Comments regarding Black Jungle Terrarium Supply

Posted on September 8, 2010, updated September 9, 2010
I placed an order online with Black Jungle (who I have had good experiences with before) on August 18th and my credit card was charged on August 20th. I received an email stating that my order was being processed on August 23rd. Since then I have not received the package and have tried to contact the company six times now. I emailed three times (once even through their website) and have called and only gotten their answering machine. I have left three messages with my order and contact info requesting an update, but have received no response. If the items were back-ordered that might be fine, but with no response I am not sure at this point if I need to cancel the charge with my credit card company.

Posted on February 11, 2010, updated February 18, 2010
Posted on February 8, 2010, updated February 11, 2010
Posted on February 8, 2010, updated February 8, 2010
Ok lets see if the reviews are right. Im waiting for my order of tropical moss, Salvinia natans and Terra-Lite - 20 gal. size.

Placed : 01/28/2010 21:50:45 PDT 28 is a Thursday and its been a full week. Today is the 8th "On average, orders are processed within 0-4 business days after receiving them"
"After processing, plants will be shipped via UPS Second Day Air, or UPS Ground if you are within 2-3 days travel
time"

"Shipping time for ground services may take from 1-6 business days for delivery, depending
on your zip code."

all quotes from email.
Now lets see if it arrives in a timely manor and if the quality is exceptional. According to the email it should take maybe another 1-2 weeks +/- after processing

Ps I emailed them once about the order but no response. My thoughts - maybe they're busy or it went to spam so lets see how the order turns out. For Positive or Negative experience

"On Feb 22, 2010 5:19 PM, Black Jungle Terrarium Supply responded with:

Hi jjhuang,

We are really at a loss over what your intent is at this point. We replied to your only e-mail in a timely fashion and shipped your order out with a minimal delay. There was no problem with quality or service that we can see so we are confused about your latest comments. If you prefer to deal with Josh then please do so. Just so you are aware, we have been in business about 13 years longer than Josh, and, in addition to the many thousands of private individuals as customers, also are proud to work with the zoos, museums, botanic gardens and other institutions listed below. A company does not cultivate that type of following with marginal service.

Zoos:
Trevor Zoo
National Zoo
Brookfield Zoo
Brevard Zoo
Fort Worth Zoo
Clyde Peelings Reptiland Zoo
Columbus Zoo
Dickerson Park Zoo
Denver Zoo
Milwaukee County Zoo
St. Pauls Como Zoo
Santa Ana Zoo
Inidanapolis Zoo
Jacksonville Zoological Gardens
Potawatomi Zoological Society
San Diego Zoo
Quaker Zoological Gardens
Detroit Zoo
Utah's Hogle Zoo
Lowry Park Zoo
The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore
The Bronx Zoo
Memphis Zoo
Miami Metro Zoo
Nevada Zoological Foundation
Red River Zoo
Rosevelt Park Zoo
Rosamond Gifford Zoo
Rolling Hills Zoo
Houston Zoo
Bergen County Zoo
Cape May County Park Zoo
Cincinatti Zoo
Honolulu Zoo
Lincoln Park Zoo
Lowry Park Zoo
New York State Zoo
Oakland Zoo
Oglebay Zoo
Roger Williams Park Zoo
San Antonio Zoo
The Audubon Zoo
Knoxville Zoological Gardens
Blank Park Zoo
Como Zoo
Staten Island Zoo
*Chatattnooga Zoo
*Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
*Elmwood Park Zoo
*Forest Park Zoo
*Indianapolis Zoo
*Minnesota Zoo
*Nashville Zoo
*Niabi Zoo
*North Carolina Zoo
*Oklahoma City Zoo
*Palm Beach Zoo
*Philadelphia Zoo
*Sedgewick County Zoo
*St. Louis Zoo
*Sunset Zoo
*The Zoo Northwest Florida
*Toledo Zoo
*Tulsa Zoo and Living Museum
*Zoo New England
Gulf Breeze Zoo

Museums:
American Museum of Natural History
*Berkshire Museum
Fillmore Museum of Natural History
Brooklyn Children's Museum
Bruce Museum
*Cincinatti Museum Center
*Harvard Museum of Natural History
Huntington Museum of Art
Houston Museum of Natural Science
Junior Museum of Bay County
Long Island Reptile Museum
Museum of Discovery and Science
Museum of Science and History
Museum of Science and Industry
Museum of Life and Science
*National Geographic Museum
*Natural History Museum of the Adirondacks
North Carnolina Museum of Natural Sciences
*Palo Alto Museum and Zoo
*Petaluma Wildlife Museum
Science Museum of Western Virginia
South Florida Science Museum
Springfield Science Museum
Yale Peabody Museum
*California Acadamy of Natural Sciences

Aquariums:
National Aquarium in Baltimore
Georgia Aquarium
Sea World Texas
Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies
Aquarium of Nashville
Mystic Aquarium
Monterey Bay Aquarium
South Carolina Aquarium
New England Aquarium
The National Aquarium
The Dallas World Aquarium
Shedd Aquarium
Aquarium of the Pacific
Newport Aquarium
Columbus Aquarium
Long Beach Aquarium
Texas State Aquarium
The Adventure Aquarium
The Virginia Aquarium
Echo Lake Aquarium and Science Center for Lake Champlain
*New York Aquarium
*North Carolina Aquarium
*Oklahoma Aquarium
*The Florida Aquarium
*Seaworld San Antonio
*Seaworld San Diego
*Seaworld Orlando

Botanical Gardens:
The US Botanic Garden
The Atlanta Botanical Garden
Krohn Conservatory
*Chicago Botanic Garden
*Buffalo & Erie Botanical Gardens
*Western Colorado Botanical Gardens
*State Botanical Garden of Georgia
*Olbrich Botanical Gardens
*Naples Botanical Garden
*Huntington Botanical Gardens
*Tower Hill Botanic Garden
*The Marjorie McNeely Conservatory
*Smith College Conservatory

Nature Centers:
Cincinnati Nature Center
North Coast Nature Center
Calusa Nature Center
Woodcock Nature Center
Soaring Eagles Nature Center
Flat Rock Nature Center
Dagger Wing Nature Center
Minot Park District
Vermont Institute of Natural Science
Ontario Science Center
Liberty Science Center
The Acadamy of Natural Sciences
Vancouver Aquarium Marine Science Center
*River Legacy Living Science Center

Other Notable Institutions:
Disney World
Moody Gardens
Predator World - West Branson, MO
Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory - South Deerfield, MA
The Butterfly Place - Branson, MO
Butterfly Pavilion - Myrtle Beach, SC
Butterfly Corner - Lenoir, NC
*Downtown Aquarium - Houston, TX
*JL Popp Butterfly Conservatory
*Keywest Nature & Butterfly Conservatory

...and Many other Schools and Universities"

I posted neutral about this company, I liked their selection of jewel orchids and the prices they had on them but the size of the plants were so tiny, it wasn't worth the order.

I still have my jewel orchids I bought from them the beginning of last summer but they are no bigger now than what they were when I bought them, and I have others that have tripled in size that I bought elsewhere. I think I can say I do a good enough job to know that these aren't healthy plants and still aren't.

"

Hi Kathy,

I'm sorry that you are having a problem with the plants. We would appreciate the opportunity to speak with you about them to help determine what might need to be done. Can you please contact us at 800-268-1813?

Thanks,
Richard Revis
Black Jungle"

I was thrilled to find this site: they had a lot of neat nepenthes, as well as other interesting plants. I ordered two nepenthes and then went back and ordered a third. I emailed about combining the two if possible, but never heard back. I received the two of the three nepenthes yesterday. When I saw the box I was disheartened. Instead of using a regular shipping box, they had used a tired, battered box that had once held terrarium supplies. I have no issue with reusing packing, but it should at least be able to protect the plants/be in decent shape.

Upon opening the box (it practically fell apart in my hands the cardboard was so flimsy), I found minimal packing, and two very small, very sad looking little plants. One had been essentially crushed. It had been stuffed into a plastic baggie, pot and all, with no wrapping on the pot, so the peat it was potted in was everywhere, and the plant was uprooted. The plant was also much, much smaller than advertised. I repotted it into a 2" pot, and the leaves don't even reach the sides of the pot. I'd say the LS is about 1.5". It's about the same in height, so it is a tiny little thing. So much for a 4" leafspan. The other plant is about a 4" leafspan, so I can't complain- the size is as was advertised. It did arrive in OK condition. This one was packed better and wrapped so that it would not uproot, unlike the other plant. I think it will acclimate just fine. I'm not sure about the other though.

Now I am worried about the third plant. What condition will it be in when it arrives?

I ended up leaving a neutral, as the one plant was as advertised, and did arrive OK. I also have not contacted the company, so they have had no chance to try to rectify the situation, so at this point, a negative isn't called for. I hope that they begin to use more care in packing, and if they are sold out of a plant of a certain size, instead of just sending a much smaller one, let the customer know, offer a small discount, or substitution (or at least apology ), something.

"

Dear Lothian,

I wish you had called us before posting a complaint. I do everything in my power to make sure each and every customer who orders plants from Black Jungle is more than satisfied. If you do call, even at this late date, I will replace the damaged item and do anything else I can to set things right. This is the first time I've heard of a Nepenthes leaving our shop without proper taping. That disappoints me. I'm also disappointed in the box choice. Over 95% of our plants leave in new, stiff boxes, and in the winter they are also insulated.
Black Jungle has gotten the message about the need to improve Customer Service and a number of steps have been taken: First, we've added a fulltime CSR position, so now, folks can call from 9-5 p.m. and reach a live person, who can take their orders, answer questions, or shuffle them over to the right expert. Second, BJTS has built a new show greenhouse right next to the shop, so soon, customers can come view our entire plant inventory, year-round. We've also become much more aggressive about de-listing plants as soon as they become unavailable, and we've initiated a follow-up phone call policy for terrarium builders, to check on how things are going after they've received their order.
We know we're not perfect, but we're trying really hard. We are truly an American Cinderella company, in that we've grown very quickly from a small basement enterprise to a big storefront, and we've had to learn a whole lot, really fast. But please believe us when we promise you, we are! We want to be the best terrarium supply company in the world. Thank you all for your feedback. We are listening very closely.

---Sincerely, BJTS"

I recently ordered three nepenthes (carnivorous plants). My order arrived promply, and the plants were well packed. The plants were in fairly good condition, although not quite as good as others I have ordered elsewhere. Their website has some unusual plants that are hard to find from other sources.