Comments regarding Van Bourgondien Dutch Bulbs (dutchbulbs.com)

Last fall I placed 3 seperate orders from van bourgondien's and have to say that I was very impressed with the quality of the bulbs I have received. They were large in size, healthy, and each order I placed was promptly received in a timely manner. It's spring, and all the bulbs that I have planted have all started to come up. Im very excited ! I was so impressed with this company that I placed another order for perenials and plan on buying more bulbs this fall! Im really suprised to have read some of the negative comments and can only wonder if the proper planting steps were not taken causing certain bulbs/plants not to grow?? I would highly recommend this company !

Sue Santin
Flemington, NJ

I am so surprised by the comments I've read. I have been buying from Van Bourgondien's for almost twenty-five years and I would never order from anyone else. Yes, sometimes the perennials are small but the value for the money is incredible and almost everything I've planted has thrived and grown. In fact, ,many of their perennnials are now in my children's gardens because I've divided and shared. Their daffodils and tulips have made my neighbors envious. I could never have the gardens I have with the budget I've had without them. I even got to talk to the bulblady in person and she told me to come visit her garden. I do like this company...

For over four years I have been responsible for ordering paperwhite bulbs (over 3000) for many residents in my small Southern California neighborhood.
I used VanB. for the first time this past season. The service and shipping was perfect and the bulbs were by far the best we have ever used. I will order from them again this season without hesitation. Additionally I am in the process of ordering dahlias from them for late spring planting. I will let you know how that order was shipped and in what condition - I expect the best!

I am saddened to see so many negative comments about this company. I have spent well over $2000 dollars with them (mostly wholesale) over the last 5 years and had an overall excellent experience. I am planning to order from them in the next few weeks and i expect to get the same.

Of the plants purchased from them the dahlias were by far the biggest most outrageously sized tubers i've ever bought. They were HUGE and performed very well. The lady who i planted them for says they are magnificent to this day. I also bought many tree peonies from them, unfortunately left behind in a move, but the new owner reports they are doing well.

I did buy a very large quantity of oriental poppies that just didn't do well at all. I was really disappointed, but the company offered me a replacement or refund with no trouble when i contacted them. The poppies were the only thing i've really had trouble with as a whole.

In the years i've dealt with them, i've certainly had many things that didn't make it, or never came up, and once i received a dahlia that was not what i had ordered, but with the quantity of product i've ordered from them, i've had few problems. They have always been great with replacements / credits.

So, from my experience i would rate this as an excellent company. If the quality or service has diminished i will certainly edit this, but i have high hopes for my impending order.

Melissa Lewis
Dayton, NV

Everything I ordered was in excellent condition !!.....
I had many Questions, which were promptly answered via email
I did have some dead plants, told them and received good once later.
Never had to wait long for my orders !
I truly enjoy this Company and there staff(customer care), besides they had plants which I could not find around here(Wisconsin)

Margrit

To: Van Bourgondien's
Cc:
Subject: what a pleasure


Hi,
I have been gardening in Boston for the last four years in which I bought plants and bulbs from seven different nurseries.

I have decided to let you know how pleased I am with your service, your plants and all.

Two years ago I had the pleasure to talk to Debbiie on the phone, when at the time I was not happy with the Madona lilies. They were replaced .
Learning the other nurseries- I think you score the highest!!!

Daniella Salomon- Axelrod
241 perkins st. #D405
Boston Ma 02130

Last year in 2004, I bought some bulbs and a peony lactiflora 'Raspberry Sundae.' Both purchases were no good,
but company was happy to replace and give credit. I just recieved an invoice in my email announcing shipment of the peony. VERY good communication and customer service.
I just orders some new tulip bulbs" candy fire" & daffodils.Awesome quality and very well packed & shipped.
Will buy again from them. Thank you Bulb Lady! ~CB~

I placed a very small order of 8 daffodil bulbs from this company this fall. They shipped in a timely matter and the bulbs looked healthy. My only complaint is that they were extremely tiny bulbs for the money they charge. As I recall they were listed as being 14 cm. on the package and they were maybe 10 if they were lucky. As long as these bloom true next spring I'll probably order from this company again but only for really unique varieties due to the small size of the bulbs.

I had an experience that was very close to being a negative, but was happily positive because of the behind the scenes inquiries of the customer service rep that I spoke with. I ordered a Turk's Cap Lily collection from the end of season clearance and in addition some Black Beauty herloom lilies last fall (2004). Basically, of the 10 lilies ordered, only 4 came up, only 3 bloomed and only 1 was the lily that it was supposed to be. I guess you can't expect much else on clearance, but I was dissapointed. I conacted the company via e-mail and was advised that the Turk's cap collection would be replaced in the fall, but that the Black Beauty was no longer available and would not be for fall. I was issued a $5 credit. I went on-line to find something to order with the credit and decided on a $5 fall bulb special. I went to order it and realized that to ship the $5 item, shipping was going to be $7! So to use the credit for an item I had already paid shipping for, I was going to have to pay more than the value for shipping! I called the company to ask if I could have the $5 item thrown in with the replacements that were going to be sent out in the fall to avoid the shipping cost. I was told that I should not even be getting replacements on the clearance items and should have been offered credits instead. I was told that this was more than I was entitled to due to the "policy" but that it would be honored as I had already been promised that. I was told that I was going to be getting better quality replacment plants than what I had ordered because they weren't end of season clearance (so clearance are considered low quality). However, the $5 could not be included and I would have to pay shipping. This was not satisfactory to me and I asked to speak with a supervisor. I was told that he was not there today and would have to call me back later. I requested this and ended the call. I was quite upset with the interaction with the cust serv rep, the "policies" and the quality of my original order. As I had read here, I was not even expecting to receive a return call. Then the cust service rep called me back and advised me that she had spoken to the Vice President of the catalog division (I had mentioned that I would be posting neg feedback here), and that they would throw the $5 item in with the replacments. So overall, I am happy with the resolution as it is what I wanted in the first place. The replacment policy is good on full priced goods, and they just need to be called or e-mail sent, but clearance isn't always the best deal. I will post future feedback when I recieve the replacements in the fall!

My experience with VanB's has been excellent. I use VanB's extensively and have recommended VanB's to my clients for years. I also purchase large orders for my corporate clients who have also been very satisfied. Over the years, there have been minimal problems which have been resolved immediately and with excellent response. The quality is superior to many of the competitors.

Purchase many flower bulbs and perenials over the years since we bought our house in 1996. They just seem to get bigger and more beeautiful as the years go on. always seemed to have our needs in mind A+++ company to deal with.

I have been planting Van Bourgondien bulbs for 33 years and have always been extremely pleased with the quality and the service. By now as you may quess, my gardens are mature but as gardens are..., I continue to change them and enjoy them again and again. In particular, my casa blanca lilies have been incredible, large and fragrant, my clematis is magnificent( at least 6 varieties), my daffodils and crocus bloom again and again, my peonies are so hardy and fragrant, I share them with all my friends. My tree peonies are my favorite...awesome. I have shared so many of my plants with friends and so many of my garden friends have ordered from Van Bourgondiens also and are also pleased. We all look forward to the catalog and share our experience. I expect I'll stay with Van Bourgondiens for another 33 years.

I am a new homeowner. And I've been working on my yard and creating new flowerbeds. I ordered many tulips, daffs, hyacinths, bleeding hearts, etc., from their catalog. To make a long story short, my yard was the talk of my neighborhood. Everything bloomed beautiful. I can't wait to order more.

I have planted bulbs from Van Bourgondien every spring and fall for the last four years. This past spring the tulips where so nice that every neighbor had to stop just to mention how nice the yard looked.

The dahlias that we planted this spring are as tall as the fence and are loaded with buds and flowers.

I plan to plant from them again.

I've bought bulbs and roots from this company several times. The fall bulbs I ordered in Fall 2004 (daffodils, crocus, hyacinth, and iris) were a good size and grew nicely. The roots and bulbs I ordered in Spring 2005 (perovskia, veronica, periwinkle, buddleia, yarrow, lilies, gladiolas, and rudbeckia) were even better, considering that I let them dry out and waited 3 weeks to plant them after I received them (very cold spring); I only had a 20% mortality rate. The perovskia and gladiolas look fabulous right now.

I have ordered from the VanBourgondien bulb company on three occasions - once while living in N.C. and twice in Maine. They ordering process has been very easy, with immediate confirmation. They informed me re: when the order would ship -- I was not going to be in the country during that time so they made big accommodations re: changing and keeping me apprised of the shipping date. As with any mail order, some plants are not going to make it; or if they made it they may not come up -- when I emailed them with the report on either end (e.g., arrived in poor condition; didn't come up the next year) they either credited my credit card, sent replacements within appropriate planting time, or the next available planting time. They were very professional and the quality rivaled some of the more expensive/high end mail order companies. I will continue to order from them.

Ordered a ton of hostas and ferns during their ½ off sale. VERY pleased. Plants arrived healthy and are already growing well.

I have been dealing with KVB for many years. I have found them to be very fair in their dealings with their customers. Remember when dealing with a live item, there's always the possibility of it NOT surviving but they have always replaced with no questions asked. Their phone people have always been pleasant and helpful when I've called with problems. I have turned many of my gardening friends on to Van Bourgondien and they've been just as satisfied with the company as I have. The bulblady herself has gotten on the phone with me to help me with my gardening questions. Also, they do substitute but when I've called to say I was unhappy with the substitution they've given me a store credit AND let me keep the substitution they sent. WOW that's good business. I've ordered from many catalogs but Van Bourgondien gets my order every season!

I ordered twice with Van Bourgondien over the past year and after some trial and error, I realized that my inexperience with ordering bare-root perennials from a mail order company resulted in some of my plants demise.

At first I thought I was sent unhealthy stock, but after some tips and a little more care in planting them, I concluded that I could have done more to ensure their survival. I simply wasn't aware of some tricks of the trade to help them along -- mainly, soaking bare-root perennials for an hour or two before planting did wonders.

Even though I've had some replacements still not live, it's possible not all the plants I ordered find my gardens inhabitable (Foxtail Lily won't give me the time of day). Gardening is a trial and error adventure and I give Van Bourgondien a thumbs up for their quality customer service and willingness to replace their products when & if something goes wrong. They've always been pleasant to deal via the phone or web and their replacement guarantee is hard to beat.

Ordered 6 tree peonies, and they have all grown well. One flowered this year which I didn't expect. The flower was *huge*. No problems experienced!

I ordered about $450 of perennials through the wholesale side of the company. The website was terrific, and the ordering process easy. I got an e-mail confirming my order, with approx ship dates. When it didn't arrive as soon as I expected, I called the toll-free number, and had an excellent representative on the phone who helped me out very courteously. Within days my order was on the doorstep. The plants are FANTASTIC. Big, healthy clumps, not dried out as many other sellers send you. The price was excellent also. I highly recommend this company.

I hope that my opinion will be relevant,because I ordered bulbs for about $550.00 from their spring wholesale catalog back when I had a nursery.The quality of the bulbs was truly first class,especially the Lily bulbs.My order also included Dahlias,Gladiolus,Cannas and various small bulbs.Now I am considering ordering retail,because I no longer own a business but I wonder if they take better care of their wholesale customers than their retail customers.I still get their catalog sent in the mail and I use it to research many of the latest Lily Varieties.

Van Bourgondien Dutch Bulbs is one of the best companies I have ever dealt with both through their catalogs and the internet. Not only do they have one of the best selection of plants and great prices they have a wonderful website with added information and guides to planting those wonderful bulbs and perennials you order from them. Plus their is a very personal feeling you get when you shop with them. I guess being in business for over 100 years and family owned makes that difference.

Check out their website @ http://www.dutchbulbs.com, I'm sure you too will find the time spent there as enjoyable as I did.

First of all - let me say that I have never purchased from this company via mail order. However, as a budding Amaryllis fancier, I began my collection by purchasing bulbs from various garden centers & discount stores over the holidays. Invariably most if not all of these bulbs came from this company, as their name & address was on the packaging.

That said, all the bulbs purchased were of very nice size with excellent root systems. All grew & bloomed beautifully - with several flower stalks bearing 3-4 blooms each. Considering I took advantage of after-holiday sales, the bulbs ended up costing me no more than $4-$5 each. Talk about a bargain & quality!!

In addition, I have also purchased garden center tulip bulbs that came from these folks. Again - out of 45 bulbs planted - 45 came up & bloomed for several seasons before spending.

While the mail-order division of this company might be poor, please don't turn down bulbs you might find locally that came from these folks - they are terrific.

Have ordered at least one shipment of plants a year from V. B. for the last four or five years. I have never had any problems with quality until this year. I received 6 oriental lilies that were in various degrees of decomposition. I e-mailed their customer service and had a reply and 6 new lilies within the week. I will gladly order from V.B. in the future.

I ordered 4 'Raymond Evison' clematis, sold as a group of 4. They were a fair size for the price. They were somewhat dry in the package. All are growing well and two have flower buds.

Last fall, I ordered about fifty dollars worth of merchandise. I was pleased with the quality of the products and with joy I planted them. This spring I have enjoyed watching them grow and bloom. I only had a problem with some anemones. I contacted them and explained my problem. They e-mailed me and asked for my order information. Within only a few days of total time, my problem was fixed, and the anemones are set to be delivered during the fall shipping.

I have ordered bulbs from this company in the past and with good results most of the time, including a spectacular display of 'Menton' tulips which would have been too expensive anywhere else. Despite less-than-ideal planting conditions they grew and bloomed much longer than expected. Now on to the negative part - this was the first year I ordered perennials from them. The prices were just too good but I guess you get what you pay for. They were shipped bareroot and not packed particularly well. I'll excuse them the couple of plants that were dug up by a critter but other than that I think maybe 20% of the plants have shown any signs of life. The salvia 'May Night' are coming up but nothing else is. I did not ask for a replacement so I can't comment on their customer service. In the future, I will continue to order bulbs from them but not perennials. I do recommend them for bulbs though.

Received order just in time to plant.. All root stock, bulbs and plants seemed healthy..They have been in for about three weeks and are starting to come up...I will order again from them till I have a bad experience.

I just received my order and everything looks great! The tree peonies are healthy and the bulbs are hugh! Every order I receive from VB is outstanding.

Decided to order dispite all the negative complaints. I ordered 7 tree peonies, and some various bulbs. Everything looked very healthy--6 of the 7 tree peonies have sprouted out just beautiful. The 7th isn't dead, just not actively growing yet. Am waiting to call about a replacement to see if it might still come around. The tree peonies were a little on the small side, but considering the price was less than 1/2 the cost of others, I think they're a decent quality for the price. The bulbs were fine--nothing outstanding, but nothing moldy or puny either.

Van Bourgondien/Van Dyck's has THE biggest and best Crocus Vernus bulbs out there. They have performed phenominally for two years straight in my garden, and I've ordered more each year. I've never had any problems with anything I've ordered from them.

I have ordered from Van Bourgondien wholesale catalog for three years; both spring and fall. I have been very pleased with the quality, timely delivery, accuracy and price.

I ordered my oriental lily bulbs from them and when i got them they were huge in size!!!! no mold, no loose broken scales.. really nice healthy solid bulbs!!! cant wait to see how they bloom!!!! I bought the bulbs at 33% off the reg. price , they did take 10.00 more out of my account then my email statement from them.. i simply emailed them and the very next day was told they would put the money back in ASAP and they apologized.. within a day or two my account had been credited.. i had will be shopping with them again !!!!

I had ordered some japanese peony trees in 2001. The trees have done very nicely. One tree wasn't purple like I had ordered and I called. The rep was very nice and shipped me another tree at no cost. So far I am very happy with there products and service.

I bought bulbs from Van Bourgondien during their half price end-of-season sale. The order was handled profesionally, and arrived quickly. They were good sized bulbs, healthy.

I didn't expect much from leftover bulbs planted late in the season in South Louisiana heat. Every bulb, but 4 sprouted and now many are flowering. I'm very pleased with my purchase.
I will order from Van Bourgondien again.

I just received my bulb order from this company and I only placed the order 4 days ago! All bulbs arrived well-packed and appear healthy. Also, got incredibly great sale prices since the Spring planting season has passed. (They have closed their Spring Catalog for the year but are in process of preparing their Fall Catalog.) They offer quite a large variety of bulbs and in many unusual colors as well. I'm looking forward to seeing how my bulbs bloom and will post again if they do well. My whole experience with this company thus far has been very positive, and I'm sure I'll be purchasing from them again in the future.

This was the first time I ordered from this company, so I didn't order a lot of stuff. What I did order seems to be doing good. I ordered the electric orange asiatic lily, both bulbs are coming up. I also ordered a perennial - blushing bride tradescantia. This came bare root and took about a month to come up, but looks like it will be okay.

It was a small order but was good so far.

I ordered from Van B. and just received a backordered item. I received foxtail lilies and candida sidalcea about a week ago. Planted them out and their greening up just great. the company was fast and notified me promply that one item i ordered was out of stock. I'd definitely order from them again.