Comments regarding Gurney's Seed & Nursery

I ordered one Blue Angle Climbing Rose. I usually do my research prior to ordering anything online since I have been ripped off in the past. I was looking for a specific rose which this company had. I read the reviews and I would not have ordered from them do to the ratings, but I really needed this specific rose so I figured I'll order it. Whats the worst that could happen? I would lose 20 bucks. So, I ordered not expecting too much. I ordered on the 16th of April and the rose arrived on the 24th, well packaged and alive. I am very pleased so far with this company. I planted it and I will keep you updated with the progress of its growth. Ordering any type of live plant online is always a crap shoot at best. There are so many things that can go wrong prior to being delivered. The company should always take the extra steps to make sure the plant has the best chance to survive the harsh conditions of being mailed. Thank you for the rose.

"On May 3, 2012 10:38 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for your posting and enjoy your rose. If you need anything at all just let us know, we are always happy to help."

Posted on May 28, 2011, updated April 19, 2012
Posted on May 16, 2011, updated May 28, 2011
Posted on May 15, 2011, updated May 16, 2011
This was my first year ordering something from an on-line nursery, and i decided to go with Gurneys. I placed a rather large order ($192) that consisted of many things. all the seeds were shipped/received on time and in good shape as were most of the bare root items i bought. however the 2 chandlers i ordered (item#75479) showed up to early and all leafed out. We had 2 cold nights about 1 week after I got them and they are dead. I also ordered a bunch of raspberries and blackberries and while most are doing well 1 candy red(item#80900) 1 mammoth red(item#80892) and 1 chickasaw blackberry (item#80887) did not survive and are now dead and lifeless(they didn't look all that great even by bare root standards when i got them). I will change this to positive depending on gurneys handling of my situation. i am satisfied 100% with all the other products from gurneys accept my dead plants i got. i waited awhile before posting this to make sure their was going to be no new growth on said dead plants.

"On May 16, 2011 11:06 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for your feedback. We will be happy to reship the plants that did not do well for you. A customer service representative will be contacing you for you account informtion."

I received a catalog in the mail with a coupon on it for $25.00 towards anything in the catalog. I usually throw all of their catalogs in the garbage because of a bad experience that I had with them in the past. Years ago I ordered from them. Weeks passed, months passed and I never got my plants or an email explaining the delay. It was a horrible experience because I have been ordering from Gurney since the mid 1970's. They did apologize (that's all) but I was very, very angry because of missing the beginning of the gardening season. So to get back to my review, since anything that I ordered would be free, I decided to give them another chance. I had nothing to lose. I ordered a Meyer Lemon tree and artichoke seeds. I received the artichoke seeds very quickly and an invoice stating when the Meyer Lemon tree would be shipped (invoice shipping time was around March 12th). The tree was shipped right on time and was in good condition. As i am typing this review, the lemon tree is still healthy and thriving. The artichoke seeds are growing very well and are healthy. Everything was FREE to me like they advertised in the catalog. I have nothing to complain about. Although I am reluctant to place a large order with them, I am satisfied with the service that I got when placing this particular order.

GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE. We started to order Lombardy Poplar with this company, an order of 6 "offers" with 3 plants for offer, then realized we did not know if it was the original italica poplar or not, and it was not clear in the order form that the fulfillment would be 18 trees. So we called up the company and found it to be true - actual order amount was not clear from what the assistant was reading online. Then we learned they were not italica. So we did not go through with the purchase. Same day, we found italica elsewhere and bought them. So imagine our surprise ten days later when our credit card was charged $140 by Gurneys! We had given them no address and had no order confirmation number! There was some glitch in their accounts.
The first person I called tried to haggle me to accept the order! When I mentioned lawyers she put me on hold and then disconnected the call! The next person told me I had to give Gurneys our mailing address, then receive the trees, and only then call back to do the refund. She was very efficient and nice. The third person was really nice as well and issued the refund. We're actually glad we found this company because they do have a terrific inventory and we like the way the matter was resolved. We'going to give them a big order of trees for our farm next autumn.

Posted on March 21, 2012, updated April 12, 2012
My husband and I ordered plants on March 11, 2012. After reading the reviews on this company, we were worried if we made a mistake ordering from Gurney's. It turned out we didn't! We got our first order today - Grape Reliance Pink Seedless and Grape Cayuga. Both of them along with the order of strawberries were scheduled for delivery 03/25/12-04/15/12. And an hour ago we got our grapes. To be honest I didn't expect to see much of the 1-year-old plants. To my surprise I was wrong! The plants look very healthy, with well-developed root system and a few wonderful buds ready to open. We are very, very pleased how quickly we received the plants and how good they look. We requested to ship the strawberries sooner if it is possible before the heat starts. We definitely update our review once we receive our order, but so far, thumbs up to Gurney's!

"On Mar 23, 2012 12:42 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for letting us know. If you have any problems please call our customer service line and we will be happy to help."

Last year I purchased three twigs which were meant to be a Fragrant Abelia, an Azalea and Butterfly Bush. All these shrubs looked stunted and unhealthy but I decided to give it a try. It wouldn't be the first time a runt has thrived in my garden. They were three inches at the time and now two are roughly 6 inches save the Abelia which is still around 3 inches but happily growing green leaves. I guess that's what you call progress. Anyway they are all odd shaped and barely hanging on to dear life. I have already replaced the Azalea with a hydrangea from White Flower Farm (the Azalea is in a hospice pot) and will replace the BB (also destined for the hospice pot) but will leave the Azalea just for fun to see if its robust enough to grow another inch this year. Just kidding, I'll replace the Azalea as well at some point. I will never purchase anything from this company again. There are too many other nurseries offering healthy robust plants.

Posted on February 14, 2012, updated April 9, 2012
Placed a big order tonight for apple trees, a peach tree, blueberry bushes, a bareroot rose bush, a lilac, a peony, flowers, seeds and a hybrid poplar tree. I'm staying optimistic and will update as things start to arrive!

"On Feb 15, 2012 11:11 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

You will love your new plants. If you have any any problems just let us know and we will be happy to replace anything that does not well for you."

I've been buying Gurneys since I was a kid. 35 years ago, they were pretty good, they really suck now though.

They have nice varieties, and really stay on top of that, which is nice. Their catalog is nice. They have nice discounts, although their list prices are so high it brings them down to reasonable. The bad part is, their trees are ALWAYS horrible. They are always seriously defective in one way or another. Normally, they are growing at some bizarre angle that is nearly impossible to correct. You will not get a good tree from them; it's just which shade of suck you're going to get.

On the other hand, some of their varieties are really good, and you can always kill the tree, and graft the scion wood on something else, or bud it on some root stocks.

"On Apr 4, 2012 10:25 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We appreciate your feedback and we apologize that the tree you received was defective. One of our customer service representatives will contact you for your account information and reship a new tree to you."

Received:

BLUEBERRY ELIZABETH
RASPBERRY RED LATHAM 1YR
MIXED FOXGLOVE
SILVER LACE BLACK PRIMROSE


The foxglove did arrive in poor shape. The box was completely smashed and the plant was wilted with terrible looking leaves. They have been in the ground a few weeks and thriving. It was probably a mixture of bad packaging and mishandling.

Everything else arrived in excellent shape with great packaging. This is my first order with gurneys and I will probably order again. Shipping time was average.

"On Apr 3, 2012 1:24 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We appreciate your feedback, thank you for posting. A customer service representative will contact you to see if you need a new foxglove reshipped. Happy Gardening."

Well where do I start? Gurneys in the past has been a great company to order from but a couple days ago I received my live plants from them, one a arctic beauty male kiwi and a gooseberry bush. Now I understand economically things are tough in the U.S. and I'm a firm believer that quality and volume is the only thing that will hold this country afloat. Today everyone wants to grow their own food and I'm sure nursery and seed companies are gearing up to be busier than ever with the high cost of groceries, but these plants I received were far from fair in their quality for price i paid. I received my 3 inch high hardy kiwi plant in a 1 1/2 inch dried out peat pot. If i saw a 3 inch tall kiwi vine at a nursery with my own eyes with a price tag that said $17, I would walk right past it with a serious laugh! This is what I got and it was so dry the leaves crumbled like dried oregano. My gooseberry plant was 5 inches tall and cost $13, one little twig. I have to say, it was alive though, but still not satisfied! I would rather buy from China if this is the crap we are going to pay for, for some rich guy to sit behind a mail order company desk and give us little cuttings for our dollar! I am really disappointed. Customer service was great though, the lady i spoke with was very friendly and understanding. I should have bigger plants coming and live ones. Hopefully this company will get its quality up to par and start selling plants the real American way with honesty, integrity, and a desire to please customers.

"On Apr 3, 2012 1:18 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank for for letting us know about the problem with your order. We apologize for the problems and we will pass this along to our Quality Control Department. Our Customer Service Department does their best to help our customers. Thank you for the nice compliment. "

Reading all the comments, like one gal stated. Wish I knew of this web-site before I ordered over $200.00 of plants.
Ordering wasn't the problem, it was "out of stock" after the order was placed, money sent. Dealing with Customer Service, not one but at least 5 different reps with different answers to one problem. I requested a swap for 1 product they were out of stock. Same price, plus I already paid shipping, plus customer service stated I needed to send an extra $7.34 for the shipping, which of course like decent person I sent. Now this past week,l I get an invoice with money due. 1st it was for the total amount of the product, now it turns out they want another $3.34 as of yesterday. Yet last week on email I was told this invoice was paid in full!. Go figure! Bogus, scam or just sloppy book-keeping on their part. Certainly hasn't been a good experience for this ole gal. I read somewhere they are customer oriented, will replace product with an upgrade if out of stock? Really? I will not buy any further plants/trees/seeds from this company. I've explained to them, they can send a complete refund plus the shipping, plus the extra $7.34 (They've cashed all my cks) I will send back their plants I graciously swapped . Customer service should reflect the owners, or do they? No more excuses or promises. I've heard them all

"On Mar 30, 2012 11:50 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We apologize for any problem you had with your order and we appreciate you letting us know. A customer service representative will contact you for your acount information and take care of this for you.
"

I placed an order of raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and strawberries with Gurney's. I am happy to say that all of the plants that I received were fresh, healthy, well packaged and sent at the proper time. I am very pleased and will order again from Gurney's in the future.

"On Mar 23, 2012 1:15 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for sharing your expereince with us. Happy Gardening!"

I bought their 3 dwarf citris plants and the lime tree died. I had no problem with them sending me a replacement...6 months later along with a rose that was on back order. It wouldn't have bothered so much except the fact that the roses were to be "shipped at the proper time for planting". I received 4 at the proper time, but the last one didn't arrive until 2 weeks before Xmas. I live in SLC Utah (ski country) and the proper time for planting is DECEMBER????. The ground is frozen solid!! The rose was not a rose bush. It was no bigger than my dwarf lime tree (about 3 inches tall) and my lime tree died again!! I had no choice but to plant the rose bush in a pot and it has also died. After struggling to keep the lemon alive it has also died. The orange is the only one that has survived. The 4 rose bushes on the original shipment has also survived well, but they were actual bare root bushes, not sticks. It's not a lack of effort or know how. My house looks like a jungle inside because I am very good with plants. The quality of their product is just horrible.

"On Mar 13, 2012 11:45 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We appreciate you letting us know of the problems you had with your order. A customer service representative will be contacting you for your account infomation and see what we can do."

I think it's a good idea to commend work well-done. In addition, since I had a good experience with Gurney, and some folks didn't, I would like to help balance the negative feedback by sharing my own positive experience with this company. It's very simple. I ordered many packages of seeds upon the recommendation of a friend, and I used the $25 coupon. I ordered the seeds, and the seeds arrived in a timely manner and in great condition. I planted the seeds at the appropriate time, and everything went well. I conversed with a representative one time in the process because one of the items I ordered was not available. The person I spoke to was professional and kind. I am honing in on just the right produce to grow in my garden, and many times I find the seeds locally, but I wouldn't hesitate to order from Gurney again.

"On Feb 27, 2012 11:10 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We really appreciate your feedback concerning our products. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful experience with our company."

I spent about $245 with this company. I ordered countless seeds for immediate planting. Their website states that seeds ship immediately which is what I was counting on. After 6 days, nothing has shipped. Now I'm told that the "immediate" shipping on seeds is "if they're in stock". My gosh. How dishonest. At the time I placed my order I should have been told what was in stock or not. I will NEVER do business with Gurney's Again. I believe they are conducting shady and probably illegal business practices by charging my card and misrepresenting to me the "immediate" shipping claim. STAY AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY. ANY COMPANY THAT OFFERS YOU $100 OF ON A $200 ORDER IS UP TO NO GOOD!

"On Feb 21, 2012 3:16 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problem with your order. I apologize for any mis-communication. A customer service representative will contact you for your account information and check on your order for you.
"

I have purchased trees and seeds from Gurney's for about 15 years now. I received items that are representative of the advertisements. The apple, peach, pear, and nectarine trees all have done well and are prolific. I also have several grape vines from Gurney's that have done well have over two inch diameter trunks. I have had a few plants die, and Gurney's always either replaced the plant or offered a credit. There is some delay in addressing returns during the busy part of the season, however, Gurney's responses have kept me aware that they are addressing the issue. The seeds (peanut, squash, beans, cucumber) also have done well and I order these every year, and I supply a local food pantry with fresh vegetables all summer. I have ordered Georgia Jet sweet potato slips for some years now, and Gurney's has often supplied more than my order request assuring a good harvest. I have ordered from other nurseries, but I always check Gurney's first. After some 15 year experience with this nursery, I certainly recommend them as offering a good product and at a good value.

"On Feb 6, 2012 10:51 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you so much for your wonderful testimonial. We really appreciate hearing from our customers and that you have been a customer for over 15 years, we thank you for letting us be your gardening friend.
"

I have been ordering from Gurneys for 30 years and have always gotten good service. On the few occasions a plant did not survive they shipped a replacement at the proper planting time. It is always important to order early while supplies are good and so they can be shipped at the correct time. I will be ordering from Gurneys for many more years.

"On Feb 1, 2012 3:51 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for taking the time to post about our company. We do offer our lifetime guarantee and yes ordering early is a good idea."

While I will never order from Gurney (or Field's) again, they did refund most of my money, without being asked. I had ordered and planted Vinca and lilacs which failed to thrive and were non-existent by the following spring. The wild flower seeds grew and even came back the next year. I wrote them just to explain the plants died even though they had been cared for according to directions. They sent a check for partial payment! I wrote again to ask for an explanation. They then sent another check, minus S&H, plus a new seed packet! Odd, since I had specifically complimented them on the seed growth as being different than the plant death! Their customer service people do not read, their plants do not thrive, but they do cut checks.

"On Jan 31, 2012 2:32 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We appreciate you taking the time to post. We apologize for any problems you may have had. A customer service representative will contact you for your account information."

I have ordered items more than once from Gurney's. I like the bargain prices. My wife made fun of them, calling the trees "little sticks." However, all my "little sticks" have continued to grow. One of them, a Contender semi dwarf peach tree, died back to about 6 inches the first winter, with only one leaf left alive above the graft. I called Gurney's, they had a record of my purchase still. They offered to replace it, even though I had the tree for a couple of years. They said that they were out of stock for a replacement that year, which was disappointing. However, the tree came roaring back, growing 8 feet in one year. I think the tree must have been listening when I called and didn't want to end up in the yard waste container. My kids all enjoyed the peaches it had this year. It was completely loaded and stands about 12 foot tall after it's third year. They were much better than the variety that I got from the local nursery that died a few years before. Gurney's is a bargain hunter's type of company; it pays to be patient.

"On Jan 17, 2012 10:52 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you so much for your testimonial about your experience with our trees. We really appreciate the wonderful feedback."

I am quite surprised there are negative remarks about this great company as we have had a great experience.
Husband and I just retired and moved to a new area summer of 2011 (northern New Mexico) we were very excited about the ability to have a very large garden. We ordered approximately $300 of seeds, fruit trees, and plants through several orders.
Late November, I emailed Gurneys with a question regarding one of the peach trees (leafed only 1/2 the way up the trunk - what does it need?). Was not requesting a replacement, just information, but Gruneys immediately replied that a replacement tree will be sent.
Of the approximate 30 different vegetable seeds - only the peas failed to thrive. Then again neighbors recently told us they have never been able to grow peas in our unusually windy area (not to mention the drought of 2011). I mentioned this to Gurneys in the same email with the peach tree question and they immediately sent us seed replacements for the peas. We had so much wonderful produce that I was actually bragging about our summer crop and not worried about the peas. We are always striving to be vegetarian and live over 30 miles from town making it hard to keep fresh vegetables on hand. Gurneys allowed us to have a wonderful crop (we supplied many neighbors with fresh vegetables - great way to make new friends) and allowed an abundance to can and freeze for the winter months. We really appreciate Gurneys!

"On Dec 11, 2011 12:57 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We really appreciate your sharing your gardening experience with our products. Sounds like you had an awesome garden with lots of good fruit and veggies. Any time you need any information on seeds, plants or trees just let us know we have all kinds of information available for our customers."

Love Gurneys products. I have ordered from them several times. Always receive healthy plants. My blackberry plants are thriving even during our horrible drought.

Many of their plants come in some seedling pots and arrive very healthy.

Recommend them.

"On Nov 27, 2011 2:17 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We appreciate you telling us about your plants. We are happy to hear how well they are doing and look forward to your future orders. Happy Gardening!"

Last year I ordered some seeds and a couple trees from Gurney's. The transaction was smooth. The seeds arrived quickly. The trees arrived in excellent condition at the right time in the spring.

"On Nov 27, 2011 2:14 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you so much for sharing, we appreciate what our customers have to say."

Posted on October 11, 2011, updated November 10, 2011
I placed an order in February 2011 for strawberry plants. They arrived within a month, but they were bare roots without any tops on them. I planted them and some of them did grow, but not very well. I watered them religiously all summer, but got no fruit and watched over half the plants slowly die. I thought perhaps it was the heat, but I suspect that some of them were dead when they arrived.

I placed another order in July 20011, for more strawberry plants, two elderberry bushes, and some garlic to plant in the fall. My credit card was charged right away, of course. By early September I hadn't received them so I emailed Gurney's to ask. They sent the standard answer "your order will be shipped at the correct time for planting in your zone". I replied by saying that I wanted the strawberries now, so they could get established before winter. No reply. I wrote again in early October and asked about my order and was told that it would ship in "3 - 5 business days". I replied and told them to cancel the order. They replied that my order couldn't be cancelled because suddenly it had already been shipped.

I logged on my Gurney's account and discovered that the strawberry part of my order had been cancelled and the rest had been mailed. Nobody bothered to tell me the strawberries had been cancelled and now it's too late to order and plant from someplace else.

I haven't received their package yet, but I will refuse shipment when it arrives, and will have AMEX recover my money. I wish I'd known about Dave's Garden before I ordered from Gurney's. Never again!

"On Oct 12, 2011 12:19 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problems with your order. A customer service representative will be contacting you for your account information to take care of this for you.

I had never ordered from any mail order catalogue before so I was unsure what to expect. After placing my order, I read some of the reviews and I was really nervous about my plants actually arriving and what condition they would be in. I ordered a Jose Lillac and a butterfly bush that were both the size indicated on the website and looked really healthy with lots of green leaves. I planted those about 2 weeks ago and they both look really good. I also ordered 2 of the perennial sweet pea (which I had never even heard of in zone 5) and those plants were also in very good condition and seem to be doing great. The spiderworts were also in great condition and a lot larger than what I expected- so I am exciting to see what those turn out like in the Spring. My only complaint would be I am a new gardener and I ordered a reblooming german iris and there were no specific instructions for it (there was a general planting guidebook for anything you could have possibly ordered) and I was confused if I was suppose to soak the bulb or not. So- I just planted it and water it a lot- so I will have to wait and see on that one. I never really write reviews but after reading through some of the other ones- I thought I should share my positive experience.

"On Oct 21, 2011 2:20 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for your nice feedback we really appreciate what you have to say about our company and out plants. Here are some tips on iris.

Where to Plant Iris
Iris plants do best in full sun, and need a minimum of half a day exposure. The soil must have good drainage, so they will thrive in a raised bed or on a slope. If the climate is extremely hot, some shade is beneficial.

Preparation of Soil
For the best start, add Iris Lovers Plant Food to soil (sold on page 3). Iris soil must allow for drainage. Gypsum will improve drainage for most clay soil, and sand or humus will improve heavy soil. The ideal pH is 6.8 (slightly acidic), but irises will tolerate fluctuations. It is best to test the soil and adjust the pH, adding lime to acidic soils or sulfur to alkaline soils.

Iris Planting Depth
The proper planting depth is critical to your iris! Do not plant too deeply. The roots are planted spread out facing down, and the tops of the rhizomes exposed above the soil. 1” of the rhizomes may be covered in extremely hot climates. Pack soil around each rhizome.

Iris Planting Distance
Iris plants should be set 12” to 24” apart. If planted too close together, frequent thinning will be necessary to prevent overcrowding.

How to Water Iris
After planting, watering is necessary to establish roots. Slow watering at long intervals, such as with a soaker hose, is the best method to achieve this. Be careful not to over water. Once established, iris plants do well with natural rainfall. If the climate or weather conditions are arid, more watering may be necessary.

"

I ordered 7 aster plants from this company on June 27, 2011. I never received an acknowledgment and the plants didn't arrive until last Saturday, October 15, 2011, three days before the first hard freeze in Omaha! I am now trying to get my money back. Regrettably, I had ordered them before discovering "Dave's Watchdog" list. Needless to say, I'll never order anything from Gurney's again.

"On Oct 17, 2011 11:47 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for your feedback. We always ship our plants according to the USDA for your area. Although fall is the best time to plant asters, we apologize the plants did not arrive sooner. We will be happy to refund you for your purchase. A customer service representative will be contacting your for your account information."

Posted on June 19, 2011, updated September 27, 2011
Wish i would have found Daves Garden a week earlier ... I would never have began doing business with Gurneys had i seen these ratings.

Ordered two 3-1 Spirea bushes, one Kaleidoscope Hydrangea, and one Bi-color butterfly bush.
All are supposed to ship in the fall around the 2nd week of September (6A) ... I will update the neutral rating with a thumbs up or down when that time arrives.

Fingers Crossed

"On Jun 20, 2011 10:29 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for your feedback about your order. A customer service representative will contact you for your account information and check on the ship date of your order.

Made and order at the beginning of summer and trying to go native wanted to intro a pawpaw to my NC garden. Ordered 2 potted plants and got 2 bareroot things because they were out of stock and subbed in. Needless to say the hottest July on record took care of the poorly rooted guys. I knew what I had ordered, knew what I needed and didn't get it.
Several other parts of my order were subbed as well and none of the plants really thrived (although they survived). Feel free to take the risk, but don't be surprised when your order is filled with something you either didn't want or know you can't make work anyway.

"On Sep 6, 2011 10:42 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for your posting. A customer service representative will contact you for your account infomation. If you are not satisfied for any reason we will reship, send a replacement certificate or refund you for your purchase."

So far positive, but it's a close call. I have placed a few orders with this company since April of this year. In April, I ordered a dwarf meyer lemon, med olive tree, and root divisions of a white peony. One of the peony roots never made it. The other had one sprout. They refunded my total cost for this flower. The olive tree is doing fairly well. It is much smaller and has less leaves than I thought it would, but it's alive and very slowly progressing for the better. The lemon sapling was about 4 inches tall and dropped all of it's leaves until it died a couple weeks after it's arrival. Gurney's is sending me a replacement in October. Although not happy about the percentage of the loss, they did refund my order or will soon send me a replacement. Plus, their prices are simply the lowest out there when they have a promotion.
My next order was one that I had highly anticipated. A Japanese Stewarita and an almond tree sapling (Hall's Hardy). Another coupon promotion with great prices came my way so I jumped on the opportunity. Regrettably, i received a refund on my credit card with no explanation a couple weeks after my order. Confused, I called and the almond tree was refunded to my credit card because they sold out. I wish they would've emailed me sooner or at least inform me of such changes.
I hope I receive the stewarita tree... If I don't I will be changing my rating to negative simply because of the time it has taken me to receive my plants or receive my shipment of replacements. On the other hand, if my lemon and stewarita tree come healthy and on time, I will keep my positive rating for Gurney's.
To sum: unbeatable prices, good refund policy, but the quality and supply just isn't at the level I'd prefer it to be.

"On Sep 6, 2011 10:26 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We appreciate you taking the time to post. A customer service representative will contact you for your account information and check on your shipment for you."

Posted on May 20, 2010, updated July 31, 2011
Posted on May 11, 2010, updated May 20, 2010
Posted on March 15, 2008, updated May 11, 2010
I recieved my order of 3 apple trees last week--and I was pleasantly suprised! They were over 3'tall, and a VERY nice diameter. I also have a lifetime guarentee. As to how they will grow, I'll have to get back to you on that--but I see no reason at this time not to have success.

"On May 11, 2010 3:17 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for taking the time to post. We appreciate your feedback. A customer service representative will be contacting you for your account information so we can get your reship taken care of.

I cancelled an order for chocolate vines. The refund was for
$34.93. They claim that they refunded the money to my credit card two weeks ago but I do not have the money. They make you wait for days and days to talk to their accounting dept. I still don't know where my money is. I have spent 5 times more labor than the lousy 34 bucks. Sheesh what a run around.

"On Jul 28, 2011 12:07 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We appreciate your feedback and apologize for the delay in your refund. A customer service representative will contact you for your account information and check on your refund for you."

I ordered 3 fruit trees early in the season expecting them to be shipped at the proper planting time for our area. I ordered a Cherry Pie North Star, Apple Goldrush, and Apple Pixie Crunch. All three were shipped on March 18, way too early to plant here in the northwest hills of Connecticut, Zone 5. The ground was too frozen to heel them in so I put them in water in the basement and watch them gradually fade away. I did plant the lifeless trees but they never revived. I didn't notify the company because I am so disappointed with a lot of the nurseries these days with their exorbitant prices and bad service; I just gave up. I will order in the future from a reliable orchard product nursery.

"On Jul 25, 2011 1:11 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for your feedback. I was sorry to hear about your trees. We offer a lifetime guatantee on our plants and we would be happy to replace them for you. A customer service representative will be contacting you for your account information."

I have been ordering from Gurneys for years and I have never had any problems from them. Actually I have never had a situation where I needed to return anything so Im not really sure how they are with that. All the seeds I get come up like clockwork. I had a really bad experience with Burgess when I decided to give them a try. BIG mistake to order from anyone but Gurneys. I will continue to order from them in the future.

"On Jul 15, 2011 4:04 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you very much for your wonderful feedback about our company. We will look forward to your future orders. Happy Gardening!"

Back in March I tried to place an order on their website. It didn't go through and I was told to try again.

I tried twice more and the order still wouldn't go through.

I contacted customer service who told me to place the order by phone or mail. I was told the online orders had not gone through and I wouldn't be charged for them.

I placed my order by mail. When I received it an item was missing. I checked it out and found out it couldn't be sent to my state. Ok, my fault for not noticing that when I ordered.

But I was not refunded for the item or even informed that it wouldn't be sent. I had to contact Gurney again and had to argue about the fact that I wasn't even credited for the item I didn't receive.

Finally, after several emails, they gave me a gift certificate for 10 dollars for future orders, which I'm not going to use so I'm out what I paid for that item.

Yesterday, on July 1st, I get a message on my answering machine that they're trying to put my order through but my credit card is no longer valid. What order? I received the order I placed by mail months ago.

Turns out all three identical orders I tried to place online in March got put through on June 28th. Three months after I was told they did not go through and I would not be charged for them. Good thing my credit card company had issued me a new card because they suspected someone had gotten hold of my credit card number. Had my original CC number been valid I apparently would have been charged for and sent this identical order three more times.

Yesterday I sent them an email explaining what happened and expressing my displeasure with the circumstance. I told them I obviously didn't want these orders and was told they hadn't gone through and that I wouldn't be charged for them.

Today I get an email saying that two of the orders have been cancelled but did I still want the third one.

Seriously?

Dealing with Gurney's is like being in a David Lynch movie. It's surreal and bizarre and you feel like they are speaking a different English than you are.

So I'm out the money for the item that couldn't be shipped, because I'm never going to order from them again so the gift certificate is worthless, and three months later I'm still dealing with their website glitches and customer service, which is like pulling teeth to get a point across to.

Unreal.

"On Jul 5, 2011 1:04 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We appreciate you letting us know about the problem with our website and your orders. A customer service representative will contact you for your account information and make sure the other orders have been cancelled and also that you have been refunded."

I placed a large order. Never received it. When i contacted them they never heard of me.
They requested I send them copy of both sides of canceled check.They never received it. I sent another by registered/return receipt. They received that one.
Still no refund.

"On Jul 5, 2011 12:57 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for contacting us about your order. A customer service representative will be contacting you for your name and address and look into this for you."

O.K....I have ordered from Gurney's before and had poor experience, so I was hesitant to order again but bit on the $25 off $50 coupon.

Ordered three gooseberries and three currents. All came in great shape and all but one have thrived (one gooseberry is struggling but will probably make through the season).

I think that the company is trying to improve their products and services, but perhaps they need try even harder.

"On Jun 27, 2011 10:49 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for sharing your experience with our company. If you ever have any problems with your plants just let us know. We do have a lifetime guarantee on all our plants. Happy Gardening!"

My wife and I have been ordering from Gurneys for the past several years and we have spent several thousand dollars with the company. In fact to date we have never purchased plants from any other mailorder company. This past winter I got a coupon that would take $100 off an order of $200. I really wanted to add one of their Trugold Peaches to my orchard, so I made up an order and kept adding other things to my cart until I reached just over $200. My order was placed at the beggining of winter and when the snow melted I dug a hole and preped the perfect spot in my orchard for the arrival of my new peach tree. When spring arrived I started receiving and planting the other plants in my order as they arrived over several weeks. Then toward the end of the Spring planting season I received a postcard from Gurney's saying that they ran out of the Trugold Trees and have canceled my order that I placed and paid for over 6 months ago! I was very dissapointed. Then months later I received a letter from Gurney's saying my account is past due and I am to pay the enclosed bill if I hadn't allready done so. I checked my E-mails from Gurneys and all of my orders were billed to my credit card at the time I placed the order so I ignored the letter. Two weeks later I got a second letter threatening that they would take action if I didn't pay the enclosed bill! I called Gurney's and held forever before getting someone. I asked the representative to explain the bill. He could not explain what I was being billed for. He put me on hold again for a long time. He then came back on the phone and said he thinks that because they did not send me the Trugold tree my order no longer was a $200 order and did not qualify for the coupon offer and the bill is me paying them back the difference in the coupon discount! I told him if they feel I still owe them money then bill my credit card again and I gave him my card information again! So.... after waiting 1/2 a year to get the tree I was so excited to get I not only didn't get the tree, I also didn't get to take advantage of the coupon after adding all the extras to my order to get it above the $200 level! My wife and I have requested catalogs from a few of the other nurseries that seem to get good reviews here so we can place our fall planting season order.

"On Jun 27, 2011 10:35 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

We appreciate you letting us know about the problem with your order. We will have a customer service representative contact you for your account information and take care of the problem with the coupon and get your account cleared up."

I am very disappointed with Gurney's service. I ordered from them for the first time this year (taken in by the great coupons) and I do not plan to do so again. Their products seem to be decent, though no better quality or price than elsewhere, and their service is abominable! Here's a quick rundown:

At the beginning of March, I placed two orders on the same day, mostly containing vegetable seeds to start indoors. I was a little late in ordering, but the website indicated that seeds came quickly, so I decided to do it. I got email confirmation of both orders quickly. A few days later, I got shipping confirmation of one order, which came in about a week and was complete except for my onion, potato, and sweet potato sets (as I was expecting). Great. Things were good so far.

When the other order (placed the same day) didn't come within the next day or two, I started to get nervous. I hadn't gotten shipping confirmation so I emailed Gurney's. No response. Next, I tried calling. After sitting on hold for fifteen minutes or so, I gave up and emailed again. No response. So I called again, waited on hold for 20+ minutes, and finally spoke with someone. She was pleasant, but when she saw that my order (seeds only, remember) hadn't been sent 15 days after the order had been placed, her response was basically "oops, I'll do that now." I requested they be sent expedited for at no cost to me, and this wasn't done. I got them about 19 days after I ordered. When they came, they were missing a packet of heirloom tomato seeds, with no explanation. I called back, waited on hold forever, and was told that those seeds were on backorder. When I asked why I hadn't been notified, either when I placed the order or when they were shipped to me, I was given no explanation. I was told they would come "soon." I got them about 25 days after I ordered them, and pretty late to be starting them as seeds.

Fed up, I sent another email in to customer service, expressing my frustration that my second order took so long to come, that no apology or explanation was given, that it wasn't sent expedited as requested, and that it was incomplete when it did come, and that my first two emails weren't answered. I did get a response, apologizing for the incovenience, and telling me I would get a $5 gift certificate for my troubles. The gift certificate never came.

I was also expecting some potato, sweet potato and onion sets, which I expected to be shipped according to zone. I was worried, given my experience so far, that they wouldn't come or wouldn't come on time. However, the aforementioned email told me that everything would be done properly, so I decided to wait and see.

My potato and onion sets were shipped on time, I got a shipping confirmation, and they arrived in late April. They looked fine. Great! So maybe the sweet potatoes will come on time. I was expecting them to come around May 20th. When I didn't get shipping confirmation by the 23rd, I called again. This is the fourth time I had to call for two simple orders, and each time I have had to wait on hold FOREVER. It's very frustrating. I was told that the sweet potatoes were being sent by a vendor and they didn't know when they would come, but they would come sometime. Helpful. So I waited, and started to think about what else I should plant in my sweet potato space.

My sweet potatoes sets showed up suddenly on May 30th, no advance warning or shipping confirmation (I got shipping confirmation several days after they came). Luckily I was in town and able to plant them that night, as I went out of town the next day. They looked very yellow and dry, but I planted them anyway, hoping they would perk up. Within the next few weeks, even with regular watering, all but one died. So much useless waiting and stress (and time on hold with Gurney's) for dead plants. I know I could complain to them and get my money back (or more plants, but I probably wouldn't get them until August) but I'm just sick of dealing with them and sitting on hold and having really inconsistent responses. Plus, there's no guarantee that I'd get my money back anyway, since I never got my other $5.

The product (except for the sweet potatoes) does seem fine. The seeds all sprouted pretty well, and the potato and onion sets all seem to be growing. The product is good, but the price and quality isn't really any better than Johnny's or other seed catalogues, and they all have better service. I won't order from Gurney's again. It's just not worth the frustration.

"On Jun 24, 2011 10:54 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problem with your order. We apologize for the delay in shipping and the sweet potatoes not doing well. A customer service representative will be contacting you for your account information so we can take care of this for you."

Half the seed did not come up. Tomatos will not produce.
Had to buy local to have a garden this year. Will not buy from them again.

"On Jun 20, 2011 9:18 AM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about the problems with your seeds and tomatoes. A customer service representative will be contacting your for your account information and we can have the items reshipped to you."

I recently ordered from Gurney's for the first time and I had a positive experience. When I ordered for some reason the $25 coupon did not register, but I called them and they fixed it right away.

My order arrived in three parts. I ordered some seeds, Jerusalem Artichoke tubers and sweet potato plants. The pepper seeds I ordered germinated very well, the JA tubers were HUGE and much nicer than expected and the sweet potatoes were disappointing. When the sweet potatoes arrived I thought they were dead.... BUT I planted them anyway and they are definitely alive and growing.

So the only problem I have is I planted the sweet potatoes too close together, because I thought they were dead... Oh well, I am happy with my order.

"On Jun 15, 2011 12:48 PM, Gurney's Seed & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for letting us know about your experience with us. We do our best to make sure every order you place with us is a positive experience. You can contact us any time for all your gardening needs."