Comments regarding Seymour's Selected Seeds

First off, I'll say I'm giving a neutral because the order was made several years ago, before I felt comfortable asking for a replacement/refund. They may have made it right; I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.

Some plants were way over exaggerated in their beauty; "Captivating, astonishing to behold and rarely seen!" translates to "It will fill a space until you find something better." There were two different Sweet Peas listed as scented perennials. I had my doubts because I had never heard of the two attributes going together. There were only 15 seeds in each packet; one had a 0% germination rate, and the other didn't turn out to be perennial. The germination rates in general were low.

A mixed bag experience. Just one of those places that
sorta makes the hair on ur neck stand out, if u know what
I mean.

Orders have varied from prompt to dismal. quality is ditto.

I see they are not doing business this year, hmmmm!

With more than several experiences I rate them anywhere
from a 3 to about a 7+ on a 1-10 scale. (u pick)

Regarding mimulus "Andean Nymph": Actually, I've ordered this selection from Seymour's and had good experience with viability. My plants were also true to name, but in light of Jane Hendrix's and her friend's problems, it probably would be better to order from another company. DO try this plant…

My one experience with Seymour's was disappointing. Germination was extremely poor, and what I did get was not true to form. Last January (1999), I ordered one packet each of Cyclamen, Coleus, and Datura "Evening Fragrance." None of the Cyclamen seeds germinated. Of the Coleus, I eventually planted the entire packet of 40-50 seeds, but only 3 germinated, and those seedlings were weak and sickly, and only one survived. It eventually became a robust plant, but sheesh! A 2 percent germination and survival rate is pretty bad. Of the Datura, I planted 8 seeds, only one of which germinated. I am not exactly a novice seed grower, and all were planted in seed starters, and babied along. In fact, when it was apparent that the Coleus seeds were duds, I planted some leftover year-old seed, and they sprouted and grew like weeds. To give the company some benefit of the doubt, I should point out that the seeds were mailed in January, so perhaps they froze along the way. But then, a reputable plant company should have a good idea as to when to mail its products so they don't get killed along the way. As for true to form: The supposed "Evening Fragrance" did not match the description orpicture. Instead of a large, 8-inch cone-shaped flower tinged with purple, the flower was pure white, trumpet-shaped, with a long, thin tube and a spreading part no wider across than an average petunia. The fragrance was nice, but faint. The catalog is nice as a color picture reference, but I will order from other companies.

I've ordered from Seymour's once or twice a couple of years ago. I just received their latest catalog. Very pretty and I'm tempted to place another order for one of their more unusual offerings. But I vowed never again. My experience has been similar to others as far as generic germination directions are concerned. However, this alone wouldn't bother me as specific info is available on line as well as incountless library books. What REALLY bugs me is spending time and money germinating a specific variety only to end up with something totallydifferent. Case in point: ordered seeds of Mimulus 'Andean Nymph'. Result: 2 or 3 plants that produced the pictured flowers; the rest were common Mimulus, pretty but not worth the premium price I paid for 'Andean Nymph'. Case 2: sowed seeds of the perennial (for me in my climate) Iceland Poppy 'Oregon Rainbows'. Result: one Iceland Poppy plant of undetermined variety, 2 plants that resembled the annual peony-flowered poppy which I would have NEVER ordered because our mountainous climate doesn't provide a long enough season for this species, and that's all! Case 3: sowed seeds of Aquilegia 'Irish Elegance' (a white columbine). Result: one viable seedling! I'm not a novice when it comes to germinating plants from seed. I've already racked up over 100,000 successful seedlings of about 500 species. Columbine are almost always simple.My friend had the same experience with Mimulus 'Andean Nymph' as I did. Additionally, she had the WORST time trying to get a catalog fromSeymour's. She finally ordered from mine and never did get a catalog from the company even after placing her order! She reported the problem to Seymour's but got no response and no satisfaction. Not the kind of place you want to place a sizable order with.My advice is use Seymour's catalog as a colored-picture reference and order from [elsewhere]…

I just ordered for the first time from Seymour's - don't know yet how well the seeds will germinate, but the packet directions leave a lot to be desired. Most of their annuals seem to have the same set of generic directions, whichcould cause some problems if you've never grown those grown those particular seeds. Eustoma (Lisianthus) is very slow to germinate and grow and needs several months to get to transplant size, but the label merely says to start in early Spring, as it does for every half-hardy annual. All other packets of snapdragons I'vebought tell me not to cover the seeds and that they germinate best at 55 F (which has always been successful for me), but Seymour's again has just generic directions about starting at 70-75 and barely covering the seed. Their seeds will probably turn out to be fine, but I would definitely get clear germination instructions from somewhere else before trying to grow them.I'd also suggest ordering early from this company - I ordered seeds from them a week before I sent orders to Parks, Jungs and Pinetree Garden Seeds, and got my order at least a week after my orders from the other 3 companies.[update]Just a few more comments on Seymour's, after starting a bunch of seeds from them. Germination was fine and everything grew well. Was rather surprised to discover that the Mediterranean white vinca seeds turned out to be something else - definitely pink and showing no signs of cascading or spreading yet - they're vinca, but I have no idea what they are. (Everything else was as pictured and doing nicely). I was also a little disappointed with how they deal with back orders. It's now mid-May and I've seen no sign of the nasturtium seeds that were back ordered, or heard anything from the company about when/whether they ever plan to send them or refund my money. I'll probably be tempted into ordering seeds from them again, since their catalog carries a lot of things you can't necessarily find anywhere else and I was pleased with most of the seeds - but I plan to be a little cautious about relying on them.