Comments regarding Kigi Nursery

Have purchased 3 acer palmatums from Kigi. All arrived quickly and in great shape with extra care given to packaging. Owner Justen is a great seller who always has the customer in mind.

I ordered an Acer japonica Acontifolium--a size 2 on Dec. 11, 2014. I usually order maples from Greer Gardens in Eugene (they are my go-to fav) but they were out, and the plant lust was relentless, so I went for it with this new to me mail order source.

Very disappointing results...the tree came in a timely enough fashion, but when it arrived I could see there might be some trouble down the road with this plant. Many (at least half) of the buds were knocked off, and while the size was not bad, when bud break started here 2 weeks ago, sure enough, 2 of the 4 branches have died back and the tree is half dead. The graft is sturdy, so I will eventually get something, but the form is messed up (leader dead) and I feel I paid way too much for what I got.

Will never order from them again.

Posted on November 6, 2014, updated February 12, 2015
Posted on October 10, 2014, updated November 6, 2014
Fast shipping, great little tree (Atlas cedar "Horstmann"). This is not the first time I buy from Kigi Nursery, they have great products & prices. Highly recommended!

Looking at their address on Google maps Earth view only shows what appears to be a private home and no obvious nursery anywhere close by. Also according to a independent business website this info appears :
Manta dot com :

More Details for Kigi Nursery
Categorized under Garden Centers. Our records show it was established in 2011 and incorporated in Washington. Current estimates show this company has an annual revenue
of $500,000 to $1 million and employs a staff of approximately 1 to 4.
I'm providing this information purely for everyone's info.

This the 2nd time I have order from them. That have a great selection of evergreen plants. This is the only site that I have found that carries Weeping White Spruce trees. The website is intelligently laid out and the search is easy and fast. I love browsing this site. The customer service is very supportive and responsive. Justin answered the phone everytime I called and help me work thru some issues I had with my local post office.

This was my first time ordering from Kigi. I ordered six small trees (pines and cedars, some dwarf, some weeping) last August and received six small trees that are all still alive and well here in January. The plants were promptly shipped and professionally packaged. I really like the selection Kigi offers—many rarities— and already have my eyes on a few more for our landscape. Also like that all customers get %10 off for life!

A great place to get some awesome conifers. They send you your purchase 'half barefoot' which really sketched me out at first, but upon receiving my order I think it will be fine. I think they have good plants, good growing processes and a fairly decent website. My only problem is the shipping cost. I understand why they charge so much for shipping, but when added up and calculated as cost per plant, I will say that if their shipping rates were cheaper I would certainly be buying a lot more from them than I currently plan on.

Recently bought an Acer palmatum ' Mikawa yatsubusa ' Dwarf Japanese Maple Tree. It shipped quickly, was very well packaged, and has a good graft. I'm very pleased with it and will be ordering more.

I purchased a Abies lasiocarpa ' Glauca Arizonica ' Blue Cork Fir from Kigi. It was delivered quickly and in great condition. I am very pleased with the service and my purchase of this rare find. I will shop with them again and recommend to friends. Thanks Kigi!

Recently placed an order with Kigi for a Picea Engelmanni Bush's Lace. The plant I received was very nice. Well shaped and nice size with many branches. I am extremely pleased. I would highly recommend Kigi to anyone looking for hard to find conifers or maples.

I received the plants I ordered from Kigi, shipped exactly when I requested. I was happy to see that the plants were healthy young grafts with well-developed root-systems. Often this is not the case with mail-order plants!

One of the plants I ordered did sustain some damage during shipping and the largest side-branch had broken off. When I contacted Kigi, they were quick to send a replacement tree free of charge.

Overall, my order was a positive experience and I will order from Kigi again in the future.

Got just what I expected. Tree arrived nice and healthy and in good form. A+.

Posted on June 6, 2014, updated August 9, 2014
Ordered 4 dwarf conifers - just arrived - 2 days shipping. Very well packed in box with paper. Plants in baggies with moist soil. Deep roots. Just got them planted. They are gorgeous. Will definitely order more. Price, size, condition - all great. Very happy.

"On Aug 9, 2014 11:56 AM, Kigi Nursery responded with:

Thank you for the kind comments! We work hard to provide quality products at reasonable prices!

We have a one time use discount code to help you with your wish list. Good through 2014. Thanks again for having confidence in our company despite the Negative Nancy reviewers that seem to flood Dave's Garden.

HORTHUB20%OFF2014

"

Posted on April 4, 2014, updated August 2, 2014
Ordered two small Magyar Ginkgos from Kigi last month. Plants were shipped USPS priority and arrived in wrapped in bags, inside a cardboard box. Roots were moist and vigorous. Also, the trees were still dormant, which means I could plant them immediately and not worry about leaves getting freeze-damaged.

I think Kigi has found a nice niche in the mail order nursery business. They have a good selection of some harder to find varieties of plants such as Ginkgos and Beeches. Shipping is included in the list price, which simplifies the ordering process. The strategy of offering smaller plants with quick and inexpensive shipping makes sense for a nursery in the pacific northwest.

For trees, I have mail-ordered a lot of larger, 5' whips in the past. But keeping the deer off of them in my area is near impossible. So my strategy more recently is to order one-year trees from nurseries like Kigi and plant them in tree tubes/shelters. Gratification is delayed a bit compared to larger plants, but you don't have to worry about deer and the establishment/watering phase is much shorter.

What an absolute Cluster F&*# of a company. Without going into extensive detail. VERY poor packing, got the crap beat out of the plants. Tried to work it out with Kigi. Awful communication, tried to ignore the problem. Finally got an agreement, in return was sent the most awful Cedrus that I have ever seen. Had no needles, no leader, a contorted bare stick. Worst plant I have ever had shipped to me. This after paying extra for a larger plant (and it wasn't larger) to try to be fair. I tried to save the poor thing, but no luck. Otherwise Kigi tried to pass off another species as an additonal plant I had ordered to help the spread shipping costs. What was sent wasn't even the correct species, let alone the correct cultivar. After which multiple attempts at contact with Kigi were fruitless. Completely ignored.

Oh, and then there is the supposed "refunds" that my bank didn't have a record of having happened.

If you still order from them... well you deserve what you get.

I have ordered a Pinus 'Chief Joseph' from them in early spring that is still doing well. Healthy 4inch growth accompanied in the late spring. I recently ordered a Pinus 'Schoodic' a week ago and the plant transplanted well. A week into establishment and the 'Schoodic' looks healthy.

I was satisfied in the way the trees were pack for shipping. The Japanese black pine arrived in a timely manner that I was able to get it planted the next day.

I ordered six trees last month from Kigi. They looked to be in good shape. I planted them all promptly and gave them proper care. One died two weeks later, though. I emailed Kigi a week or so ago and asked for a replacement. I haven't gotten a reply. I then called Kigi a couple days ago to reiterate my concern, and left a message indicating that I would appreciate some kind of response. I still haven't heard back from them.

To me, this is poor customer service. I am not certain what their policy is about replacing dead trees, but either way, I expect a prompt response to my legitimate inquiry. It's the least they can do after I spent over $100 on an order from them. I won't be doing business with them again.

Ordered two 7 year growth silberperle miniature dwarf evergreens. Purchased 2 last year at a local nursery. They were 15-18". The two from Kigi Nursery barely reach 6-8". These are not 7 year growth plants. Made them aware of my concern. Just an email telling me that's just how it goes.

Buyer beware.

We ordered a high end large Picea abies 'Cobra' from Kigi. We are in the green industry and have a high bar. We received immediate confirmation of the order and an estimated shipping date. The tree was shipped on a Monday evening and arrived in Atlanta on Friday. Tracking info was available at all times. I was a bit worried about the heat in transit but the tree arrived in exceptional condition and we had it in the ground within an hour of arrival. The tree is beautiful, exactly as described, and well worth the price. We will shop with Kigi again.

absolutely reliable with the best selection of miniature evergreens in this country. The quality of the plants is exceptional, the shipping is rapid and well packed. Who could ask for anything more especially since the prices are so moderate. This is an outstanding nursery.

Amongst several trees, I ordered an Acer palmatum dissectum ' Tamukeyama 2 years of growth for $30 and an Acer palmatum ' Sango kaku 3 Years of growth for $45. Received two sad looking trees with wilted leaves, the first 1ft tall, the second about 3ft. This is my first time ordering online so I went to a local nursery to compare prices, and found that equivalent priced trees were about 2x the size and 3x foliage of what I bought from KIGI. Kigi should be clearer about the actual size and growth of the trees it sells. I am very disappointed, and unfortunately, I don't think the maples will survive if I return them, so I feel a moral obligation to keep them, but I wasted my money.
Don't think I'll shop online again,

Posted on April 17, 2013, updated May 19, 2014
I ordered a weeping white spruce from Kigi Nursery this spring, and it arrived just as expected and seems to doing fine so far.

I agree with most of the negative comments and add my own. I purchased numerous plants and approximately 30% died. I would expect maybe 5% mortality. The last order took over one month to arrive (and in poor shape). The size of the plants is mostly pathetic compared with other on line companies. The talk about producing "real" (I think they put it) grafts is nonsense. The size and quality ought to be twice (at least) as good as they are. I am an expert in the field (for over 40 years) landscaping, growing my own plants and propagating, etc. and am very sorry but they have lost a customer.

A couple of weeks ago I received Abies pinsapo horstmann nana and glauca, Abies fraserii kline's nest and Pinus strobus seaurchin and elkins dwarf. They have decisively adjusted to new earth, air, water and temperature, and after a pause have perceptibly fattened their winter buds. Fragrance and turgor are right where they should be. Grafts and roots looked good. I would order again without a second thought.

I ordered three different types of dwarf evergreens for my winter garden (snow sprite, gold drift and golden spreader); all arrived within a couple of weeks and in good condition. I was pleased with the selection of plants and trees Kigi offers and that they delivered as promised; I have had trouble with other online nurseries advising me several weeks after placing my order that they do not have items in stock. So far so good with Kigi! Thank you.

Very quick turn around of my order, placed on Labor day Monday and received that Thursday all the way across the country! Very good selection and the plants were very healthy and well packaged!

I did read the reviews left but thought to give them a try anyway. I ordered 20 Kotobuki black pine. They didn't have enough to fill the order but I was notified as such. I did get 17 and was refunded the difference.
I was contacted that there are mor available so ordered 30 more very please. Thanks for everything
Keith

My order was possessed promptly, 3 days from WA to MN by US Priority Mail. Received in excellent condition two 1st yr. grafted weeping white spruce. One perfect graft union other slight knob which will disappear in a few yrs. Larger than expected. Very pleased! Will definitely do more business with Kigi Nursery and recommend to MN Bonsai Society.

i live in long island near the bay. Sandy destroyed our plants with salt water not from the bay but from the ocean outside the bay. There are no weeping white pine trees available in Long Island I had to look elsewhere for the plant. After an extensive look for months I found Kigi Nursery I spoke with Justin who promised me a healthy plant. The plant price was very reasonable. He said as with all plants the older and more established the plant the healthier it will be, he also told me that if I had a problem he would resolve the problem immediately. I felt so comfortable with him and the tree that I am buying. I am grateful and looking forward to my tree!!!! I should be getting it next week!!!

I just ordered four Cedars of Lebanon trees from Kigi and am very impressed by the whole order and mailing process. Once I placed my order, I received a confirmation email and several follow-up emails that my order was shipped and an estimated arrival date.

The trees were in perfect condition, looking very healthy and vibrant. Most of all, the shipping rate was reasonable, something that is very difficult to find from nurseries near and far from my home state.

I am an avid miniature gardener, always looking for plants and trees for them. Kigi will be on my list for future orders.

I ordered two cedars and two dwarf norway spruces. They arrived very quickly and were in exceptional condition even in the heat. Root systems were healthy and not too rootbound at all. Roots are very important and sometimes when mail ordering you can receive very matted roots. These were just right. They seem to be very robust.

Posted on September 10, 2012, updated September 15, 2012
I Ordered a Japanese maple. I could tell from the emails from Kigi
That my status had been changed. I am not sure what that meant but I can guess from the status of the plant sent to me. The plan had four leaves on it and those leaves were half dead. When I complained, I was told to ship the plant back. there was no explanation or apology and don't forget I have to pay for shipping, I spent eight dollars for nothing. I am 52 years old and have never received a bad plant in the mail before or complained about a merchant before

Be very aware! I wish I would have read some of these reviews before ordering from Kigi Nursery in Kelso, Washington. On May 31 I ordered 10, 2-3 year grafted maples from Kigi. I used a credit card and they charged my card the next day or so. On June 16, I received 5 little trees and on June 18, I recieved 4. Only 9 of the 10 I ordered. I paid $39.99 for three of the maples that were (supposed to be) 3 year grafts. The other 7 were supposed to be 2 year grafts. I was informed a few days before delivery, after I emailed them to see when the delivery would be sent, that they did not have the some of the maples I ordered and that they would make substitutions, I sent them some suggestions, which they filled. None of the little, and I mean little) trees were three year grafts. They did refund $59.00 for the tree they did not send and for additional cost for the three year grafts that were not sent. They refused to allow me to return the order. Be certain that you can find much better places to order your maples online. Before ordering, you can check the size of these maples on by looking at the Scolopendrifolium or Winter Flame on my blog (Mary's Maples)

"On Jun 19, 2012 1:49 PM, Kigi Nursery responded with:

We made an honest mistake by short shipping 1 tree off the order, and refunded the tree along with the complaint of small trees. I explained to Mary that we grow all of our stock outside of the greenhouse environment and using slow release organic fertilizers, we will have smaller plants than other nurseries. Our stock is grown to be bonsai ready material and hardened off for clean shipping. Please don't order from us if you are looking for greenhouse pushed, chemical treated trees that are half their mature size in 3-4 years. I don't know why so many have been duked into thinking this is industry standard? We like to think we offer a true 1year 2year 3year... grafted material.

It just irritates me that we go the extra mile to provide the customer a quality product, just to be blown up on review boards for our honest growing practices. "

All the poor review are true for Kigi Nursery… despite what I read, I thought I’d give them the opportunity to earn my business. Well, I placed an order on their website but didn’t receive confirmation that the order went through. A waited a few days, giving the nursery a chance to confirm that they’d be filling my order… I would have called but there is no phone number on the website (this should have been a sign). I placed the same order again – this time I received an email confirming that my order went through. Even though I didn’t receive any sort of shipping confirmation (would have been nice so I could make sure someone was home), my trees arrived a couple of weeks later. The product was dried out but, for the most part, looked good. A few days later, I received the same order again… I checked my bank account and Kigi had charged my account again. I sent the Nursery an email (again, no phone number) and received an answer that they wondered why the same order was placed twice (they could have called) and that they’d refund one of the orders less all shipping costs ($20 total on a $60 order). Kigi recommended that I just keep the duplicate order stating that it probably isn’t worth shipping back. Too many professional online nurseries to give you my business Kigi… Sorry!

"On May 23, 2012 2:59 PM, Kigi Nursery responded with:

Customer ordered twice under two different names....yes if we had a large staff and charging you the customer all the overhead you are requesting from us... we offered you a return under our policy...sorry but we won't eat all the shipping charges because of your mistake."

I ordered a Abies koreana ' Silberlocke ' Korean Fir (2year).
While it arrived in 7 days of ordering, and looks quite viable. The tree does not look like a 2 year old graft, looks more like the 1 year old ones. Tiny compared to the pics they have as a reference to what you might get. The rootstock is 4", the scion is 10". Plus, the scion is almost at a 90 degree angle, so it's like the tree is being blown by a 50mph wind. Not to mention the branches are all twisted.
It's in the ground, so I have no idea what they might want me to do with it. I might be out another $10.00 shipping this back, if so, it will be more pricey than I wanted. Let's see what/if they do anything about this.
I'm giving a neutral for now.

I just received my Picea pungens ' The Blues ' Weeping Colorado Spruce 1gal. I never ordered plants mailorder before and was uncertain of what to expect. The box came and before I opened it I imagined the worst - a small dead looking tree, but to my great surprise it was a very healthy looking plant with no dead or brown spots whatsoever and the size was just as described. Beautiful!

I am going to upload a picture of it under the plant heading.

Being a collector of unusual conifers, I ordered two young trees from Kigi Nursery in January, 2009; an Abies Koreana Silberlocke and a Tsuga Canadensis New Gold. They arrived in less than 6 days. I thought the packaging was inadequate, but the plants were unharmed and healthy. They were of expected size. It's now seven months later and the young trees are thriving and have doubled in size. Because this company stocks young unusual conifers at an affordable price, I have ordered another rare conifer from them, a Cedrus Atlantica Aurea. These trees will take years to grow full size, but I find enjoyment in watching them grow.

This site offers many unique and difficult to find trees. The site is fairly easy to use, although it didn't like any other browser beside IE.
My daughter ordered me a Japanese Maple. The price was reasonable and the shipping was comparable to other companies. I received my small bare root sapling within a week of the order being placed. It arrived in fairly good shape. I did notice that some of the leaves had some black curling edges on the ends though. I hope that is just a result of being in a dark box in transit?
The reason for a neutral rating is that there was NO care or planting instructions included with my order. This is my first attempt at growing a J M. I know I can search online for basics, but it would have been nice to have communication from the seller so I'd know if the black curling on some leaves was normal, do I need to let it acclimate first, what kind of soil does it prefer, any special planting instructions, etc? I will do some research though and hope I give my little tree a good start.