Comments regarding John Scheepers, Inc.

I received my order yesterday in Michigan. Everything was well-packed and looked good. I am very pleased with my bulbs. I particularly liked the fact that the shipment could be tracked at UPS right through Scheepers' website. I will order again next year.

All the bulbs I ordered from John Scheepers last fall arrived on time and in perfect condition. All were fat, healthy bulbs. The ones that didn't survive had nothing to do with them and everything to do with my balcony planting arrangement and our weather last year. The ones that did, especially the tulip humilis violacea, the daffodils, and all the lilies grew magnificently! I will definitely order again from them this year.

Well, make that "positive-ish." Like some of other commenters, I was pleased overall with the bulbs I ordered from John Scheepers--they have a wide variety and some things that I didn't find anywhere else. (The "Holland Chic" tulips I ordered are beautiful this spring. Well, at least, the ones the squirrels didn't get are beautiful.) I did find a couple of rotted bulbs in each order, and the bulbs weren't as large as those I'd gotten from other sources. Not enough for me to complain to Customer Service, and perhaps one or two bad bulbs is to be expected in an order as large as the one I placed with them. Still, I'd expected a little bit more given their reputation and the other comments. It was, overall, a postive experience, but not the best bulb experience I've had. I will order from John Scheepers/Van Engelen again, but only with whatever money I have left after running wild at Old House Gardens and Brent & Becky's.

Order came quickly and as ordered. I will use them again.

Although this was a very small order, it was delivered very quickly, it was well-packaged, and - most importantly - it was accurate. I am now contemplating a second larger order.

I placed my first order with John Scheepers last fall and was satisfied with the quality of bulbs that I received. They were big and healthy and the shipment arrived earlier than expected. I will definitely do more business with them.

I ordered botanical tulips and lily bulbs from Scheepers last Spring. In October, I called the company to inquire about the order, and when I might expect delivery. The person who answered the phone was courteous and helpful, and told me they don't ship to zone 8 until the first week in November. The bulbs arrived the second week in Nov, which is fine. The bulbs were all firm, good sized, and seemed healthy. I would--and will--order from this company again.

Well I'm actually upset to have to be giving this company a negative comment. I was really excited after reading all your posts.

I ordered 3 different kinds of bulbs. Only two kinds arrived with a letter stating that the one crop was bad and I could pick something else but by then it was the 1st of Nov. and everything was already sold out. So I'm left with nothing in their place. Also the small tulip bulbs they sent me out of 50 - 16 were nothing but a poof of air. That seems like a lot. So I called them and the lady said well we haven't had any other complaints about them. Why should that matter???? They all can't be perfect and someone is going to get some bad ones even if it's just one person they should make it right. Why would I make that up? I paid for 50 I would like 50. I said I still have the bulbs and could return them. She said she would let her supervisor know about it. So we will see what actions they take and I may change my answer.

Got my order in yesterday (11-5-2003) & all were good sized bulbs & looked healthy. Great company to buy from if you need larger quantity size, and don't want to sacrifice the bulb quality.

I had a wonderful experience ordering from this company. Their catalog is very nice, but doesn't go overboard. I received an e-mail confirmation immediately after placing my order and was notified by e-mail when my order was shipped. That e-mail showed the date that the order would arrive (it was correct). The packaging of the order and the quality of the daffodil bulbs that I received was excellent. Large, solid bulbs, all in very good shape. I would highly recommend this company.

I had a great time ordering from this company. They have a beautiful catalogue and it is well described and colourful with lots of photographs of their flowering bulbs. I ordered several types of bulbs, mostly narcissus this year; and they came in record time. They were fully sized and healthy with not a bit of soft spot or mould on any of them. I also read that they were voted no. 1 with Consumer Reports for the best value and quality for bulbs at the best prices. I would have to agree, and will order from them again next year for sure! They have a full selection from which to choose, and a guarantee if things go wrong. They also include detailed instructions for planting and tips for the culture of their bulbs for growing success, both in their catalogue and on their website. You can track your order so that you know when it was shipped, and gift certificates are available for those times when you just don't know what to choose! I totally recommend John Scheepers for bulbs.

I must add a comment about this company. Even though I ordered later from them, their shipment came earlier than several others. Everything was labeled and packaged well. The bulbs were MUCH bigger than those ordered from Van Bourgondien's. The prices and selection are great. I will certainly order from them again

This company is just THE BEST! Catalog is excellent - plants are put in right groups, very clear, very organised, illustrations are TRUE, not unrealistic crazy colored stuff you see some other places. Prices are unbeatable! And quality of bulbs is escellent. This company plus McClure & Zimmerman - all you need if you are a bulb enthusiast!

HAVE ORDER BULBS THE LAST TWO YEARS.ALL BLOOMED AND WERE
GOOD SIZE.THEY SHIP WHEN THEY PROMISE TO. THIS IS THE PLACE
TO BUY BULBS.

I bought several amaryllis varieties. All produced at least three flower stalks and one produced four. I don't think I've ever seen an amaryllis produce four flower stalks before.

Totally positive experiences with Scheepers' (and Van Engelen's, for larger quantities) bulbs! Prices and quality are both absolutely the best available, service is good, and I find that the catalog gives plenty of info about growing conditions required. The only problems with ordering from them are 1)digging all those hundreds of holes and 2)narrowing the choices down to a quantity of bulbs that I can actually hope to get into the ground! Bulbs are big and fat and in perfect condition, and they usually thrive (except for the ones whose growing requirements I can't meet properly. My fault, not theirs.) There is no comparison between Scheepers' bulbs and those available seasonally in the local garden centers or discount stores - just one look at the bulbs makes that totally obvious!

Because I have been so satisfied with Scheepers, I haven't ordered bulbs from too many other places - Van Bourgendien's and WFF (which now owns Daffodil Mart), both of which are more expensive and neither of which has been better. I haven't found any reason to buy elsewhere for my bulb needs.

I ordered bulbs from this company last year and all arrived in time for planting and all grew very nicely this past spring.

Very positive experience with this company. Ordered the Gold Medal Narcissus Mixture. All 50 bulbs grew and bloomed beautifuly-long bloom time too. Good prices and effecient customer service. Will be ordering from them again.

Bought bulbs last 4-5 yrs. very satisfied. Great selection, great quality, great prices, friendly knowlegeable staff.

Fabulous bulbs, great selection, and all at competitive prices. Can't get much better.

A reputable company(in the bulb business for 90 years) has a new Kitchen Garden Seeds catalogue this year. Their bulbs are wonderful- huge, healthy and they carry unusual selections. Have not ordered from the new catalogue but would do so without hesitation. A good company.
Melissa Whitmer

This year I ordered my spring flowering bulbs from John Scheepers. John Scheepers charges 15% freight for shipping to Colorado, exceptionally high in my book, but worth it if the bulbs are great. The biggest savings is in time and travel. You don't have to go all over town checking out nurseries or other suppliers like the Big Box stores. So you can design your garden additions and then just order. And John Scheepers sends you a confirmation card so you recheck your order.

Try John Scheepers if you want to see pictures, smaller quantities and higher prices.

My favorite among the many bulb companies from which I order. Besides high quality product and good prices, Scheepers gets a top rating in my book for imaginative selection - uncommon species that you don't find in other catalogs. Most important, they are the best - and in many cases, the only - catalog with good siting and growing info, although this needs more work. Having killed through ignorance more species tulips, muscari, alliums and camassias than most gardeners, I keep hoping that catalogs will either print more information - like what region of the globe a species comes from, what kind of site it needs, and what weather/soil conditionsit needs OFF-SEASON - or a web site where interested customers can go for in-depth information.Finally, the color reproduction of their catalog photos is accurate (A difficult job especiallyfor blue flowers). Only Dutch Gardens comes close, at least in my experience.

I ordered bulbs, mainly daffodils, from them this past fall for the first time. I was very pleased with the size of the daffodil bulbs -nearly all were doubles and there were about the same # of triples as singles. Unfortunately they happened to arrive on a Monday and I couldn't plant them until the following weekend. Anyway they're all up & blooming now and look healthy and great! The bicolor ones don't quite have the vivid color contrast that I recall from the pictures, but they all look good. If the other later-blooming bulbs I ordered from them come up as well, I'll be really pleased. I will order from them again.

Very happy with this company.....used to order from Brecks Scheepers has better prices and quality bulbs. Their deliveries are prompt and well packed, and they have called me if they had any questions about my order.

Scheepers, is the "retail quantity" division of Van Engelen and is unsurpassed in the reliability of the bulbs it sells and the quality and thoughtfulness of the service it provides. With Van Engelen, it ranks with Daffodil Mart as the finest of the larger bulb houses. Four stars in my opinion.

Last fall my friend and I decided to do a major bulb planting and ordered all our bulbs from Scheepers. They came on time, were in great condition and were all a good size. This spring we were delighted to find that every single small and large bulb came up and flowered beautifully.

This is the best bulb company I've found so far. The selection is quite good, the prices are good, and the catalog informative and easy to look at. Customer service is okay, and the bulbs performed well.

They're a good company, with quality akin to Dutch Gardens (high praise actually). They have somewhat higher prices than DG but still reasonable. Same company as Van Engelen; therefore similar selection.