Koi Garden Club

I ordered Giant Miscanthus plants from Perry via PayPal on June 23, 2009 and have not received anything nor a refund. I was in contact with Perry twice via his chat on Koi Garden Club's Web site but still nothing. The last communication was this on July 22rd 2009: Jan Hi Jan We had talked about two weeks ago regarding the Giant Miscanthus order Jan you had mentioned that you were out of stock but could get new plants from other sources Perry Post Please stand by Jan, I will be with you shortly. Jan Were you able to get more? Perry Post Sorry Jan I am still helping another customer. I will be right with you! Perry Post I apologize for the wait Jan, I will be with you as soon as I can. Perry Post Sorry Jan, I don't want to keep you any longer. Please click here to fill out this short form and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks! Perry Post Hi. No. ran into glitches. Paypal shut me down and siezed funds. Perry Post No $ to refund right now. Double your order in fall? Jan well, not sure what to do with those plants in fall though Jan that'd be too late Jan a ny other way to refund? Jan or send other plants instead? Jan some of the other miscanthus varieties you have on your Web site would work, too Perry Post Okay. what plants would please you? Can send you $ but im in a jam right now. Sorry Perry Post How many do i owe you? Jan whatever grows very tall and works in zone 4, Goliath would be ideal Jan total amount with shipping was around $85 Perry Post I will have to look at inventory and your order. What is your last name? ....... Perry Post Would you like a tour of the farm nursery and pick some stuff? Grasses are slim pickins now. Its in elko new market. Jan that's near Lakeville, right? Perry Post Yes about 45 min from .... Jan that may be an option, let me think about that. if not, do you think you'll have new Jan giant miscanthus in April next year? Jan and, what's the address of your farm? Perry Post Yes for spring stock. Try googling hwy 86 and jonquil. Not my farm dont remember address Jan ok, let me get back to you about picking something from the farm Jan I may take you up on that Jan I guess we could pick anything for up to $85, right? Jan Do you mind sending me a quick email about the open amount and that this is redeemable Jan next year as well, please? Perry Post Yes anything out there. Plus i have a driveway full of clematis in n mpls Perry Post K Jan is the farm right there on 86 and Jonquil? Perry Post K Jan Do you have a phone number - just want to make sure somebody is ther... Jan if we decide to pick something up Perry Post 612 251 8991 by appointment. No storefront Jan ok, thx, will let you know I was not able to get ahold of him after that and the phone number provided seems to be somebody who has no idea what is going on or is in any way related to the farm he mentioned. Don not buy from Koi Garden Club!

On 9/26/09 I ordered 5 clematis from Koi Garden Club for a total of $45.24, which was charged to my Mastercard account on 9/27/09. On 11/5/09 I asked them by e-mail, when my order would be shipped, but I have not received a reply or plants from them. I used Google Checkout.

Posted on September 11, 2009, updated October 17, 2009 You get my money via Paypal 3 months ago and then don't send me any plants or give me a refund. If you don't have the plants what did you do with the money?? Why would you say you didn't have it right now? You had it, I sent it to you , all you had to do is send it back. If you don't have it, You spent it. This is fraud . Now you get Positive feed back for sending plants, Don't you send plants according to the ordering date? Order from this guy at your own risk. This is the only time I have been cheated out of my money on the internet in eight years! Go to the Minnesota Attorney Generals site for a form to fill out on Fraud.

I sent in an order in DECEMBER 2008 and still have not got anything but a few lame emails offering me more plants if I'll be patient and telling me that half the plants I ordered were not available. One email said that they were filling more recent orders than mine and would eventually get through their backlog. Why would they start filling newer orders when they had money from people who ordered the previous year?? BEWARE of this company!!!

Lost money on his coop. He won't even reply to emails. Very poorly managed bussiness.

Posted on June 17, 2009, updated November 21, 2009 I, too, am among those still waiting for an order of clematis varieties ordered earlier in the year. I am not ready to post a negative comment yet (as I have faith in human kindness and hope that Jerome will learn from his current difficulties and make good on all of his committments in due time). I do think that he should post an ongoing blog or comment on the Koi Garden Club site keeping those of us with outstanding orders informed about his progress and offer the option of making changes to our orders to varieties he does have currently in stock (if we choose to do so) in order to help his customers feel better about their choice to purchase from him. I know that one of the varieties I ordered from him is probably a difficult one to get, and there is a more common one that I would take in exchange if it were to mean my order would be expedited. Food for thought.... ~Chills

I'm also one of the ones who ordered clematis(a bunch!) from Koi. I was very disappointed that all the clematis died. I think he started out in his new venture and it just went downhill due to weather, etc. The main thing for me is he never responded to my emails. I have now come to know he was just overwhelmed and depressed...it could happen to any of us starting a new business. The other day I received a huge box of clematis from him...all beautiful and healthy except for a couple. So I think he is trying to make things right for all his customers. I believe he is honest and trustworthy and I would now order from him again. I think if given time, everyone will be satisfied. Karen

The 7 clematis I ordered arrived in great shape and are doing well. They had exceptional root systems.

I seen alot of negative reviews about this company, but I purchased 8 clematis plants anyway. At $4.00 to $5.50ea, I was willing to take a chance. I received the plants today and was very satisfied with the plants. All the plants are young and about 6 inches in length with green growth. I am someone that likes to go to nurseries late in the season and get bargins on plants that all have already blooomed, and I have paid more for clematis's than $4.00 that looked alot worse. In closing, I believe any time that you purchase plants through the mail, you will not always be satisifed with all your orders. If you are not willing to sometimes lose money, buy all your plants locally.

I held off giving a bad review for awhile and I'm glad I did because now I feel confident in rating it at a positive. My daughter and I ordered from Perry twice. The first order was in early spring. I was missing several clematis but they were so healthy and at a great price we ordered again with the promise the missing clematis would be sent out with the new order. Sadly after that the communication broke down. I few times I got a "in a few weeks" or I did not hear anything at all. I was patient for awhile then I admit I became really angry. Later I did get in contact with him and he explained everything that was going on. He promised a refund or extra clematis if I chose to keep my order. We chose to keep the clematis and we are so glad we did! They came in promptly and were healthy with good root systems and the free clematis were great also! I hope people will give him another chance because he did make things right. Please try to be patient because he is trying to turn things around. We will definitely order from him again! We hope you will to.

Have ordered a total of 30 clemmies from Koi Gardens in the last six weeks. All had strong, well developed root systems and are thriving with new growth after being repotted with bone meal added. Some looked kind of shaky after being unwrapped but all are doing well. First shipping was slow, 11 days. Second shipping rather slow as well, took a little time to reach Perry but we worked out a deal and he kept his part of it. Will order from him again.

In December I ordered and paid for six clematis from Koi Gardens. The wait was long and I was impatient at times but my gardens do keep me busy and in the last two months either Perry or one of his helpers did contact me twice. I never gave up on him, knew the situation, and my faith in him has rewarded me with nine beautiful clematises received in the mail today. They are big and healthy and I'm glad I waited. He wrote at the end of July with a 50% more offer and I agreed to it: that's why I now have nine clematises instead of six. My wish is that everyone would be as pleased as I am. Thank you Perry Jerome Post.

I participated in the co-op this year and received very healthy plants with nice root system. I potted all into one gallon pots. All foliage was cut back to encourage better root growth. All are extremely healthy and growing well. I received my web order I placed two weeks ago today. All four clematis were received with vigorous growth and roots filling the pot. Everything I have every grown from KOI has done extremely well. I have about 4 orders in the last two years that included about 30 plants.

I am rating the company neutral at this time, because I am still trying to resolve my problems with this company. At the moment, my current opinion of the company is negative, possible criminal. I posted the following comment on a Dave's forum and was encouraged to post the information here: I believe in supporting small businesses also, but businesses are supposed to support their customers. This company does not. I am trying, in vain, to get information on shipping dates or a refund. No emails or calls are returned. They were quick to take the payment (AND CONTINUE TO TAKE PAYMENTS FROM PEOPLE EVEN THOUGH THEY CANNOT FILL EXISTING ORDERS) but don't respond at all to customer complaints and concerns. Because I was being patient, encouraged by good reviews from other Dave's customers on plant quality and owner response, I waited too long to get a standard refund from paypal. I can still file fraud complaints and try to get a refund that way. I billed paypal with a credit card, so I can file a complaint with them. I can also file complaints of mail fraud at the post office. I ordered several perennial geraniums and several clematis. The geraniums were tiny and sickly (one bare root, one in a 3/4" round pot, one in a 1' square pot, one in a taped plastic bag). Two died, the other two are alive, but tiny and struggling. No clematis were sent. No information was given on estimated sending dates. It is now summertime, and I ordered and planned to plant them in spring. They claim high quality plants with 2 year guarantees. How do you get a guarantee if you can't contact the company? How do you get a replacement or refund if the owner is in prison for fraud? I would have been understanding if they had given me a status report by email, phone or mail. I became concerned when all attempts to contact them were unsuccessful. If they didn't intend to ship the plants in a timely manner, they shouldn't have charged people's paypal accounts until they were ready to ship. Alternatively, they could have contacted people saying they are out of stock of such item and ask how to proceed. If they can't fill existing orders, they shouldn't take new ones. EVERY ONE OF THE ABOVE NEGATIVE COMMENTS, INCLUDING MINE, COULD BE RESOLVED WITH COMMUNICATION. WHAT ON EARTH IS WRONG WITH THIS COMPANY?

I also order from Koi website and through the coop, with bad luck, A couple were dead when received, and 2 didn't look good, they died a few days later also. Two had no roots at all, when trying to plant, one only had 1 small root, and it broke when planting into another pot. . I wwill never order from again.

I ordered a bunch of clematis from Koi Garden Club after reading a thread on the Rose Forum about how good this vendor was. Since then, the starter of that thread has been burned too by this vendor and has left negative feedback also. The plants were dormant when I received them. Only 3 had any growth in spring which was one little shoot on each one that soon died. 3 had root mealy. I soon found out others had received the same poor quality/dead plants and had to fight hard for a refund even though the vendor admitted to them and to me that his own clematis from the same batch all died too. This guy promised me a refund and then stopped answering my emails and of course I have not received my refund. What a rip off!

I order 4 Clematis and received 3 with a note that I'd receive the other separately. That was fine. However, the quality and root system of the plants looked nothing like the photo on the seller's website. I emailed the seller, let him know I was disappointed. I received a note back from the seller's niece a month later saying that she was sorry I was disappointed and would show the email to her uncle. The plant I was missing was unavailable and I could pick a substitution or refund. I chose a refund. That was 2 weeks ago.

I have been waiting for a hosta order and sent emails that were never answered. I have had no communication from this seller at all. I filed a paypal dispute today.

I wish I could be more positive; however, of 6 plants ordered only two arrived after a month and of those two, one was in very poor condition. I have emailed several times with no response as yet. I have asked for a refund for the remaining 4 plants not yet received; I hope that will occur but I'd be very wary. Compared to other mail order sources, this is not good service and for many of us, there is some time-criticality to spring planting. I'd rather have heard that the order could not be fulfilled than receive plants late with the risk that the beginning of summer will prevent their succeeding. Sometimes you get what you pay for, and in this case, inexpensive meant poor quality.

I feel certain that the problems leading up to the recent negative reviews are only a temporary glitch. I have bought many Clematis vines from Jerome, placing three separate orders and receiving all three deliveries on time and in superb condition.

overwhelmed with orders? he is still advertising these clematis on daves marketplace. i got a refund which is the only reason i am giving him a neutral. however, when he finally dmailed me and asked if i wanted a refund i told him no. that i wanted the plants. but perry refunded paypal anyway without telling me. just discovered it tonight.

placed an order 3 weeks ago and still nothing. emailed perry@plantkingdom twice and got no response. filed a claim with PayPal and then actually got someone on the Koi Garden website in a live chat, who told me they were out of stock for the choice I had made. when I asked if I could just cancel the order and get a refund, he signed off! who knows whether he'll cancel it, or refund the $, or just never send me my clematis. I do know that I'll never do business with them again...

Ordered 2 clematis plants 4/13/09. Have had no response to emails or a phone message (had to do some searching to find the phone number). 5/28 sent an email to cancel my order & credit my credit card -- have had no response & have not received a credit. Very disappointed. Glad my order was small.

I placed my order early in May for 5 clematis, 2 hardy geraniums & 2 Japanese forest grass. I received the 2 geraniums and 1 forest grass a couple weeks ago and today received 3 of the clematis and the other forest grass with a note saying the other 2 clematis would ship later. Even if the other clematis never arrive I got my money's worth. Clematis for $6.00, geraniums for $2.50! The plants are all healthy and the ones that came earlier are off to a good start.

i also had trouble with follow-up with Jerome. I did manage to get him on the phone and he explained that he has been very busy and behind in shipments. Today I received the last of my order and I am happy with the quality and size of the plants. I just wish the follow up had been better.

This company has gone down hill fast. The owner, Jerome Post, does not return e-mails, phone calls, instant messages on his site and plants that do come, in my case, one only. The rest of order is missing. The plant is not healthy and broken on the one small vine in three places. Any contact about this to Jerome Post has gone totally unnoticed. Buyer beware of Koi Garden Club. He shouldn't be in business.

Well folks, you can add me to the list of growing complaints to KOI GARDEN CLUB AND JEROME PERRY POST. I ordered my plants November 29th, and although my loss is not as large as most of you, non the less, it is still a betrayal and a loss for a company I had at one time nothing but high praise for. I have sent numerous emails, to Jerome Perry Post, as well as calling him on the phone and leaving messages. He does not answer email,nor does he acknowledge my phone calls. My last email a few days ago said I would file a negative complaint in Garden Watchdog if he did not respond in 24 hours. Obviously, he does not care. I ask that he return my money if he could not fill the plant order. I am wondering if I complain to US postal for fraud on his company as I wrote him a check in November for plants to be shipped in April. Deann

The company evidently intends to defraud me as they will not reply to emails. I ordered several clematis in March and said I was ok with not receiving them until late April. They promised to ship as soon as the weather was warm enough in Minnesota. I have written to them about 6 or 7 times requesting information about the shipment and they refuse to answer. Anybody with money outstanding should try to get it back ASAP as they are evidently just collecting money without any intention of payment. I wrote to them a few days ago and said I'd be forced to post negative feedback if I heard nothing and -- here it is. The frustrating thing is they had good ratings when I ordered and then they went sour.

I placed an order through pay pal on April 19th and have received nothing. I sent an e-mail to the company and have received no answer. I am very frustrated!!!

I placed an order for $156 worth of clematis on 5/8/2009 & paid through Plantkingdom.com via Paypal. Since then although I emailed the paypal address & the email on Dave's Garden I have received no response. The PlantKingdom.com web site has no email address to contact. I am worried since I can get no email response from them and since I placed my order, the negative ratings on Garden Watchdog seem to be adding up. However, checking today on Paypal it states that my order is ready to ship on May 29th. If it does and I receive it by the end of the 1st week in June and the plants are OK, I will change my rating to positive. Otherwise, I will enter a dispute on Paypal after 30 days has passed from my date of purchase.

Add me to the list... Apparently we've been bamboozled. I placed an order on April 5th. I promptly received an email stating the plants would be shipped in early May. That email was followed by one offering to ship them immediately. Since local weather did not permit planting them so early, I asked for them to be shipped a couple of weeks later, and the seller agreed to contact me at that time. April 20th arrived and I hadn't heard from him, so I sent an email which went unanswered... Sent a second email on the 23rd and was told shipping would now be in May. Well - surprise, surprise - it's now the 28th of May, and I've sent three more emails (on 5/15, 5/21, and 5/26) - none of which have been answered. What a shame, I was really looking forward to those clematis. Argh. All best to everyone else in this boat.

I placed an order for clematis that was charged to Pay Pal on 4/30/09. I received an email a week later, asking if I was ready for the plants to be shipped. Now, 5/28/09, a month after the order was placed, I am unable to reach anyone at the business,by phone or email, and have no plants. Apparently, something has gone wrong, somewhere.

I placed a large clematis order on 5-5-09 of $156.00. Paid through PayPal. It is now 5-26-09 and have not received my plants. I have e-mailed Koi Garden Club and no response. I tried to phone today and just got an answering machine. What's the deal? This company has had my money for 21 days and no plants and no response!

I ordered 2 clematis through plantkingdom.com on May 8. I have contacted the company with no response. Also, in the ordering process, I chose not to use paypal and it went through paypal anyway.

emailed that plants were being shipped 2nd of May now the 19th no plants no answers to enquiries.

Received my clematis from them today and they look great. I will order from them again.

Jerome(owner) is a great person to deal with. He helps you with all your questions and the prices are really great. He also gives a 2yr warrenty which I didn't even know. The selection is just awsome. He made positive my plants made it thru winter before shipping any of them and two plants I ordered did not which he asked me what others would I like to get. Jerome is like a gardening friend rather than a gready faceless company Spring Hill.....and others. Please support this small company!

I ordered 8 clematis in April and all are doing great...two are forming buds. I plan to order again this week !

One of the best companies to buy Clematis from! Fantastic selection, great prices and service. Very healthy Clematis babies with well developed roots and professionally made labels. Another happy customer here.

Huge root system, healthy & great selection of clematis. I just planted 10 different varieties of clematis from Koi Garden. I ordered another 8 yesterday & will order more today. Fabulous prices & super deals going on right now! Ask the owner, Jerome, if you have any questions. Super customer service & awesome quality plants.

I purchased 14 clematis from this vendor when I noticed that they run a sale topped with excellent shipping option. I got fantastic plants from them with strong, wonderful roots and excellent healthy top growth. These 2.5 pot plants were stronger than some 1 quart or 1-gallon clematis I received from other vendors in the past. I was so impressed that I ordered another 13 clematis from them. Those have arrived today, packing was great as it was the first time; the plants again were top-notch. I can recommend this vendor without hesitation and I certainly will order from him/them again in the future.