Comments regarding Specialty Perennials

I found this website after looking for a seed source for Calamintha ‘white cloud’. I order 3 packets of seeds and received the order in a couple weeks. I had a great germination rate.

Big Project
No Budget

Earlier this year I ordered 2 varieties of seed from this company in quantities a hobbyist gardener doing a big project could use.The prices and shipping rates were very low. I was a bit apprehensive since the prices were so low. However, I the product and service were excellent.

I've ordered from hardyplants.com aka specialtyperenials.com many times. They have great prices on hard-to-find seeds. OK, they don't spend much time answering email, but the plus is that I forget I've ordered seeds, and 3-10 weeks later I get a magic little envelope full of what I ordered and more. Their web-site is realistic and detailed.

Once they sent me seeds that had expired, and I simply called and they sent out new, fresher ones right away.It's sad that not everyone has as flexible a schedule as I do.

Ordered over $80 worth of seeds in June. Still waiting for my order I called the company and sent emails, nothing. Contacted the BBB they said they had many complaints and follow up for me. They contacted me 2 weeks ago to tell me Specialty Perennials did not respond to them. So if your thinking of ordering from this company DON"T.

Received my seed order in a timely manner and reasonable shipping cost. They have a huge variety of seeds to order from. Have used them in the past and have not had any probelms, also received a free pack of seeds with my order. I will order from them again.

Posted on March 4, 2011, updated August 18, 2011
I ordered Blue Barlow Aquilegia Vulgaris (columbine), and Hakone Blue Platycodon Grandiflorus (Balloon Flower) in Summer, 2010.

The site emailed me saying they were shipped after about 10 days. But that wasn't true, I received them about a month later. It was fine because I wasn't using them immediately.

But both packets said they should be used before 2011, before they were meant to be planted. I don't know why they would keep stuff that old, let alone sell it.

This is my first gardening experience, and I had no idea that the seeds were bad, I kept thinking I was doing something wrong. But I ordered from another company and learned that it should be much easier than that.

Of all of the 2 sets of seeds, and TONS of work and attention and care, I only got 2 balloon flowers to germinate, and only 1 survived. I regret my purchase deeply because I really did waste so much time on this lost cause, and it took most of my enthusiasm away from gardening.

I did email them about all of this, but as you could guess, they didn't respond and I expect they would tell me to go to ____. Please don't support this rotten business, even if you're desperate for something they have, you'll regret it.

P.S. They also market themselves under HardyPlants.com FYI.

Posted on April 13, 2011, updated April 18, 2011
On 02/09/2010 I ordered 37.92$ worth of seeds from this company (hardyplants.com) and immediately received an invoice via email stating that orders are shipped within 5-14 days. I payed via mastercard. I waited a couple months since I figured they might have been out of stock on some of the varieties I ordered but when they never came, I then sent them multiple emails and phone calls with NO reply/response. I just filed a complaint with the BBB and noticed their company has a rating of "F". I called my CC company to have the payment reversed but they said it has been too long (apparently one can only reverse a CC payment within 90 days- good to know!) I am thoroughly disappointed with this company and would not recommend them to anyone! I'm going to keep calling and annoying them until they either send my seeds or refund my money. If not I might take them to small claims court. I don't like handing over money and not receiving my goods!

I ordered on January 28 and received my order on February 19. There are about twice as many seeds as the packet says.

I thought I'd posted this before but didn't see it in the listings. I had a very positive experience twice in a short time with this company(hardyplants.com). I ordered, everything worked out very quickly then ordered again as I was so pleased. They sent extra seeds with very specific directions. I must be lucky as I am very well pleased by them. They have a wonderful selection.
Blanche

In my experience, the negative reviews are accurate. I placed an order online last year. My credit card was charged right away. After weeks of waiting, I still had not received any seeds. I called Specialty Perennials. A man answered, but he said he was busy and couldn't talk to me. He said he would check my order and call back, but he never did. Then I received an e-mail from them saying my order had shipped, but this was not true. The order was never shipped. I e-mailed them and asked for a refund, but I did not receive one. I finally had to contact my credit card company to dispute the charges, and I eventually received a credit to my account.

Ordered from Specialty Perennials February 7, 2010. Received a large order almost one month later and am thrilled with the quality and service. I guess if you expect delivery in a week you should confirm that possibility with the company. An fine company and much larger reported, after a two phone calls, that my order would come sometime in March. So, I have to feel great about Speciality Perennials for the reasonable and inexpensive delivery. I did not select express shipping! The most wonderful thing is their seed selection! Very few companies come close to the number of varieties offered. Great Job!

Seeds came in about 3 weeks, which is what the website said (1-3 weeks shipping). Unusual offerings of seeds. Order filled complete with some packs having 2-3 times the amount of seed listed. Example, seed pack says 50 seeds but over 150 in pack. Seeds were not only inexpensive, but in my opinion, downright CHEAP. Combined with the resonable postage cost of 2.00, I am VERY PLEASED with this company, and speaking from my own experience I highly recommend them.

My experience was impeccable. I placed my order on 2/27, and received an acknowment 3/1. I received the complete order today, 3/3!!! Very happy this company.

Order totaling $64.00 was placed on 1/31/10. Today is 3/1/10, and no seeds have been received nor any feedback for numerous e-mails sent. I am now in the cumbersome process of trying to cancel my order, report these deadbeats to the BBB, and rescind the charge to my credit card.

Before you place an order, ask yourself this: WHY DOES THIS HAPPEN SO FREQUENTLY with this company?! Answer: because they are an UNRELIABLE SOURCE!

Customer service is non-existent with this company. All gardening BUYERS BEWARE!

If you have some grand, master plan in your head as you experience Spring Fever this time of year, look elsewhere to bring your visions to bloom! You WILL NOT RECEIVE YOUR SEEDS in any reasonable timeframe, let alone any response to the simplest of inquiries.

Rough-n-ready mail in the 18th century via Pony Express going across the entire continent had to be quicker than these guys!

I ordered in late January 2010 and received my seeds February 20th. A little slower than I expected but the seeds were well packaged with detailed germination instructions on each pack. One item was sold out and they returned $1.00 for an $0.85 purchase as well as sending extra packs of seeds. I definitly will do business with them aqain as they have an exceptional selection and decent prices.

I placed a small order yesterday. I accidentally chose the option to pay by check, as that is one of the choices given. I e-mailed them this morning asking that they cancel my order so that I can add to it and pay by way of credit card. Have not heard back yet. The telephone number is disabled; not in service.

Having read all the negative comments on this page, I think I will let the order stand as is. Probably will not get my seeds. If I do, I will send them a check.

I've got nothing but positive feedback for Paul at Specialty Perennials. I placed an order on Sunday,January 31, 2010, received a shipping notification email on Tuesday, February 2, 2010, and received my seeds today Thursday, February 4, 2010 safe and sound and in perfect condition. There was also a packet of gift seed included, along with a typed up sheet of propagating information relative to the seeds I ordered.

I ordered quite a lot of seed from different vendors/gardeners this year, and was honestly attracted to the unique offerings at Specialty Perennials, so I placed an order with them. I read other reviews here after I had placed my order that were negative, and rightly so given their interactions, but mine was VERY positive and I felt it necessary to reflect that in all fairness.

I know business is business, but we never know all the circumstances in someone elses personal/family life that may cause problems in being able to stay on top of things temporarily. Obviously Paul has gotten his act together because that 4 day turnaround on my order, complete with delivery from Minnesota to California, was markedly better than some vendors I dealt with that are right here IN California with me.

My seeds came quickly and when I started them I got nearly 100% germination I would buy from them again.
commander kibble

Placed an order 8 Sept, must say my order included some seeds of the same genus that I am just now harvesting myself. Arrived 26 October complete, and with 2 extra packets of seeds. I have no dog in this fight, but it seemed like a reasonably nice transaction.

This company does have a good choice of seeds, but they will take your money and will not send the seeds to you. I ordered from them 3 times, 2 times the order arrived, although late and not completely accurate, third time, I received shipment confimation but nothing else. I e-mailed, called, no response. My card was charged the day I ordered, so they STOLE almost $30 from me. They also operate as hardyplants.com, so beware!

Early this year I order some seeds from this company. I will agree with those that say that they have a wonderful selection of seed that is very difficult to find elsewhere. My first order took about 6 weeks, but did arrive and I was pleased with that order. On May 22nd, '09 I place another order, my credit card was immediately charged the $70.00 and on June 10th I received an email from "Paul" stating that my order had been shipped via first class mail. Now, I know all the jokes about "Snail Mail", but since I work at the Post Office that this order was being sent to, this is way too much time for this order to have been delivered. I verified that my customer information was correct and should have received this order in several days. As of July 2nd, my order has not arrived, and I have had no reply from the emails I sent to them. It is very unfortunate, as I would have liked to continue to do business with them, but the total lack of communication and absence of any customer service has finally led me to the conclusion that my $70.00 is gone and there are no seeds on the way. I encourage everyone to check out other seed vendors that I found on-line. You can get almost everything that this company offers thru these other vendors, and those companies do not hesitate to contact you back if you have inquiries or problems. Avoid Specialty Perennials.

Ordering my seeds from this company only already for some years. Great selection, good prices, always some free seeds extra and good germination.
9 out of 10 complains about this company are the delivery time and they are right. It takes ages (up to 2 months), but all my orders arrived on the end.
If you've a lot of patience it's not a bad thing to order here.

I placed my order online, received a receipt for payment, and the seeds arrived fine. I guess since I placed the order in late summer and wasn't planning on planting until now, I didn't really keep track of exactly how long it took, but it didn't seem unreasonable.

I'm glad I didn't read the feedback before ordering.

I thought the prices were very reasonable and the selection good. I'll update with germination info, as the seeds are planted now.

I placed my first order with Specialty Perennials in January 2008. It took nearly a month for the seeds to arrive. I had a few anguish moments after I discovered this website and read the reviews, but in the end the company delivered what I paid for, and the seeds germinated. I placed a second order in November 2008 and the seeds arrived in about 10 days. They add free seed packets to the orders; they offer hard to find seeds; the seeds I've tested/grown are quality, so I will order from them again with the understanding I need to be patient waiting for delivery and not to order anything I need right away.

I ordered 25 dollars worth of seeds on November 11th. My credit card was debited that same day. Today is December 22nd and I have still not received my seeds. I've sent email after email and have not gotten any reply. I did reach an elderly gentlemen by phone last week who took my information and said he would give it to his son and have him call me. I haven't had a call. I'm so disappointed! My hope is I'll get my order soon...but it doesn't look like it. I'll report to the BBB if I don't hear something soon.

Ordered 3 weeks ago and was promised shipping in 10 days. Numerous emails unanswered. Phone messages unanswered even when I suggested that I felt I had to contact credit card co.

Still no response. I wish it had been different, but they have done nothing but take my order and payment info.

I have ordered from Specialty Perennials three times this fall. I received an e-mail confirming each order after I placed it and an e-mail notifying me when each order was shipped. I received all three orders within a couple of weeks of ordering. I am very happy with the company so far. I am glad everything worked out well, because they have a pretty stunning list of perennial seeds.

I ordered from Specialty Perennials on 10/19/08, before seeing this site's feedback. I didn't find the feedback (stupid mistake I know) until I tried to contact Specialty Perennials about my order, on 10/21/08. I wanted to add to my order. I tried to call but the number was disconnected. I then emailed, stating that I wanted to add to my order, if it had not yet shipped. That email was never replied to. On 10/23/08, I contacted my credit card company, assuming that I would never receive my seeds. That same day, 10/23/08, I received an email from Paul stating my order had shipped. After reading these posts, I was suspicious and figured the shipping notification was bogus. On 10/29/08, I received my seeds. I ordered nine packs and received ten. The free seeds are a fantastic variety, matching the others in the order. On 10/21/08, I ordered seeds from a variety of other sites to quickly obtain the varieties I had ordered from Specialty Perennials. Most of the orders, in this now expensive mess I'd created for myself, arrived around 10/29/08. In all but one seed pack, Specialty Perennials sent substantially much more seed for far less cost. Although customer service is nil, I would order from them again and factor in enough time to receive the seeds well before I needed them, perhaps only ordering during the fall and winter. Many sites were out of the seed I wanted. The quantity received was more then expected, prices are very reasonable and selection is awesome. For me, this all made up for the lack of communication. I guess I am also happy that my seeds actually shipped. I probably would not have purchased from Specialty Perennials after reading the posts here, but I am happy with my order and will order from them again; if they have a seed that no one else has without expecting any communication.

I ordered from Hardy Plants (aka Specialty Perennials) on 5/31/08. Now it is 8/23/08 but have not received the seeds and plants even though 3 months have passed.

I called several times in July and left messages, but they didn't return my calls or send the product.

Today I called my Visa company and we are going to dispute the charge made to my account.

Slower than a wet week! Also, they won't reply to my emails. Only thing that has happened fast was the withdrawal of funds from my credit card, and that was instantaneous. If there is some hold up in obtaining seed, a courtesy email explaining the delay and giving an estimate of delivery time would be of benefit to the customer.
It is a shame, because they have a lot of uncommon species on their lists that are hard to obtain elsewhere. However, the long delays suggest they may not actually have all the seeds available as advertised and have to harvest them or obtain them from third parties. Again, a courtesy email explaining the situation to customers would go a long way towards improving their customer relations.

What was I thinking not to check up on this company through GWD.....
Thinking it had been a while i sent a email to check if the order was sent, of course i didnt get a response and after reading everyone elses comments- i dont expect a response. Its only been a couple of weeks so i am willing to wait another week before i call this a dud order.
This is not a very professionaly run company , it shouldnt take that long to ship a 4 small pkg of seeds, and not responding to email for a internet based buisness is not acceptable imo!!
Dont waste your time ordering from this place, it will be winter before you receive your order.

My first mistake was not reading about Specialty Perennials / HardySeeds.com here, before ordering. I'd like to think I wouldn't have ordered then.

My order was placed May 12th. The site said to allow 2 weeks for delivery, which I did. No seeds. I sent an e-mail inquiry on May 30th. I got no response. On June 11th, I sent a message with the subject "CANCEL MY ORDER" in all caps, hoping to get his attention. Again, no response.

Then, out of the blue, on July 3rd, I receive a message that my order has shipped. I was unhappy because this was done weeks after I canceled my order, but happy to think I might finally get these hard-to-get seeds.

Well, it is now July 24th, and I still have no seeds. I inquired about this phantom shipment on July 13th with-- of course-- no response. On July 15th I sent a message "Garden Watchdog: Should I file a negative report on you?" I thought maybe THAT would get his attention. Nope. Clearly, this guy doesn't care about customer service or customer opinion.

Each of these times, I have waited longer than I felt was necessary, trying to be reasonable. I'm done being reasonable. This morning I called to find out about my order but, not surprisingly, reached only an answering machine. I've left a message but I doubt I'll get a response, much less my order. My next steps, like the others have done, are to call the credit card company and file a complaint with the BBB.

It's your money to take a chance with, but I strongly advise you to think twice before ordering from this guy. My experience is not the exception but rather the norm, if you read these other reviews.

ordered and paid on March 31st. To date have received no response to emails. It is now the middle of July and LONG past an acceptable period of time to have sent my seeds. very disappointed and will never deal with this company again. I am going report to Better Business Bureau and look into possible Internet fraud. I have never had any negative dealings on the internet with any gardening related company before and am extremely angry.

klhgrammy

I have been waiting for almost a month now for my seeds. I ordered from select seeds because of their great selection. I own my own small business and it is holding up my business while not worried about taking my money. I have emailed three times with no answer. I would call but do not know who to call. If there is a problem, they could email me and I would probably understand. But hearing nothing makes you extremely angry and frustrated.

I would certainly appreciate it if someone would call me. I will not leave my name but will leave my # Reference Number: 0002497112119875660000003332. I would be very glad to hear from Specialty Seeds so please send them a copy of this.

Also, if anyone has the number of this person I can call please email me at hearthecatsmeow@yahoo.com. Specialty Perennials if you lost my email this is the one for you to use also. Thanks so much.

Order submitted April 24th 2008. Almost 7 weeks later and no seeds and no response for multiple email inquiries. At least respond to emails if there is a delay.

I have ordered twice. The first time at Dec. 31,2007 and obtained all I have ordered about 6 weeks later with many additional seeds.
The second time I have ordered at March 27,2008. The seeds were sent to me at April 21. all of it's best.
Many thanks to Paul, once more.

Order sent and confirmed January 28th. 2 emails or 3 sent to enquire. No response but for sure the charges went through my account! And no seeds to date.

I would just like to have some acknowledgment of my emails at the very least.

I say positive because my seeds are finally in front of me. It was a definite negative during my very long (and painful) wait. I began to think I'd been duped. I placed my order on Jan. 28, 2008. By mid February I started sending e-mails that got zero response. One day when the weather nixed my garden puttering, I did some browsing on line and came upon this website. (I'm a newbie here.) I was so relieved to hear similar testimonials. I called Harvy, left a message. He promptly called me back and gave the familiar platitudes, but he was so nice I couldn't be mad. Gardeners don't get mad, do they? The next day I got THE long awaited e-mail. "Your order has shipped." Four days later voila, seeds! I also received bonus seed but it wasn't for petunias or some other banal leftovers (sorry), it was more packets of the things I ordered. After pondering, I'm not sorry for trusting SP. My advice: Be prepared to wait and nag. Harvy doesn't seem to mind. Now, I've got to get busy.

Took a little longer than expected to receive my seeds, but am very impressed with the seeds I received and the customer service.

I will definately order from them again.