Comments regarding Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee)

I've started keeping my empty Burpee seed packs after a couple of incidents when the seeds were not true to type and the testy customer service rep wouldn't even offer an apology without the seed lot numbers. If you buy from Burpee, save the packs! Other than that, I've had decent experiences with them, although, considering their prices, their service could be better. Some of their seeds are actually pretty good, others are so-so.

"On Mar 30, 2016 4:25 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We have reached out to this customer to apologize for the disappointing experience he/she had with our customer service representative. Our representatives are trained to ask for lot numbers for seed issues because we research every such report in order to determine what happened so we can prevent it from happening again. But we also train our representatives to make it clear that this is only for quality control purposes, and if the customer cannot provide it for whatever reason, that will in no way prevent him/her from receiving a prompt refund or replacement, according to our guarantee. It is disturbing to us to hear that any of our representatives was unprofessional and we appreciate hearing about it if it does happen."

I placed an order for 5 plants on the 4th of July 2015, I waited and waited, never received anything so I checked my account on the burpee page and it said they would ship my order at the best time for planting in my area. They charged my credit card the day or the very next day, but I never saw my plants until September! I could have been enjoying them for 2-3 months. When I did receive them, they were all stuffed into a little box, that I thought only held 1-2 plants max. Oh no! all 5 were stuffed in and dry. I did not get what I paid for. My neighbor said Burpee was the best and that if I wanted to get some great plants, that was the place to order from...NEVER AGAIN! I would have understood waiting if id placed my order in December or January, but it was July! Now ive got to wait until spring to see if this mess of dried leaves and twigs are really just sleeping or if they were dead when I received them. Now im on the hunt for another online nursery that I might actually receive what I pay for.

"On Feb 29, 2016 2:48 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We were very sorry to learn that this customer was unhappy with the delivery time of the perennial plants he/she ordered. We have reached out to the customer and explained our shipping schedule, and to remind him/her that all our products are guaranteed.
We ship live perennial plants in late winter/early spring, or fall. We do not ship in the heat of summer, nor the coldest time in winter, because the plants would not be likely to survive shipments, and because the best time to plant perennials is in cool conditions, and preferably as dormant plants. The ground should be workable in winter and not frozen solid, and nighttime temperatures should be cooler in fall to give the plants the best chance to adapt to garden conditions. We include shipping schedules on our website and with order confirmations, and when a customer calls to place an order over the phone. We are sorry that this information was not effectively conveyed to this customer.
As always our products are guaranteed to grow if they are planted according to directions at the proper time.
"

Posted on February 6, 2015, updated February 17, 2016
Burpee has good seeds, but takes entirely too long to get them to the customer, especially considering their prices!

"On Feb 7, 2015 9:59 AM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We are grateful for the kind words about our seeds, but sorry to hear that your seed order took a long time to receive. These items usually ship within a few days from our warehouse if we have the product in stock. Plants are shipped at the proper planting time from our nursery. In addition, we sell a wide range of seed varieties in local retail stores. We have reached out to you so that we can look into what may have caused any delays for you. "

I have been ordering seeds and plants from Burpee for years. I am always disappointed in the live plants, which are sadly much smaller than I expected and sometimes I can kill them much easier than I expect. I have had a LOT of luck with their ferns though, and most of their bulbs.

*** I am a terrible gardener, but have been getting much better these past few years***

So far, I am going to say their seeds are AWESOME. Compared to the four other brands I have bought, most of the time their seeds not only germinate, but last longer than expected.

However, don't buy the Stevie seeds unless you are an expert gardener. Don't buy live plants unless you are at least an experienced gardener. They need more help than some other places.

I have never contacted their customer service before, and I don't know if they would help with the problems.

For many years, at least twenty, I have ordered Burpee Flower and Vegetable seeds. This year is the first year I've had a problem, well two problems. Penta (flowering annual) seeds which did not germinate, although I was meticulous with directions. No big problem, I really didn't care much about that. BUT, I ordered good old Sweet 100 cherry tomato seeds, among others, like I have done for a long time. I typically germinate about twenty sweet 100 plants, greenhouse them to about 15 inches, and give all but two to friends. The two I grew this year had GOLF BALL size tomatoes which were, in my wife's opinion, not too sweet. I felt the same way. Well I complained to Customer Service who referred me to Horticulture, and I sent them photo's of the plants, the ripened fruit, and the lot number on the packet. They returned the price of the seed packet, and postage. What do I tell the friends who got the other plants? Sorry? Is there a QA problem? Someone leave the hybridizing unit door open?

"On Aug 4, 2015 8:35 AM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We were very sorry to hear of this customer's experience with our Sweet 100 tomatoes and appreciate his letting us know. The information he provided will help our quality control team will research the problem and try to determine the cause. "

Not everything goes smoothly in any walk of life, gardening included. Good experiences with this company overall. Not particularly fond of paying so much for certain 4-inch plants (e.g. unique berries), but they are definitely grow-ers if not show-ers. Had a mixup with my order (shipped wrong product) that caused me not to get my strawberry until the following spring, but, once it arrived (healthy, albeit tiny), it was planted and, without any regard to my expectations, grew with gusto. Don't judge a plant by its top, I suppose.

First time order from Burpee, ordered Lewisia on sale. The plants were fantastic large plants with a great root system. Very pleased.

I live in zone 5. I ordered 9 tomato plants and 6 pepper plants, total over $100, on May 4th. I called several times asking for a shipping date. Customer service could not tell me even approximately when my plants would ship. I finally received an email from UPS on May 26th telling me that my plants had shipped. I never received any communication from Burpee regarding shipping. The plants arrived on May 28th. They were ridiculously small. I completely understand why neither the website nor customer service can tell you shipping dates. No one would order from them. Their plants are over priced, but I wanted to give them a try, thinking it might be worth it. Not only were the plants a disappointment, they cost me almost a month of growing time. I will never order plants from them again, unless they provide actual shipping dates on their website.

"On Jun 1, 2015 5:15 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We were very to hear of this customer's disappointment with his order and the challenges he faced finding out when it would be shipped. We have reached out to him. Such feedback regarding the information we provide and the quality of the products we ship is very helpful to us as we are constantly look for ways to improve our products and the quality of our service.

I ordered tomatoes and peppers on May 7 and received an email on approximately May 12 stating that my order had been picked and would be sent when it was time to plant in my zone. My zone is 6 and according to their website they have been shipping to zone 6 for about 2 weeks. I called to ask when I could expect to receive my plants on May 20 and was told they would "probably" ship the next day. Still had not received on May 26 so I called again and was told exactly the same thing. When I explained that I had been told that on the 20th and needed to know exactly when they would ship, I was told that no one in the company could answer that question but that "the truck" went out with the day's shipment and mine were not on it. When I politely stated that a more specific answer was needed at this point, I was hung up on. Apparently they don't have a shipping schedule. The lady I spoke with was very unconcerned and seemed to be annoyed that I would even call and could not care less if customers are satisfied. This is their customer service. Never, never again will I purchase from Burpee.

"On May 27, 2015 11:56 AM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We are very concerned to hear of this customer's disappointing experience with our Customer Service department and have reached out to see how we may resolve the issues s/he describes. Excellent customer service is top priority at Burpee. We appreciate any feedback that will help us to improve and maintain the highest level of customer care."

Strawberry plants arrived in EXCELLENT condition!

I ordered 3 purple wonder strawberry plants and then happen to read all the negative comments here. My initial thought was... I just wasted $34.

But to my surprise... the plants arrived in excellent condition!

Each plant was PLANTED in a 4" pot. The packing in the box protected the tops of each plant and kept the dirt from falling out of the pots. Genius! Plants I have bought and carried home from a store have had more damage than these plants!

The dirt was still moist after 7 day shipping period.

Their communication was excellent. I was sent an email with tracking number and expected arrival the day the plants were sent.

Plants were shipped within the time period described on their website.

VERY happy!

Each year it is something different wrong with my order. While the plants are usually good, there is almost always something wrong.

Next year I will try to find the products I want elsewhere.

"On Apr 16, 2015 4:37 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We are very sorry to hear that this customer has had repeated disappointing experiences with his orders. We have reached out to him and hope that every issue will be resolved by our customer service department. "

oh, i was skeptical and really didn't look forward to ordering here but they seemed to be the only online supplier of Salvia 'Wendy's Wish' at the moment.
i ordered one plant on march 29 and it arrived today, april 2. it was healthy, with a very good root system and packed well.
i'm very pleased.

Posted on February 27, 2015, updated March 26, 2015
Posted on February 25, 2015, updated February 27, 2015
Posted on February 24, 2015, updated February 25, 2015
Posted on February 21, 2015, updated February 24, 2015
I try to help out a local food bank garden. I received an email for free shipping on Presidents' Day. I have used their seeds more than any other company in the past. I did not hesitate to order some Espoma biotone liquid. They have great products. I couldn't find the same product elsewhere so I called Espoma. They said they hadn't manufactured the product for 7-8 years and it the good bacteria was only viable for 2 or three years. I called customer service back within minutes of placing the order to cancel it. They told me it would be awhile before I was refunded my money-it was already out of my checking account. Still no refund!

"On Feb 24, 2015 5:18 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

Dear Burpee Customer,

We apologize that this situation has occurred with your order. It appears that this product was listed in error on our website, and we have had this item pulled from our product selection online and all items have been discarded. Please know that this kind of situation has never occurred before with our company. At this time we have reached out to you via DMAIL so we can get obtain your order information and ensure that you are refunded accordingly. Please, can you contact our customer service team as soon as possible so we may resolve this situation for you? Thank you again for alerting us to this problem, and we apologize for any inconvenience this situation may have caused you. "

I ordered 2 perennials for my central Virginia garden in Feb. One was a Clematis :Henry , not an unusual variety to grow.
On March 15th,I received two anemic 3 inch potted plants ,neither of which was marked as to name,, and sent 2 months before my last frost date. I paid $16.95 for this 3 inch plant.
I called customer service to report the poor quality and size of these plants. I was thinking they were using an outside grower who was shipping plants out early and immature. They were not. Their horticulture group responded to me with basically a shrug of the shoulders and told me to plant them NOW. They wouldn't be damaged.
maybe not but when I am paying $16.95 for a common 3 inch plant, I will baby it. I wont be buying any live plants from them again...and this after 10 years as a customer.

"On Mar 23, 2015 5:29 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We were sorry to learn that you were disappointed in the size of the plants you received, and in the timing when you received them. We do recommend planting perennials such as clematis in a semi dormant state, before the last frost, so they can establish strong roots before they produce top growth. These plants should live for years and produce strong vines and lovely flowers year after year. If they do not grow, as for all our products, they are guaranteed and we will issue a refund. As always, we appreciate your feedback."

Posted on March 13, 2015, updated March 13, 2015
Posted on August 23, 2012, updated March 13, 2015
I have had very good experiences with Burpee this year. I had a problem with some seeds I had ordered from them, but I knew these particular seeds were difficult to start, and they were. But, I wrote to Burpee and Zachary replaced them immediately. Then I had a problem with those because the thermostat on my heating mat over heated and cooked them. Zachary replaced those also.

This spring I ordered a new Honey Suckle, Major Wheeler, a red one, and when it bloomed it came out yellow. I wrote, and Colleen is having a Red one sent. She gave me my option of that or a refund.

I find Burdpee a very good company to do business with. They stand behind their service guarantees. Thanks Colleen, Jeanette

"On Mar 14, 2015 9:38 AM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We welcome feedback from our customers and appreciate your disappointment that we do not offer scaevola as seed. We have not offered this as seed for some years, and checking back in our catalogues from 2012 to the present it has only been listed as plants. When you google a product unfortunately sometimes the posts that appear are outdated and may not reflect the current offerings of our company. We recommend checking our website directly, as these are our most current offerings.

Regarding the honeysuckle, these long lived perennial vines may take a year or two to bloom. The first year it is essential that they establish a strong root system. As long as the location is good and they are growing well, they will bloom in a year or two, and for many years thereafter.

We have reached out to Jeannette via D Mail."

Posted on February 26, 2015, updated March 5, 2015
I have been a customer of this company since the early 1980's, and have always found them to be a good source of seed and and having a very good selection. My problem is, starting about six years ago I noticed their prices rapidly increasing, much more than the other 20 or so companies I order from. It is now at the point where Burpee seed cost is more than double, sometimes triple, the price for the same exact seed varieties from all other sources! I don't see how they can stay in business with this practice, with most of their seeds costing 5 to six dollars a pack!!! I now order the bulk of my seeds from Jung's seed company and several others, who have much more reasonable prices! Check your catalog prices folks, and you will do as I and many of my friends have done, switch!!! Why pay so much more for the same seed?

"On Feb 27, 2015 2:41 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

Burpee’s prices, as with any business, are determined by our costs. This covers research and plant breeding for new and better varieties, production, warehousing, and catalog and distribution expenses. Some varieties are more expensive to produce, and our prices will reflect this.

Burpee sells seed in retail stores, online and through our catalog. When comparing our prices with those of other seed companies for the identical seed variety, or even our retail with our catalog/website prices, the seed count must also be taken into consideration. Typically our retail seed packets contain fewer seeds than our direct mail seed, to reflect different customer needs. We feel there is a market to offer seed for sale through both channels of distribution. Customers can then choose the method of purchase which is the most convenient and satisfying for them. We hope our customers will look at their total order cost, value, quality and our guarantee for customer satisfaction, and feel our pricing is fair.

Thank you for your feedback, as always we appreciate feedback from our customers."

I ordered four different kinds of garlic bulbs for planting to expand my varieties of garlic. One was "Kettle River Giant", which was supposed to have a diameter "up to 4" ". All were 2" or less. In addition, I ordered Burpee's "Best Garlic Collection", which was supposed to be an assortment of three different kinds of garlic. All of the bulbs of the "collection" were lumped into one bag, and were not distinguishable from each other. I E-mailed Burpee these concerns, along with pictures of the bulbs of garlic, and one clove pulled loose from each bulb. The response from Burpee was perfunctory, and ignored most of my questions. I will most likely never order from Burpee again. I am convinced that mistakes were made in packing my order; but no attempt to rectify was made by Burpee customer service. I seriously doubt that anyone even looked at the pictures that we took of the garlic. Obviously, there are better sources for garlic out there!

"On oct 3, 2014 12:54 , Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We apologize for your experience with our garlic and for how your complaint was handled. We have reached out to you directly to help you identify the garlic varieties, and to offer an adjustment to your order. We appreciate your feedback and are grateful for the chance to address your concerns. "

In 2013 I ordered a new Sorbia Sem that showed delicate multicolored leaves, and what was then also a new hardy hibiscus - the midnight variety with dark red/maroon leaves and deep red blooms.
I also ordered several Echinacea for the goldfinches...
In what appears to have been a different order, my husband bought me the Ghost fern / Athyrium.

I noticed that when the Sorbia arrived, it was green. As it grew, it never resembled the image of what I had ordered. All green. I contacted the company with photos, who verified I had been sent another variety, and they offered to ship a new plant at the appropriate planting time. Very well. Worth waiting to get what I'd planned on for that spot in the garden...
The second plant, after arriving, displayed the same traits as the first. All green. Again, not what I ordered. Now I have two, and they are doing well...but not what I ordered, or wanted.
The hibiscus had arrived dormant, so I had to wait and see what that was going to do this year. It sprouted green leaves.
Not supposed to be green leaves. I waited...all green leaves.
Clearly again not the plant I ordered.
Blooms are now forming, so I will soon know what color the flower is, and I am hoping this IS a hardy variety, since it spent the winter inside my greenhouse but it now in the ground.

I have sent another email to customer service with more pictures of what I got, and what I didn't.

All the coneflower died in the ground over the winter, despite my older 'local' plantings having survived.

The only thing I can report as being successful is the Ghost fern. A very slow grower and needing a bit of coddling, it has filled out and looks lovely - true to the image shown on their website.

I gave a neutral experience, because it was not positive and most of the situation was resolved.Bought about $90.00 worth of seed online, and started some indoors. most sprouted, the seeds I planted out doors first of may with temps in 80's ,Corn , watermelon cantalope and honeydew, was poor to no germination, only 2 varieties of corn were reasonable, early sunglow and golden bataam, the peaches and cream was nothing as was all the melons. My garden is all set up with drip irragation on timers and the weather was in the 80's the ground was kept moist and plenty of heat, we live in a semi desert area of the columbia basin in central washington, an agriculture area and the corn was planted the same time as the commercial growers , their fields all did good, my garden was a disaster. contacted burpee and they immediately refunded $55.00 of my order, but that does not fix the lost time, and I have replanted with a different brand of seed, so we will see. WHY so much problem with germination??? I have gardened all my life,I am retired, and I have never had this much problem getting seeds to germinate ! ! ! any body else have that problem???

Very positive. I love gardening and have a half acre garden. I placed a large order with Burpee and I was very happy when they plant arrived strong, healthy and well packaged. The prices are a little higher but it was well worth it. I have done a lot of mail ordering and this has been the best.

My first experience buying plants online was with Burpee. My colleague highly recommended this site to me so I purchased a number of plants amounting to almost $500. I shouldn't have but the pretty pictures on their website and a number of positive reviews here made me think that was ok.
First disappointment was that the plants that arrived were small. Not all items had indicated sizes on their website but based on the price I expected at least 4'-6" pots, or equivalent plant size for most of them. No. A lot are 2.5" baby plants, some bare roots (which is fine but I was not expecting it) and a couple of really expensive ones were 4". $34 for a 4" starter plant. Not a good deal.
Second disappointment, a lot of the plants were not ready to be shipped. This should have been made clear. I received plants late spring to early summer, at least a month after I ordered, because apparently they were still growing them. If that was the case I would prefer to have known about it so I know not to order it. I waited 2 months for some plants that came to me so young they did not survive the trip. They sent a replacement for one of them and refunded the rest. The replacement looked exactly the same and died the same way. I did not bother writing again. I've sent several e-mails before and I am just tired.
I was told that this company was a good seed place. I did not buy any seeds from them so I cannot comment if that was really their specialty. All I know is that they are not the best source of live plants. For the prices they charged, you could get 4x the size elsewhere.

Apparently, it is always a mixed bag with Burpee. I rated them NEGATIVE because the last two experiences were negative, with another really BIG negative not too long before that. Here's the breakdown of my walk down Burpee Lane:

Positive - Ordered two packets of cucumbers and some gourds. Everything arrived in good shape, and the cukes germinated well. (Gourds not planted yet because I like them fresh and ready for fall, but I'm sure they're fine.)

Positive - Ordered a packet of hot cherry peppers and a packet of pole beans. Again, everything went fine.

BIG Negative - Two successful orders, so I placed a larger order of melons, squash, and a few varieties of tomatoes and peppers. Big mistake. The thin cardboard envelope had no padding. Something in the handling or shipping process squished the larger seeds to bits, and the smaller seeds had come out of their packets and were all muddled together.

Positive - Before receiving the Smashed Seed Surprise, I had ordered a packet of swiss chard and and one of bush beans. Again, smaller order, nice padded envelope, all was well.

Positive - I sent an email about the Seed Mash. Got a very quick response. "Deb" at Burpee offered to replace or refund the melons, squash, tomatoes, and peppers, my choice. I asked for replacements.

Negative - When I got the notification of the reshipment, the Gold Standard Hybrid sweet pepper wasn't available. They didn't make any special mention of that fact. I just noticed it because it was listed as OUT OF STOCK on the credit for the old order, and was missing from the shipping list for the new order. They didn't offer me a different yellow sweet pepper, or offer to notify me when it was back in stock. Just... nothing. No gold peppers for you.

Negative - I still wasn't completely disillusioned with Burpee, so when I received an offer for $2 shipping using the code FLAT136, I decided to place an order. I needed some sunflower seeds, and was intrigued by the "sunflower forest" idea. I got my order together, sunflowers and a few other items, went to check out, and... COUPON CODE EXPIRED. I looked at the fine print, and sure enough, it said "expires 05/19/2014 11:59 p.m. ET." That's 8:59 p.m. here in Arizona. After a very busy day, I finally had time to place my order, and... No discount shipping for you because you live in the Wild West! I can't say that my failure to scrutinize the fine print and the subsequent time wasted is Burpee's fault. I can, however, say that most of their competitors are more considerate of those of us west of the Mississippi, even at the risk of a few East Coast insomniacs getting cheap shipping in the wee hours.

Unknown - Before this latest disappointment, I ordered a packet of radishes and a packet of carrots. I'm sure everything will be skippy-dandy, and just as sure that I believe this is the end of my relationship with Burpee and their time-sucking inconsistency and unreliability.

"On May 21, 2014 1:10 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We apologize for the issues you have encountered with your orders and have reached out to you through D mail to make sure that everything has been resolved.

We always appreciate feedback from our customers and welcome every opportunity to meet their needs. "

This is my first year starting a garden. I ordered some tomato seeds and bare root strawberry plants. The strawberries came much sooner than I expected, but I hurried and got the bed ready, and now (6 weeks later) they are blooming up a storm. Only 2 of the 50 have died.

The tomato seeds had a pretty good germination rate, and seem healthy so far.

Overall, very satisfied.

Posted on April 4, 2014, updated May 3, 2014
Posted on April 4, 2014, updated April 4, 2014
Posted on March 19, 2014, updated April 4, 2014
Posted on March 15, 2014, updated March 19, 2014
Posted on May 22, 2013, updated March 15, 2014
Posted on May 21, 2013, updated May 22, 2013
Posted on April 11, 2012, updated May 21, 2013
Posted on April 8, 2012, updated April 11, 2012
Posted on February 19, 2010, updated April 8, 2012
I ordered some early seed starting supplies a few weeks ago from this company.
An error was made by their shipping department.
One phone call and the replacment was here within a weeks time . I am very happy with their pleasant response and will surely be ordering from them again.

"On Apr 10, 2014 8:42 AM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We were very sorry to learn that your replacement plant arrived in poor condition. We have emailed you directly with the email address where you can send images. We appreciate these as they help with our quality control at our nursery. We do apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to resolving the issue."

I no longer even consider ordering from Burpee after the headache I went through last year. First they short me half my order, despite the website saying in stock when I bought them. They never notified me, I just opened the box to find items missing with a note saying the were back ordered. I called to find out what the deal was and they told me it was too cold to ship my pineberry & purple wonder strawberries... I checked the weather online and in their area it was high 60's to low70s that week.. They told me they would call back with a shipping eta, but when they did call the customer service rep accused me of lying, saying I had already received all items. I hung up and called back, spoke to a different person who told me they oversold and wouldn't have more ready for another month. So I ended up getting a refund, highly annoyed that the main items I wanted were the ones they shorted me.

Of the other items that did arrive, all the other strawberries and 4 of 5 raspberries died. The only item that was healthy and vigorous was a fig plant, which was a rip off for the size/price paid and a year later still has not yet given me fruit.

After I had already been refunded, they mis-shipped me the strawberries that had been back ordered. I wish I could post a picture, they were the saddest pitiful wilted seedlings I had ever seen. Of the 4 strawberries they sent, the only one which survived wasn't even the right variety.

Never again!

"On May 2, 2014 4:08 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

We are so sorry to learn of your unfortunate experience and have contacted you directly to see if we can resolve any outstanding issues. The satisfaction of our customers is very important to us and we appreciate having the opportunity to respond to their concerns."

Expensive seed but always high quality with excellent germination. Customer service is helpful too. I've grown Burpee seed successfully in several very different zones. Good selection of OP seed and hybrids.

Posted on April 4, 2014, updated April 9, 2014
Posted on March 16, 2014, updated April 4, 2014
I ordered seeds and live plants from this company last year and was very disappointed. The seeds are overpriced and come in a plain & ugly thin seed packet that rips when you open it. I did not get good germination or healthy thriving plants from any of the seeds. I ordered a Papaya that was listed for zone 9 but it turned rubbery and was unhealthy anytime the weather was under 60 degrees. It died within a few months even though the temperature was never near 20-30 as zone 9 gets. I tried twice to get off their mailing list but they keep sending catalogs even though they agreed to take me off their list. Many of their seeds are treated because they never say they are not, and most are hybrids and PVP's. Just awful, I cannot believe they are still around!

"On Apr 7, 2014 3:00 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

Thank you for your feedback. We guarantee our products and will reach out to you directly to resolve any issues you have experienced with them. We appreciate your request to be removed from our mailing list, and will honor that request. It does take a number of weeks for this to take effect and it is possible that you will receive a catalogue during this time. We apologize for the inconvenience. "

I received several dormant raspberry and blackberry canes, as well as two leafed-out blueberry starts from Burpee as a birthday gift from a friend. The dormant canes were well rooted-out and packed with moist woodchips in a plastic bag. As far as one can tell with dormant plants, they seemed healthy enough. I received two blueberry plants, which I think is one more than was actually purchased. Granted, one of them looked rather weak and wilted, but I appreciate the extra plant and the attention to detail that was extended to the packing of the plants. I just ordered several grapevines from the company, and am hoping for consistency. It is a bit of a bummer that you can't combine special offers- it makes it so much more fun when you feel like you've gotten a killer deal. Especially because they seem to have rather high prices.

Ordered a couple of plants, one of which was a passion flower vine for $16.95, from Burpees. When I received the order, most of the soil was out of the passion vine pot with the roots exposed.... since all they did was put packing paper around the plants. Well, the thing looked dead, needless to say.

When I contacted them about a replacement, they asked for a picture of the plant, which I sent. Received an email stating that that was the way the plant was supposed to look....and that if they sent me a replacement plant, it would look exactly the same, so they essentially said "No" to a replacement. And no mention of how badly the plant was packed (roots exposed), of course. That's their idea of customer service?

So I just asked for a refund. Burpees may be ok for over-priced seeds ordering, but apparently they don't "do" plant orders very well. And their 'customer service' ticked me off...since they tout, on their website, a Burpees product "guarantee of satisfaction".

I won't be using them again.

"On Mar 17, 2014 12:37 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

Thank you for sharing your experience and we apologize that it was not to your satisfaction. Please know that the issues you experienced with the shipping of your Passiflora were sent to our Nursery Team for review. Our Nursery team makes every effort to ensure our plants are in good growing condition when they leave our growing facilities, even dormant plants; and we are disappointed that your vine arrived to you in such poor condition.

Please also accept our apologies for the problems you encountered with our service. Our customers are very important to us and we are working to fix the issues you’ve indicated. We are constantly striving to improve the service experience for all of our customers and value these types of exchange. Thank you, and our apologies, again.
"

Burpee has the highest price on seeds that I've ever seen, but I ordered from them several years ago and was happy with the germination rate, so when I saw all of the discounts they were offering I decided to give them another try.

They offer $10 off with a coupon in their catalog, 25% off a $100 order with an online coupon and free shipping with a $50 order. None of the coupons say that they can not combined with any other offer - but after spending all the time getting an order together, I find out in check out that only one offer will be accepted. If that is the policy, that's fine - but it would be more honest to say up front that the offers can not be combined, rather than the big surprise at the end. I emailed Customer Service with this complaint, but they replied only that offers can not be combined at this time.

With seed packets as high as 6.95 each and the feeling that I've been misled about the coupons, they can keep their outrageously priced products.

"On Feb 11, 2014 11:46 AM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

Dear Customer,

Thank you for your feedback.

We apologize for the problems you have encountered with our online & catalog promotions. Please know that Burpee will be making changes to our promotional information in the near future based upon your feedback.

At this time we have reached out to you on via direct mail on Dave’s Garden to resolve this issue.

If you require additional assistance please call 1-800-888-1447 or email custserv@burpee.com.

"

Today I ordered 3 Tomato plants from Burpee's. I was unaware of the many negatives of this company. However, I will give them a positive until they prove different and then I will post results. The reason I ordered so early was to be sure I got first dibbs on the good plants. Will post later with results.

I have ordered seeds from burpee about 15 times over the years. I always get what I order and it is shipped on time. I have ordered seeds from other companies too, but Burpee has become my go to for seeds. I have always had success with their seeds and they have a nice selection and nice prices.

I have never ordered live plants from them. I live in Houston, so I have a lot of better options around for live plants. This is the main reason I have never ordered live plants from them.

I have also never had to contact their customer service for any reason, so I do not have any information to share in that regards.

I placed an order on July 21, 2013 for a variety of tulips, I received my order today 10/16/2013, thinking my order was fulfilled only to find that Mother's Love Tulips was substituted with Red Riding Hood Tulips, which I already had ordered.Now, i figured that by placing my order early Burpee would have at least reserved these Tulips for me or at least let me know, so I had the option of choosing a substitute.Instead they sent order confirmation misleading me to believe I was gonna get Mother's Love Tulips.I am upset to say the least and recommend to my fellow gardeners everywhere to never believe by placing an early order with Burpee, that you will actually get your item.It is a little late now for me to try to find the Tulips I desired, so now I will have to wait till next year but I will never order from Burpee anymore.

"On Oct 17, 2013 8:37 AM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

Dear Customer,

Many different factors impact our inventory levels of live goods. Our tulip bulbs are shipped directly from Holland and at times production issues may occur. When these issues occur, we try to substitute a similar variety for the original product selected, and we do apologize your original selection was not available to be sent to you.

After reviewing your comments we reached out to you on via direct mail on Dave’s Garden and via email to resolve this issue.

We hope you feel that this matter has been resolved. Please contact our Customer Service team at 1-800-888-1447 if you require additional assistance or email custserv@burpee.com.


"

i've only ordered seeds from burpee so i can't comment on plant orders. i've gotten a few bad batches of seeds with poor germination rates but in general, i've been pleased with germination rates and the resulting plants. i have dozens of seed packets from them and will continue to order from them in the future. one of my order took over two weeks to arrive but all the other orders arrived fairly promptly.

Ordered 3 seedless tomato plants rather late because I couldn't find locally. Live plants arrived three days after on-line shipping notice in excellent condition. Rest of order came 3 days after live plants. Well pleased. Distance apparently not a problem. Will not be hesitant next year to order from Burpee.

I thought that I had written a review for this company before I guess I have not.
I occasionally buy vegetable seeds from this company. I have had good results. They only have smaller amount of seeds in the packets on the seed racks so I will buy cantaloupes, peppers, cukes, etc. For corn, beans and okra for example, I will not buy from them because I need more seed. I am very satisfied with what I have purchased from them because the germination rates are dependable.

Posted on May 26, 2013, updated June 1, 2013
I've ordered from Burpee in the distant past and never had a problem. However, due to their link with Monsanto, I cannot with good conscience order from them again until they sever ties with any company that produces GMO seed. Goodbye Burpee.

"On May 31, 2013 8:47 AM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

Burpee is the nation's leading purveyor of both heirloom and hybrid vegetables seeds and transplants. Burpee purchases seeds from a select list of suppliers throughout the world including Seminis. However, none of the seeds purchased from Seminis or any other supplier are GMO. Burpee has never bred or sold GMO seeds and does not intend to do so in the future.

The following link will provide more information about our company's view on GMO seed:
http://www.burpee.com/gygg/content.jsp?contentId=about-burpe...

"

After the experience I've had, I would not recommend Burpee to anyone. If you don't feel like reading the rest, I'll just say that their lousy shipping method killed the live plants they were sending me, and their customer service is lacking. Read below for the full details.

I placed an order on April 14th for three live plants, with the understanding that they would ship around April 29th or so (due to different growing seasons). April 29th came and went, and I received no shipping notice. I finally called on May 12th to ask what was going on, and why my order hadn't shipped. Their brilliant customer service rep kept telling me that it could arrive the next day... even though it hadn't shipped yet. Guess what. It didn't arrive on the 13th. Big surprise.

The shipping notice came on May 16th. Then I waited. And waited. And waited.

I was excited to finally receive the package on May 23rd. Talk about slow shipping, especially for live plants! My spirits were crushed though when I opened the box and discovered that the two little tomato plants were badly, badly wilted, and nearly dead.

I emailed customer service that day to complain and to ask for expedited shipping on replacement plants since I had been waiting so long already. I received a timely, but abrupt reply which lacked appropriate capitalization. It said that they were shipping replacements to me. No mention of shipping type or speed.

I called again today (May 29th) to inquire about the status of my replacements, and to request expedited shipping if they had not been sent yet. I was told that there was no way at all for them to expedite shipping on anything. I finally asked to speak with a supervisor, and the representative said that he would take my number and that she (the supervisor) would call me back as soon as she gets a chance.

Not surprisingly, my phone never rang. However, I did mysteriously get another shipping notification by email not long after I called. Same slow shipping method as last time. So here I am, six weeks after placing my order, waiting for replacements to arrive, and hoping that they don't die en route too. All of our other tomatoes have been in the ground at the garden for two weeks already. My poor tomatoes (if they survive this journey) will be off to a very late start.

I think they owe me an apology and a refund. I didn't pay $22.00+ for dead plants, slow shipping, and lousy customer service. I don't think I'll ever buy from Burpee again.

"On Sep 4, 2013 3:57 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

Dear Customer,

We are very sorry for the poor experience you’ve encountered with Burpee. After reviewing your comments we reached out to you on May 31, 2013 via direct mail on Dave’s Garden to resolve this issue.

We hope at this time you feel that this matter has been resolved. Please contact our Customer Service team at 1-800-888-1447 if you require additional assistance or email custserv@burpee.com.

"

Order of 3 tomato plants, with all 3 plants limp with stems unable to support plants upon arrival. As I was in the garden when plants arrived, they were all planted according to the package directions within 10 minutes of arrival, with sun and wind protection; temperature in the upper 60's, a plastic pot with the bottom cut out, placed around the plants at time of planting. 24 hours later, two plants (Big Boy and Brand boy) are barely alive, but with leaves that are not wilted, so I believe they will recover. The sauce tomato hybrid appears dead, with wilted leaves and no support from the main stem). Purchasing tomato plants from the local grocery or hardware store would have been a better choice, even if I would not have gotten the desired hybrids.

"On Sep 4, 2013 3:55 PM, Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee) responded with:

Dear Customer,

We are very sorry for the poor experience you’ve encountered with Burpee. After reviewing your comments we reached out to you on June 3, 2013 via direct mail on Dave’s Garden to resolve this issue.

We hope at this time you feel that this matter has been resolved. Please contact our Customer Service team at 1-800-888-1447 if you require additional assistance or email custserv@burpee.com.

"