Mr. Fothergills' Seeds

Hi there, I am in NZ and I export a wide variety of product to the Pacific Islands. A customer (A big Retailer)wanted some seeds and I only had short time to get them. A local Garden Centre directed me to Mr Fothergill's who run NZ from Australia. 1. They refused to sell me seeds, until I had opened an account. This takes a minimum of 2 weeks, and has to go back to Australia. In Australia, we are the poor relations and Account Applications are usually pages long,and one sided. 2. I offered to pay up front for the seeds.I deal with many companies on a once or twice a year basis and it is easier to just to pay for goods. But Mr Fothergill's refused (Huh?) 3. I purchased my requirements through the local garden centre, (cash)and had them loaded into our container. 4. I rang the NZ agent and suggest he put a couple of display stands in the container to merchandise the huge amount of seeds purchased. 5. The answer: We only supply stands to Account customers. Is this a 19th Century attitude or not? I give up

I ordered some Dahlia Karma Chocolate Young plants from Mr Fothergill's Direct in the UK scheduled for an early May delivery. The plants arrived three weeks early, were underdeveloped and had suffered in transit to the point they were not viable. I immediately sent an email with photograph to Mr F asking why the plants had been despatched early and asking for a replacement. I sent emails on the 16th, 17th and 29th April and I have received no response. These 5 dead plants cost £9.95 ($15). I have been a Mr F customer for many years. Not any more.

The last order (about 50 packets of seed) from their USA distributor in Tatum, NM arrived within three days. Mr Fothergill's seeds are dual-packed in a separate foil sachet. Their prices tend to be low-to-moderate, as does the seed count. Some of the seed germination is peppy, while other seed is sluggish with poor plant formation. This is annoying as in the case of Cucurbita that may contain only 10 seeds per packet. Whether they were parthenocarpic, or non-parthenocarpic I cannot know since the seeds that did germinate quickly succumbed to powdery mildew.

This is about Fothergills USA (and a little about the UK parent company). The USA division has been slow to get its website up to par, so I emailed the UK division and they very kindly sent me a catalog. Perhaps a week later the US division sent me the U.S. version (the only differences are the cover and the order forms). The website doesn't reflect the catalog offerings (yet), so I placed an order by snail-mail. I wasn't sure how things would go, since I thought that the state of the website might reflect their overall competence, but the seeds arrived one day after my check cleared, and my order was complete, so I'm content with that end of the transaction. I also like that very small seeds are sent in little vials rather than foil or glassine envelopes (the vial is then placed in the larger, color packet). In summary, things got off to a bit of a rocky start, but I'm now perfectly confident that all future orders will be just fine.

Some interesting varieties and reasonable prices. Variable germination rate, but that may have been due to non-ideal sowing conditions this year.

I represent the export department of Mr. Fothergill's Seeds (UK) Ltd. I'm delighted to read the many positive statements about our seeds. In answer to one or two comments posted, I wanted to say that in partnership with our new US distributors (www.fothergillsusa.com) our entire seed offering will be available to American gardeners from late 2005. Thanks for your support and happy gardening!

Good seeds now available on some US seed racks, well worth their slightly expensive cost, as they have excellent germination rates as well as varieties not generally found in the US market. I only wish they would set up a US outlet like Thompson and Morgan has as they have many lovely things in their British catalogue that we cannot get here.

A good company to deal with, love their packets that contain multiple seeds, such as 4 perennial packets and a lot cheaper than buying them individually.

A good, comprehensive range of vegetables and flowers available, only seeds available outside of the UK. Some unusual species and varieties are listed. Well presented packets with specific, easy to understand information on the reverse. I have had good germination results from seeds I have bought and a prompt friendly service. Would strongly recommend Mr. Fothergills to both new and experienced gardeners. The website is easy to navigate and even have some hints and tips listed.