issues
Resolved

1 - Company resolved the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
______________________________________
ONE??? I find that hard to believe... Perhaps nobody complains to the BBB, just the company. I'll give them 24-48 hours to respond to me, (I DEMANDED a full refund) and then I'll contact BBB. I suggest the rest of you with complaints do the same. Don't let them get away with ripping people off. What they're doing, I believe, is illegal. Advertise one thing, but deliver another. I read it to make sure I didn't just THINK they were sending plants. It clearly states it. Below is the bottom of my invoice. Ordinarily I wouldn't complain about $20, but it's the misleading, the lies, the sleazy business practices.. And spending THAT MUCH on 2 packs of seeds, that weigh less than an ounce and cost nearly $12.00 to ship!!!

Here's my invoice, see for yourself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Your Shopping Cart


Product Description
Price
Quantity
Total


Set of 3 Giant Tree Tomatoes (plus $5.95 shipping) & FREE Set of 3 Big Earlys (plus $5.95 shipping)
$10.00
1
$10.00



Product Total
$10.00
Shipping & Handling
$11.90



Final Total
$21.90

On April20,2008 I order 6 tomatoes plants. After receriving postcard telling me they were on backorder I recerived a small box with Seeds not plants. I tried calling no answer. I send a e-mail no responds. I wish that I had seen this web page before order. I wasted my money. AM retried and cannot affored this waste.

I spent $50 at Gardeners Choice, they sent dead plants! Not one was alive, none grew. I called them over and over, busy signal!
Will not respond to emails!
Do not shop with them!

Last year 2007 I ordered from Gardeners choice and thought I was ordering tomato "plants" but instead recieved seeds. I didn't complain, planted them and had the biggest tomatoes I have ever grown. they tasted awful but they were huge! I got another catalog in Dec and placed an order online from them, & was promised as an "order now" gift I would recieve a bag of Tall Iris bulbs free of charge. 2 days ago (May 13th) I got my order after sending them an email inquiry - hopefully the plants will live - they were pretty dried up. but the free gift I was promised was not included! I got instead a small packet of mixed flower seeds. So I will never order from this company again, not because I didn't get the iris bulbs as promised but because they are not honest. I could go to my local bank and get the free packet of seeds that I received from them - free also. If your going to place an order with gardeners choice give it a second thought and go with a company that is reliable and trustworthy - they are not.

I ordered what i thought was six tomato trees from Gardner's choice on 04/14/08. Paid $23.21. After three weeks of not receiving my order i tried e mailing them. I did not receive a reply. I tried again a week later. Nothing. I tried calling them but every time i'd press the option for customer service the phone would cut off. On 05/12/08 I finally received a small box from Gardner's Choice. When i opened it all i found was two packets of seeds, six little plastic pots and a brick of some type of coconut soil. I was shocked. I did not order seeds i ordered tomato trees. I can't get through to this company to request a refund. I filled a complaint with the BBB today. I hope to find a good resolution to this problem. I have never experienced such bad customer service or such false advertising from a company. I have no clue how they stay in business. I am so glad i found this forum. This company needs to be shut down.

I ordered for the first time from this company approx. 6 weeks ago. I did not receive an email confirmation which I have come to expect when ordering online. As of today, May 14th, I still have not received any of the plants I ordered. I have called the company repeatedly, but only get busy signals on the customer service line until after 4:30 when I then receive a message instructing me to call back during normal business hours. I have also emailed the customer service department using their website twice, but have received no response. After reading the posts on this site I now realize that my experience is apparently the norm rather than the exception . . . how unfortunate. I wish I had found this website BEFORE ordering.

I appreciate the information regarding Spring River and will call them tomorrow during their business hours. If my call tomorrow doesn't provide satisfaction I will join with others in reporting this company to the BBB and other online agencies which monitor fraud on the internet.

I order from the internet regularly so I have an expectation of immediate response, easy contact/follow-up and timely shipping - better than going to the store. Unfortunately Gardeners Choice has not worked up to this level of customer service, my expectation was high, too high and Gardeners Choice isn’t prepared to meet it. I finally got in touch (after repeated unanswered emails and phone calls) with them last week through Spring River Nurseries, they had my order available and I was advised of status and that some of it had shipped. All I could say was great after weeks of failed contact attempts and reading negative comments on the internet.
I received my first packages from GC yesterday (5 weeks after my first order), I was pleased to receive anything as I had my doubts. All plants were alive and I got them in the ground immediately – as they were weak from being in the box for 4-6 days. I expect that the rest of my order will arrive in the next week or so. I was impatient; the web site suggested that it would be a 4-6 week interval after ordering, I am getting some things earlier.
The issue outside of the lack of customer service is that they plants I ordered/received are seedlings. Again I had expectations of more mature plants, maybe in quart containers, or 4” containers – they were in 1” seedling containers. I remembered what I paid for them and realized the fact that I got what I paid for. Again it was my fault; my expectations were to receive these perfect mature plants, all ready to flower, as in the pictures.
I got my order, I expect with some intensive care all plants will live, I expect that I will receive my remaining orders as well – so in the end all is well. A little less than I expected but… but the pricing is about 60% less than if I bought at the local store or other online nurseries.
My recommend to Gardner’s Choice to move some money from sales to customer service, automate as much as possible (automate email responses for tracking orders), respond to emails/phone inquiries and answer your phone. As important let us know the size of the plants that we are to receive – do not mislead the pubic into thinking we are getting mature plants. I recommend express mail availability as well.
GC choice did basically as they said, I just expected more. My Neutral rating is more positive then negative.

On april 22,2008 I placed an order for 2 trees. I was told I would recieve them in about 2 weeks. When they did not arrive I email Gardener's choice 4 different times and never got an answer. I could not find a telephone # for them until I came to this site. Thanks, I got ahold of them and they said they are refunding everything. Guess ya live and learn.No wonder they were so much cheaper then everyone else. I guess the old saying,"you get what you pay for" is afterall true.

For all of you who have experienced the problem with customer service...Here is your solution. I called The Gardener's Choice countless times and just received a busy signal. I e-mailed them and never received a response...Finally, after researching this website I started calling the companies listed affiliates. Spring River Nursery answered all of my questions regarding my order. Their phone number is 269-621-2259. I was answered by a very polite customer service rep who gave me a complete description of my order and the charges placed on my credit card. After reading some of the reviews I really felt that I would never reach the company and would probably be forced to call my credit card company but now I think everything may be ok. I just received my seeds 3 days ago and was disappointed that I didn't receive plants as advertised and am concerned about when I will actually get a tomato, since we should be planting solid plants right now, but we will see what happens. I am also concerned about the seedlings never taking off, as some of you have experienced. I will post again later and let you know how things turned out.

Best of luck to all of you and I hope you have a great growing season!!

Just another poor soul who got scammed. Live an learn. Of course im going to have the bank charge back everything i was charged...Three charges for one order...go figure. But I do have a question for everyone who has been posting in this forum. Has anyone recieved or have been sent an invoice for their purchase made? All I received was a sheet that told me how to germanate their seeds. Has anyone received an invoice any type of paperwork besides BS instructions?

After seeing this company's ads about huge tomato plants I decided to give them a try. My order was received promptly. Upon opening the box I saw two small peat boxes with growing media inside plus instructions. I followed the instructions precisely. In about 10 days a couple sprouts appeared with two leaves each. After another week passed no further growth was apparent and they died. I have tried to e-mail the company with no response. STAY AWAY FROM THESE PEOPLE!!!!!!!!

I was completely "ripped off" by Gardner's Choice! They double and triple charged me for every item I ordered. I received 6 DEAD sticks that were supposed to be 4 Crape Myrtles and 2 Butterfly Bushes! The English Lavender was 3" tall...I was charged $9.98 eachand one was already dead! I called customer service..after receiving numerous busy signals..finally spoke with a nasty woman that said "Send your sticks back for a refund"! I am calling my bank and charging every cent back to these scammers! I've bought plants from reputable companies many times..never been sorry! This company needs to be shut down!

1st thing that should red flag any potential buyer is that this company rarely if ever uses photographs of existing plants. Secondly the descriptions rarely fit what you get. Third, the delivery took way too long & it was next to impossible to get a body in the customer service dept...I had to go through sales & even then repeatedly got disconnected, emails went completely unanswered.
I had ordered fruit trees & plants in 2005. These miraculous multi fruit trees are nothing more than grafts & they come oh so small, so it will take several years to materialize any fruit...well beyond the 90 day warranty...they also say there is a year warranty when hard pressed...not sure which is the truth. Anyway, The plants I recieved were on deaths door from lack of water. They did replace the blueberry tree(6" tall), but as of this review(2008) it has not grown beyond the 6" or bore any fruit... The "Cherry Hedges" have grown to about 5' but have yet to flower or bear any fruit either...I had to contact the company's owner Lipenwald just to get someone to call me back, they absoloutely did not want to help. At first I wanted just some explanation to why these products werent performing as advertised:"The Bigger the Blueberry the Better the Flavor
The giant blueberries served in ritzy hotels and restaurants are puny compared to those you can grow from our specially selected husky plants. Some growers boast berries as big as nickels but ours will regularly cover a quarter.

SWEET AND JUICY
The flavor of Blueray is sensational, as sweet and juicy as a plum, and the compact bushy plants often start producing a year after planting. What's more, Blueray is self-pollinating - it doesn't need another blueberry variety in order to set lots of luscious fruit. Each year your crop gets heavier- as much as 25 pints of berries from a single plant.

WILL GROW IN SUN OR SHADE
Our plants are extremely hardy, drought-resistant, and will grow in full sun or light shade. The white bell-like flowers of spring produce delectable fruit in summer. In fall the leaves turn scarlet. Makes a most attractive hedge."

..."A Living Fence Of Flowers!
Sweet, Juicy, Delicious Fruit! Lush Green Foliage! - Winter Hardy Fruit up to 2" around. PROLIFIC, JUST 3 PLANTS MAKE AN ORCHARD. Who says that for cherries by the bushel you have to nurse, baby and coax a tree for half a lifetime? It used to be that way - BUT NO MORE! Not since the development of the amazing fruiting hedge you see pictured on this page." (3 years & NO FRUIT!!!)

...but they would not even assist me in that...I pointed out at the very least they need to change their wording as they are clearly misleading in their descriptions. The 5 in one apple tree has made 4 flowers on one branch, not sure which apple that will be or if it will make an apple at all...we'll see...
My advice is to steer well clear of this company, the hassles are just not worth it, they clearly do not have customer service in mind, which should be paramount for an internet plant company...things are just bound to happen. I was left feeling like once they had my money, thats all they were interested in.

So my advice? CAVEAT EMPTOR: Buyer Beware!

I recently ordered the quick grass I had seen on T.V. from this website. I did not receive my seed, and emailed them repeatedly asking when I could expect it. I never got a reply, over a couple weeks. Then I found this website, and was horrified! Like some of you, I could not find a phone number for Gardeners Choice. When I finally did, I could never get through. I finally punched in the "order" line, the CMR was very rude and dismissive, and said I had to talk to customer service. I explained that I never got anything but a busy signal. She said there was nothing she could do. By now, I was pretty outraged. I went onto my bank's online banking service, and saw that they had not yet debited my account for the grass seed! I IMMEDIATELY CALLED MY BANK, AND EXPLAINED THE PROBLEMS. They cancelled my debit card right then and there, and are issuing a new one. I feel the inconvenience is a small price to pay for the peace of mind of knowing I am not 'out' that money, and I recommend other's do the same, if it is not too late.
I am going right out to my LOCAL, REPUTABLE lawn care store and buying some good grass seed!

4/27/2008

I ordered from BuyQuickLawn sold under Gardener's Choice from an infracommercial I saw. But everything about the ad doesn't mention GC by name or address. That was on 4/6 online. I received a confirmation # and it stated will ship within 3-5 days from time of order. 2 wks later I'm still waiting for an e-mail or my charge card to be billed. Nothing. Then I to e-mail them twice and no response back. I finally noticed that they were part of GC so I emailed them with my order number on 4/15 telling them that if I didn't get an answer from this e-mail I would cancel my credit card for possible future fraudgent activity and report them to their local BBB. To my surprise they charged my account the next day and I still haven't received my product or e-mail saying anything was sent. Meanwhile, I found the QuickLawn seed at Carol Wright's website for $6.00 A BAG CHEAPER! I am calling my credit card tomorrow and stopping GC processing.

My advise DO NOT BUY FROM ANYONE ASSOCIATED WITH GARDNER'S CHOICE. OR BUYER BEWARE!!.

I wish I had come across this site BEFORE I ordered.

Pat
IL

I as well have been trying to contact this company without success. I sent my last email request today and I will be filing a complaint with the FBI and the Attorney General's office.

I would encourage you to do the same so this company stop stealing money from innocent people. You can file a complaint online.

//www.ic3.gov/

The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA).

Thanks

Okay, I received many dead things and some pretty decent lavender. I couldn't get a hold of a person to help me.... was on hold forever, disconnected, hung up on or otherwise told 'too bad, call customer service".... which would route me right back to the ordering dept, which told me to call customer service (vicious circle??)

Then I thought I'd try an affiliatate listed here The Spring River Nurseries were able to access my Gardeners choice account. Try calling Spring River Nurseries at 269-621-2259. They can access your acct/order and helped me with very little wait. This was after wasting 2 afternoons trying to contact Gardeners Choice and being put on hold disconnected and hung up on. It is worth a shot. It worked for me. :)

THANK YOU ALL FOR EXPLAINING YOUR NEGATIVE EXPERIENCES. I started to place an order online approx. 5 weeks ago, as I wanted the giant tomato plants. While placing the order, the $ total was not added correctly (the tomato plants $10 plus the S/H was a couple of dollars MORE than what I correctly determined). Thinking that there was a glitch in their site, I decided to hold on ordering for a little while, and would order later when the site was fixed (hopefully). So today, April 24, 2008, I went back to the site to place the order, when I was compelled to check out the company on the web. Upon googling, I found your site, and am so glad that I read all of your difficulties, troubles, and disses by the company. I DON'T WANT TO DEAL WITH THEIR DISRESPECT TO CUSTOMERS! Gardener's Choice is LAME, and I'm so glad that your site and blog has educated me, and has saved me big $$$ (I was planning on purchasing many plants, plant food, etc.). SO THANK YOU ALL. There are probably many other customers who have stopped ordering from GC because of your statements. On behalf of them (and me), thank you!!!

My parents ordered 5 Pepper Plants and 3 Banana plants from Gardner's Choice with check #1016 which cleared 2/13/2008. The item #'s are #V90010 5 Pepper Plants #H13269 3 Yellow Banana Plants After several weeks of trying to get in touch with this company through their automated system that is always busy I was finally in touch with them today April 21, 2008.

The customer service representative was very rude when I told her that the season to plant the pepper plants is now since it is 75-80F and the local nursery is selling the same plants. I tried to find an order status and she told me that there is no order number assigned until the package is shipped. I asked her what date that was and she did not know. I asked for a refund and she told me rudely that since there is no order number assigned until I receive the package that she would not refund me. I told her then that I would have to try to negotiate through the BBB since it is impossible to try to find any information or get a refund. Her response was, "I don't give a damn." She then hung up on me.

Note: I received most of my order on April 14, but I waited until now to post a review. Two reasons:
A, I was waiting to see if the missing item (Strawberry Tree) would show up. It could have simply been shipped separately, even though there was no note of such happening on the paperwork.
B, Because the paperwork lacked a note, I decided to send them an email about the missing item the next day. After sending that email I felt it was only fair to give them a couple days (almost a week) to respond.

But since they have failed to respond or send my missing item I've decided to go ahead and post my review with a less than positive rating. To tell you the truth I don't care if the company talks to me or not as long as I get my tree OR a refund for said tree - that's all I care about! Give me what I ordered or give me back my money! Easy, right? Well see, I suppose.

*sigh* You see, I really (and I do mean really) wanted to give this company a positive rating, because the plants that I did receive were very well-packaged and in very good condition. So, lets note up front that I have no problem what so ever with the plants that I did receive from Gardener's Choice, my problem is with the one (the strawberry tree) I paid for but didn't receive nor been given a refund for. Though in all honesty, I'd rather have the tree I ordered, if I hadn't wanted it I wouldn't have ordered it in the first place.

Yes, I know going by most of the feedback here I admit that I didn't really expect a reply to my email, but decided to give it a try, because contrary to the description of plants received by other customers the ones I received really are awesome - that is really the best way to describe them. Which is funny, to me, because I almost decided against placing my order with this company, not just because of the negative feedback here but because of all the negative feedback for this company all over the web - this company is not well loved, but I finally decided to do so because there were two items I wanted which I couldn't find elsewhere (one shipped the other has not).

However, before I filled out the form and wrote my check, I decided I would check this company with the BBB - if the rating they had with them sucked, then I would give up. To my surprise, I discovered that whatever might have went on in the past with GC at present they have a satifactory rating with the BBB. So, I decided to take a chance, and (have I mentioned?) I am very happy with the plants that have arrived.

The four tomato plants arrived looking... Well, three of them (the Tumbling Toms) arrived looking a bit worse for wear, but they were clearly big enough and healthy enough for shipping. They've perked up nicely. There wasn't a lot of dirt around the roots, but there was clearly enough, and what was there was nice and moist. So I believe they will be a-okay.

GC also gets kudos for wrapping all the Tom plants with a cardboard flap to keep the branches from bending (or worse breaking off) during transit. Also they get more kudos for the fast shipping.

GC was the last company I ordered from this year (early March), and surprisingly it was the second company to ship (most of) my stuff. To be honest, based on all the feedback, I wouldn't have been surprised if I hadn't got my stuff until much (much) later. So, yes, despite that one missing tree I am pleased to have gotten a shipment from them this quickly.

The other tomato plant (tomato/potato) arrived even bigger and better looking than the other three. There was no wilting at all with this plant, but after several days I am noticing that a couple of the leaves are starting to look a bit yellow.

Anyway, it was in a large peat pot (color me surprised), and also wrapped in cardboard to protect it. Now I admit the dirt here wasn't quite as moist as the others, but it wasn't dried out either. And the dirt had stayed completely in the pot during shipping. Honestly, this one could have went right into the garden - alas I couldn't put it right out because cold (and I mean cold) weather was forecast. It is warming back up now, so as soon as I get the garden ready it will be one of the first things planted.

Now I must admit that I was a bit disappointed with the three Strawberry plants... Disappointed at first, mind you, not after planting them. You see, I was expecting those to be live plants as well, and while they were alive they weren't shipped as live plants, but as dormant (or at least semi-dormant) stock. However, I planted them and even the next day I could see that all four were showing signs of growth, and now almost a week later I'm seeing leaves on all three plants. YAY!

Now granted I had an extra edge here, because once I decided to order strawberries I bought me some special strawberry dirt (not from GC), but clearly the plants were in good shape, because special dirt is not magical dirt - meaning if the plants were dead (or dying) nothing would have helped them. And my guess is that since the plants greened up so fast they weren't exactly dormant to begin with. Still when I unpacked them, I was a bit sad, but honest enough to admit that even if I could only get one to live I would be happy. Now I am thrilled because I believe all three are going to live. Wonderful!

But as you may have quessed (or read) by now, you realize that the reason this rating is neutral over positive is because of the missing strawberry tree. Had that been included (or shipped separately) this would have been a very positive experience for me once again with a company that doesn't exactly have a sterling reputation. Alas, I cannot be totally positive because of the missing item - they've taken my money for the tree and alas I do not have it. It's nicely ironic, I suppose, that said tree is the main reason I ordered from CG and it is the one thing I haven't gotten.

Finally, if I get the tree, and it is not dead, I will come back and change my rating to a positive, because as I said I really wanted to give GC a positive in the first place. Or if I get a refund check for the price of said tree without having to bring in a third party, I'll be back to change my rating to positive. But lets face it with Big Oil trying its best to not just destory America but the world itself, I can't really afford to let a company get away with screwing me out of $5.98.

Well I got my order at work from Gardeners Choice, so I did not open until I got home. When I opened the box I was very surprised to see healthy plants. And believe me I order alot from mail order co's. #1 the price is always very good ( I am cheap ) and I enjoy getting unusual things that at my local nursery are outragiously priced. #2 Half the fun of gardening is seeing if you can grow it right ?? I usually don't plant right away I let them sit and relax in my greenhouse for a few weeks then replant them to bigger pots....Anyways very happy with this company !!!

Happy Gardening .....

Below I have copied correspondence between myself and Gardener's Choice. The point is that although they did not fill my order, once I advised them of the possibility of going to their attorney general to complain they suddenly responded and did not charge me. That may be the way to handle problems.

From: customerservice@gardenerschoice.net
I have cancelled this order and we DID NOT charge your credit card. Thanks
----- Original Message -----
From: MSK
To: customerservice@gardenerschoice.net
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2008 4:51 PM
Subject: FW: Hi Please update status of below copied order thanks
After sending you the last email I researched your company on the internet. There are hundreds of complaints on various websites. Some gave good information such as how to complaint to the Attorney General’s office. That is what I will do unless you respond and satisfy my order, or refund my money, within one week. I have been very patient and given the number of complaints on the internet it appears your company may frequently fail to send what people paid for. That is called fraud and it is illegal. You have been cautioned.

No matter how busy the season is you need to respond to customers promptly!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: MSK
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2008 4:30 PM
To: customerservice@gardenerschoice.net
Subject: FW: Hi Please update status of below copied order thanks
Dear Customer Service,
This is my second request for information about my order that I placed in FEBRUARY. I have had no response to my email and when I call I always get a busy signal. I am sure you are busy but it is also important to respond promptly to customer requests, don’t you agree?
Please respond ASAP as to what is going on with this (now very late) order.
Thanking you in advance,
MSK
(previous message and original billing info deleted).

I called in March to order Lemon Grass. I was told that I would get my order in 5-7 days by UPS. I wrote down my confirmation number. When I called a month later, because I never received my plants. I tried calling their client service department for an hour. I could not get through it kept ringing busy, so I finally got sick of getting the busy signal, so I hit the ordering line. At this point I was speaking with a CSR. I gave her my confirmation number and it came up as someone else. She told me that I had the wrong order number. I explained to her that this was the number that I was given and that I should receive my plants in 5-7 business days by UPS. She proceded to tell me that I ordered by an automative system and that my order came over by the internet and that I was in zone 5 and that I would not get my plants until mid May. The person that I put my order in with never explained any of this with me. I explained to her that I did not order by an automative system or the internet that I had spoken with someone. She kept telling me regardless this is how you ordered and that I had the wrong order number. I know that the order number was not for another company, because it would not have worked in their system. I also know for a fact that I did not speak to a automative service or send my order over the internet. I kept trying to explain this to her, but she would not listen. She kept saying that, regardless this is what happen and that I did order that way. At this point the person would not listen to me and just kept talking and wouldn't me say anything, so I raised my voice so that I could speak over her to make her listen to me and all she could say is ma'am why are you yelling at me. I tried to tell her why I had raised my voice and that it was because she would not shut up and listen to me, the customer. So at this point she still proceded to talk and I once again had to ask her to please shut up and listen to me that all I wanted her to do is to credit back to my account. She then said, ma'am you have been warned twice. First of all I had know idea of what she was talking about, because she never would let me talk and then the next thing I know she hung up. All I wanted her to do is cancel my order. I then called back and asked for a manager. The lady that answered said, that she was one of the supervisor's there. She too was not very nice. I tried to explain to her how I was treated by her CSR. Now when someone is upset most supervisor's want to help, but not at this company. I told the supervisor that her CSR needs to be spoken with and she proceded to tell me that it was none of my business of how they handle their complaints about their CSR's. Most company's would say ma'am I will look into this and take the appropriate action not tell the customer that it is none of their business. We all know that we can't be told what they do when there is a complaint. Bottom line they are not helpful and are rude.

I puchased 6 tomato plants, 1 blueberry plant, 3 cherry plants, and some gardening products from this company about a year ago. Although they all seemed quite dead or dying, I gave it a chance (thinking about what I read about how I would look if I were in a closed box in the mail for more than 3 days). 3 of the tomato plants really were dead, so I emailed and called the company repeatedly over the next few months. I was always polite in my emails, and as for the phone - I never got anybody to actually answer my calls. They did absolutely nothing, even though according to their guarantee they had 2 choices - either a refund or 3 new plants. One more thing - they promised me some flower (tulips, I believe) bulbs for every order over $25 and I actually made 2 orders over that amount (my first order consisted only of gardening products, no live plants), but come fall - no bulbs. I rarely give negative ratings for anything, as I believe in giving lots of chances, but this company really did go too far. After many months of waiting and trying, they gave no refund, no exchange, no promised bulbs, no contact, and worst of all - no apologies. I'm sorry to say but this is absolutely the worst company I have ever dealth with.