Comments regarding Kartuz Greenhouses

I ordered two Solanum Wendlandii plants at $15.95 a piece plus $12.00 shipping; because I have ordered these elsewhere for $7.00 a piece (they were out) I assumed these were reasonably nice size plants. When I received them they were cuttings in a hand full of dirt. I was livid so I contacted him and he told me he could do without the scarcasm and return them. If I had done that I would also be out another shipping charge. This man could care less about his customers and as far as I am concerned he is a cheat and should be ashamed of himself. I could have taken cuttings off the vine I have, Beware of him and his nursery.

I’m live in California. I decided to order from Kartuz Greenhouses, so my plant wouldn’t have to be shipped cross country. I ordered a begonia, and received it a week after the order was processed. The processing and shipping was quick, but I never received an email about the shipment. It would have been nice to have been notified about shipment, so I could keep my eye out.

The package came with a nice set of instructions on how to care for the new plant. Plants are decently priced especially since I can’t seem to find cane begonias readily available in store.

The plant grew from two cuttings, one larger and one smaller. It arrived in good health. There was a lot of new growth. The cuttings looks like it came from a very mature plant although the leaves themselves were small.

Overall, I’d be interested in ordering more begonias from Kartuz Greenhouses again.

Just received four more exceptional plants from this fine nursery. I try to order from them every year and have never been disappointed in variety, quality, and ease of doing business. They have an incredible variety of plants and I have never once ordered something which was not on hand. Either I am very lucky or their inventory is huge. Only wish they were closer because I would love to see it in person! Cannot wait to order again.

One of the better mail order companies. The plants are always very healthy, of good size and the prices are reasonable. I've been a repeat customer for almost 20 years and I've never once been disappointed.

Posted on April 6, 2012, updated April 25, 2018
How refreshing it is to find a privately owned nursery business that provides healthy plants, good value and proper care in packing so that they arrive without all the dirt in the bottom of the box. These people have done everything right, twice now. I should have given positive feedback on the first order. But, you know how we are about positive feedback. We get busy and forget to give credit where credit is due unless it's to voice how frustrated or mad we are about something done wrong. I'm sorry for waiting so long to state how pleased I was with everything done right. The plants are nice size and extremely healthy, those that bloomed arrived blooming or just ready to and they were expertly packed. It was just a pleasant and effortless experience all around and I ended up with some really nice plants to boot. This Nursery has definately made my "preferred" list and I will be ordering from them again. Thanks for the lovely plants and the professional service!

I'm 6 months down the road with a Hoya, Codonanthe, and a few other Gesneriads. Packing & communication were great, the plants I ordered are all doing well. Specifically for Gesneriads and Hoyas, I recommend this company : )

I recently ordered for the first time from this company. I ordered five different types of plants, which were shipped quickly and packaged very well. Not only did I receive very healthy plants, but two of them (a begonia and a cuphea) were actively blooming! I have to say it was one of the best mail orders of live plants that I have ever received and I will definitely be ordering again from them in the future! I highly recommend them.

just purchased an orange and a yellow Ruttya fruticosa on thursday , shipped monday and received wednesday , (CA to VA ) in very excellent condition , could not be happier

I have ordered several plants from Kartuz, Sweet almond verbena, Passiflora White wedding, Nematanthus Orion, Nematanthus Serra Bonita, Babaco papaya, 2 streptocarpus varieties, and hedychium greenii. The plants are carefully packed and their containers taped inside of the box. The nematanthus orion arrived ready to flower and is continually flowering now. All of the plants have grown quite well after they arrived. Keep in mind the plants do take time to become accustomed to their new environment and start growing again. Even if a plant loses a few leaves it will recover very soon. Waiting for the flowers on gisele streptocarpus to open.

Kartuz had all of the plants I had been planning on buying from various other companies under one roof - with flat rate shipping. boon. I ordered on a Sunday and they arrived Thursday of the same week. They were expertly packed (no soil in the box), healthy, robust plants. Kartuz will be the first place I will check next time I decide to binge on exotics.

I am a professional gardener/landscaper. There are very few nurseries that grow, or are even acquainted with, unusual plants. Kartuz is not a diamond in the rough, rather it is a gem of considerably more interest and utility. When I ask about a plant I'm unfamiliar with, the response is honest, succinct and erudite. They are one of the mightier soldiers in the fight against the dumbing down of landscaping and plant design

I know that kartuz has been around for years and has generally good reviews so I expected much more than what I received. I ordered 3 cane begonias (kartuz choice of varieties) and an iochroma. With shipping I paid nearly $50 to the east coast for these 4 plants and what i received was abysmal. First, the begonias were so severely underpotted, stunted and woody , had I seen them in person I would have passed them by. These were old knarly plants that were screaming for larger pots. These plants clearly looked neglected and were not the young, fresh and vigorous healthy rooted cuttings that I expected. Upon transplanting them to larger pots I found the rootballs to be so compacted that it was almost impossible to pry the roots apart. It has been a few weeks now and there is no new growth, and in fact one of them appears to have mildew and has dropped all of its leaves. The rest are just sulking and have yet to produce any new growth.

The iochroma was tiny but at least appeared healthy however the new leaves are curled and distorted which indicates mites, whitefly or aphids. I will need to spray it and hope for the best.

I emailed kartuz about a week ago and to date I have received no response. Not even an "I'm sorry, here's a $5 coupon off your next order." So I gave kartuz a chance to respond and they chose not to, so fine. I'm left with no option to give a negative review and to say that I will not order from kartuz again. I'm really dissapointed with kartuz.

I've ordered several times from this company while living in Southern California and have always been very pleased with the plants. However, this time I am especially pleased since these three plants I just ordered arrived within two days of their mailing. Very hard to find, phymosia umbellata which I originally grew in Ca before we moved and longed to obtain since then. Well, I finally found them at Kartuz and they sent them with buds on them ready to bloom soon. I couldn't be happier and I will place another order in spring for a few other plants. I didn't realize that I have not left a rating before this and they truly deserve to be recognized for their great packing, fast shipping and great selection of plants.
Antoinette Hague

I received 3 Bower Vine plants yesterday. They were packed wonderfully. I haven't had this experience with other mail order plant companies, so I was very happy from the gitgo. To me, they were a little pricey, but the plants are much more than I expected and in such good health, I will be ordering again ! Thank you for the quality and the care you put into my order !

I just ordered a box of different hibiscus and tropicals.They came in less than a week, I was emailed the day they were shipped.The plants were great for the size and price range.I'm very happy. I have deal't with Kartuz since the late 70's and always get great service.

Kyle :-)

Posted on May 19, 2011, updated June 12, 2012
I received a shipment of cane and shrub-type begonias from Kartuz and was extremely impressed at the quality of plants AND intense care put into packaging them. It was one of the few instances where someone else's anal retentiveness actually ended up benefiting me! The plants were stocky and appear to be in good health with no apparent signs of bruising or damage from shipping. I will be doing business with this company again.

This company really knows what customer service and high quality is all about. From the very first time I contacted them, they were willing to go an extra mile to satisfy my particular needs. At all times (quite a few), they were courteous and prompt to reply, before and after placing the order. The big box of plants arrived on time, in excellent conditions, great packaging, and the plants -as healthy and beautiful as they can be. It was a pleasure to deal with them.

I received my 3 brugmansias I ordered. My order was quickly and well shipped and my plants look great! I'll order from this company again. Very pleased.

Posted on June 27, 2011, updated November 16, 2011
Posted on November 25, 2009, updated June 27, 2011
Posted on May 18, 2006, updated November 25, 2009
Today I received two hibiscus from Kartuz and was surprised by their size and quality. Plus the order came promptly after ordering. I even got an email stating my plants were mailed so I'd be here to get them in case it was too cold. I'll be ordering from Kartuz in the furture. Toni

Wish it wasn't so, but I have to post negative. I bought 2 Brugmansia's Only 1 has lived. Let me explain why I feel the need to post as negative.
I placed the order 6/30, no problem. $12.00 for 2 day shipping. Did not see anything mentioned on the order pages about there being any tracking numbers, though these days I believe there should be, or at the least a option. I inquired (email) if there would be any tracking number (never received a response to that).
7/5 receive a email saying my order had shipped, nothing else no response to my question, and no tracking info.
7/8 (friday) still hadn't arrived, I emailed again asking for a tracking number as I was getting concerned. No response. It arrived finally Monday 7/11
Nicely packed yes, 1 plant had leaves, though yellow and wilted, other plant had only a couple very small ones to begin with (now fallen off dead in the packaging), neither very big plants. The one that had the wilted leaves has perked up and tentatively will survive the other is obviously completely dead (I have followed their included instructions), the stem is discoloring more day by day, and has no leaves or any buds where leaves might form.
I know they're not a large organization or anything but having been the entire customer service department myself for a small (and busy) internet retail startup I know it's possible to have alot better customer service then this. The box did have a tracking number on it that should have just plain been sent.
I was so excited about getting 2 more Brugmansias to add to the 1 I already have. This has been a disappointing experience. I will have to look for some other source for another "brug" or 2 (3)

Posted on April 11, 2007, updated May 8, 2011
I live close enough that I was able to go there in person. Got nice plants at a fair price. He was very helpful.

I am very pleased with the hoyas that I received today as a Mother's Day gift from my daughter. The plants were carefully packed and arrived in great shape. All are well rooted, healthy, and showing signs of new growth.

Good communication with the company. Prompt shipping of lovingly packed plants. I am extremely satisfied with my experience and will no doubt be a return customer.

I ordered about 10 plants that I couldn't find locally (and I work at a large nursery). The plants arrived, within a week, and well packaged showing no stress from shipping. The plants are small, being in 2.5 inch pots BUT well proportioned, large even for this size pot, and well rooted. The plants were all in tip top health and I KNOW they will grow great, unless I do something careless myself. I am a very happy customer who is looking forward to ordering again!

I ordered 5 plants from Kartuz last week, 3 begonias, a brugmansia and a plectranthus. All were in perfect shape and ready to be potted up. The plectranthus had a good size caudex and was in bloom. Shipping was quick and no plants were damaged. Will definitely order again.

I placed an order of four plants(Sinningias) from this company and two of them were barely seedlings. The other two were O.K. When I called to inform them, the person in charge(Michael), curtly informed me that I needed to wait for the plants to grow. If I had wanted to do that I could have purchased some seeds and started them myself.

I was asked to send an email requesting a refund, for which I got no response. When I called again, I was told to ship the plants back at my expense to get the refund and then he hung up on me. I called again and then he said he would send me similar replacements and hung up on me again. I am not hopeful of getting anything from this company and hence the complaint.

Posted on May 31, 2010, updated June 15, 2010
I've placed several orders over the past year for alsobias and episcias. The plants all came well rooted in 2 1/2 inch containers, some with blooms. They were well wrapped and secured in the shipping boxes. All specimens have survived and thrived. Kartuz is now my favorite source for gesneriads!

Good company and beautiful healthy plants. They are not the fastest in delivery but as I understand it is a very busy mostly mail order nursery. The plants are worth waiting for and I look forward to every order. They have some fairly hard to find stock and the place is worth giving it a try.

Placed an order late last month and I received it today. Order was expertly packed and the plants were in great shape. I found them online while searching for Plumbago "Royal Blue" and decided to give them a try as I can't seem to find this plant here in FL. Glad I did! I'll definitely order from the again as I'm always in the market for new and interesting plants along with great customer service.

Placed an order last month, and promptly received a box ... containing somebody else's order. Never seen that one before, but I can totally understand how this could happen.

After trying to phone them ( they say on their website that their phone hours are limited on shipping days ) I sent them an e-mail which was replied to promptly, apologies were made, and re-shipment was promised. I received my correct order promptly, and they let me keep the mistakenly shipped plants.

The plants I ordered were healthy and very securely shipped - some were rather small starts, but no smaller than would be expected from other vendors, and all quite well established.

I was pleased with me experience and will order from Kartuz again. They carry a lot of hard to find items, particularly some more highland tropicals and gesneriads.

Great experience. Their web site was easy to browse and provides good information and pictures on each plant. Ordering was easy and a very clear confirmation by e-mail was provided.

Receiving the plants took some time (about 4 weeks following the day of my order), but this is clearly spelled out both before ordering and in the order confirmation.

My order of 10 plants arrived very well packed without a single damaged leaf (not an easy task with begonias!). Nice plants. Will definitely order from them again.

I received three large healthy clivia plants today. I would definitely order from this company again.

I placed an order with Kartuz Gardens (the first time I have ordered from them) on March 24 - I ordered 13 plants, a selection of members of the shimp family, angel trumpet and others. Tuesday, I received an e-mail that said that my order had been shipped. My mailman delivered it today - Thursday. When I opened the box the copy of my order and instructions on how to care for the plants were right on top. The plants in pots were taped across the top of the pot and the pots were taped to the box and filled with shipping peanuts were they could and would not shift. The plants arrived very healthy with no broken limbs. I am very impressed with their shipping and packing. I will be placing other orders with Kartuz in the future.

I have been pleased with Kartuz..my orders have always consisted of Hoyas...I though they seemed to be a fair company & the plants are doing great 4 years later. I just ordered some more this year & I like it that they let me know when they sent the order out, because our temps can still get pretty low @ night. If they set overnight in the mailbox, they would surely die, and I have had a previous vendor of African Violets (Rob's Violets @ The Violet Barn) get very upset & argumentative with me when the plants died because of cold weather. I won't deal with Rob's again, but I will return to Kartuz again. Nice company..pleasant people that WANT to keep their customers happy.

This was my first order, but I was sent an email telling me when my plants were shipped and they arrived in a timely fashion. I was very impressed with the packing. The plants were very healthy and seemed to be no worse for wear from their trip.

I did send an email in regards to a note that was written on my packing slip and it was answered right away.

I had great service and will order again.

We ordered for the first time from Kartuz and are extremely satisfied, the plants looked great and the shipping was very fast. They have a great selection that is hard to find elsewhere. We will be ordering more in the future. Just wanted to thank Kartuz for their great service.

i have dealt with this company for many years. it is one of my favorites. the plants are always well rooted. they offer so many great rarities!!

Good plants, packing and fast shipping. What else could you want

I ordered a few cestrum and cleodendrums. All the plants but one were of good size and quality. They lowered the price of the small plant. They have a great selection of begonias that I will order from them next spring.