Comments regarding Direct Gardening

I ordered 3 rosa rugosas,1 smoke tree,5 daylilies, 2 hall's honeysuckle vines,2 mock orange bushes and they arrived after 3 weeks of ordering. All of them are showing signs of growth, also I received free a dwarf burning bush and 8 free mixed flower bulbs. For $23 total I am quite satisfied with this company. Hopefully all of them will grow now.

wow, found this site AFTER i ordered 59.71 worth of goods on 03/14/2004.

talk about being nervous. Well the GOOD NEWS is i received a partial delivery (sat 03/27) and it was in perfect condition. (whew)
my blueberry was 8" tall all green and budded. my 3 bleeding hearts (roots) all had fresh growth and since planting a few days ago, have poked thru the ground. (whew wasnt sure which way was up), two climbing blue moon roses were budding (i broke one bud) but both are green, and fairing nicely. the free gifts, ?so/so? planted some bulbs in a pot will see what they do. still waiting for the rest of my order (kiwi's) so far so good. maybe it's just their packing that sucks ? hence the dead plants on arrival for some? i'm just outside chicago, so they didnt have a long trip to get to me.

happy gardening and remember:

Gardener's never die, they just loose their bloomers.

'g'

I have done business with this company a few times, one of which was a nightmare but they fixed the problem and have replaced the plant a couple of time. So long as you are willing to wait a little while for your plants and demand replacements for the ones that don't survive they do a decent job. They are extremely cheap so I figure that you get what you pay for. The shipping on the last 2 orders arrived in 2 weeks which I thought was quick.

I ordered from DirectGardening on January 20, 2004.

I just received my order today. I am very pleased. Everything came as described. I received 130 plants/root stock and they all had new growth above and below. They appear to be in terrific shape and most have been planted.

Although it's a little early in the season for us here in zone 2 I'm hoping that I have a good success rate with these plants. The soil may be a little cool yet. But, it's been unusually warm here this year. An early spring.

The plants we received were:

Rosa Rugosa - 96
Hydrangea Tree - 4
Tulip Tree - 4
Old Fashioned Lilac - 4
Coralberry - 4
Weeping Weigela - 6
Red Flowering Quince - 4

All in all I'm pleased with my order and will order from them again.

I placed an order of about $50. Order shipped within a few days of my credit card charge. Order arrived today. Of the plants I ordered, most seemed to be alive... bareroot but with visible sprouts. Given the prices, if half of these die, I'll still be content.

I have placed several orders over the past few years. All items arrived (with only one exception) in good condition. A few items never grew but I asked for a replacement and received ones that did grow. Yes, the items are small and/or dormant, but that's the only way you can mail them. Once they sent an incorrect order; I emailed them and they apologized and sent the correct items within a week. I was surprised to see all the negativity on this site.

Based on what I've read, I've been very lucky. I have ordered several times from them or one of their sub-companies. Each time there were either product that I didn't want or didn't grow. I returned the product according to their rules and my money was refunded as soon as it was received. They replaced the product that didn't grow or did not look great, quickly and without hassle. I saved the slip and sent it along with what needed replacing. The truth is the material they replaced it with was larger and grew wonderfully. I have no complaints.

I don't know why so many have complained about this company. They have exceeded my expectations, just waiting on the plants to grow now.

I placed my order for over $80 worth of plants in early February and called in March to verify the ship date. I spoke with someone my first and only time calling. I was given an "ideal shipping time" response and when I sent an e-mail toward the end of March, I was told my order was being assembled and would be shipped toward the begining of April. I received my shipment in three parts and received the last shipment (the bulk of my order) today.

I would have no problem ordering from them again. They do appear to be a reasonable value and worth a try. Start small if you're intimidated. I'm just glad I didn't read these postings before I placed my order. ;)

Frankly, I'm glad that I placed (and received) my 1st (and 2nd) order (approx total $150 for both) before I found this web site; otherwise I probably would not have ordered.

Because of the extremely low prices I was skeptical but decided to give them a try. Again, due to the extremely low prices, I had very low expectations. However, when the order arrived, I was pleasantly surprised. I placed a 2nd order right away and am planning another.

It seems to me that these people are offering a "discount" alternative. Just as I would not compare WalMart mdse to that from Sax, I don't expect premium size, quality, and packaging at the prices Direct Gardening charges.

Most of the items arrived bare root and were not as well packed as those I've received from elsewhere. But All ARRIVED ALIVE and in good health which is all that I could expect at those prices.

I have to admit that the bare root items did not look that great when they arrived - they looked like a bunch of twigs. But, all of the items lived. And one of those "twigs", a flowering almond, actually bloomed this year (only weeks after being planted)!

I have been happy with the items I've received. I consider Direct Gardening a good low cost alternative. I will order from them again.

I am not in any way associated with anyone from this or any other garden supply company.

I have ordered from DirectGardening.com for three years now (I am not associated with them in any way!).

My orders arrive on time and bareroot and the plants sometimes have to be resuscitated by immersion in water for 8 - 24 hours. I have had no problems whatsoever with what they have sent me, even the most recent order, which arrived the week _before_ our April 7 snowfall. I had planted them immediately and they are now budding leaves.

The plants I have received from them include daylilies, rugosas, carnations, daisies, clamatis, lilies, hollyhocks and climbing roses. In only one case was I disapponted - the "Blue Moon" climbing rose bloomed deep pink. I mailed the original shipping label back to DirectGardening (as instructed) and within a few weeks I received a replacement that is now in my garden. When it blooms we will see if it is 'blue'!

The plants need a bit more care and tender love than something I might find at a local nursery, and the 'instruction guide' is simplistic, at best. But the price is right - about 1/3 1/2 what I would pay locally, and that is worth the extra effort. I enjoy researching and learning about my plants so instructions are not a problem. (Hey, you can get any information you want here at Dave's!) The freebies are fun for my container plantings and/or food for the squirrels!

I received my first batch of plants from Direct Gardening. I have not yet received my main order and have complained a few times and may cancel and then dispute the charge on my credit card. I'm hoping that it will arrive soon or the plants will definitely cook in transport as our temperatures are in the 70s and now 80s in zone 8. Their shipping date has not been as promised and I will update this site on my results with cutomer service and if I ever get the main order of plants and what shape they are in.

Anyway, my results with the creeping phlox that I ordered (after placing my main order in January which has not been received) has been good.

The plants arrived in a plastic envelope with small plastic bags inside of what looked to be completely dried out dead plants which were very warm. I immediately put them in a weak solution of Superthrive and Miracle Gro in a bucket and let them soak for two days. These are obviously plants that would normally go to the nursery trade to grow up into sale-size plants (very expensive, I might add. One quart-sized creeping phlox at Home Depot is almost $5. I got these 36 babies for $13. I potted them all up with Miracle Gro potting soil in 16oz. plastic glasses that I buy in bulk and melt drainage holes in at the bottom. After soaking, the plants became plump and obviously alive. The roots were very healthy and white, the foiage was nice and green and plump and were much better than plants that have been rootbound for ages with brown roots at the nursery which frequently die from root rot.

These plants were not nearly developed enough to put directly into the ground and I will grow them up until the fall and then put them in to become established over the winter which is usually warm here in Houston. If the other plants arrive, I will do the same with them. I am used to buying plants from the Dept. of Agriculture and I usually pot those up in February and summer them over, watering every day in our extreme heat, until they have a larger root system and plant them in the fall or following early spring.

It would be better if this company shipped on the timetable they state (they said March 1 for my area) with better instructions for planting. As of Friday, my order had not shipped and no amount of complaining helps.

I didn't know they are on such bad terms, uh! I ordered many times from DG and I'm satisfied in general. 20% of the plants arrived in bad condition, mushy or dry,customer service is awful, I know, but the rest of the plants and especialy trees were very nice and took off well. There is lots of room for improvement but it's up to the management to pick up the tab!

The trees that I bought were all good quality stock. They grew more than I'd expected. They bloomed and fruited the first year but the frost killed the fruit before it was ripe. The strawberries I ordered were excellent quality and grew wonderfully. I ordered 15+ lbs of garden seeds CORN and Beans they grew and beared better than any I had ever used before.

Based on my experience with this company, the negative comments posted on this page seem biased and very unfair. It makes me wonder if the commentors might just be jealous competors or customers with unreal expectations.

I have placed three recent orders with Direct Gardening and am very pleased with their service and price. It is true that plants arrive in a dormant state and need revived --but that is what I expected. It also seems safer for shipping and the guarantee is as good as any.

It bothers me that a few bad comments could negatively affect the future of a such a valuable source of new plants for my home garden. I hope others will take the time to support this business.

The plant were helthy and are still going great ( nothing was dead or has died), they sent it in a timely manner. packing was not the best but I will buy from again.

In January 02 I placed a order with Direct Gardening for $65 and as of now I have recieved all of my order that was promised to be shipped as of this date in my zone 6 area. When I recieved my first order of 2 smoke trees, 3 pink honeysuckles @$1.95, Old Fashioned snowball bush @ $2.00, and lots more including lots of free stuff they did look like sticks but for the price that's what I was expecting. Every plant had a healthy root system and I soaked the bare roots shrubs in water for 8 hours, planted them in 1 and 2 gallon containers with a mixture of peat moss, compost, miracle grow potting soil and about a tablespoon of slow released fertilizer and put them out in the sun. That was 3 weeks ago and everything they sent me is sending out buds, leaves and growing. I am so pleased with my order I will most definitely order from them again. My suggestion for the price, which I found to be one of the best, start small and give them extra care they will reward you in the end.

When pulling up House of Wesley I was put thru to Direct Gardening and ordered over $100 of different plants from hedges, trees, vines etc. They arrived really 'looking good'. I got a feeling if they don't do good it is my fault and climate - not theirs.