Comments regarding Gurney's Seed & Nursery

I bought 4 fruit trees from them, all of which died, two of which never even leafed out. I sent them a nasty-gram telling them their stock was terrible, and they sent me two new trees...one of which still never leafed. So of 6 trees, one survived. On the other hand I got some "bush roses" from them for a buck a piece which are doing great, despite the deer. [update11/1/1998] I just found your site, and was surprised that I had apparently found you some time ago, since there are quotes from me under Gurney's and Raintree. The one tree that survived from Gurney's is still alive, mostly, but suffers greatly in my foggy climate from peach leaf curl. I'm thinking about ripping it out.

Seeds were unsatisfactory versus others. I ordered 'Victory', 'Orange Ruffle', 'Artic Flame' and 'Fairy' roses. Only 'Fairy' is average, the rest are blah. The Tarragon is a spindly plant, mints are doing very well, tomatoes are very good, and I got this weird wedding flower - cool looking vine.

Gurney's has the reputation among my co-workers of never sending what you order. I called their service department and they confirmed that they "reserve the right to substitute equal or greater value." Well the only reason I would order is to get the unusual items, and they may not deliver. My co-worker said he ordered the same thing for years and never got it. They give lots of free-bees but that can be frustrating especially for a collector or a small garden.

I have been ordering seeds, trees and shrubs from Gurney's for over 10 years now, and I have never had a problem. I always get what I order, and in good condition.