Comments regarding Sooner Plant Farm (Shop Smarter Shop Sooner)

I was excited about ordering from this nursery because they had plants/trees which are hard for me to find in my area. I was hesitant to order at first because online nurseries can be iffy on size, shipping and quality of plants. Well let me tell you Sooner Plant Farm far exceeded my expectations. The ordering process was easy. Shipping was quick and effortless. The packaging of my tree that I order was like nothing I have seen (I have order a lot of online plants and Sooner's shipping boxes was by far the best). Now to the quality of the tree. The trees I have order from other online nurseries have been....small...and thin....even in the larger/largest sizes. Well this tree that I ordered (5 gallon smart pot) was huge! The caliper of the tree is what surprised me the most because it was a really thick, healthy, tall tree! The root pot was amazing as well, made planting all the easier and made me feel more confident about the roots not girdling (which is a common problem for container grown trees). The instructions were clear and the added fertilizer was nice. I will definitely be ordering from Sooner Plant Farm again and encourage you to do so if your looking for the highest quality of plants. You won't be disappointed! -Josh

It’s been rough! The covid pandemic had me at home, board with nothing to do, untill I came across soonerplantfarm.

I ordered some Japanese maples from them on May 5th, the trees were shipped first thing May 8th. And on May 10th I received three out of the four trees. One tree, the Katsura acer palmatum, was on a truck, packaged, and stuck at a warehouse for an additional 8 days.

It was no fault to sooneplantfarm, it wasn’t there fault the trucks couldn’t move, but I tell you what. It’s now the 18th, and I finally told fed ex I would come and pick up the tree myself, and I did! And after 10 days in freight! SHES FINALLY HERE! AND SHE IS BEAUTIFUL! This 5 1/2 foot beauty was packaged so well, it beat the odds! Thank you sooner plant farms for having the best packaging I’ve ever seen!!! And my Katsura is beautiful. Thank you thank you thank you!

Posted on May 24, 2016, updated May 9, 2020
My favorite general plant store online. Top notch plants and plant selection plus prompt, friendly service. Outstanding!

Posted on May 9, 2020, updated May 9, 2020
This was my first purchase from Sooner Plant Farm. I purchased two plants - Cercis 'Appalachian Red' and Hydrangea 'Little Honey' - based on the stellar reviews here. Both were large, heavy plants in soil.

Its hard to reconcile what I received with others' experience. Both plants arrived trashed; the hydrangea was snapped off at the base, and most of the branches were broken off the redbud. Apparently the company tethers their plants to the inside of the box, but does not use any protection or padding; the hydrangea came loose and was knocking around in the box causing extensive damage to both plants. It was obvious these were quality plants when they left the nursery but the lack of care in shipping ruined them.

They said they have no replacements to offer, but based on their website, you seem to be able to preorder both. No mention was made of replacing these once they came back in stock. The redbud is hard to find and at this late date, is now sold out everywhere else. I did receive a prompt refund which is why this review is neutral not negative. But that doesn't outweigh my disappointment in relying on Sooner Plant Farm based on reviews, and having nothing to show for it.

"On May 9, 2020 6:59 AM, Sooner Plant Farm (Shop Smarter Shop Sooner) responded with:

We are very sorry this customers purchase did not meet our normally positive experience. Unfortunately it appears one of the plants broke lose during shipping and caused damage to both plants. We promptly refunded the customer as we do our best to make sure a customer never feels we are trying to take advantage of them. Due to the extreme cost of shipping it is never in our best interest to intentionally haphazardly package a plant order. Our packaging and shipping methods and have proven to be successful through tens of thousands of packages. With that said occasionally a plant plant may break lose or even worse not get properly secured which may result in plant damage. When this happens we are happy to work with the customer to either prune off broken stems if thats all that is necessary and if not reship if plants are available or refund for the damaged plants. We fully understand customers are excited to receive their new plants and how disappointing it is if they arrive damaged. If you are reading this please know we are as disappointed as the customer and possibly even more because of the complete loss of the plants, the loss of the labor, the shipping cost which ranges from minimum $15.00 for a 1 gallon up to and over $50.00 for a 5 gallon tree and even worse is a disappointed customer. Please know we are always trying our very best to satisfy every customer, so when a problem does occur we are more than happy to resolve it in the best possible way for both parties. All we ask is that you be willing to work with us and we will be more than pleased to exceed your customer service expectations!
Regarding the offer to send replacements we assumed do to the nature of the email we received, it was best to quickly refund vs trying to offer a reship or another solution.
Again we are very sorry for the disappointing experience of this purchase.
Sincerely,
Brian

I just found Sooner Plant Farm while looking for a very unusual variety of spiraea and they HAD it. It arrived in about a weeks time beautifully boxed. No way anything
was going to destroy and it was real thrill to see such a beautiful plant. More than I expected.

This is the second year I’ve ordered from Sooner plants. Each time the plants arrived quickly to California and always in perfect shape .The plants are packed well and provided for during transit. Due Covid 19 I wasn’t sure if delivery would take a long transit time but it didn’t seem to affect the 4/5 day ship time. My plants from last year are doing great and I expect the same from this current order. I love how I can order plants for my zone that I can never find locally . Highly recommend Sooner and will shop again soon.

After deciding that “flame grass” is what I want to plant in a specific place in our yard, I shopped on and off for a year to find ones sold in pots and taller than 6”-8.” Then Sooner Plant Farm crossed my google path! I initially read about them, then corresponded by email re questions. Efficient replies from a Sooner representative led me to place an order for three #2 gallon, 12”-14” tall flame grasses. Ordering was glitch free and Fed Ex kept me well informed re delivery. The plants arrived healthy and happy and I’m pretty excited about that : ) Thank you Sooner Plant Farm for being true to your word.

Gardening in the desert is not an easy past time, so it is really necessary to find the right species that will do well in our climate. I was looking for specific plants which I found on line at Sooner Plant Farm. It was really a pleasant experience for me to order a dozen plants which arrived in short order and are really top of the line in quality. They arrived in good time in absolutely fine shape. I hope to order from them again knowing I will receive fine quality plants quickly. I highly recommend them.
J. Hurst
Las Cruces, New Mexico

Very impressed with the Sooner Plant Farm. Colin McInnis, the Sales Manager, is a true professional and provides outstanding customer support. We ordered a Sky Tower ginkgo tree, and our order was promptly filled. The varieties that the Farm provides in amazing. When ordering on-line, the Sooner Plant Farm is the way to go!

Our first spring shipment arrived and as always it is in beautiful condition. We love the fact that many if not most plants come in root pouch containers which means less root disturbance in planting. The plants are always healthy and large. This is our go-to order site for our garden needs. Thanks again.

It is now Spring, I wanted to follow up with my November 2019 order, as the Chinese Pistache trees arrived dormant in early November. We did exactly as instructed and waited until Spring. One of the two trees started blooming new branches/leaves right away, and I began to worry about the second tree. I continued to give both trees fertilizer as recommended and kept watering them on schedule. Finally, 2-3 weeks later the second tree came to life and is growing new branches/leaves. Very pleased.

I am the happy owner for 7 of Sooner Plant Farm trees (3 Thuja Green Giant Arborvitae, 2 Keith Davey Chinese Pastache, and 2 Chinese Patache) and all of them are healthy and growing.

Keep up the great work you do in growing plants and trees.

Posted on April 19, 2019, updated February 27, 2020
I've been doing business with Sooner Plant Farm for over 2 decades. Their unwavering dedication to healthy plants and happy customers hasn't changed a bit.
Last weekend I ordered a Dura Heat River Birch and selected the "send now" option at checkout. Soon after they sent an email with a shipping date. (How awesome is that?!) What's even more awesome, it really shipped that day and I received it the very next day. (I live in OKC) THESE FOLKS DON'T MESS AROUND!! Now you know.
I will continue to be a loyal customer to such a wonderful company with outstanding values.

"On Feb 27, 2020 7:52 PM, Sooner Plant Farm (Shop Smarter Shop Sooner) responded with:

We are truly sorry for not following up as promptly as we should have with this customer. Our entire staff has been involved in several chores this week in preparation for this spring shipping, and unfortunately it caught us under staffed in the office. We normally respond within the same day and almost always within 24 hours. We value every customer and will use experience as a lesson to improve our communication.
Sincerely
The Sooner Staff. "

Over a year ago, I ordered a tree and set it for delivery in fall. They emailed before delivery and let me know the tree was about to go dormant so it had yellowing leaves, and asked if I still wanted it. I told them yes, because I wanted to plant when it was dormant. The tree arrived in perfect condition. I planted it out and am going in my second year and it is doing great. It put on over a foot of growth last year. Very satisfied and will use them again.

I am so amazed ! I had almost given up on mail order plants, but I thought I would try one more time. Finally I found the best ! I was overwhelmed when I opened my package of 2 stokes asters. Never had I seen such care go into shipping, and the plants were so very healthy and happy. They came in a growing bag, so I simply trimmed away the top part of the bag, and planted them as instructed. They are already growing and very perky, and beautiful. And I received a garden magazine and a catalog, and best of all, Bible verses. Now I know this truely is the very best mail order plant farm there is. Thank you so much Sooner Plant Farm. You are the best ! I had one question about my plants, and was answered very quickly. Exellent customer service ! look no further. This the THE place to buy from ! Nancy in Florida.

During the 2019 season, I have placed several orders with Soon Plant Farm, and I have been very pleased with each arrival! Here is my response to them:

I received my orders! Thank you so much for the beautiful plants. Not only are they healthy and robust, they’re bigger than I expected! Thank you for the wonderful customer service. You accommodated my request without hesitation. I truly appreciate your immediate response, which also saved me money! Thank you and Sooner Farm for the environmentally friendly packaging that demonstrates socially conscious business practices! It is a pleasure doing business with a company with such high standards.
I look forward to my next order!

Posted on July 15, 2012, updated July 5, 2019
I do a lot of mail order business with several companies. This is the first time I've ordered from Sooner. Not only were they extremely helpful on the phone, but they managed to get my order thru a brief window of 70's temps in the middle of a heat wave. I received the most beautifully full heuchera "Georgia Peach" and heucherella "Kimono"! Unlike box store plants which I sometimes suspect were "growth-hormoned" to rootless fullness, Sooners plants are now withstanding the worst 90 temps and rainless weeks I've seen in Western PA in many years. And they're thriving with minimal watering.
Thanks, Sooner Plant Farm! I'll be back this fall.

April 2018 I ordered 2 one gallon Wedding Gown hydrangea from Sooner Plant Farm. This year they bloomed for the first time and were pink--Wedding Gown is always white. When I contacted Sooner with a photo showing the pink blooms, they immediately shipped me two replacement Wedding Gown hydrangeas at no charge to me. Today I received two beautiful hydrangeas full of white blooms, and they were two gallon not the small one gallon size I ordered last year! I've always been pleased with the high quality of plants from Sooner and now I know their customer service is unsurpassed as well. Kudos to Sooner Plant Farm!

We were delighted with the plants we received last week. They were carefully packaged, healthy and much larger than we'd expected.

We've gardened for over 45 years and ordered plants from a number of on-line suppliers. The plants we received from Sooners were sublimely superior. We're "Sooner Swooners"

Susan
Omaha, NE

I have shopped with Sooner for several years now. I have put there plants in my yard as well as in my families yards. This company sends out wonderful plants. Their packaging is superior to alot of mail order plant sellers. Things do some times happen when dealing with live plants, but dont worry these people at Sooner want you to succeed. It is obvious that they all care about there product and their customers. Thank you to all of you at Sooner Plant Farm.

I purchased a whitebud tree for our Illinois yard, when I did, it wasn't the proper time for my zone, so I went with their zone shipping recommendations, and left a note to ship on the first day possible, which was May 15th, today is May 16th, and the tree arrived, in perfectly created, rigid box, not even a leaf was damaged.Time will tell on the growth, but, I'm not doubting that it'll be around for a long time, thank you for the timely delivery, and quality plant.

I renovated all of my flower beds this spring and by renovate I mean that I went down to bare dirt and started over. I ordered plants from a handful of carefully researched online suppliers, some of which I found on this site. My experience with Sooner Plant Farm was beyond head and shoulders superior to any other supplier I dealt with. They worked with me before I placed a single order, helping me locate and identify particular plants. Every time I've dealt with Sooner, they've been helpful, patient and friendly. Sooner's plants were noticeably larger and healthier than any others. I ordered several plants from different suppliers to compare product and without fail Sooner put the competition to shame, including specialty suppliers. Sooner's prices are also better and their service is superior. What more could anyone ask?

I have been purchasing woody ornamentals and specimen grasses from Sooner Plant Farm for three years. In each case, I have received very fine plant materials carefully and professionally packed for shipment. To date, not a single plant has failed to root properly in the first year and fulfill my expectations in the second year and beyond. We have clay soils in mid-Missouri and we have had some cold, dry, windy winters. But the plants from Sooner have done better than every other plant source that I use.

Ordered a plant last summer. It didn't look good on arrival but I planted it as they said. It died in a little over a week....past their unreasonable return policy. And, of course, there are no signs of it coming up this year.

This was the worst purchase of all the companies I patronized last summer.

Definitely do NOT recommend this company.

"On Apr 29, 2019 11:45 AM, Sooner Plant Farm (Shop Smarter Shop Sooner) responded with:

As the owner of Sooner Plant Farm I can assure you we take the feedback from each and every customer very serious as positive feedback is our number one avenue for attracting new customers. I have reviewed this customers one and only purchase for 2 plants last fall and did not have any correspondence from her following the purchase. We do offer a 30 day guarantee on our plants and if we are notified about an issue regarding the plants condition upon arrival we extent that guarantee to 60 days, All we ask is for a picture of the plant in question and one if it does indeed die. We are super easy to work with, but we do need to know there is a problem.This should have been a simple process with both parties satisfied, unfortunately because we were never notified about the issue we received an undeserved negative rating.
If you have any issues with the plants you receive from us please contact us upon arrival so we can note your order and take care of the problem in a courteous and respectful manner.


Brian "

First, Sooner Plant Farm had the rare viburnum specimen I had searched everywhere for. Second, they sent me beautiful, healthy plants at exactly the time I requested. Third, they responded quickly and personally when I had a follow-up question. I live a thousand miles away, but I'll be a repeat customer!

I love this company and them recommend to all of my friends. I live on the coast in South Carolina about as different from Oklahoma as you can get. A couple of years ago we paid $$$$ to a local landscaper to landscape our backyard with lorapetalum, hardy salvia, muhly grass and abelia. Almost everything died in less than a year and the Landscape company was nowhere to be found. Being an Okie, myself, I figured if Sooner Plant Farm plants can grow in the Oklahoma dust bowl then they would stand a chance here.

I have been thrilled. I’ve even added additional landscape selections from Sooner Plant Farm to my yard over the years ... Esperanza, Clematis, Gamecock Iris. And, it all thrives here on the coast in my Zone 8b where it sometimes freezes and snows.

Their Customer Service has been outstanding. Recently, I found that I would be out of town on my shipment week and I notified them via email asking whether it could be delayed. I received an immediate response delaying the date to my convenience. Another time they were unhappy with the quality of a item that I ordered and they called me to discuss whether I wanted to replace with something suitable or cancel. I couldn’t ask for better care in delivery or packaging. Sooner Plant Farm is definitely worth the money.

Over the past year we have ordered literally dozens of trees from something around 10 different online nurseries. The Red Maple we purchased from Sooner was by far the best tree out of all of them! Perfectly packaged and pruned. Also nobody includes the root bag or grow package and Sooner does. Six months later the tree is in perfect health and growing beautifully compared to all our other maples and oaks. And this is in the Las Vegas desert! Thank you Sooner!

Searching for a grower that could provide me with a Avondale Red Bud (Chinese Red Bud) as a ornamental specimen tree for my front yard. Found Sooner Farms and their selection of various trees was excellent.

Shipping and packaging was done with care, as was their root pouch approach to mail-order plants and trees. This tree arrived with buds set from the fall and was in great shape.

Spring is here and the Avondale Red Bud is bursting with color. I just returned to Sooner Farms for more plants.

If you are searching for unique and a large selection of plants and trees that you cannot find in your local big box, Sooner Farms is a great resource.

We ordered and received twp wonderful smaller trees from Sooner Plant Farm and it arrived in superb form and health. The packaging is super sturdy and designed to give the tree air as it makes its way quickly from the farm to home. Instructions are ample and very helpful, and the root sacks they come have ensured vigorous growth and health. Questions about care and planting are quickly, expertly and thoroughly answered with a palpable sense of how much they care about their plants and their customers.

This was my first experience with ordering any plant via the web. My thinking after gardening for decades is that some things are best done in person. How wrong I was. Sooner Plant Farm has the process down to a science.

Plants made it from Oklahoma to Texas in less than a week and look as fresh as they would if bought from one of the local nurseries. With the decline of local nurseries in my area this is an invaluable find.

I have ordered from Sooner Plant Farm several times in the past couple of years, and every time the experience is top-notch. They have a great selection of plants, many of which are difficult to find locally. The plants have arrived well-packaged, in great condition, and are still thriving several years later. Only once have I had plants which didn't survive in transit, but that was because we had an unusual hot spell late in the season once the plants had shipped. I took photos of the plants and emailed the photos to Sooner Plant Farm, and they sent replacement plants to me at no extra charge. I will definitely continue to order from them!

It is so refreshing to be able to send an email asking a question and receive response in such a timely manner. I have only a positive experience with this company. In July, knowing I would not be home during my shipping window, I ordered two Maple trees and requested a specific shipping date. The trees arrived yesterday, in great condition, and well packed. Due to flooding in our area, I again contacted Sooner Plant Farm about planting and received a response within 12 hours. What a pleasure, I cannot express how rewarding it is to deal with this business. I look forward to getting these trees planted and see the vibrant colors next fall!

My plant arrived in an expertly created package. It was ventilated tough cardboard. The plant was attached solidly to the package bottom so even the roughest handling could not dislodge it. The root ball was shrink wrapped to prevent any spillage and the foliage was free and unrestricted. The product was shipped in one business day from OK to my home in TX. The root ball was moist and easily planted. The biodegradable pot made the thorny barberry easy to handle Thanks Sooner Plant Farm for a pleasant experience.

I recently purchased 3 Blue Shadow Witch Adler plants from Sooner Plant Farm. The plants arrived well packed and very healthy. I appreciate Sooner's customer support and plant availability and quality. The root pouch alternative is a very convenient and fool-proof way to purchase and plant.

I placed my first order with Sooner Plant Farm 9/3/2018. Two (Mary Milton) viburnum bushes and 1 wisteria (blue moon variety) that I could not find at local landscape centers. I also added a perennial husker red beardtongue plant so that my total purchase qualified me to receive free shipping.

I was very impressed with attention to detail this merchant provides. It exceeds what I have been accustomed to when establishing accounts and making purchases from other online merchants. Email notification was thorough and alerted me to anticipated 9/11/2018 ship date well in advance.

When the shipment arrived 9/14/2018, I was impressed with packaging. The best I had ever seen. Sturdy box. Ventilated. Cardboard dividers between plants. Plastic wrap around the top of containers. Planting instructions and fertilizer packs for planting enclosed too! Packers added moisture gel granules to prevent drying out on top of the soil for the vine and for the perennial plant.

Unfortunately, the Mary Milton shrubs had dried out during shipping. The soil was dry and some of it had fallen into the box despite the plastic wrap to contain it. These bushes had dropped many leaves; it looked like there were more in the box than were left on the plants. I do not know the reason for this, but unlike the other plants, there were no moisture granules on top of the soil to prevent drying. A few branches were broken, but not badly considering the rigors of shipping. I was worried about these plants, because of leaf drop. Sent email, and photos too, to Sooner so that they could see why I was worried. I received a prompt response and comment that leaf drop is common, more for some plants than for others, and that Sooner staff didn't see cause for concern after looking at photos. They would make a note on my order and asked me to let them know if plants looked worse in the coming weeks.

Thankfully, immediate watering, planting the day following arrival, and days of rainfall after planting seemed to make these bushes happy. Leaf drop quickly subsided and as of 10/2/2018, a few small buds of new leaves have emerged, well in advance of fall frosts that will cause these deciduous bushes to drop all leaves. It appears that my Mary Milton viburnums have adjusted nicely to their new home. I am optimistic that I will see new growth Spring 2019, assuming that we do not have an unusually harsh winter that no merchant can predict or control.

This was my first experience with Sooner. I have no complaints. Attention to communication detail and quality in shipping care is the best I have ever seen. Prompt response to reported concerns, notes made to the order for potential problems, and requests to hear back from me if plants looked worse in coming weeks give me an impression and sense of comfort that I am dealing with a high-integrity company. I will surely consider buying from Sooner Plant Farm again.

A phone call prior to my order was productive and helpful. Once my order was placed, I received another phone call to reassure me that my order would be delivered in the time frame I requested. It arrived right on schedule.

The rising sun red bud I purchased is the largest mail order tree I have ever received. It was amazingly packaged and very healthy not seeming to have suffered at all in transport. Not only couldn't I have found such a tree in a local garden store, I also thought is was very, very fairly priced.

I'm kind of old and may not be gardening much longer. I wish I had found this source years ago.

Sooner Plant Farm far exceeded my expectations! They quickly responded to e-mails requesting information before my purchase, even including photos of the trees I would receive. I submitted a pre-order several months in advance and the trees were shipped on the date promised. It took them 5 days to get here and to be honest I was nervous to open the boxes when they arrived. I opened them and the trees were packaged extremely well for the journey and all looked perfectly healthy. I ordered Taylor Juniper's which are hard to find. The web site did state the tree size however, I do wish they were a little larger for the money paid. Overall, I'm very pleased, thank you so much!!

I've ordered trees and shrubs by mail for over 36 years, first by catalogue and now by online nurseries. This company stands by it's plants if you follow a few reasonable rules. The plants always exceed my expectations and are ready to adapt and grow here, not the easiest place to garden as I live on a sand and gravel dump left by the glaciers. The plants often come in "root pouches". Do not fear them. The feeder roots are intact and this gives them a leg up on adjusting to your garden.

I've never had a bad experience at Sooner and I think you might want to give it a try.

Colin and Brian are men of integrity. On the day my order was to ship it was noticed that the tree to be sent may have been miss marked. Because of the uncertainty they Called to discuss the options. They could have just sent the tree they had, but wanted the order to be right, We spent nearly 30 minutes discussing the situation then the site for the tree, sun, soil, space etc. Then reached a decision. My Shirazz Japanese Maple has a new home! The tree arrived quickly and in wonderful condition. I have already made an additional order. Thanks Guys!

I LOVE Sooner Plant Farm. I am in Ft. Worth, TX and was looking for a particular kind of plant and found them in a random internet search. I have used them 2 times now and bought 8 different trees from them. They arrived in perfect condition and packed very well with good instructions on how to plant them and care for them. After a couple of my crape myrtles bloomed and had pink instead of violet flowers, they quickly answered my email and are going to send me the correct plants. They have been very professional and courteous. I will use them again for sure and have referred them to several friends.