Comments regarding Rhora's Nut Farm & Nursery

My husband and I went to Rhora's last year, 2017, and spoke to a lady about Russian Almond Bushes which we had found on their website. She was very pleasant and informative. She explained that we should come back in the spring because that is when they would have more in stock.
Last Saturday, April 21/18, we again made the trip out to the nursery and this time we spoke with a man. He said that he "thought" he had 3 Russian Almond bushes left and my husband offered to purchase them right there and then. The man said that he preferred that we leave and place our order on line. We agreed and asked if it would be alright to return the following Saturday, April 28/17, around 1230-1pm. He agreed.
I tried to place an order on his website. Even though it indicated that the Russian Almond bushes were "sold out" I filled out the order form asking for the agreed upon 3. When I selected "submit" nothing happened. There is a warning against selecting "submit" more than once so I didn't but I wasn't sure if my submission had gone through or not. As a follow-up I sent an email to "rhoras@nuttrees.com" explaining the problem and reiterating my desire to purchase 3 bushes with a pickup date of Saturday, April 28/18.
Today, April 28/18, at 1pm we arrived at Rhora's and found the gate closed. There was a "CLOSED" sign hanging from it that indicated they "will return" at 130pm. At 130pm the gate was still closed so I used my cell to call the number on the sign. I introduced myself to the man who answered and he proceeded to admonish me saying that he had told me to place my order on line and that he hadn't received my order so he had figured that I had changed my mind. I explained my attempt to place my order on line, the problem I had encountered and my follow-up email. He argued with me, saying that he had checked his computer "just last night" and there hadn't been an order or email from me. He then began to quiz me on my methods of emailing and, at my confused silence, started to answer himself. I just wanted to purchase some Russian Almond bushes and this wasn't getting us anywhere so I interrupted the seemingly endless loop of "he said, she said, he did/didn't, she did/didn't" and said "I'm sitting outside of your gate right now. I'd like to buy some Russian Almond bushes. Can you help me?" He said "I know!" I'm eating my lunch at the moment and then I'll be going back outside to work! I don't know what I have in stock! I'm very busy! You should go home and place your order on line!" I thank him and said "goodbye".
I fully intended to give it another try but the more I thought about it the madder I got! How does he stay in business with such poor customer service? I'm done! I will be taking my business elsewhere!

"On May 31, 2018 7:28 AM, Rhora's Nut Farm & Nursery responded with:

Thank you very much for your comments.

Wish to apologize for any misunderstanding that might have occurred and any inconvenience that it may have caused.

Sincerely,

Charles Rhora,
Rhora’s Nut Farm & Nursery
"

I have ordered from nurseries all over Canada , if not all of the nurseries offering edible bearing trees. I order in the name of a large group of permaculture enthusiasts as well as market farmers. We made a small order of about 500$ because after readings some reviews, we were unsure. Well I am glad that we did! The seedlings as a general rule were small, the roots were ''ify'' , there were specimens with breaks, they were all disappointing if I compare to other Ontario and Canadian companies in general. Almost half of my seedlings never woke up despite being planted in ideal conditions and at the same moment and meters away from other nursery supplied seedlings that did spectacularly well. This was observed on 3 farms.
I have tried contacting this company several times to ask about their refund or replacement policies, by email, but have yet to get a response. I attend most of the horticultural events and conferences in the area: I am constantly asked where to shop for these types of trees. There is a huge word-of-mouth community, Rhora would do best to remember that the client is always right and be helpful with customer service. There are more and more choices out there. This place, in all honesty, is a total waste of time and money. So disappointing to have to say that, but what can you do when you never even get a response? I waited until now to take it up a notch and gave them the benefit of the doubt, giving them time to respond. The only thing that I can say is that I will turn to the BBB and report them , hopefully get a partial refund. I have had no issues with the other big Ontario nut tree provider, and Quebec has a few really great suppliers now, so I would totally send my money their way, but I strongly recommend you stay away from Rhora.

"On Feb 20, 2016 8:50 AM, Rhora's Nut Farm & Nursery responded with:

Thank you for bringing this to my attention. Trees will be replaced in the Spring of 2016 at no charge as I deem this an honest request. To the best of my knowledge the trees were inspected for size and root system before shipping. My warranty is simple, the trees are guaranteed to be alive and well upon leaving the nursery.If their is a problem in shipping, then the trees are insured and will assist the customer to file a claim against the carrier for refund of value of trees and shipping costs. If they fail to leaf out or put on new growth by the end of July, they will either be replaced in the following Spring or money refunded."

Hi all,
Recieved poor stock and very small, tops were dead on arrival but I tried to grow them anyway. Part of the order survived.
When trying to get a refund or replacement was told I had to pay, and that it was my fault. I have been growing plants since 1972 and have done everthing from orchids, vandas, dendrobium, bonsi, black pine, bald cypress, chinese elm, fruit and veggies many others. Then I tried to get a refund and was told no, the offer to buy them again was a good offer.
This guy does not honor his commitment in the least and I am sure he will reply with some lie... Oh well lesson learned, do not trust this fly by night outfit.

"On Aug 16, 2014 10:56 AM, Rhora's Nut Farm & Nursery responded with:

Very interesting!. By his final comment, it is obvious he has no idea what he is talking about. Our business spans over 50 years and have sold literally thousands of trees each year. We ship trees all over North America, ranging from Alaska to Texas and even California and Florida, as well as all across Canada.
Anyway, to get back to his comment about the trees arriving dead.
This is impossible because the trees are freshly dug in the spring while still dormant, and then healed in until final shipment. As we are located in Canada, we are required to have the trees inspected by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency before they will issue a Phytosanitary certificate that the trees are in good health as well as no diseases or pests. The trees must be shipped within 1 day of the issue of the certificate. We ship by Canada Post Expedite and there is a tracking number issued to be able to trace the package. Upon checking their website using the tracking number, the trees were delivered to this customer in 6 days! Now we do not have any control of what the customer did with the trees after their safe arrival. I might mention that the trees are packaged so that they may be in the mail for up to 4 weeks without any harm to the trees. We put damp shredded newspaper around the complete root system and placed in a waterproof bag, then secured so their is no leakage. (might mention that the ink from the newspaper acts as a natural prevention from any fungus or other diseases forming on the roots in transit. Also the tops of the trees are surrounded by dry shredded newspaper to keep them fresh and from any damage during shipping). Our guarantee, which is included in "Terms and condition" on our website states that our guarantee is that the trees are alive and healthy upon leaving our premises. We do offer to help if their is a problem in delay in arriving at the destination and also take into consideration any complaint that we receive based on the problem. We did offer to replace these at a reduced price, based on the fact as outlined above that it was impossible for the trees to be in the condition he described upon their arrival with him."

I received very poor quality stock (for example, 1 pecan "tree" was 5 inches tall and had a stem that measured 3 mm, not cm, in diameter) and even worse service from this company. They at one point promised to replace the stock that had arrived dead, but then made excuses, yelled at me on the phone, delayed the process for a year, did not send all the trees they claimed they had sent, and finally simply stoped answering my emails or phone messages. BUYER BEWARE!

"On Jun 25, 2012 7:28 PM, Rhora's Nut Farm & Nursery responded with:

It is unfortunate that Ms. Yett has posted incorrect information about her order of trees. This order of trees goes back to 2010 at which time she had ordered some trees which she wanted to grow on some property in central Ontario. The trees were carefully packaged and shipped to her on a certain day (1 day delivery with no extra costs for shipping) because she does not live at the property where they were planted. (remember this is in the 2nd week of April).
We notified her by telephone with the tracking number to make sure she received the trees. She had ordered several varieties on a trial basis to try at her more northern location with the understanding that these were not recommended by our firm, due to hardiness concerns on some varieties. She did make contact with me about some of the trees ( Korean pine, Japanese Heartnut, Elderberry, Paw paw, Northern Pecan). Total of 36 trees ordered. After a discussion I agreed to replace the following trees consisting of 7 Korean pine, 1 Japanese Heartnut, 1 Elderberry, 4 Paw paw at ( No charge) & 4 Northern pecan at a reduced price because she had not proven to me that proper care was taken in planting the trees.
As normal, we do request a small fee to cover the shipping costs. Since it was the middle of June, 2010, we agreed to ship the trees in the Spring of 2011. In 2011, we contacted her about prepaying for the shipping charges, which she quite willingly agreed to. We do not ship trees until all charges are prepaid.
She contacted us about sending the payment for the trees, but as of June 23, 2011 we had not received payment for the order. Naturally I contacted her and we agreed to have the trees shipped in the Spring 2012 because it was too late to ship bare rooted trees.
On April 18, 2012 the trees were shipped by Canada Post, with 1 day delivery. All trees are kept fresh and properly packaged to keep the roots moist by wrapping the roots with damp shredded newspaper which are placed in a waterproof plastic bag. A content sheet is taped inside the box before sealing and double checked for quantity and quality.
This information is provided for some background on this order.
I would also comment, that of the hundreds of orders sent in 2010, this order was the only one with a complaint.
Now to address the Northern Pecan issue. The trees were all bare rooted trees, 3 years old with a good root system. All are quality checked before shipping. They normally list for $12.00 each, but we gave her a discount, fixing the price at $7.00 each for the reason mentioned above.
As the spring shipping season was very unusual for this year (we had snow up until the 2nd week of April) , we answered all e-mails that needed immediate attention, others were answered as time allowed. We are a small operation and give special attention to all our customers and treat them in a proper manner. I find it strange, that she did not contact us earlier, if she thought she had a problem . ( I notice that her comments were posted on June 24, 2012).

Yours truly,

Charles Rhora,
Rhora's Nut Farm & Nursery.



"

I placed an online order with this firm for over $500, and although it was late in the season ( they suggest several months in advance), I asked what stock was available at this time. I received no reply. And no reply to further e-mails. Unfortunately, in Canada we gardeners all too often encounter businesses which are not in the business of doing business. They have interesting stock and a very interesting concept, but if they can't communicate, or refuse to- what is the purpose of it all? Mr. Rhora seems to have a big chip on his shoulder according to the last posting, so that along with my experience, indicates you'd be well advised to shop elsewhere.

"

Very interesting!
Seems my mysterious writter is so sure of himself. Unfortunately there is no truth to his statment about placing an online order or any other e-mails regarding trees that he has given in his statement. Our policy is to respond to request within a day of receiving any contacts on the internet. Obviously this person is contriving to distort the truth, because we are still excepting orders and shipping trees for at least 2 more weeks weather providing. I will leave the readers to draw their own conclusions on the balance of his statements which again are not true."