Comments regarding Kelly Nurseries

I purchased 10 bare-root willow trees. 3 survived. Two are now 12 feet tall; these trees were planted in zone 7b 15 months ago from a 12" whip. The third I am surprised it came back and it's still 12". I think it will survive though.

So, a lot of the plants died (and I'm a professional horticulturist) however, I do have two thriving trees for $14.50 and that is a good deal. I expect these trees to be 35' in two more years and they'll screen the view I am trying to get rid of.

I'd say the price is good but these plants are iffy and a lot of work.

I ordered several items from this company again this spring. Two of the items I ordered did not come as advertised. They were a completely different variety. I notified the company with my order number and date and name etc. Several days later I received an email stating that they needed additional information.

So I went to the website, figuring it easier and quicker to straighten up the questions they had. Unfortunately, the lady who answered, Cindy, was very rude, condescending, and literally refused to help me.

Cindy informed me that this was an ordering line ONLY. She refused to give me the phone number to, or transfer me to someone who would be able to help me. She informed me that I was talking to someone in Minnesota, whereas the people that I needed to talk to were in Illinois. Strange since the address listed above the phone number that I called was Illinois.

So I went ahead and replied to the email that I had received with the information that they were unable to gather from what I had provided them with already, and am patiently waiting for them to let me know if I wasted a bunch of money ordering two specialty trees where they sent me junk instead.

I ordered before I knew what I was getting into with this company. I have a large scale planting so I wanted to save money. I have recieved plants that for the most part have done well. Maybe It was my root stimulator.
I ordered 100 Washington Hawthornes all but 15 have taken well. I blame delayed shipping for the ones that have not begun to break dormancy. I had to wait and wait , call & call to get my plants.
All 30 Populars have taken. Took a long time to get them.
The 35 strawberries didn't please me so I'm sending them back.
One of the two plum trees did well. The other died.
All mulberry, peach trees are doing well.

I am shipping back the strawberries and plum tree this week and their response to the replacement/refund request will determine if I ever order from them again.

I have ordered from more than one Plantron Co. I have had both good and bad experiences with Plantron Companies. My attitude towards all of the Plantron companies is this- If they have a plant that I am interested in that I can't get elsewhere, then I will order it from them. If they have a plant that I am interested in that is way lower in price than other companies (this happens often), then I will order it from them. However, all other orders I place with other companies to avoid them. If another company is a little higher in price, then I order with the other company gladly. But being dirt cheap and having plants that others don't have sucks me back to them. Sometimes their plants are dead or don't live, but hey what do you expect for rock bottom prices? It could happen with other companies that have a good track record. Sometimes their plants are very good and thrive - it's like throwing dice.

I don't like it that you can't call to complain - you have to do it in writing, but it sounds somewhat reasonable. At least one of the Plantron Companies is hard to get on the phone - busy, busy, busy.

From one of the Plantron companies I ordered a beautiful plant with a name something like wedding plant or maybe Hawaiian wedding plant. After several months, I didn't receive the plant or anything even acknowledging the order. I wrote a letter and simply asked when was I going to get my plant. Not long after, I got a star jasmine instead, which was not as pretty. I wasn't happy about the switch. I would have been content to wait for the wedding plant - I just wanted to have some sort of idea of when to expect it. I thought maybe they forgot I existed. I was mad about the switch, but didn't complain because finally something happened.

Anyway, I like plants enough to deal with these people and what they sell.

Last spring I ordered some mountain laurels from them. I didn't hear the familiar click, click, click of computer keys in the background.They weren't computerized! You've got to wonder how a company without computers can keep track of things these days. (Apparently, only withgreat difficulty.)The mountain laurels arrived okay and are still alive. They are a pale green color, not a dark green like my other locally-purchased kalmia. I don't know why.