Comments regarding Wayside Gardens

I wrote to Wayside Gardens regarding a Burgundy Iceberg Rose I purchased last Fall.It is now Summer and it has not come back - NO growth at all.

This was their reply - "Our Horticulturist do feel that varieties planted in the fall should be up and growing by mid to late spring of the following year. If you do not have growth at that time, please do not hesitate to let us know during the guarantee period. I'm sorry but the guarantee is no longer in effect for your fall order"
Seriously?!?!? Talk about contradiction!

I will NEVER order from this company again.

I will also let all my gardening friends know that this company is NOT trustworthy.They sell garbage and then you are out the money.

Posted on May 21, 2013, updated June 7, 2013
A terrible experience from start to finish.
I did not know that Wayside Gardens had been bought out by another company prior to placing a recent, hefty order.
I ordered early this year because, as a zone 5/5a gardener, you get tired of everything being out of stock when it's finally safe to plant. Wayside's website stated that plants would "ship at the appropriate time for my zone."
When I received an e-mail in early April that my plants had shipped, I immediately e-mailed to let Wayside know that my garden was still covered in snow and that a hard freeze and more snow was in the forecast.
I had to e-mail twice before I got a response saying, I should let them know about any trouble with the plants, but that the plants were shipped at a time judged safe for my zone. Hah! We don't plant anything but radishes and cabbage here, until Memorial Day. We certainly don't plant spindly, half dead infant perennials.
The plants did in fact arrive during a snowstorm and had been packed on their sides, one on top of another and covered with foam peanuts. Once I untangled the contents of the box, I could see that the tiny, spindly Caryopteris were already dropping curled dried leaves. They appeared not to have any roots at all but were just cuttings.
Each of the three pots of miscanthus had only one sickly blade of green, and a pot of "dormant" delphinium never emerged at all.
I managed to keep a number of plants alive until it was safe to plant them...Only a few have managed to survive out in the garden.
The caryopteris died within two days along with two of the Miscanthus. Never any sign of life from the "dormant" delphinium. Lost one of three echinaceas, another one is barely clinging to life. The coreopsis and a ground rose have survived.
Total $$ lost, $66.95.
Repeated e-mails about the "trouble with my plants" have garnered no response at all, and phone calls go to voice-mail.
Never again, Wayside Gardens.

Posted on May 31, 2013, updated May 31, 2013
I debated neutral/negative. The last stock I received from Wayside was 2-3 yrs back and I was very satisfied as I always had been with them. I ordered from them the middle of February this year. I got an order confirmation and that was the last I heard from them. The order had not come as of today, so I went online to check. It was marked "hold, not verified". Also marked as "sold out" was the one plant on the order I *really* wanted. I called to find out why the order wasn't verified. Found out that the credit card I'd used 'bounced'. It was good when I placed the order, but had expired and was replaced with slightly different number between the order and verification process. Now I do understand and do agree with charging a person's credit card only when the plants are ready for shipment. However an email to the same email address that was on the order was all that was needed to let me know there was a problem. I could have called with the new # which could have been immediately verified before I hung up. QED. Instead I just canceled what was left of the order. Went to Burpee instead.

I've never had a problem with Wayside before. Customer service certainly has a problem, and maybe it was just as well I didn't receive the plants I'd originally ordered. I first thought to make feedback neutral, but my reaction isn't neutral. I definitely won't be ordering from them again until their feedback is whole lots better.

Ordered from Wayside despite the reviews here. They had a couple of things I couldn't find anywhere else. Plants were small but healthy and are doing well.

I wish I had found this forum prior to ordering from Wayside Gardens. I spent $200 on plants for my first (and only!) order with this company. I, as many others have noted, was surprised and disappointed at the size of the plants received--especially for the cost. A plant destined to become a 4 foot bush arrived as less than a one inch plant--at a cost of $12.95!
The response I got to my email expressing my disappointment was that the plants were "dormant" and I needed to be patient. I have ordered from other mail order companies and never received plants looking like this. Lesson learned.

Plants arrived with one missing, and 2 in bad shape. They'd been shipped to be held over the weekend by UPS in Memphis, and then were transfered from UPS to the Post Office, which incurred another 24 hour delay.

Sent an email - got no response, but did get the two damaged plants replaced. After they were received, got an email that said I would not be charged for the missing plant.

Outstanding issue -- the missing plant was the premium, for which there was to be no charge anyway. So, I've been taken. The promised "free" plant is a no show, and I paid full price for the others. Don't believe their advertising.

I ordered some plants from Wayside Gardens because someone recommended them. I ordered altogether 7 plants and 6 of them looked terrible, all dried out, broken and extremely small. I paid about 160 dollars for these horrible poor plants. PLEASE DO NOT ORDER ANYTHING FROM THEM. IT IS NOT WORTH IT.

I am giving the company a neutral rating because the plants came in alive and sprouting new growth. Now the reason that I am not giving them a positive and should give a negative are these:
1. Plant size was terrible. Three "shrubs" is what I ordered. I understand that the size of the plant was going to be small. What I did not expect was that it would take 4 or 5 years of growth for the shrubs to amount to anything. The plants are literally less than the size of the palm of my hand.
2. Expensive plants. I cant believe that I paid the company $55 for these tiny little plants. Should have gone to the local nursery.
3. Shipping at the wrong time. Let it be known to all mail order companies. IF YOU SHIP AN ORDER ON FRIDAY THAT HAS TO TRAVEL OUTSIDE YOUR STATE, IT WILL SIT IN A CRATE AT THE POST OFFICE AN EXTRA DAY! ONLY SHIP PLANTS ON MON OR TUES IF THEY HAVE TO LEAVE YOUR STATE BORDERS.

These things being said I did receive the plants alive and in good condition. But I will not order from this company again for the reasons stated above. I have ordered from other companies and got substantially better product. Just go with the top 50 on Daves Garden website and you cant go wrong.

I think I may try to order some bare root plants from another company next just to see if the quality improves.

Anyway, Landscape, Garden, Harvest, and ENJOY!!!

Neutral from a previous very positive, now bordering on negative.
I used to love this company, but like many more, it has gone downhill. I also had to nurture the plants in containers for a year before they went into the garden. Meanwhile, prices have skyrocketed. I had an old catalog, from just a couple years ago, and many plants have quadrupled in price (mostly by shrinking the container size).

But, I recently purchased 2 Peace roses for the price of 1. I wish I had read all the negative comments here first, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed now. This is their last chance.

In the Summer/Fall of 2012 I placed an order with Wayside Gardens.

The package arrived badly crushed. The stems and/or branches
of several of the tender plants of were badly broken or completely severed.
The packing for the plants was woefully insufficient for their delicate nature.
I called Wayside right away and told them this, and they advised me
to plant these plants anyways to see if they might still recover.
This was acceptable to me, and I planted the plants right away.
There were two varieties of plants in the order.
But, all the plants were damaged.

I planted these plants right away. One of the two varieties of plants did recover.
But, the other simply dried up and died. I called Wayside again and told them this,
and
asked them to replace the plants that did not recover.
They told me that they were out of these plants, but I could contact them next Spring.
I contacted Wayside by email in the Spring of 2013, and was told
by the customer service person that she would investigate the situation.
She never replied back. I sent another message
to her individual email address at Wayside. ...........Again, no reply.

I called and spoke with yet another person who looked up my account and
said that it was credited for the plants that were damaged. I told that person
that no one had informed me of that even though I had made communications
regarding those plants. I then asked if that credit could be applied
to send those plants now. "Certainly" I was informed. But, I would have to pay
a full $10 for shipping and handling.

I then reviewed the story with the customer service person noting that
Wayside was responsible for shipping and thus damaging the plants and
I did not feel it was right that I should have to pay twice for that expense.
Bottom line it was the only way that I could use the credit for the damaged plants.
So, I paid an additional $10 and requested that
they not send me any more of their catalogs.

I once had a shipping problem with Van Bourgondien,
and their approach, policy and attitude was quite quite different,
and in particular much much better.

I have ordered from Wayside for years and always appreciated the new items that they carried. I ordered an "Alley Cat" Redbud Tree that I did not receive until June. It was way smaller than I had expected and only had a couple live buds on it. I planted and babied it all summer and it never did really show any more life. When I called to request a replacement, I was told the guarantee for spring shipped items was June 30th and that they might have given me an additional 30 days since they did not ship to me until June. I told them I didn't believe even the 30 additional days were enough time to tell if it was going to live. I was then informed their "guarantee until June 30th" is right in the catalog and on the website as well, and I should have read it before ordering. I should have sent the tiny little thing right back to them! I own a small nursery business and would not expect to have any customers if I treated them this way! I will not order again.....

I placed an order for three Sedum 'Pure Joy' this fall. Prices were quite high so I guess I had an idea of receiving plants of great quality. My plants arrived as single stems in 1 quart pots. In spite of what seemed like adequate packing, all three plants were snapped to bits, the one stem in each pot snapped off at or very near the base and at various places along the stems. Whatever. They are sedums after all so I planted the rootstocks in my garden beds and planted all of the bits and pieces of stem that were broken off. I am sure they will all survive and grow.

I should add that while sedums can be fairly brittle, I have never received them mail order from any other source with such damage. To me, that says a lot about Wayside's commitment to quality.

I doubt I will ever order from Wayside again. They are just not a good value and the quality of their plants is disappointing.

Posted on October 2, 2012, updated October 4, 2012
I have ordered from Wayside for years and for the most part have been pleased with their service; however, I ordered a Baptisia Decadence from them and received it a week ago. It was just a brown stick. I called them and told them I did not want to pay $14.95 for a twig and they said they would replace it. On 9/24/12 they sent me another one and it was worse than the first one. I called them again and said I was not paying $14.95 for two brown sticks. She said they would give me a merchandise credit but that I could not use it until the next day-10/02/12 because the woman that approves this had gone home. Well - I tried to use it today and I could not because the same lady had gone home and the computer said the number of the certificate was not valid. At the moment I am giving them a neutral rating because I am calling them tomorrow-10/3/12-and see if they will honor the merchandise credit they gave me. If not, they will positively get a negative rating.

Never again will I order from them. I bought a rhodendron from them in may of 2012. In early July it looked wilted and had curled leaves. Late july, I had some tree work done and an arborist told me I had phytopithora (sp), and the plant would die. I was also told that it is common to greenhouse businesses. I contacted them in early August only to be told their guarantee only covered until July 30, so I was out of luck. some guarantee and even less service.
I used to think they were an honest company, now I know. Don't deal with them ever again, nor from their affiliates. I've told our garden group my problem and they are now forewarned. A few of them said they have had problems with them also. Can't wait to let others know at our spring garden shows! Buyer be forewarned of wayside gardens!

Posted on February 19, 2011, updated July 7, 2012
This is another of the fine online nurseries that, even 10 years ago used to be one of the best. It was one of my premium nurseries to shop from every year. Prices were good, plants were large and healthy, and in the rare occasion that I did receive a mishandled plant, they took their long time customers serious and would send replacements immediately without question or any wait period. But like Jackson&Perkins, Jung, and so many others now, they have done a complete 180 degrees. Wayside is another that is now amongst the worst online nurseries for quality and customer care. Of the past 5 orders I've placed over the last 2 years, I've continuously received only dead and extremely poor quality plants. Any replacements were never much better. It is such a shame to see companies like this turn to the dollar as the main guiding factor for their business, while they put customers and quality on the back burners. I would predict that t0his company will not last unless they do something drastic to turn it around. I've complained and given them ample time to make good on their promises. But, that time has passed now and I wouldn't order from them or recommend ordering from them again.

I HAVE BEEN A REULAR CUSTOMER OF WAYSIDE FOR OVER 40 YEARS, USUALLY SPENDING $100 TO $400 EACH YEAR. NOW I AM ABLE TO GET MORE OF THE PLANTS AT LOCAL NURSERIES, BUT WAYSIDE KEEPS COMING UP WITH UNUSUAL PLANTS THAT TEMPT ME TO ORDER. ALL OF MY EXPERIENCES WITH WAYSIDE HAVE BEEN EXCELLENT. LARGE, WELL-PACKED HEALTHY PLANTS ARRIVE AND TAKE OFF QUICKLY IN MY GARDEN. THERE HAVE BEEN A FEW TIMES WHEN A PLANT WAS NOT UP TO STANDARD, BUT THEY ALWAYS CHEERFULY REPLACED IT QUICKLY WITH A GOOD ONE. CUSTOMER SERVICE IS OUTSTANDING. WAYSIDE AND WHITE FLOWER FARM ARE TWO OF THE VERY BEST IN THE BUSINESS.

I will NEVER order from this company again. I ordered a box of plants - and the majority of them arrived looking dead, leaves shredded...and the smallest plants I have ever ordered (one plant - which was quite expensive - had only 1/3 of a tattered leaf left on it... and for the record...it wasn't a "bulb type plant" that was just dormant - it was dead). I contacted the company 3 times so far...and haven't heard back. Now two weeks later...all the plants they sent are completely dead - no amount of TLC could bring them back. (Plants I ordered from other companies are all doing fine...so the "growth conditions" in my yard are not the problem).

In short - Wayside should be ashamed of themselves for sending out such poor quality plants and for not taking responsibility for their very disappointing inventory/service. Buyer beware of this company!

I will not order from this company again. I just received four boxes of plants from them, Many of the small plants had blooms, branches, and/or leaves broken off and the one tree had the central leader broken, My biggest complaint is that they surround the plants with styrofoam peanuts which make a mess when you open the box. Other companies mail plants without these, and they arrive in better condition.

Posted on January 5, 2012, updated April 22, 2012
I had some trouble with a 'groupon' so I called Wayside's customer service. They took my order and said that it would be about an hour before they could check on the groupon and would call me back. 45 minutes later I received their call telling me that they had applied the coupon. Fast, Friendly. I will try to remember to come back and report on the plants when they arrive.

I ordered the Hartlage Wine spice bush, Daphne Odorata Maejin, and 2 Weigelias. The plants were packed well, of nice size, and arrived 2 days after my shipping notice. I was very happily surprised. The Weigelias had blooms and some flowers. Packed with invoice and instructions on care. I hope my future orders are as consistent quality and shipping.

I've used Wayside for years not knowing how many companies are out there. Their catalogs and on-line presence are beautiful. I always thought my 50%-75% success rate was my fault.

Then I found this site and realized how many choices there are. I never understood why Wayside would ship plants on a Friday. After all, they're going to sit for the entire weekend, but I figured that's just the way it was. But my most recent order convinces me there there are others who do it better.

Granted, $100 isn't that big of an order but I now realize plants don't have to be thrown in a box with styrafoam peanuts. They can be shipped on Monday so they arrive on Wed or Thur in great shape. When you order four of the same plant they can be of the same quality rather than two good ones and two duds.

There are better companies out there and I'm going to take my money where it gets the best value.

I have had good experiences in the past with Wayside so was quite surprised with this order and not pleasantly. My order was incorrect in that I ordered a Rose Bolero (white) but received a tree rose in a hot pink color. Other items in the order were dry and the Butterfly bush had broken stems,curled and brown leaves...not dead but obviously not doing well. I live in Alabama and it took 7 days to arrive. I emailed upon receipt my concerns...no response. about 4 days later I sent a second email...no response. it has now been 15 days since they said they shipped. I sent an email this morning letting them know I will be shopping elsewhere and how disappointing their decline and lack of customer service is. My garden budget is small so my order of over $100 was substantial for me. Live and learn I guess.

Posted on May 29, 2009, updated March 9, 2012
After almost 20 years of doing business with Wayside Gardens, I am saddened to report that they have turned into one of the worst catalogue companies in regards to customer service and quality of plants.

I ordered 3 passiflora. One was obviously dead, but I planted all 3 anyway. After about a week, they all turned black and pulled up from the rootball.

I immediately contacted WG. They did the standard "those plants are just dormant and in 4-6 weeks, they'll start growing!" Well, they did not, so I contacted them again. The poor little things were ONE WEEK in transit to me on a hot UPS plane/train/truck/whatever, as I live in California and the plants came from the east coast. It's a miracle they were even green, albeit withered, when I got them.

They sent me one plant. It is doing fine, but when I try to get the other two plants, they are now sold out. They tell me they'll give me a credit. I ask for a refund. Suddenly, my emails are not answered.

I wait a week and again email them, asking them for a refund, and letting them know that they're getting LOTS of negative reviews on the 'net.

I get a very snotty-toned email back from Josh, saying that if I would've asked for a refund, that's what I would've gotten, and that my money would be refunded in 3-5 "working days". I forward the original email I wrote to them, asking them to refund my money.

Well, it's been over two weeks now and still no refund to my bank account, PLUS they do not respond to any of my emails.

I agree with others in that their catalogues make great reference resources, and I will now be taking them to the local nurseries and asking the very nice people at said nurseries to special order plants for me.

It's very sad that after all the good experiences I've had with them, I guess Park Seed's buyout has brought with it some very bad customer service. Why the quality of their plants has gone downhill, I know not.

I notice that several negative reports on this website have been answered by a VERY lame cut-and-paste response from WG. They are not fooling any of us. I won't be surprised when this company goes "tats" (sic) up, as there seems to be very little they're doing to prevent this.

The Arbeqina olive I had ordered two years ago is now a 12 foot tall shrub . This is my only experience with them but it has been a positive one . Arrived well packaged potted healthy and green .

I live in marietta Ga. and i was looking for the Edgeworthia "red Dragon' for it's fragrance and Wayside gardens seemed to be the only one that I could find that carried them . Very hesitant to buy because of the reveues on them but I did anyway. In about a week the plants came and i opened the box i front of the mail man and he stated that someone sent me dead plants. I emed. went in and called wayside to inform them of my displeasure about NO water and 2 sticks in a box. The lady that i spoke with was very friendly and very supportive about my concern and informed me that they would replace these plant right away. about a week the box came in and low and behold the plants were alive pretty good shape but NO water again but very good plants. I have since planted the two and i'm pleased not only with the plants( LITTLE HIGH) but also the service and i called wayside to state just that and that i would certainly be a customer again. Don't know why plants had no water both times unless weight issues.,but i will be using them in the future!!!

I ordered three, four inch potted plants from Wayside. Shipping was very quick, when I went to inspect the plants I found 2 of the 3 to be in good condition while one of my trumpet vines snapped at the top due to improper staking. I called customer service and they were happy to help with a replacement, no questions asked.

Their packing of the plant materials is deplorable. The poor plants arrived at my house dead and completely squished. I've made several phone calls to their "customer service" and got absolutely nowhere. I cannot even get a supervisor to return my many phone messages. I'm considering reporting them to Consumer Affairs. AVOID AT ALL COSTS!

Posted on May 8, 2006, updated August 27, 2011
After ordering from Wayside in the past and giving them a neutral rating in my mind, this last one was their last chance. I've been able to accept their small plants and even allowed for the those that didn't survive in the months after planting. But this last order attempt I canceled before I even received it! Luckily I checked it's status online, since the order I placed had become a mess. I learned a collection of Toadlillies were no longer available and four items were cancelled! And they had added, (appearantly to make me happy), a few coral bells of the same species that I never would have ordered myself. After calling them they told me the toadlillies collection was sold out a month AFTER I placed my order! Who knows what happened with the other items that were cancelled! No one contacted me to let me know! If I hadn't have checked on the order I never would have known and I would have paid for items I wouldn't have wanted. This is NOT the way you run a business! Wayside deserves it's low ratings whether they think so or not.

First of all... getting plants through mail should be a blessing!
If all nurseries stopped shipping plants through mail you all would be PISSED!
Second.... once the plants arrive at your house and are still green and you all put them into the ground, the nursery that shipped it to you is 'not' responsible for those plants. They are not responsible for the type of soil you have, the temperatures you have, the frequency of water, the constant direct sun you have those plants in.

I have never ordered anything yet from Wayside yet but the prices are outrageous! Probably because they do offer the latest stuff that are coming out. Unless you want the latest, I would go somewhere else. I have been drooling over the new Decadence series of Baptisia that are smaller than the typical 4-5 feet ones. I may just go for it when some of my flower beds are reworked!
(Of course the other expensive one is White Flower Farm)

I have not ordered from Wayside for at least 2 years now. This was because of several bad experiences, poor plants being delivered, and sale offers not honored. The last straw was when I placed a large order, as they had offered a 40% discount at the end of the season for an order of $100 or more.

Several of the plants offered were back-ordered. I heard nothing for months, and e-mailed several times to be told that the plants were still not available. When the spring catalog arrived, there were my back-ordered plants, both in their catalog and online at full price, but they still did not send my back-ordered plants. When I e-mailed, I was told this was new stock, so a different product than what had been offered the previous fall. I guess they were selling the dregs at 40% off, and sure as heck weren't giving me the discount on a nice, healthy new plant.

I then requested a refund, as they had already charged me for the back-ordered plants. It took several weeks before I got a response, and weeks again before my credit card showed the refund. These folks have an excellent variety of plants, but I will never order online from them again because of this experience. If I'm ever in SC and could shop in person, I might visit their nursery.

I received a large bare root rose bush. Well packed with good planting instructions. Already broken dormancy with huge green buddings. Very pleased with my purchase.

Posted on January 20, 2007, updated May 23, 2011
I'm surprised to see negatives regarding Wayside. I have been ordering from them for the last 7-8 years and have had nothing but good luck with them. I read the remarks about shipping and leaving plants out in the heat, but if you have ordered plants, you should know that you need to keep any eye out for them. I just placed another order with them for the spring. I have had nothing but positive experiences.

"

I am happy to hear that you enjoyed our products so much.

We would love to forward your compliments; if you would send us your order information, we can let the appropriate department know that their efforts were recognized and appreciated. Please email me your zip code, last name, and order number.

Jay Johnson
Customer Contact Department
e-mail:JJohnson@parkseed.com
"

In April, 2011, I ordered on-line over $100 worth of plants (3 ferns, 2 clematis & 3 vinca minor) because of a promotion to receive a $50 gift certificate to use in May. When I went to check out there was also an opportunity to receive 20% off. I made sure that even net the 20%, I would spend at least $100 so as to receive the gift certificate. Well, I called "customer service" to make sure the order went through correctly. They told me I couldn't take the 20% discount, too, although there was no statement regarding this at the check-out menu. I asked them to go ahead and take off the 20% discount so I would get the $50 gift certificate. He told me he couldn't do that because the order already went through. I'm an accountant and I know this can be done. I spoke with the supervisor and she went ahead and sent me the gift certificate. Well, I was VERY disappointed to receive pitiful looking plants (the gift certificate came at the same time)! The fronds on the ferns were brittle. The clematis & vinca minor were supposed to be gallon-size, but looked like they were 4"-pot plants put in gallon cans. I called for a return authorization and was told to ship them the cheapest way for me, which was fine. I also said I would send back the gift certificate, but she said to keep it as it would make up for my shipping costs. So, I will use it on bulbs, but I will no longer order live plants from them. I found a gorgeous clematis almost 4' tall at a local nursery for less cost. I think I will stick to local nurseries in Oregon from now on!

Terrible customer service. The plant I received seems in good condition. I received a coupon with the plant and went online to order some other ones. I discovered the coupon had expiration date prior to when I received my plant. I called customer services which at first told me I couldn't not redeem the discount and then after I asked to speak to a supervisor I was told I could have a 10% discount and not the 15% my coupon said. I preceeded to place my order over the phone but the representative was so rude and unpleasant that I ended up deciding not to order from this company. They didn't seem to know what customer service is.

After reading all the negative feedbacks about Wayside Gardens, I was a bit nervous about the quality of an order I placed. To my pleasant surprise, the plants were packaged very well and they were in great condition. The plants are in the ground now and they seem to be doing well.

JI ordered 12 First Arrival Peonie's last year. 8 of them are up nice and 4 no sign of life, I dug under there is no Root!! None!! I called them, they said there is nothing they can do , because I am in zone 3 and this peonie in there book any way is for z4. On the backof my book it says nothing about zone 3 , matter a fact the largest percentage of garden catalogues have me in z4, but she had to get irate with me, say it dosent matter what other's have me in there zone , its there zone that counts, and she didn't care if I ever ordered from them again. GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!!! I Guess I can take my business elsewhere, its probably the worst I have been treated.

I just received a rose bush, two potentilla shrubs and a silver fleece vine and the size and health of the plants were excellent. The plants were packaged beautifully and are as healthy as any I can buy at a local nursery. I have absolutely no complaints and am e-mailing the company with my compliments.

Sandgarden

Posted on March 26, 2008, updated October 4, 2010
I have ordered from Parks both as a wholesale and retail customer for years. As far as shipping and germination I really dont have a problem, I do however think there are cheaper sources of seed out there. I guess if I had a complaint it would be the foil seed packets. They seem to create a static, and it is very difficult to get the seeds out especially if you want to sow 1/2 now and 1/2 later.