Van Engelen, Inc.

BEWARE! HEARTBREAK! For 2 years I have been trying to get the daffodil bulbs I wanted from Van Engelen but this year was a calamitous heartbreaker! I ordered 350 ‘Fortissimo’ daffodils on 8/1/23 intending for my garden to be included on a garden tour. My order was marked no substitutions. I received 350 healthy bulbs marked ‘Fortissimo’ and was thrilled. The bulbs were planted throughout my yard. This Spring much to my dismay and shock, the daffodils that came up were NOT what I ordered! The daffs I ordered are yellow with orange trumpets. These were solid yellow and blooming at the wrong time. My garden tour participation canceled. I called the customer svc line on 2/12/24 and was told YES, THAT CAN AND DOES HAPPEN. It was explained they don’t pack the bulbs, they just market and sell the bulbs. No attempt to ensure what you order is what you’re going to get. The rep requested pics, said she would send a report to the owner’s daughter and that the owner’s daughter would call me. I sent pics also with video on 2/16/24. I heard nothing from the owners daughter. After placing more calls, on 2/21/24 a rep finally called to say they would issue a refund. No apology or attempt at explanation or reparation. NEVER buy anything from van Engelen unless you want to spend money to go thru waiting and planting only to be shocked in the end!

There's a lot I like about Van Engelen...they have a lot of interesting bulbs and the the ones I've ordered have grown well for me. When I've specified when I'd liked the bulbs shipped (which I think is earlier than their typical shipping for this area), they've mostly been able to oblige (with the exception of a few bulbs which just weren't ready to send out when I would have liked to plant them). But I am going to be hesitant to order from them again. For the second time, when ordering two bags of a particular bulb type, I've only received one bag instead of two. I don't think whoever packs their bulbs is very careful. There is no possibility that the mistake is mine. I thoroughly unpacked their boxes immediately after receiving them and laid them out in an uncluttered area to ensure there were no "hidden" bags of bulbs. When I notified them of the first error, they eventually sent the missing bulbs. This year, I contacted them about the missing bulbs, and they said they will send out a second bag. But having to deal with this shouldn't be a common part of the bulb ordering experience...

Well, I’ve done business w/this company for maybe 20 years or so, regularly submitting orders for high-end clients in the many $1,000’s of dollars. I admit to being a bit dismayed by their handling of shipping delays this year. I kept checking their website for updates (Colorblends had excellent communication & updates on delays, less than 2 weeks later than usual). Van Engelen kept kicking the can down the road by extolling the virtues of *late planting* of bulbs in cold weather on their website & that all orders would be fulfilled by Nov. 1, 2021. Unfortunately, in northern New England, the ground freezes & temperatures in the 20’s w/the wind blowing is not conducive to working outdoors. We usually receive our bulbs (often over 10,000 bulbs) by the 10th of October. I kept calling & getting scripted answers about the bulbs coming soon. Finally, I called in early November to CANCEL our order & they *assured* me they would be shipped “next week”. Customer Service stated that one variety in a collection was backordered. I asked “Well, if even SOME of the bulbs are ready to ship, can you ship them NOW & we’ll agree to pay for extra shipping charges??”. CS stated: “yes”. Ugh! The ‘thought’ that we could have been planting weeks earlier; crazy! I can only assume that (according to the news reports) that the bulbs were sitting on a barge off the New Jersey coastline waiting to be unloaded w/the shipping backlog, etc. Anyway, we *finally* got our bulbs. We were able to plant ‘most’ of them & did the rest in pots at a local greenhouse w/the hope we can transplant them into the gardens in the spring. We’ll see. I’d have preferred that they had weekly updates on their website to let customers know what was really going on. I suspect it was a CYA situation to avoid a flood of order cancellations & minimize their $$ losses. I used to keep track of rotten bulbs & ask for credits but the time involved didn’t justify the minimal compensation so I’ve skipped that in recent years & just tossed the rotten bulbs out. Overall, Van Engelen has been reliable w/good quality fall planted spring bulbs & excellent garden performance. I concur w/some of the Fritillaria quality comments from other clients of VE/Scheepers. Fritillaries are a bit of a crap shoot & the bulbs are tricky to keep in pristine condition between harvest & planting; they dry out fast. Haven’t noted too many issues w/Alliums. My only real reason for submitting a ‘Neutral’ rating is due to management decision to keep clients in the dark when more honest & up front weekly updates on their website would have been advantageous (& minimized the 30 minute wait times on their customer service lines; I felt bad for the CS reps who were stuck trying to console hundreds of upset & agitated customers). That could’ve been avoided especially w/worker shortages.

Posted on November 12, 2019, updated December 26, 2021 I ordered from this great company in past years but did not provide a review. But my recent order was so outstanding that I had to comment. I ordered an end of season special called the Sapphire Jewels. It contained Anemone blanda blue shades Chionodoxa forbesii, Iris reticulata Harmony, and Scilla Siberica Spring Beauty. 100 of each. It was so reasonably priced that I had to order 100 Chionodoxa Lucilae alba to get to the $60 minimum. I have grown several of these bulbs before, but I was stunned by the size and firmness of them truly amazed me. They were separately boxed and very large. This is the first collection I have ordered in over 20 years of gardening. And I am thrilled. I certainly will do this again.

I bought a variety of bulbs in 2020 and I had good results with one exception. The fritillaria meleagris bulbs were of poor quality (dried, broken, and sort of spongey) and, as could have been predicted based on the quality, only about 10 of 50 came up. I admit that I did not contact the company to complain about those at the time or later during the growing season, so I cannot say anything about their customer service. But I was disappointed that they sent bulbs that were so clearly inferior. I've purchased these several times from other sources without any problem. Nonetheless, if you want a lot of something, they have it in large quantities. And the selection is very good.

Very happy with my experience. Ordered 200 tulip bulbs last fall. Bulb size was larger than I was expecting and only a few of nonviable bulbs. Bloom rate and size was fantastic. Would definitely recommend.

Just received and planted a large order (++1,000 bulbs) of narcissi and muscari bulbs. Well packaged bulbs, shipped on time. I am very pleased with the size and quality of the bulbs. I as also impressed with the website, which provides detailed horticultural information for each species. WiIll definitely order from them again and will recommend to others.

I've bought many bulbs from VE and their sister company, John Scheepers, over the years. The bulbs are high quality, large and fresh, and well-packaged. One year they sent me tulip viridiflora (green-flowering tulips) instead of the Pink Impression tulips I ordered. I complained and they were a little snippy with me but offered to credit my future orders, so I stopped ordering from them for several years. When I decided to return four or five years later, they had kept a credit in my file for the wrong tulips. They apologized for the mistake, and credited my order. This is the mark of a company with a policy of honesty.

I started ordering amaryllises from this company when Easy to Grow Bulbs became more interested in promoting their products than actually supplying them. I am just a home gardener--but Van Engelen offers amaryllises in quantities that are appropriate for me (I like to give them as presents). For the last 3 years or so I have received very large and healthy bulbs at an amazing price point. All of the bulbs have flowered prolifically and as expected (no surprises). I am a little intimidated by the reports of rather surly customer service--but -thankfully--I have never had occasion to complain.

I ordered from Van Engelen for the first time this year, and also from John Scheepers their sister company. I mostly ordered spring blooming bulbs from John Scheepers and will add a review of that company next year once I've seen the blooms. From Van Engelen I ordered ~$100 worth of spring bulbs plus 5 amaryllis for christmas blooming and 50 paperwhites. All the amaryllis and paperwhite bulbs are large and great quality. The first set of paperwhites I set in water and they bloomed within 4 weeks (first flowers stared after about three weeks) plus they've been blooming for 1 month in a bowl of water, which exceeded my expectations (the first batch of flowers I cut and put in a vase, and maybe that helped induce the second flush of flowers?). I started one of my Merry Christmas amaryllis as soon as it arrived (couldn't wait until Christmas, LOL!) and it is blooming now with 2 thick flower stalks. The first stalk right now has 3 flowers and the second hasn't opened yet but looks promising - I think it has 3 flowers also. I also appreciate the fast arrival of my bulbs, which I received in early October. These bulbs arrived 4 weeks prior to an order I placed at the same time with Brent and Becky's. That made a huge difference to me because (1) the ground was not frozen when my Van Engelen order arrived making for a MUCH more pleasant day for bulb planting, and (2) my amaryllis was blooming so much sooner. I'll be ordering from Van Engelen (and their sister company John Scheepers) again for certain.

I've ordered bulbs Van Engelen for years, and with every shipment I delight in the quality of the bulbs and the care of packaging and shipping. Spring at my farm includes a glorious show of gold, white, salmon and blue, the drifts of blooms brought to me by Van Engelen. I could not be happier with my purchases.

This week I placed an order for 100 paperwhite and 12 Amaryllis bulbs for a total of $169. Yesterday I received a call (in a very rude tone of voice) from a woman in customer service. She said that they were cancelling my order, by instruction from "upper management", and that I should take my business elsewhere! She said that this decision was based on my last order for the same items in 2017 when I had a problem with 6 of the Snow White Amaryllis not blooming for four months after planting and being very stunted. At that time I followed their instructions by emailing them photos of the stunted plants (the problem was very evident in the photo because I pictured them next to the good bulbs that were growing nicely and had been planted at the same time). They requested a very time consuming process (for me) to prove that the bulbs were deficient but eventually refunded my money for those 6 bulbs. Never at any time was I aware of Van Engelen's anger towards my complaint or warned that I would be blacklisted and banned from ever ordering from them again. To say that I was shocked by this call is an understatement and I asked to be called back by someone from "upper management" but did not receive a call.

First time ordering from this company, not the last though. They are going to be my go to company from now on. Every allium bulb this fall is coming up as planned and the lilies are all nicely started. I've never had this good of luck with KVB or Michigan Bulb and the prices are great, I've compared them with everyone. Thank you Van Engelen!

First time ordering fall bulbs anywhere. They held my order until they felt the correct planting time to ensure best chance of success. That was nice so I didn't have to think about it. I had lots of bulbs to plant, maybe 900 or so, daffodils, alliums, muscari, and crocus (tommies). Bulbs were in excellent condition just a handful of bad ones out of 900. I can see most of them are putting up stalks now, the tommies are starting to flower. Would order again but I hope I don't have to and that these guys like my Georgia clay and come back next year. I know the daffodils will I see them everywhere around here.

First time orderer from vanengelen.com. I was irritated at first because I didn't receive an email notifying me of the shipment; and then when I received it, at first glance it appeared to be the wrong stuff and incomplete, and I wrote them an irritated email. On careful examination though, all proved fine, and the bulbs all appear fine and healthy. So my sincerest apologies to them, and no excuses for my irritation. I'm looking forward to seeing how the blooms come out next spring.

I have ordered from this company over many years with excellent results. I have even ordered discounted bulbs at the end of the planting season when a person might expect to get bulbs at the end of their viability; I have never received a bad bulb. They have grown, looked beautiful, and most perennialized for several years afterwards. I was surprised negative feedback on your website. They also sell to anyone; no wholesale tax number is needed. They just offer bulbs in larger lots. Their sister company, John Scheepers, has the same bulbs in smaller lots, but at a slightly higher price. I have already ordered $200 worth of bulbs that I expect to arrive in October. Sincerely, Gene Hinson

Posted on November 22, 2016, updated December 8, 2017 Posted on January 21, 2016, updated November 22, 2016 Posted on December 31, 2015, updated January 21, 2016 This company does not respond via email or Voicemails if you have a problem. Two years In a row part of my order had soft bulbs that were not in good condition and when complained there was no response. This year it was the Parrot Tulips mix of 200 that arrived in an unsellable condition. If you will be storing your bulbs to prechill them they have to be TOP quality without any injury or they mold soon after arrival and become soft with disease that progresses. I can move on and find better bulbs elsewhere now. ( dutchgrown.com)

This was my first order with Van Engelen so I checked them out here at DG before ordering. Historically they have many positive reviews, however, the most recent several reviews (fall 2015) are solidly negative. So I took a chance ordering from them (fall 2017) hoping they'd gotten their act together, and I'm glad I did. Here's my experience. THE BAD Before placing my order I emailed customer service with a question about my upcoming order. They never responded to my email. If there had been a problem with my order I have no idea if or how they would have responded. Surely not by email anyway. I would have needed to call them on the phone. But thankfully, there was no problem with this order so I'm not going to give a neutral/negative review. Failing to respond to email questions is a problem I have experienced with other large mail-order nurseries in the past. So it didn't completely surprise me or put me off, but it's still pretty bad practice. THE GOOD I placed my order on Oct 11 with standard shipping, included instructions to ship immediately, and had it in-hand by Oct 19th (8 days later). For a mail-order nursery that's REALLY fast. I ordered Crocus, Spanish Bluebells, Snowdrops, Fritillaria meleagris, Summer Snowdrops. Upon arrival I opened each package of bulbs for a quick look and was satisfied with their packaging and appearance. A few bulbs are already in the ground. I have no idea how they will perform in the spring, but I'm confident because they look really good and fat, clean and viable. Out of 300 bulbs ordered, I've only found one dried-up shell of a bulb. But so far I've seen no powdery mold or slime on any of them. I think that's doing really good and I'm very happy. I will definitely order from this nursery again next year.

BEWARE, fall 2015 customer service was at a low point, will not be ordering from again. Ordered 3 bulb types well in advance (July of 2015). In Nov was sent notice that two of the types ordered where not available and were being cancelled by the company. At that late date was unable to locate and reorder from another company. Then found I had to write and complain to get the third type ordered bulbs sent and to get a check for the bulbs that were not available. These bulbs arrived in mid Nov., the quality was in question. Second complaint sent but was never responded to, nor was an adjustment made for the price when these same bulbs sent where at the time on sale on their website at the end of year clearance for about $10.00 less.

Posted on December 10, 2016, updated December 11, 2016 I received an order of tulip bulbs that were not to the quality I have received from other companies in the past. The bulbs were small with several bulbets attached as well as many loose ones that had fallen off. Most of the bulbs had no skins. My concern was that the small bulbets were taking away from the main bulb which was why the main bulbs were so small. I sent an link to an artical to back this up. This could have been a result of the variety which was more expensive as well. . The other bulbs I ordered were fine. My response to my phone call and to the photos I sent to them of the condition was this. begin response.... "Management feels that the bulbs are perfectly fine. The nicks are from the counting & harvesting machines. The baby bulbs are free - not part of the count. Missing tunics/skins, no problem." End of response I found this response did not address my concerns and was sarcastic. I am sorry to have to report this.

Love this company. I've ordered from Van Engelen for years. They have a great selection, great prices, and great bulbs. I have no clue why anyone would order bulbs from anywhere else.

Their print catalog has NO color photos of any of the plants they're selling. It only has line drawings in blue. While the descriptions tell what colors are in the mixes, etc., there's nothing like actually seeing those colors to know what shades they're supposed to be. "Lavender" can be visualized as different tints of purple to different people, for example. Therefore, while I receive this catalog every Spring, I have never ordered from it, and am hesitant to do so. I just can't be certain of what I'll be getting. It says on their cover, "Wholesale Price List". Does that mean they won't sell to the average consumer, but only to nurseries or garden centers? From what I've read here about their "It's not our problem" responses to those who've had problems, I can see a brilliant red flag. So, no, I've not experienced this company, but am still posting because I think they should offer a COLOR catalog, and merit a neutral rating because they don't. Theirs is the ONLY mail-order nursery I've ever seen whose catalog doesn't have color photos. In this digital day and age, there's no reason not to. If they start publishing in full color, I MIGHT take a chance on them, depending on the reviews they consistently get here. But, I'm NOT a wholesale nursery, so they shouldn't expect a large order from me, in that event.

Posted on October 31, 2015, updated November 13, 2015 I used to order from VE years ago, and they could be relied on for good quality stock. So having returned to gardening this year, I placed a large order with a company I thought I knew and that I once trusted. I have just received and inspected my order, so cannot speak to the performance of the plant stock, but I was disappointed to see I was sent items that should never have left the warehouse. Out of an order of a little more than 1000 bulbs, ten bags (of two types of allium, ten bulbs to a bag) arrived in obviously unacceptable condition. Every bulb of the allium cernuum was brown, wet, and infested with flies (the bulbs are like short scallions, so imagine a bag of rotted scallions you find in the bottom of the vegetable drawer). They smell terrible. There are actually numerous mature flies flying around in the plastic bags, which were shipped from Holland. (The Department of Agriculture might be interested to hear about that. Aren't the growers repaired to fumigate?) The allium carinatum s. Pulchellum arrived in an advanced state of sprouting (three inches of green) and the bulbs were already shriveled and loose in their jackets. I phoned and reported this, and was told to count out each bulb that was bad. I reiterated that the stock was unacceptable, that I was not going to pick through the bags and select the odd bulb that might possibly survive, and I wanted a refund rather than replacement. I was told to take photos and send them, and that a horticultural report would be submitted, and my refund could not be guaranteed. I have a customer guarantee on my payment service, so I assume I am protected, but I am now required to hold onto the ruined bulbs until I hear back from the quality control staff. In other words, I was not trusted and am being treated like a dishonest person, when in fact it is the Van Engelen company that is in the wrong here. I will not be buying form this company again. I am going to do a more thorough check of the rest of the bulbs that I have tucked away for cooling. Who knows what surprises may lurk there!

Posted on November 4, 2015, updated November 4, 2015 Posted on November 18, 2013, updated November 4, 2015 Posted on October 25, 2011, updated November 18, 2013 First time order from Van Engelen, though I've ordered smaller quantities from their sister company John Scheepers for many years. But I needed large numbers of bulbs this year, and Van Engelen's prices are a little better in that case. As I expected, I received large, healthy, well packed bulbs, at excellent prices, and the experience was hassle free. These two companies remain my reliable standbys for fall bulbs, although I've occasionally ordered from others with good results.

I waited to review until I saw my bulbs come up. My early bulbs are up and way better than I expected. They were advertised as second quality naturalizing bulbs and I planted 1,000 of them. The called them floriferous, but I did not expect 9 flowers from one bulb of a second quality. I have 1,000 in front which are just poking up because they are a later variety so I can't speak to them, but these have a quality making me wonder what first quality looks like. I got them because I wanted a mass planting and they were very cheap. It also looks like I will have over a month of blooms because the bulbs don't send up all the flower spikes at once, possible 6 weeks of flowers or more since it has already been 2 weeks and they are just hitting their stride. They got snowed on and frozen and it did not phase them.

I ordered some end of season daffodil collections & lilies. The price was great, the order came promptly. (UPS had busted the box but the bulbs were in good condition). The box was VERY heavy for 115 bulbs. It turned out that they had given a very generous bonus either in number or quality (one bag had double-nosed, triple-nosed & even a few quadruple-nosed bulbs;the other bag was mostly singles but good sized and lots of extras. I could not be happier with my order.

I placed my order with Van Engelen on November 21 2014. It was confirmed on November 22 2014 and I recieved the order today, on November 26 2014. I'm very impressed with the quick shipment. All the bulbs look healthy. The lilium bulbs are huge. Great experience. Will definitely order again.

VE and JS are great. I have ordered bulbs for our condo a couple of times, and they arrived in good shape. This last order had one moldy tulip out of 250 assorted bulbs. They're good sized, too. My personal Scheepers order came similarly in fine shape,

I've placed orders with this company many times. Their selection is good, mistakes are rare, and we've gotten way fewer bad bulbs than the industry standard. Customer service has been good. This company accepts orders from anyone who's willing to meet their minimum order requirements ($50 I believe) and order in the units they offer, which are appropriate for most gardens.

Just rec'd my fall shipment of bulbs!! Was very satisfied all around!! Customer Service was a positive experience as well.

This is my first use of Watchdog and my first post. I have ordered bulbs from Van Engelen since 1990. I have bought 1000's of bulbs and spent 100's of dollars. I have never had a bad experience. I was thinking about finding another supplier. I checked Watchdog results for other suppliers and was surprised to see so many negative comments for the other suppliers. So, I checked VE's ratings. I was not surprised to see such excellent ratings.

Top size bulbs (unless described as landscape size) at great prices. I've purchased from them for years and they have yet to mess up the order or skim me on quantity or quality. Love this company!

I placed an order during their end of season sale for crocus, tulip, and lily bulbs. The bulbs I received were fresher and healthier than an earlier mid-season order I placed with another popular and highly rated bulb company. They appear to have superior storage facilities and I found the tiered boxes used in shipping quite ingenious.

Ordered lilies late. The bulbs arrived in a few days. Bulbs were great. Very pleased.

Last month, I ordered 1,310 bulbs from Van Engelen. It was my first time ordering bulbs in bulk. I found their web site easy to use and their prices very competitive. I requested that the bulbs be delivered during a small window, and they arrived on time as instructed. One of the other reviews complained about the packaging, but I found the bulbs smartly packaged in different internal boxes with sawdust cushioning. The bulbs themselves looked fine. I have no complaints, and I'll certainly order from Van Engelen again next year (obsession cannot be stopped). I'm looking forward to seeing hundreds of new flowers in the spring!

I am too exhausted by speaking to the supervisor of a supervisor of the customer service representative to go into too much depth here. In short there is no customer service here. When I called to report that I received the wrong bulbs (the ones I received were less than half the correct size) I was told that I received the correct bulbs. When I asked how they could be so sure that I received the correct bulbs when I still had them I was told that they were packed in the Netherlands at a plant that has a conveyer belt with holes that were sized to the right size. When I proposed that they were missed labelled, the customer service representative and her supervisor and her supervisor 's supervisor told me that they weren't. when I asked how she could be so sure of all this, the answer was that they checked the bulbs they had on their stock shelves and they were all correctly labelled. When I pointed out that maybe the bulbs I received were mislabeled they all said they weren't etc. etc. like a broken record that went on for a half hour of rudeness. DO NOT USE VAN ENGELEN.

Van Engelen provides a good product, if not quite as good as Colorblends. I found the packaging inconvenient (individual cardboard box for each variety or mix -- awkward to work with 100 bulbs packed this way). The prices were slightly higher than at Colorblends, and six bulbs of 100 in the viridiflora tulip mix were shrivelled and moldy. It didn't seem worth the trouble to request a refund of just a few dollars so I didn't follow up with the company. I do like their selection so will probably order from them again when there's something not offered by Colorblends.

Have ordered bulbs from this company for years-always wonderful. They arrive at the correct time for planting, are large and firm and grow beautifully. My bulb plants are much admired in spring, and now neighbors are ordering, also. I've never had any problem with this company. Helpful on the telephone with technical questions, also. I highly recommend them.

I'm giving this company a BIG NEGATIVE for their customer service. The bulbs were fine except for the one that was left out. Their response: our bulbs are packed in the Netherlands so it's not our fault. They offered a credit on my next order, but with that attitude, I'm not about to order from these people again.

I must say that I have enjoyed placing multiple orders with Van Engelen this fall season. Their ordering process is hassle fee, their website is streamlined and easy to use, their selection is good, their prices are great and the bulbs I have received have all been wonderful, firm, healthy specimens. Even their lily bulbs were of superb quality with large size and often with intact root systems. I can't wait to see how my spring garden will look next year with so many fine Van Engelen bulbs now safely planted and put to bed for the winter.

Ordered bulbs from them for my company. Arrived on time, look great, etc. I had ordered one of their tulip collections consisting of 6 different varieties. They duplicated one and left one variety out. I emailed them and within an hour someone got back to me and said they would ship the missing variety and I could keep the other 50 bulbs. Very nice and responsive!

I ordered the early spring collection, species crocus and tricolor crocus. Good value for good sized bulbs well packaged.

I ordered the orienpet and asiatic lilly bulbs from the VanEngelen website: the price was great, the service was excellent, the bulbs were perfect. I am very pleased and highly recommend this company to others. Looking forward to next Spring to see these beauties in bloom.

I have been ordering from this company now for about four years and have had great luck with their products.Last year I ordered about 1200 bulbs, and all of them bloomed. I had a fantastic looking yard last spring.bulbs are healthy and are packed well. You would be crazy to buy your bulbs from anywhere else. Prices are very reasonable, If I'm planting a large display, I order from no one but these guys, Plus their customer service people are very friendly and helpful.

Posted on October 27, 2010, updated May 18, 2011 Very pleased with this company! The prices are amazing and that does not come at the expense of the product. All the bulbs I got were top quality, large size, healthy bulbs. They have a superb selection if you're looking for the fall favorites. There are hundreds of varieties of tulips and daffs for example. My one complaint is that there isn't much in the misc. section, where I love to look for new and exciting bulbs to include in the garden. I also contacted customer service twice (once with a shipping question and once to add more to my already placed order) and they very prompt to answer and very helpful. The bulbs also arrived within one day of shipment. Will definitely recommend and buy from again.

Last fall I ordered from several companies. By far these bulbs were the biggest. When they bloomed this week, they were gorgeous. The blooms of the parrot tulips were huge and all the bulbs came up.

Hello! For several years I have intended to sing the praises of this company. Yet, since they only really deal in Fall planted bulbs, I tend to forget the passed joys of Spring as I work toward the future. I will admit that I am an addict of the Spring Garden. Summer and Fall are nice, but nothing compares to the joy I receive as I watch the earth break with the first efforts of bulbs reaching for the sky. I dance with the knowledge that all the colors imagined in life will born with the flowers to come. I have ordered many, many times from both Van Engelen and John Scheepers. From Van Engelen, I get waves of color at a good price due to their policy of taking large orders at a discount. John Scheepers allows me to order fewer bulbs of a single type. Though the price is higher than the bulk prices from VE, they are still often less than what I can find elsewhere. From both, I have never received less than what I consider high quality bulbs. Everything has bloomed true to color and type. Their shipping costs are fair (for these days), and everything ships quickly and is well packed. There are three companies (none in the "Top 30") with which I do the bulk (number of bulbs....not total cost) of my Fall ordering. If I were forced to stop with only one company, my choice to keep would be VE/JS. I only have two minor complaints. ONE: I wish that I could somehow combine orders from VE and JS instead of having to make two separate orders....but that is not a big deal since websites are pretty much identical and easy to use. TWO: It seems that each year, there are fewer selections of species bulbs....again, only a minor complaint since I use other sources to fill the gap. All in all, I feel that both companies do an excellent job and have an excellent product for the price. I feel that I must make one comment, more for customers than for the company (but both JS/VE should take note). My personal policy as to using names of other companies in a review is that I don't. In this one case I must make an exception in order to make a point. As I read other comments about items not being true to zone, I wish everyone would take time to read High Country Gardens comments on "wetness" or xeric vs non-xeric plants. It is a well written and informative guide. Living in my climate, I can have a zone 4 bulb simply rot in the ground every year even though I place it in "well drained" sandy soil in a raised bed, etc. Until I started to truly understand bulbs and their cultural requirements, I lost many due to just going by zone and what I thought was needed to keep a bulb dry over winter. Another good place that describes cultural requirements very well, though in a little harder to assimilate fashion is Odyssy Bulbs. Old House Gardens also does a good, though limited, job. Since I have gained a little enlightenment , the survival rate of my bulbs has risen significantly. For fellow gardeners, you need to seek out the information in clear terms. As for VE/JS (and most other bulb companies), please post clear cultural information along with the product. Do it out of respect of your customers. Back to my review: In summary, I will say that my experience with VE/JS has been very good and I would readily recommend them to any of my fellow gardeners. Since they are two websites and I am too lazy to rewrite this review, I have copied and pasted it to the JS site. May your path be without stones. boru

Posted on January 29, 2011, updated February 24, 2011 Posted on December 22, 2010, updated January 29, 2011 In early November, I ordered 3 Rosalie amaryllis from Van Engelens and they arrived in about 8 days. It was quite chilly when they were delivered and they sat on the front porch for several hours. It worried me that they could have been nipped by the cold. I potted one right away and gave the other two to relatives. Our house is quite warm and quite soon my bulb began to show signs of growth. Today two gorgeous blooms are opening up, with two more to follow. And there is another bloom stalk which promises more bloom. I am so happy with this bulb. I'm sure the people who received the others will be delighted also. Thank you, Van Engelens for the nicest amaryllis I have ever grown.

This year I placed large, comparable orders with Colorblends and with Van Engelen (VE). The Colorblends order came about 2 weeks before the VE order. I stored both orders in my garage until I was ready to plant. When I did open my orders, the Colorblend bulbs were large and in excellent condition; however, much of the VE order was in poor condition. I have ordered from VE for over 15 years, and I have found over the last three years that the bulb quality has been getting worse; this year was just terrible. I won't order from VE again. There are much better options available, e.g., Colorblends, Brent and Becky's

I was surprised to see such vehement negativity from another customer from Kingston, NY. My sister is a professional landscape architect/garden designer and recommended Van Engelen several years ago. I purchase in bulk, according to my hardiness zone, and have always had success with everything I have ordered. Bulbs are huge, healthy, shipped during my growing season, and displays are magnificent. When I once called customer service regarding a few sub-standard bulbs (in a bulk order of over 300, late in the season, of last minute left over sale items) I was provided with an immediate remedy - replacement with items of like cost (the item was sold out) or an immediate credit. I always strongly recommend this company. My only wish is that they would carry other plant material in addition to bulbs.