Comments regarding Woodlanders Inc.

Posted on April 3, 2010, updated March 1, 2012
Order was shipped to me quickly.

Overall the plants appeared to be in good shape and packaged well for shipping. However, the "1 gallon-sized" plants were more qt-sized or slightly larger sized plants.

I too had a very negative experience with the owner of this place. He has a very sharp mouth and nasty attitude. Not only that, the plants he sent me were pitiful. I have enjoyed shopping elsewhere and receiving fine plants -- no need to shop with them.

After receiving Woodlanders' post card by mail announcing the on-line catalog, I ordered through their site on Sept. 5, 2007. A reply came in the same date from info@Woodlanders.net thanking me for my order. A charge of $ 197 appeared Sept. 26th on my credit card statement. Shipping was to begin on Oct. 1st.

On Oct. 16, 2007 I emailed Woodlanders about the shipping date since nothing had arrived. The next day I received a reply that " bad news", I would not be receiving any plants. Their customers on site picked up plants and they ran out of stock of all items I had ordered!

To date, Oct. 25th, I have not received a credit to my charges or a refund and there was no attempt made to retain me as a customer. It appears as though Woodlanders does not value or want mail-order customers.

I had mailed them a check for their catalog and was told I would recieve it in time for the next planting season. I never got it. They never responded to my e-mail about this problem and I have yet to recieve a catalog.

I ordered a Woodlanders catalog, then sat back and waited. The catalog didn't come, and their shipping season was beginning. I called them and they said they had mailed the catalogs out the week before. I was told that if I didn't get it, I should call back in a week.

I called back a week later and I was told my catalog should be coming "any day now."

I called again a week later and I was told the same thing.

Finally I called them and asked for a refund of the catalog price. I told them that while I really had wanted to order from them (they are pretty close to me, for one thing - but too far to drive easily) I now had no confidence in them. I told them that if they couldn't even get a catalog to me, I had no faith in their ability to send plants.

A refund check for the catalog arrived. Then the catalog itself arrived. I was still eager to look at it, because it was very thick and yummy-looking. But when I read the plant descriptions, I was disappointed. Some of the descriptions talk about height and width of plant, what conditions it likes, etc. But most of the descriptions are just wordy nothings, talking about who brought the plant to their attention, etc. The catalog is full of typos and misspellings. All in all, these people just didn't strike me as being very professional.

I placed a large order with Woodlander's last March. All the plants arrived in good condition except two. When I called I was told that they could not send replacements at that point since they were at the end of their shipping period. They ship from September through March. I said that was fine and to ship the replacements next March. They sent them in January with no prior notification and unfortunately I was away from home. When I called to ask them to send another replacement since it was their mistake they refused. When I asked why Bob McCartney, who I believe is the owner said "because I don't feel like it".

Wish I could share the excitement about Woodlanders. After reading an article in Southern Living a couple of autumns ago, we purchased ferns listed for growth in Zones 6-10 from Woodlanders of Aiken, S.C., much to our chagrin. We experienced 70 percent mortality. When communicating with Mr. McCartney, he said the plants were for the Deep South (Montgomery southward, which I have in writing). Yet his catalog still clearly states that Southern Shield Ferns and Florida Shield Ferns grow in Zones 6 - 10. I have contacted them two years running about this misrepresentation, yet to no avail. He said I didn't know how to grow plants and refused to discuss the issue of growth zones as stated in their catalog. We have many plants from various nurseries with no problems.