Comments regarding Hortico Nurseries Inc.

I have bought from Hortico a number of times within the past five years. While they may have had problems in the past, I have never experienced this. Last year and this year I spent in excess of $400 on their roses and every one was correctly labeled and available when it came time to ship. There was a small holdup when the roses came across the US/Canadian border and according to tracking info provided it was an issue with UPS, but the customer service at Hortico was excellent in helping me track my package. Even after over a week in transit, the roses were still in perfect condition due to their efficient packaging.

I put in an order with Hortico despite the many negative comments here, because they were the only source I could find for several rare roses. They were sold out of one, which they didn't tell me until shipping time (annoying because if they had told me earlier, I might have been able to order it from another source, but by then it was too late). Other than that I was pleased with the transaction and the roses. Most looked like typical sized bare-root roses that I've received from other companies. Some were smaller, but I knew that when ordering and paid less for them. They were well-packed and communication was good. All have leafed out and are currently growing well. Based on this experience I would order from them again. Their selection is quite extensive for northern gardeners.

Just wanted to say "Thanks Hortico!!". Have been trying for FIVE YEARS to order a Buttercup rose from David Austin. Despite pre-paying, and ordering again and again when they appeared to be in stock I was never able to obtain one from DH-always out of stock.
Took a 'risk'-based on negative feedback and ordered from Horitico. They didn't have it but said they'd notify me when they did.
Hortico called me as promised (for my li
ttle tin
y order) and i received the rose last summer. Waited for bloom to make sure it was Buttercup.
It is!! It is blooming beautifullly and I am thrilled!
Five stars to you all for GREAT customer service and my beautiful Buttercup!!!

My order from Hortico arrived exactly when Katie said it would and eventhough it is very hot in South Texas now, my rose is fine. This is the first time I have purchased a bare root rose, but the roots look healthy as do the canes and the new growth. I will not hesitate to order from Hortico again, but I will try to plan ahead better and order before it gets so hot!

I have been ordering roses from Hortico for years; they have a wide variety of roses that you can not find any where else. Yes sometimes roses are back order and I have to be patient, but I am willing to wait to get what I want. I have also been shipped the wrong rose before and there was no problem getting the right rose shipped to me. I emailed Katie a picture of the rose I receive and let her know the rose I suppose to receive and she sent me a confirmation for a replacement rose, the rose was shipped within a week after being notified. Katie has been the customer service person I have been dealing with for the past year and I would like to say she has been very good at keeping me up to date on what is going on with my order and helping me find beautiful roses to fit my needs/ requests. I do feel bad about how her name has been put on here negatively she seems to be the only person there that customers can speak to about their orders, issue and questions. Hortico is a great company if you are looking for unique and beautiful.

I have found Hortico to be a great company to deal with. The plants I ordered for this spring were delivered on time, in great condition, and they were large and vigorous. There was one error made in the order (wrong hosta) and when I notified them of this, they corrected it immediately. Within two days, the right hosta was delivered to me at no charge. I would definitely recommend this company for great customer service and good quality plants.

I live in the Dallas Metroplex and needed special roses for our new French formal garden we had just created. We ordered 38 bare root rose bushes for the formal gardens and 2 bare root climbing roses (for 2 pots on our patio).

The roses all arrived when promised a week later and were in excellent condition with the moist packing materials still nice and moist. In fact, the root structures on the new roses were the best we had every seen.

We planted all the roses as per the instructions and within two weeks all of them had buds. I am happy to report that all 40 rose bushes are doing well and are growning significant shoots and leaves.

What we particularly appreciated was the advice (via e-mail) that we received. Hortico helped us select the right roses for what we wanted to achieve.

We were very impressed by the knowledge of Hortico's staff, the quality and value of the plants and of course best of all the great results.

I would highly recommend them - these people are A+

a while ago(2 years) i have ordered several bare root roses from hortico( acropolis, souvenir de malmaison, blanc double de coubert, hansa). the very! little plants arrived and i was more than worried. i have followed the instructions, and in the second season the roses were growing and flowering like mad. compared to the more expensive roses i purchased from a local nursery, horticos roses are way more vigorous and stronger. i will order more roses for spring 2009!

I was skeptical ordering from this company because of the few negative feedbacks posted. However, I wanted a rose (Starry Night) that is very hard to find, and Hortico was the only company I could locate online that carried them. I had planted this particular rose bush about eight years ago (not from Hortico), but last year they just kind of pooped out from old age. I went ahead and ordered seven Starry Night plants from Hortico online on April 9 and received the plants today (April 24)!! Very fast shipping! When the roses were shipped, they sent me delivery confirmation via e-mail, along with a UPS tracking number. When I received the roses, they were in perfect condition, healthy and green. Packaging was very professionally done. I couldn't believe the size of the roots, very thick and sturdy. I can't wait until the plants start to leaf out. I will use this company again, and will recommend them to my friends.

I emailed Hortico to check on availability of plants before placing my order. I got a response within 2 days and adjusted my order accordingly. They let me know that one plant was delayed and asked if I wanted to get the remainder of the order right away or wait and ship when the other plant became available. I chose the later and my package did arrive right on time, with an email notification when it had been shipped. Very nice packaging, and roses were in excellent shape.
I have made it a habit now to always email in advance to check on what's available rather than be disappointed later on.

I had been very disappointed with two roses I received from Hortico in 2006; they never leafed out at all, and a third rose was backordered for a second year. However, when I emailed them with my concern, they immediately replaced the two roses, and suggested a different planting technique than the one I had used (brief rather than long soaking, as they use multiflora rootstock, and hilling up soil until leaves appear.) They also refunded the deposit for the third rose, and the two they sent are beautifully leafed out now and thriving. They were very gracious and helpful. They have roses that are not available elsewhere; I will definitely order from them again next year.

I have had a great experience with Hortico.

The couple of roses I ordered last year all survived, and I therefore chose to order again this year. I ordered a little on the late side, and asked for someone to call me for payment information, which they did. They tried my home number first, and when they did not reach me there, they called my office number which I had supplied. I found this very convenient for myself, as I did not have to play phone-tag with them for days. I believe that this in itself was beyond the call of duty.

The young woman I dealt with, Stephanie, was very helpful, and when I called back to alter my order slightly, she confirmed that all the roses I had put on my order were available. I had not expected this, and to me it was beyond my expectations that she could, and would do that.

My roses have all started to leaf out, and look wonderful! I am so excited waiting for the 'rose garden', that no-one ever promised me, that I got for myself, to bloom! I am very impressed that some of the roses have so many branches on them, and really hope they will bloom in their first year! Even the ones that were the lower grade (which I requested), have leafed out very well, and look like they will come along just fine.

Anyways, I would recommend Hortico to friends and family, and will definitely order again. (I am putting in a fence on the other side of my yard, and need some wild-rose rugosa varieties to festoon that side now!)

I think some people expect perfection, and fact is, there can be blips in anything. My experience has been extremely satisfactory, and I feel that there is a part for the consumer to play in any transaction. If that includes trying a company that has tidied up their processes, and improved themselves, then that is the company I would try first. As well, a few pieces of bad press can be completely overblown, and wreck a company's entire business. In this case, I will order again from Hortico because they were able to withstand any bad press and had the strength to 'rise from the ashes' so to speak, due to a few unfortunate incidents.

Anyways, I love to preach, but I love Hortico!! All my roses look awesome, and green and healthy, and even my last years ones, which I planted too late, and which suffered because of it, and which I did not think would come back this year, have beaten the odds due to my lack of experience, and are sending up all kinds of new shoots and will survive!
Yay! (Don't mind me, I am just so excited!)

Have a fabulously lovely spring all!
I

Easy ordering on line at Hortico
Fast response. Roses arrived safety packed.
I planted next day and they are doing fine so far.
Bare root.

They have a great selection and I found out about them at the Rose Show at Longwood Gardens in 2006.

I will update as they grow!
Donna

I was very happy with my purchases from Hortico Nursery. They had alot of roses that I wasn't able to get anywhere else. The staff was very nice and helpful. I received my roses and was totally satisfied with the roses. They were healthy and well wrapped for shipping. Two thumbs up for this nursery! I will definitely be buying from them again. Actually I have some coming this spring! Donna

I have placed several rose orders with Hortico over the years and have always been very satisfied with the quality of their plants and their customer service. I live in the Atlanta, GA area and despite the considerable climate differences between Canada and Georgia, found their plants to be very hardy and healthy. Hortico's customer service has always been prompt, professional, informative - and very friendly - a real pleasure to work with. I never hesitate to order roses from them and will continue to do so in the future.

I have ordered several hundred varieties of roses from Hortico over the past eight years, and have always been satisfied with the plants and with my dealings with the company. I have ordered over the phone, over the web, and via email, with excellent results. They always have a tremendous range of varieties, many of which are not available from anywhere else. I used to go to Canada to pick up my large orders, but post 9/11, this isn't as easy (coming back into the US is a pain - the Canadians aren't at fault...). Shipping charges are reasonable, and I don't mind plants on the smaller side. They generally have grown well, and my losses and experiences with misnamed varieties have been much less with Hortico than with other sources.

I ordered a rose collection in July. All five roses came within a few weeks. I planted the then dormant roses and two did not survive. In August, I contacted Hortico and told them that two of the roses failed to ever come in to leaf and they agreed to replace them this fall.

Of the three that did survive, I am very, very happy with the health and growth of the plants. They are three of the healthiest plants out of the 50+ roses that I planted this past year. Good selection and good bargain.

I have dealt with Hortico for the last 6 years and have found them so helpful. The roses, trees, perennials, and shrubs are fantastic! The people at Hortico treat me as if I were a very good friend and make sure I get the most healthy plants. They spend time to give me great information about the care of these plants. I specifically wanted plants this year to stop hunters from sneaking onto my property and the thorns are going to work better than any sign I put up! Some of the trees I planted 5 years ago are now 20 feet tall. They were part of a transport full of trees delivered for me. I therefore feel that my recommendation to buy from Hortico is worth a lot. I can hardly wait for sping to send for more even though I just received dozens of bushes and trees. John Vanderkruk called me to let me know the special care of some of them and to ask if I was happy with the order.

I must say that my order from Hortico was a good experience this year. The canes are nice and the plants arrived in good condition. The only complaint I have is it took along time and a few roses, I ordered and had called about, to verify they were in stock. were not available on my shipping date. I placed my order back in February-2006. Hortico did call at least and apologized for this and for it taking so long. I have to give them a good rating due to good customer service and the quality compared to previous orders. I will definately order from them next year. Great job Hortico keep up the good work. Also you can find many hidden treasures of roses that are hard to find through them. Daintybess

Ordered for the first time from them this year and received my order in excellent condition and exactly when I had asked. Will definitely use them again.

Personal visits. Love the fact that this is a centre that relies on natural growing methods. Huge selection with many hard to find plants and natives. anything I have bought has flourished and I recommend it to any and all gardeners. Plants may not be huge but that should not be the measure of hardiness or future beauty.
I will be buying again from them in 2006.

Since John Vanderkruk took over the management of Hortico, in early 2004 I believe, I have had excellent and very friendly service from the Management and the office staff.

A recent order of ( my own hybridized ) roses arrived 3 days ahead of schedule and in excellent condition. The plants were packed very well. I can highly recommend Hortico.
George Mander, B. C. Canada

I ate Tolman Sweet Apples as a child. Later in life I decided to find them again. I could not find them in my area, and was directed to this company. John Vanderkuk took care of us. With a few e-mails back and forth, he found us a supplier of these fruits. He had us shipped two apple trees and also a box of the delicious fruit. They arrived the time John quoted us and in excellent condition. I thank John very much for his kindness and expertise. He certainly is a professional and the company speaks for itself in the way we were treated. Keep up the good work and Kudos to you John.. Sincerely Terry and Sharon Dupuis Sarnia, Ontario. I would not for one minute hesitate to deal with this company or John himself. Thanks again to all of you.

I have very rarely come across a Company with people who put so much Time and Effort into getting me the Trees and information that I wanted. Diana and John both , Checked & Researched different types, and kept me updated on what Trees they had in Stock. It is People like this that make it so easy to do Business. Where most people would have given up , they never, and now the Trees are Planted in My Orchard, instead of still on Their Stock List. I look forward to Ordering more in the Future. Laurie

I ordered 15 tall Miscanthus grasses (floridulus and sinsensis Goliath) and a number of bamboos for pick-up (I live nearby). The bamboos I originally ordered were not available and substitutions were offered, with the option to decline. I decided to take the substitutions and also bought a Virgil peach tree when I picked up the rest.

All the plants have grown very well, despite delays in getting them into the ground. The Miscanthus have grown quite tall and produced plumes in late summer / early fall (they are looking great now). The peach tree even produced three large, delicious peaches in August.

I am very happy to have found Hortico, especially since it is so close to where I live. They have an amazing variety of plants, particularly interesting, rare and native ones, and appear to have a strong commitment to being environmentally responsible, which is important to me (and should be to anyone who really cares about life).

One downside is that they do seem to be somewhat disorganized, which appears to be the root cause of most of their negative feedback. Personally, I did have to call and email more than once to get my order put through. The impression I get is that they do not have the best system in the office and / or they tend to get overwhelmed during the busy season.

Nevertheless, in my experience, the price of persistence is definitely worth it with this unique company.

My interest is in native plants, trees and shrubs. I was directed to Hortico by an arboriculturist because I was looking for a difficult-to-find native shrub (hobblebush). They were attempting to grow their own, but it is a difficult plant to grow. I subsequently discovered Hortico's extensive native plant stocks. At extremely reasonable prices, I have since picked up a fringe tree, a serviceberry (leavis), 3 redbuds, a gray's dogwood, a witch hazel, several spice bushes and several rhus aromatica. Though not all bought at the same time, they were all fitted into a Toyota corolla for me - somtimes quite amazingly. I have also purchased many native grasses and ferns. With one exception all are flourishing in my garden - the exception being the fringe tree, which is flourishing in my girlfriend's garden. I'm still waiting for the hobblebush - but that is one difficult bush to get hold of. My experience has been totally positive. It is also my experience with native trees and bushes, that if Hortico doesn't have it, you're not likely to find it. The staff (I mainly dealt with Phillip) were without exception unbelieveably helpful and friendly.

We as a school involved in a park beautification program where in the need for 60 shrubs. We called around and found that not only was Hortico willing to offer us an excellent price, delivery, and the installation of these bushes, the staff and the workers conducted them selves in a very professional manner, all went well with the installation, and I would NOT hesitate this company to anyone.

John Kovacs

I had wanted to establish a substantial rose garden to compliment the perrenial beds. I found Hortico through the City of Brampton, where they have the most beautiful and healthiest varieties. I called Hortico for travel directions as I wanted to see the business and the varieties they would offer. In late spring, I took the trip to take advantage of their spring sales and found the roses (although not all their varieties were available on sale) were strong and healthly. Both my husband & I bought 16 to start and after planting, the roses took right off. Not having a lot of experience with Roses, we fell on John's advise for planting & care and this significantly established the stock we just had purchased. I went on line and found to my amazement so many more which I knew would accent my gardens and I knew I could open up the beds for future plantings. I placed my order in mid-summer 2004 for bare root planting. I became concerned in Sept when we did not have arrival of the approx. 75 new roots. We do live in a colder climate and it was necessary to have the plants come when the ground was still workable. After a few repeated telephone calls expressing my frustration and real concern, the bare roots arrived mid-October with only one which they were unable to fill and as a good will gesture, Hortico sent Best Wishes which now has the lovliest blooms. I lost only 2 of the plantings from the entire order and it is felt because of the lateness of the year with the ground almost frozen hard and the needed watering which crystallized, these bare roots could not stand the severe adjustment. By following the planting guideline, in the spring of 2005, the roses came up strong and very well established, blooming pofusely to add a wonderful highlight to our gardens. In 2004, I mentioned Hortico's varieties and prices to friends and neighbours and do know that 4 have already bought substantial stock. I now have ordered 9 varieties more and it leaves me with a real concern that Hortico may not be able to fill my order and there is also the real possiblity that the order may be shipped again so very late in the year. I have successfully dealt with John and found his customer service skills outstanding. Perhaps this year I will get my order complete and in good time.

I ordered Rhapsody in Blue, and am very pleased with it. The bareroot I received was slightly smaller than bareroots Ive ordered from American vendors, but I expected that. I planted it and its thriving, new leaves and little canes starting.
Size matters, and mine was adequate. More important is vigor, and this little rose is very vigorous! I will order again.

I have had mixed experiences with this company which is why I give it the neutral rating. Last year I ordered 5 rose bushes from them; they were small but healthy, and all but one flourished. The one that died was not their fault, as it was an unusually wet spring and where they were planted the soil remained waterlogged far too long....it was a miracle that the others lived at all, and they grew to be quite large by summer's end. However, they have yet to bloom, so I don't know yet whether they are true to name. So I ordered again from them this year, hoping for the same experience, and even though I had read some negative reviews I wanted to give them another chance since my experience previously had been positive. Well this year was a vastly different experience....I am quite disappointed. For one thing, they did not ship on the requested date (even though I placed the order EARLY, back in January) and the order was 2 1/2 weeks late (and sent only because I kept e-mailing and calling!). But it was the size of the plants that was most upsetting....now, I was aware that their rosebushes are not very large compared to other companies and I expected them to be small, but one of them was no more than a TWIG! It must have been a seedling by the size of it...only 4 inches tall at best, with 2 matchstick-sized canes (the I.D. tag attached to the plant was taller than the plant!) They had bundled up all the roses, and this extra-pathetic rose was hidden in the center of the bundle; when I saw it I basically cried because it was the variety that I most wanted and now if it survives it will be YEARS before it puts out any flowers. I immediately sent an e-mail to demand either a refund or a replacement, then because they did not respond, a personal letter, but I am still waiting for a response.....I'm sure my letter ended up in the wastebasket, along with all the other letters of complaint! What is most infuriating to me is that I ordered these roses early so that I would be assured of getting top quality stock....but it appears that it makes no difference when you place your order because if you live in a cold zone like I do, we are the last customers to receive plants, and by the time they ship ours out all the GOOD STOCK has been exhausted......we are sent the LEFTOVERS! I would have given them a completely negative rating, but for the fact that the other tiny plants they sent me seem to be o.k. in terms of signs of life...they are beginning to leaf out so I think they'll be o.k.....although I don't expect any blossoms this year! I will post a review again at a later date, if and when my roses I bought from Hortico last year bloom for me....then I will be able to tell if I was sent the correct variety. This has been a concern for me, ever since I started reading the Garden Watchdog, so I've got my fingers crossed!

I live in the north, zone 4, so buying plants grown in the north is essential for their success. Hortico actually grows their own plants, which has sadly become rare in the nursery trade. Most nurseries in the north actually grow their plants in the south to maximize size and then ship them out. So they are not acclimatized, and many do not do well. I have had half of an order die because of this. So Hortico's growing methods are a real asset. Yes, the plants may be smaller that the husky ones you get at big box stores, but they quickly make up for that. The husky ones live off the energy stores in those huge stems, and then decline, unable to replace their carbohydrates in cooler temperatures and with less sun.

Labeling can be a problem, and I noticed one complaint listed Duchess of Montebello being the wrong plant, which I had too, but they quickly refunded my money. (By the way, it was Alba semi-plena, also a very good plant for our area, can climb, is hardy and beautiful.)

It must be a phenominal chore to keep track of so many thousands of different (and many rare) plants, and I hope their new system helps them. Nevertheless, their selection is a treasure for those of us looking for plants that will be successful in the north.

The staff have always been very nice and helpful. Communication from them is sketchy, but ultimately I get what I need, and have learned to not worry about not knowing what is coming when. I will get something nice.

I chair a native plant sale in the N.E. U.S. for a local land trust and have had problems finding woodland plants which have not been collected in the wild and which are affordable. I am happy to say that I have fround Hortico's woodland plants to be of high quality and of good value. It is clear that they are propagated by the nursery rather than collected which is absolutely essential for us. I would readily recommend this company for its woodland natives. I would also like to say that the company has worked hard to accommodate our needs and schedule.

Maintaining a garden of 300 roses has forced me to order from a number of different sources. I have ordered roses from Hortico a number of times. Most recently there was a slight mis-communication about the delevery date. This has been corrected and I am currently anticipating the arrival of my order early this spring.

Hortico offers a large variety of roses some of which are not available in the States. They also bud their roses on multiflora understock. It survives well in my climate and I don't have to worry that the roses will arrive on fortuniana understock (very popular among exhibitors lately) thereby wasting my money by having purchased an "annual".

Once or twice I have been surprised that a plant arrived smaller in size than I would have liked. Within a couple of months the vigor of the plant more than make up for its initial size. All in all I've experienced very little inconvenience considering I've been ordering hard to find or new varieties of roses. I will continue to purchase roses from Hortico as long as they carry a product I need and continue to perform as well as they have.

I have heard alot of negative reports about Hortico but I just received (Nov. 2004) my first order of 5 dormant bare root roses from them and I am happy to report they are in fine condition. They are not small or dried up and they came securely packaged. The customer service was nothing but friendly and cooperative when I dealt with them and they even allowed me to change my order at the last minute. They promptly answered all my emails too.
I wouldn't hesitate to order from them again.
Thanks Hortico!

I have been dealing with Hortico for over 10 years. My gardens are filled with a large variety of plants from their extensive collection. I have received many favourable comments on the plant material chosen for my garden, and I have directed many fellow gardeners to Hortico. I have pre-ordered and picked up plants there when ready, and I have also chosen plants directly from some of their greenhouses. The staff is friendly and helpful, and give excellent advice on plants for a specific area. This year they have been installing weedmat in the greenhouses, which has tidied them up a great deal.
The plants I have purchased have well-developed root systems, and in a retail establishment, most of their plants in 4 inch pots would have been placed into gallon containers and priced much higher. I have been exceedingly pleased with the quality and size of plants purchased at Hortico. They have a superb selection of plants to choose from.

My experiences with Hortico has been very positive! The selection is great and they truly are your "source for unique plants." I would also like to commend them on the wealth of information you can gain from them. They have very qualified staff who have a passion for their work. They are eager to help you with questions and give you valuable advice. The plants I have purchased from them range from shrubs to roses to perennials and have all been great additions to our farm! Keep up the great work!
Sharon Rhoda

Hortico is a wonderful place to hunt for treasures. Be sure to have a lot of time to spend and do your research ahead of time so you can do justice to the large amount of varieties that they have!

I have been visiting Hortico for plants for my garden for about three years now, although I don't believe I have gone there more than twice in a year. I am not aware of any other place that carries a selection of plant material this large in my area. Often, I have found Hortico to be the only place to carry an uncommon plant variety that I wanted. Hortico also carries more sizes of plants. Their catalgue tells you it is a four inch or a gallon or a five gallon pot while other catalogues seem to forget to tell you that their plants are shipped in 50mm pots. I was also very impressed with the size and selection (not to mention the infernal conditions!) within their ornamental grasses greenhouse. Where common nurseries would have from a few to a dozen varieties of common perennials, Hortico would list scores of them. Also, the cost of the plants is very low compared to more "flashy" places owing to their low over head. Sure, if you are dressed in your Sunday best, I suggest you go to the mall to buy your plants but if you don't mind some mud on your shoes and tires, this is the place to go. I must admit that I was surprised to read some of the negative comments about this site, but I have never used mail order when dealing with Hortico. I have simply e-mailed my order to them and then arranged a pick up date. Other times I have simply driven there and had someone collect the plants I wanted. If you want to shop in an air conditioned store with music and a latte stand, don't go to Hortico. If you want a place with a vast selection of variety and colour, go to Hortico. Never mind the fancy catalogue with the most perfect pictures of plants that don't look like that in real life. Use web sites like this one to identify the plants you want and the simple black and white pdf pages of the Hortico catalogue to buy them.

I've start knowing Hortico last year through the internet. There website is as good as it gets: informative, easy to fallow and full with information. They made it very easy to choose the roses that were suited for me and my garden. In April, I went to pick up my order and since than I became a constant client of there perennials, shrubs & roses. My garden is a living example of what beautiful and rare species they have.
The people are very friendly and knowledgeable. Thank you for a lovely experience.
Sincerely, Michelle