Comments regarding Milaeger's Gardens

My wife and I make the over 30 mile trek from Gurnee, Il to Milaeger's several times a year. We first found the smaller location in Sturtevant when seeking Dept. 56 dealers back in 1997, and found a wonderful Garden Center and Nursery as well.
The past four years we have begun to purchase the bulk of our annuals in hanging or standing pots, a few good quality perennials, vegetable garden starters, several shrubs, and a host of ancilliary items at the Douglas and 4-Mile main store.
Milaeger's is not inexpensive, but then you almost always get what you pay for into the bargain, and when you don't they are not reticent to take it back or replace it.
I do think they have overpriced many of the high-end items , e.g. big cut-stone water follys, tube chimes, fancy firepits, and the largest bird feeders you've ever seen, but the customers for those items are, by and large, not scared off by the handsome prices if the item is of an obvious quality and suits their fancy.
The quality and variety of plant materials, the expertise of the staff, the many many well-made often hard to find garden accuterments, etc. all make a trip to Milaeger's on a fine chilly early Spring day, or even on a bright blue and getting onto sticky end of June day a wonderfu outing.
They have added the Java Garden Cafe, which can provide a scrumptious light lucheon, with great coffee or other refreshments at a reasonable cost right inside the main entry.
All in all our trips to Milaeger's have become a tradition in our house which we want to continue for many years to come.

I used to order from Milaeger's mail order division as recently as 1998 (I think), their last year as a mail-order nursery. I always received superb quality plants, well-packed, at fair prices. I'd had my doubts, because I'd started ordering from Milaeger's when I lived in Kansas, and thought that perhaps the increased transit time to Nevada would harm the plants, but that was never the case.

If I lived within reasonable driving distance (as in can get there and back, with time to shop in 16 hours), I'd still be shopping at Milaeger's. I envy those of you who live close enough to do so!

I go out of my way to visit here every spring. Their selection and variety are outstanding, and the quality is superb. They carry annuals and perennials that can't be found at other garden centers. It's well worth the trip.

If you are looking for a rare or unusual annual, perennial or tropical; or a common variety of bedding plant, shrub or vine, I highly recommend this garden center here in Wisconsin. These folks have 87 greenhouses filled with just about everthing that grows. If they don't have what you are looking for, they will go out of their way to get it for you.
I visit here every spring and have done so for many years. I have never gotten a sick or bug-infested plant. All their plants are very healthy and are guaranteed. I have never had to return anything so I can't vouch for their return policy.
One word of caution: If you plan to visit, wear comfortable shoes, dress for the weather, and allow yourself at least 5 hours.
This place is a gardener's dream.

I live about 20 miles from Mileager's in Racine Wisconsin and I've visited their nursery. They are a bit pricey but they have wonderful nursery stock. I bought 2 hybrid tea rose bushes from them 3 years ago and they're still alive and doing well. I've never had a problem withthe staff, most of them are very knowledgeable about plant care and such. And, I can't comment on their catalogue because I've never ordered from it. I do like Mileagers but their prices usually prompt me to shop else where.

This catalog was a staple of my winter gardening plans each year. It offered not only pictures and information on unusual varieties, but winter hardiness on plants that I might want to order, because of their unusual location, which gave me a great comfort factor. My ordering from them was mixed - but I have to say that on the whole, the plants I received were exceptionally healthy, oversized, and a good value. They did, of course, like any nursery, have mishaps - smaller (disappointing) plants and our-of-stocks- with long waits for replacements or credits. But I can forgive this, knowing that small companies who reach out in many directions get stretched beyond their limits. I don't know what happened to Milaeger's - I know that there are a lot of mixed experiences out there - but I know that they are a super company and must be going through some growing pains. But I sure do miss their great catalog - and offerings!

Boy was I disappointed when they dropped their mailorder catalogue! The ones I have are now laminated to preserve them. A goldmine of valuable info as this place carries many cultivars of each perennial. Mailorder plants were above average and in pots. I usually do not expect too much from a plant delivered via mail. If you can - get to their actual nursery where you can purchase robust livestock off the rack - god the selection! If you're out there Mr. Milaeger - bring back the catalogue! Did you notice you did not get any of my money this year?

I ordered six daylilies from Millaegers via Garden.com a couple of weeks ago, and they arrived the other day. I was thrilled to find them packed in shredded cardboard, and the bareroot plants were packaged very nicely and the packing medium was still moist. Three of the plants were about average for bareroot daylilies -- they were about the size of the daylilies I started this spring. The other three -- Prairie Blue Eyes - were absolutely gigantic. They were larger than my three-year old hand-me-down daylilies -- and I actually had to divide them before planting. I got approximately double what I paid for with those specific daylilies. We'll see how they all do -- but those Prairie Blue Eyes were by far the best I've received yet.

I have just been informed by the Racine, WI retail store that they are no longer in the mail order business. I was told to go to the internet to Garden.com and purchase perennials there as Milaeger's supplies the plants ordered on this site. Now, I will not be planning my garden additions and alterations at the dining room table each January with my favorite companion and best source and I will not be using the internet. This is a shame - healthy plants, competitive prices, excellent selection and a good and pleasant customer service, all in an excellent catalog. Almost all of my experiences were positive.

My experience with Milaeger's is a little different than most because I live less than 40 miles from their Racine nursery. Therefore, despite the fact that I had a catalogue, I consistently went to the nursery this fall (at least six trips) to buy perennials and grasses (about 60 plants). The catalog is tempting but the actual selections are incredibly varied and in excellent condition. Their October sales are awesome (buy 12 perennials, get 6 free, buy 6 get 3 free, buy 3 get 1 free) which reduced my cost per plant to about $2.50 each. These, of course, are full sized plants, with uncut leaves. Better yet, I would call ahead and speak with an incredible employee and tell her what I was seeking. She would put aside prime specimens and reserve them for me. I would also describe a site and she would put great energy into finding the perfect plant. If you can get there personally, so it! Alas, there is no more catalog, and finding them on Garden.com is a pain, since Garden.com does not want you to have a relationship with their suppliers. When I called Milaeger's, even they could not find a listing of their plants only in Garden.com. [update] Having been a walk in customer pre-Garden.com, I wondered how the company would handle a situation in which I needed plant replacement. Although I bought about 60 plants last year, I was a walk in customer who used a credit card and received receipts that were not itemized.Therefore, not only was I not in Milaeger's computer, but I was calling on the telephone.I called about a Miscanthus sinensis that had not re-established itself in spring. Despite no real proof of any kind (I did offer to fax credit card statements) I was sent a very similar replacement (three days later!) that was excellently packaged and in beautiful condition. I called about a Japanese primrose that was slow getting established and was given advice that solved the problem. One failure out of sixty odd plants is unbelievable.Perhaps best of all, I was wandering around inspecting a specific plant when a man I recognized as Kevin Milaeger (the co-owner) came over and asked whether I needed help. He took the time to give me great advice about two plants. He was very pleasant and gentlemanly, and his advice was excellent, advice that I had not read anywhere. [2nd update] Thought that you would like to know that Milaeger's has a 1999 Perennial Catalog and Price List. I just received a copy. It is all in black and white, and lacks photographs, but according to the text lists over 300 plants more than its predecessor, and according to them will be in this format for the foreseeable future. There are two pages of new listings for 1999. It is 88 pages long. The text content appears to be the same high quality as before. The purpose of it seems to be to encourage the customer to come into the Racine store. There is no ordering page. [3rd Update] As a very happy customer of Milaegers (at 42 miles away, I make several visits a year) I am sad to report that the company has announced that it ceased to be a mail order company with the demise of Garden.com. They are still in operation. I purchased, this spring and last fall, outstanding stock (a tree, six shrubs and three perennials) but they should not be on your list since mail order is no longer an option, and there is no point in frustrating your users with raves about plants that are unobtainable by mail order.

While I am usually just a browser at these things, I did not want the "bad taste" left by the last volunteer "reviewer" to go unanswered. I have always been very satisfied with Mileager's, been fairly treated by them, and appreciated the very friendly and eager to please attitude over the telephone. They once shipped me three roses in one season, and ended up not charging me for any of them, including shipping. Of course, I only live 100 miles away, and am not paying that much for shipping, but if "they never said a word about shipping" did you ask? I appreciate them because they stock more of the more unusual varieties of plants (although they do, of course, run out of them). Last season Iordered a Geranium phaeum "Mourning Widow" - imagine my surprise when the flowers opened white. I called Mileager's and was given a credit against my next order. Imagine my greater surprise when, upon researching further, I discovered that I had a plant another mailorder nursery wanted to charge 3x as much as I had paid for it. I kept it. I also called Mileager's and told them to forget the credit. Isn's serendipity wonderful?

I like the Wisconsin based suppliers because of their hardy winter hardy plants. I have ordered from Mileager's in the past. There was come confusion on my order and some backordering however they worked until all was correct. They have a very complete selection.

I live in the Milwaukee area and have both ordered from Milaegers and visited their stores many times and my advice is, if you can make the trip, go to the garden center. You won't be disappointed. The catalog has good variety and nice pictures, but the plants at the garden center are larger and cheaper. They also carry a ton of varieties (some very unusual) that they don't sell through the catalog. I do enjoy their catalog however, with it I have wiled away many a winter night. Kevin Milaeger has a terrific presentation that he does on perennials A-Z complete with beautiful color slides and anecdotes. He came to our Master Gardener training class and he only got through the H's in four hours. I believe he's forgotten more about perennials then most of us will ever know.

We ordered two types of plants from these people. One was delivered on time, while the second was on backorder. The plant delivered was of good quality.

Their plants are usually mailed in pots and always arrive in hearty condition, with healthy foliage and good roots. They are also happy to stay in their pots for a while if I can't plant them immediately. The company has been completely accommodating in honoring their liberal guarantee and I feel totally confident in ordering from them. You'll find their catalog is informative and inspirational. Although they are not glitzy, their selections are every bit as interesting. Milaeger's is definitely one of my mainstays.

My favorite catalog as far as information for the Midwest. Prices are more reasonable than some. Good variety and many native plants.