Comments regarding Fast Growing Trees (formerly Empress Tree Nurseries, Paulownia Supply & fastgrowingtree.com)

Posted on April 9, 2015, updated April 10, 2015
I purchased a Fuyu Persimmon from Fast-Growing-Trees.com last May (2014). They are nearby, so my husband picked it up. It had a few leaves but never really took off. I gave it a great planting hole and watered diligently. By the end of August, all of the leaves had fallen off. I read some reviews from growers who said it would bounce back. It didn't. Now it's April 2015 and the tree has no new growth. I know that they break dormancy late, but the scraped bark is brown. I'm pretty sure it's dead. I have emailed the company twice and have not gotten a response. Since most reputable nurseries guarantee their plants for 1 year, I thought they may respond and replace the tree. But, my neighbor told me that you have to buy their insurance in order to have the tree replaced. I have never heard of such a thing, and I did not buy the insurance. Money down the drain I guess.

This is my first time buying from this company. I bought 2 kwanza cherry trees. Shipping was extremely fast! They were bare root trees and I planted them according to the instructions included. That was about 1 week ago. I'am happy to report they both are sprouting up and down the stems new growth. I buy plants/trees online and or from catalogs every year. I felt confident enought that I have another order in for a Mohave Pyracantha.

I purchased two 3' holly shrubs from Fast Growing Trees last October. I was skeptical of ordering plants online, but I was impressed when they arrived. They were packaged and shipped in a secure fashion that prevented any damage to the plants. The shrubs looked great (far better than any selection at the local nurseries) and arrived ready to put in the ground with detailed instructions for planting and long term care.

After a long winter season ending with several inches of rain on top of melting snow, the plant's leaves started to brown from over watering. I was concerned when I noticed this, and sent a question back to them to verify my suspicion. They quickly responded within a few hours and confirmed from the pictures I sent along with the request that it was in fact from the amount of water they received. The shrubs are already bouncing back and looking great again.

I wouldn't hesitate to purchase from Fast Growing Trees in the future. Thank you for a great experience, and a friendly customer service team.

Purchasing live plants on the internet can be... well, let's just say a little like gambling. You are taking the risk that the plant you will receive is healthy, can withstand being shipped, will be shipped in the proper container and during the proper climate, etc. It takes a lot of trust to hit the "confirm purchase button."

First let me say that I have ordered several trees from fast-growing-trees.com over several years and have had numerous success stories! Unfortunately, just recently, I had one tree not make it. I promptly contacted them through their website, sent pictures, and true to their website, I was contacted within the two business days. Their customer service rep (Amber) looked diligently at the pictures I sent her, gave me advice on how to spruce up one of my trees, and then confirmed that the other one would most likely not rebound. She explained that a replacement would be sent at no cost, not only quickly, but also taking into account the day the tree would be shipped so as to minimize the amount of time the tree would be stressed from shipping. This is customer service at its finest!

While you never want to lose a tree in transit, I could not possibly think of a company handling this any better. I think the key is document any concerns early and let them know if you even think there may be an issue. That way it's in your file and they can always go back and look.

I will definitely continue to be a loyal customer to fast-growing-trees.com, as for me, it's not a gamble to hit the purchase button.... I know I'm in good hands!

F-G-T send me some quality trees. The price was a little more then others I looked at but their reviews were good so I paid the extra. The trees were a little small, but they were of excellent quality.

I ordered an olive and a lemon tree. Both arrived well packaged in a short time. I replanted them into the ordered planters and used the recommended soil. Both trees have been placed in my 4 season room, which has radiant floor heating for the winter. At first the olive tree started shedding leaves. I contacted Fast Growing Trees and they responded swiftly, asked for pictures and then asked me to perform a "scratch" test on the trunk. The test showed that the tree is alive and probably just under stress. I was assured that should the tree not recover I would get a replacement. No need for replacement - just 2 weeks alter I saw the first new leaves developing. But then the lemon tree started shedding leaves while developing many buds which bloom. Contacted Fast Growing Trees and they again answered promptly. Assured me that this could be a normal reaction during the blooming process.
All around I am very happy with the service provided and can highly recommend this company!

Bought a 2-3 year old Meyer Lemon Tree. It arrived on the coldest day of the year here in the Northeast. After a few days, many of the leaves curled up and shriveled and dropped off. The ones that were left turned spotty yellow! I panicked, and called FGT Customer Service (at least four times). EACH TIME they gave me solid information as to what to do, how to repot a new tree (mine will be mostly inside) how to fertilize, what kind of sun exposure, and advice on trimming off old leaves and any damaged branches. And generally being encouraging that my tree would survive! Within a week, the tree was putting out new leaves and now it's literally covered with new leaves and shoots. Customer Service is superb. I would do business again with this company.

I have to begin saying that this was my first time buying a tree online. I placed my order over the phone. The customer service was great. 3 days after I recieved my tree. Unfortunately, the delivery company left my tree outside my garage door when the temperature outside was 15F. as you all can imagen, the tree got frozen. I call the company trying to figure it out, why the delivery person seeing that the box says big and clear LIVE PLANT, didnt knock the door and instead, just left it out. The Representative who took my phone call was very understanding and gave me a replacement tree. As a new customer, I truly appreciate the way everything was handle. I will order more trees in the future with this amazing company!

I've been wanting to get some citrus trees now that I live in Santa Barbara where the weather is perfect year round. I googled around and Fast Growing Trees was one of the first links that popped up. I ordered one Meyer Lemon and one Clementine tree. When they arrived, I got 2 Lemon trees instead. I emailed them promptly and Jackie from FGT's customer service team was extremely kind and helpful. She told me she'd have a clementine tree in the mail for me asap. While I was initially kinda bummed that I didn't get what I ordered. The customer service was awesome and I was able to give the extra lemon tree to a very happy friend. Overall I was very happy with both the trees and the service from FGT and will recommend them to anybody. Happy planting!

just received my tree order of 11 fruit trees the 5-6 ft ones and i was amazed at the quality of the trees . they are outstanding , packaging was great , so pleased , i have just placed my second order today . they are pricey, but i believe that you get what you pay for., and i am very pleased

Ordered a 3-4 foot Rising Sun Redbud at a half-price sale. The tree arrived after a 4 day trip (from east coast to west!) in very good condition, full crown, leafed out about 4 feet high with a 3/4 inch diameter stem. It was packed very securely and arrived with no damage. Shipping costs were incredibly low. Could not be more satisfied.

I ordered a satsuma in June and impressed with the quality of the tree. It was small but in very good shape. It is now October and the tree is healthy and sending out lots of flowers.

As a side note, I was surfing fast growing site a day after I ordered this tree and noticed that it was on sale for half price. I called and the person who answered was very nice and gave me the sale price. Excellent tree and service. I will be back if I need more plants.

I ordered 2 Citrus plants and both were damaged (broken main stem) on delivery. I took a picture and emailed it to the Empress Tree Nurseries (Fast Growing Trees), and I had a prompt reply by Jennifer. No questions asked, she sent a replacement within 4 business days. Excellent service. I will buy again from this company.

The shrubs that I purchased {2 gardenias,1 holly, and 1 Little Gem Magnolia} were in outstanding condition, ---like a picture in a catalog---arrived in a timely manner, and were very generous- and appropriate in size.

These guys are great. I have ordered some evergreens from them. They arrived in good condition and as described.
Unfortunately some of them did not survived. I have purchased a warranty from them and when I made the claim they honored it and send me a coupon to use to replace my trees. Their service was great and quick. Janine helped me out and she was great.
Will shop there again.

I ordered a Yoshino cherry tree two days ago, after much hesitation after reading so many negative reviews of Fast Growing Trees. I did see that they're associated with Brighter Blooms, whose ratings have been trending up, so I went ahead and placed my order of one tree. I have a very old computer which got wonky on me as soon as I placed my order, and I was unable to get my order number. I never received an email from Fast Growing Trees confirming my order, but my credit card was charged. I emailed the company to ask if there was any way to track the order, but I haven't received a response. What I DID receive yesterday was a 5-6 foot well packed, leafed out cherry tree! It was potted, and packed very securely and doesn't look the least bit stressed, the medium was damp but not wet, the tree was secured with cardboard and the tree stake was stapled tightly but not one staple was in the tree, they were all carefully stapled to the green plant tape....no plastic or wires. I will say this little tree has some bug holes in the leaves, and it is planted too deeply into the container, but I can remedy that when I plant it. So I'm very happy with my purchase, and to top it off, the delivery man was friendly and outgoing.

I ordered a tree from this company and when it arrived, the top was broken. I notified them immediately. I had some trouble with the customer service site, and it wouldn't let me add the requested pictures. They responded very quickly and let me know they were shipping me a replacement tree. they did ask if I could send the pictures when I could. The fact that they trusted that I was telling the truth, and shipped me the tree says a lot to me. The second tree arrived safely. I would gladly recommend this company to my friends, and plan to use their services again.

I was invited to let you know about any problems there might be with my order. Well, it arrived late yesterday, and I’d rather let you know that I am thrilled with it! I have purchased plants by mail before (including a Royal Empress tree for another home), but never have they exceeded my expectations – until now. The trees were well packed, arrived travel weary but healthy and completely intact, and are happily awaiting their new homes in my ever-expanding garden. Thank you so much!

I've made several orders from"Fast growing Trees" and love their trees. My mango tree has gown over two and a half feet this summer since receiving it. Shipping is fast, they're well packed, all questions have been answered quickly, and any problems taken care of with ease. I've made four orders now and will confidently make more orders in the future if I can find a spot in my yard for any more. My husband calls my yard the "Garden of Eaton"

Approx 2 years ago , ordered a Frost Proof Gardenia ,came well packed and looked healthy . For yr and half , it sat just like I received it - dormant looking never any new growth .
I called Fast Growin Trees after the yr and half , sorry time on warranty has run out

So, this past spring , ordered another one + extra warranty
Again it came in due time, healthy looking and packed well, but it sat dormant , leaves started turning yellow , so check with FGT and was told about the soil conditions, so started adding Epsom salts and some Iron . Then I read up more about the bush and how finicky it was . All the yellow leaves dropped off [ alot of them ] and some stems were turning brown / dying back . I took Pict of Bush and e mailed it to the company and was sent a refund in the form of a company coupon to use later . Plants arrived looking good, packed well but I've had NO luck with the Gardenia ...te
PS wasn't aware of their other name "Empress Nursery "

I have had a supreme experience involving every transaction with Fast Growing Trees for years. Every tree that I have ordered from them has been grown in an environment that has produced very healthy trees. Each tree has been wonderfully healthy and beautifully leafed out when shipped. The crown of each tree is very full and mature when I have received it, not just a dormant stick with roots surrounded with dry newspaper in a plastic bag. In fact, the design and engineering of their boxes is specific to the tree, complete with the container filled with the original soil they were grown in, and very carefully placed inside the shipping box and sent via FedEx. However, they will never ship a tree to an area that would involve the tree staying in a shipping hub over the weekend. Instead, they ship on a Monday, so the tree will arrive as quickly as possible to avoid undue stress to the plant system. That way, when the box is opened and you lift out an absolutely beautiful tree, you could feel confident enough to put it in the foyer of your home immediately. Of course, you may want to transplant it into a more commodious planter, if that is your choice. The trees have always been full, luxurious, healthy and visually stunning right out of the box. I will ALWAYS order from Fast Growing Trees whenever I choose to grow a plant that I know will bring many years of satisfaction for a job well done and will enhance the beauty of my landscape as well as the value of my home.

Everything went well with the initial purchase. The Avocado Tree arrived on the day it was supposed to, and had been packed well so it travelled well.

I bought the planting kit as well as the tree and that was good except that the amount of compost suplied was not enough to fill the pot supplied, no problem, I had some on hand.

The tree as lived up to the name 'fast growing trees' as it has developed wonderfully having added about 8" in height since May

Very happy with the service, responsiveness, and the product

Great job

I began ordering from Fast Growing Trees.com within the past two months. I've ordered quite a few trees/schrubs and really couldn't be happier with the service. I have had two problems which are to be expected at times utilizing this type of delivery method. I had a Canadian Hemlock die and they took care of it immediately after I emailed them a photo. The other issue was with a 4 in 1 apple tree that arrived with an 8" break in a leader branch. I emailed them, received a response from "Kim" and she replaced the tree without my even asking. I'm a novice and was only inquiring about the trees production as it ages in my email at the time. The last emails are as follows:

Kim
JUN 13, 2014 | 11:09AM EDT
Good Morning Mr. OBrien,

I have also gone ahead and issued you a replacement for your 4-in-1 Apple tree. My sincere apologies that you have received it in that condition. Please go ahead and plant it and hopefully new growth will push through. I delayed your shipment for June 16, next Monday. FedEx doesn't ship to residential on Sunday or Monday so to avoid your trees sitting in their warehouse over the weekend I feel this is the best solution so you receive your trees in the best possible condition.


Kim
JUN 16, 2014 | 11:09AM EDT
Good Morning Mr. OBrien,

You are very welcome and thank you very much for your patience and understanding regarding the process. I truly hope that you receive your replacement in the best condition. If you have any further concerns going forward do not hesitate to contact us, best of luck!

We appreciate your kind words and are thankful we were able to help you with your order. As a company, we work to achieve positive responses from any customer service and sales interactions...."

Anyway, great overall experiences, and because of the service, I would continue ordering from them even if I were to find slightly lower prices elsewhere.

I can't believe how awesome this company is!! I got some great service and they helped me more than they'll ever know, went through hurricane sandy, so to finally get some relief with great service and the nicest people, I'm forever greatful! I recommend them to everyone!

Regina,
Wantagh New York

I just received my order from these guys and I must say that my plants are huge,green and extremely healthy. I ordered 3 pawlonia, which are the smallest of all the plants, all are green, healthy and about maybe 10 inches tall, the poplar is taller than me,I am 5ft2in and the plant is really healthy looking, the same for the golden rain tree.Next is a magnolia, about 4 ft tall,and like the others, beautifully healthy. The ultimate plant that I received, is a beautiful tulip tree, that has to be seen to believed, at least 6ft tall, full of large beautiful, wonderfully chartreuse leaves. Would I order from this company again, YOU BET I WOULD, without hesitation.

our experience at first was good and then we order more trees and they was half dead or cut in two I called fgt and talked to jennifer she was so very nice alot nicer then the others the others was rude .it took a little while but we got everything fixed...jennifer was great and so nice you should give her a raise........ thank you and God bless

I'm a repeat customer. The prices are peerless, the shipping is near immediate, and the plants are so wonderfully healthy. With a selection that cannot be beat and such a unique variety of options, fast-growing-plants.com has acquired a lifelong customer!

I would highly recommend buying from Fast Growing Trees. The plants are absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!! I purchased a Benjamin Ficus Tree and when it arrived I was so shocked. I never in my life seen a more beautiful & full tree, and you couldn't beat the price either. The customer service is AMAZING especially, Jennifer & Allison. They took care of my problem instantly. Soon as you write your e-mail they respond right away& take care of the problem. What a GREAT PLACE do business with!! I am surely a HAPPY customer...... Sincerely, Jennie Bedard

Hello, let me start by saying that the customer service of this company is EXCELLENT. I want to specifically point out Sarah from customer service who was extremely helpful. Even though we encountered a problem with our Moro Blood Orange Tree, we managed to find a great solution while working with Sarah.

I am a medical student in Europe and my family lives in the United States. I only get to see my family in the period between July and September.

Since I was not in the U.S.A. and my mother's birthday was coming up, I decided to use http://www.fast-growing-trees.com to send her a gift. Immediately after placing my order I sent an email to the company saying that it was supposed to be a gift and politely requested that a healthy tree be sent to her.

I bought her a Meyer Lemon Tree and a Moro Blood Orange tree both measuring 3-4 ft which were both on sale. When the order arrived, the lemon tree was in perfect condition but the orange tree was in a bad shape.

90% of the leaves of the blood orange tree had brown spots and after a day started to have yellow and brown-black spots. In 2 days the leaves started to have small tears in them. The remaining 10% of the leaves were green but started to turn brown fast.

It was disappointing since It was supposed to be a gift for my mother whom I haven't seen for 8 months and instead of her being happy with the present she had to nurture it back to health.

We contacted customer service who informed us that it could have been transport shock and guided my mother through what she needs to do. The steps didn't help much so we called customer service representative again.

Customer service representative Sarah responded to the call and understood fast that it was supposed to be a very important gift, sympathized with our situation, and offered to send us a replacement tree at no cost while us keeping the existing tree. Unfortunately, she informed us that there were no more blood orange trees available on stock ,so instead she offered to send us a bigger, 5-6 ft Calamodin Orange tree at no extra cost to compensate. I contacted my mother and asked her if she would prefer to get the calamodin tree and she agreed.

I contacted Sarah again and finalized the order.

My mother just got the tree yesterday and it looks ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. She told me that it is bigger that 6 ft and that it actually looks more like 7 ft. Furthermore, compared to the moro blood orange, it has 20x times the ammout of fruit. All of the leaves are emerald green with no spots on them. Overall, the tree is in great shape.

My mother loved it.

This replacement tree has saved the birthday gift for my mother. She was very happy when she saw it and I was delighted that she got something that she liked.

I believe that if it hadn't been for Sarah this experience would have been a negative one for me and my mother but instead it turned out to be better than we expected.

We will definetely do business again with fast-growing-trees.com and we would recommend it to our friends and family.

Our family would also like to send a big thanks to the folks in the Customer Service Department, and a special thanks to Sarah.

Have always provided good products and quick delivery. I had an issue with a couple of orders, and in both situations, the issues were resolved promptly and professionally. I was very satisfied and will continue to be a customer for many years to come.

Several years ago, I ordered 25 Spartan Junipers. They came, were planted, and are growing well. This year, I ordered 8 more Spartan Junipers and 10 Thuja Giant(s). They arrived in far better condition than even I anticipated. I had to leave them in their box for over a week due to never ending rain. I have now planted them and they are doing well. I would not hesitate to use this company again.

I have ordered from them many times. Some of the plants lived and some died, but generally, I would say that the failure of the plants was due to my lack of experience. The one thing I would complain about is something they've already fixed. Detailed planting and care instructions for each plant is now part of the service. Their prices are definitely higher than the only other place I've ever ordered from (I don't know how they compare generally) but the plants are much more mature and in some cases bore fruit the first year as opposed to the other place who's plants have yet to bear fruit after 3 years. As a gardening beginner, I'm most pleased by their customer service. I usually buy the add on guarantee. This is a kind of insurance that adds about 10% to the price, but if that plant fails within the first year, they will give the full price of that plant as a credit toward buying a replacement. For my money, Fast Growing Trees is number 1.

Hi,


I've ordered 4 trees from FGTs sometime in February. I had been looking forward to that for almost a year, so I was very excited!

I have a 4-in-1 apple tree, a Clementine tree, a Mayer Lemon tree and a Cavendish banana plant.

All of them came nicely packed! I transplanted them into slightly bigger pot. Of course I planted the apple tree in my front yard :-)

A month or two after they arrived, my Lemon tree looks really nice! Although they pruned it nicely, I did prune it back just a little more. The result looks great. There are nice shoots coming out, and I'm keeping about 3 per branch (depending on witch way they are pointing).
My banana plant is growing nicely too! It took a few weeks before it sprouted, but since then it's been growing nice and steady.
The apple tree is in bloom right now, and looks great! For that tree, I had also ordered the planting package which included a few things to help out, one of which was fertilizer. I water it every other day depending on the weather.
My Clementine tree had some minor issues... It came bigger than I had ordered (so that is nice), but it had some spots on the leaves. After asking FGTs and sending a picture, they said it was just some rust due to heavy rainfall. The tree grew nice (and a lot of-) blossoms! But then they all seemed to die off... And leaves also started to just drop off of the tree... Again I asked FGTs for help (I also tried to look up some stuff). As it turned out, it did need some fertilizer... And I also tested the soil and it was a bit on the alkaline side (citrus trees like acidic soil). I fixed both issues, and I took it onto myself to also prune it back a bit. I'm happy to report that on this tree, I now also have healthy looking shoots all over the place :D

In a nutshell:

Great shipping, good information on the site, very nice looking trees and great assistance when you have questions or any kind of issue!

I highly recommend FGTs and will definitely buy more trees (...if my wife lets me) :)

I ordered a cold hardy avocado tree that arrived on time however the top portion of the tree had been damage in transit.
I emailed FGT about the tree and included a picture. They got back to me quickly and sent a replacement.

I would buy again form them, great customer service.

To Allison: My experience with you and the replacement of the Meyer Lemon tree was a wonderful surprise! The replacement tree was better than the original tree. This company more than stands behind the products that are offered and the customer service is outstanding. Thank you, Allison for all your help. I am a truly satisfied and will be a purchasing again customer over and over.

Some minor confusion over species of a Korean Boxwood. While trying to match my existing thirty (30) year olds I found it to be nearly impossible. FGT shipped my selection (Wintergreen) and not being the match I expected I called them and without quibble they instantly sent me a replacement. The replacement has since been planted and the comparison to the older ones is quite compatible. An excellent company to do business with and they seem to go the extra mile for their customers

I have ordered several times from FGT. There products are always in excellent condition when received. The packaging is extremely secure for the precious live plants, and the tree/bush itself is always received healthy and green if not a dormant shipment (time of year appropriate).

I can not say enough about this company. I had one tree look puny immediately following receipt, I sent pictures and it was replaced free of charge immediately. The customer service is exceptional; fast, easy, and fair.

The products are unbeatable in quality mail order live plants!

Last year I purchased four Royal Empress Trees from Fast Growing Trees along with warranties. I had purchased from the company before with excellent results. This past year has been unusually rainy and cold for our area. The trees I bought arrived in very good condition and I planted them with great confidence that they would do well. As stated our weather was not the best. This spring there is not a sign of life in any of my new trees. I emailed and called Fast Growing Trees. They were both professional (offering advice) and courteous. They immediately activated my warranties and I submitted a re-order this morning along with additional orders for other trees/plants. I appreciate a company that does what is says. I look forward to doing more business with Fast Growing Trees.

I ordered a Peach Tree from Fast Growing Trees. I received the tree in excellent condition, I planted it in a pot as it was winter time. Not really sure what happened as i took every precaution necessary to protect it from the few freezes we get in North Eastern Florida, but the plant showed no signs of life come spring time. Per their guarantee they state in the terms of replacement for a deciduous tree that doesn't emerge from dormancy come spring time they will replace it. I wrote their customer service and explained the situation and they were more than happy to replace the tree free of my cost. They were so helpful and friendly, they have earned a customer for life, best online in my opinion.