The scoop on 'Cistus Nursery'

I have been making trips to Cistus for several years now, and have enjoyed the selection of rare plants and the impeccable knowledge of the staff. Their demonstration beds are inspirational. Several of the 650+ species/cultivars in my collection came from Cistus and they are doing well and often draw questions from the hundreds of visitors our garden has hosted..

Ordered a plant from Cistus last week and Josh told me that he would ship this Tuesday. He did and it arrived today via USPS. That is two days time from OR to TX. Very nice plant and hope I can grow it off so that I can plant directly in ground. Josh was extremely nice and polite when I spoke with him. I would suggest to anyone, do not try to have a conversation via email with plant nurseries. Phone them and save yourself the aggravation. Very nice person to deal with at Cistus and will keep them in favorites for other purchases not available locally.

I use Dave's Garden Database of nurseries to find rare plants. I wanted a Acnistus australis and they are the only people who grow and have it in stock on a regular basis.

I contacted this company by email and got a reply from the 'Production Manager'. After 3 requests by email I was told that they would only ship FedEx, that it would take 10 days to arrive and that I would have to assume all risks. I pointed out to them that US Postal Service could have it here by Priority Mail in two days, that it would cost less money to ship, they would pick the package up and they would provide the shipping box for free. I was told that I would have to accept their terms, that they didn't have time to go to the post office. I pointed out that they didn't have to go anywhere, the post office is a professional at shipping.


I have been searching for Acnistus australis for almost two years. I am disappointed in the person who handles shipping for this company. The time spent answering email was wasted, they could have been spent that time getting a plant to me and they would have had one more very happy customer. The person I dealt with was lazy and border line rude.

Mr. Griep has never placed an order with nor received plants from Cistus Nursery. We continue to offer thousands of plants, including three different forms of Acnistus, to our customers all over the world. We have had an amazing shipping season and are proud to have provided hard to find plant material to customers throughout the US and world. Our actual shipping costs to the east coast are often higher than the prices we charge, and that does not include pulling the plant, the packing materials and packing time and expertise. We are a small nursery and consistently try to go out of our way to accommodate our customers. Mr. Grieps expectation for our rural mail carrier to be able to pick up 20 boxes a day is unreasonable.

Below is the entire correspondence between myself and Mr. Griep, beginning with the last comments.

On Apr 25, 2007, at 3:32 PM, Dale Griep wrote:

You are either lazy or dim, I really can't tell which.

On April 25, 2007 3:12:08 PM PDT, Joshua Mccullough wrote:

Dale,

Sorry for the amount of time it has taken me to get back to you. I appreciate all the good information. Would be glad to take your order as previously stated at actual cost ($10) with our carrier, DHL. It is just too much to get alternate boxes, call the carrier, etc. so that is all I can offer at this time. I will explore your suggested method more as I am able.

Hope you have a chance to visit some day and not have to worry about shipping!

Best wishes,

Josh McCullough
Production Manager
Cistus Nursery
503 621-2233
503 621-9657 fax
22711 NW Gillihan Road
Sauvie Island, Oregon 97231
[HYPERLINK@www.cistus.com]

On Apr 18, 2007, at 2:34 PM, Dale Griep wrote:

Josh, the USPS will pick up packages, Your letter carrier would be happy to take it with them. If you ask they will give you a free box (to help keep you costs down). I am guessing that you have rural delivery.

Yes, I am willing to take responsiblity if you ship US Mail. You should be able to ship one bareroot plant via Priority Mail in a Flat Rate box for $8.10. and it will be here in 2 days. There are other options with the Post Office and they are faster than DHL or UPS. I have sent single plants for as low as 4.05. First class only takes three days.

I ship plants all over the country and it never takes over 3 days via Priority Mail.
Here is their website...

[HYPERLINK@www.usps.com]

Here is info on flat rate boxes....

[HYPERLINK@search.usps.com]
With a flat rate box (weight does not matter) you should be able to ship up to three 1gallon bareroot plants, if they are modest sized (foilage). Some places I order from have cut back the foliage a modest amount, others down to nubs and some not at all.

On Apr 17, 2007, at 2:22:59 PM, Joshua McCullough wrote:

Dale,

Our ground shipping option (DHL) costs us $10 and will be 7 days in transit. The post office is 10 miles away. If you are willing to take full responsibility for how the plants look on arrival I would be glad to process an order as such.

Best,

Josh McCullough
Production Manager
Cistus Nursery
503 621-2233 nursery
503 621-9657 fax
22711 NW Gillihan Road
Sauvie Island, Oregon 97231
[HYPERLINK@www.cistus.com]

On Apr 17, 2007, at 12:53 PM, Dale Griep wrote:

I am wouldn't mind if you bare root it in a flat rate box/priority mail with the USPS. Acnictis can handle 3 days in a box.

On April 17, 2007 12:53:02 PM PDT Joshua McCullough wrote:

Dale,

Thanks for your inquiry. That is the way our shipping is set up. It does penalize people wanting only one plant in some cases. If you are interested in ordering this and dissuaded by the shipping cost I could see about a direct shipping quote.

Best,

Josh McCullough
Production Manager
Cistus Nursery
503 621-2233 nursery
503 621-9657 fax
22711 NW Gillihan Road
Sauvie Island, Oregon 97231
[HYPERLINK@www.cistus.com]

On Apr 17, 2007, at 4:22 AM, Dale Griep wrote:

You have a plant I want, Acnistus australis 'Lago Azul'. My zipcode is 33605. Do I understand correctly that the shipping on this $12 plant is $21?

I just discovered Cistus, and they have the rarer and more unusual plants that I love! Not only that, but my plants arrived very promptly and in wonderful condition. My only suggestion would be I wish there was regular online ordering, instead of having to call or fax in the order form--a very minor gripe though and not something that would stop me from purchasing in the future. I'll definitely order again!

A Triple A+ rating on all accounts. The plants are of superb quality and very reasonably priced for the size and quality. Shipping is very fast and at cost, packaging is excellent. And their customer service is just unbeatable - there was a confusion with one of the plants that I ordered and they sent a replacement at no charge. They also stayed on top of the problem until it was resolved. Their inventory of rare plants is also quite impressive. This company deserves to be more widely known - I will do my part among my friends and will order from them regularly.

The best..best place I ever dealt with. Plants were humongous (?) fantastic looking and with BLOOMS. Packed professionally, rec'd in superb condition. Visits their website once a week at least. EXCELLENT JOB.

Doris in Fresno

Last year I ordered two Bomareas along with some other things. One did well, the other passed on. When the plants arrived, they were in excellent condition and packaged outstandingly. I take responsibility for killing the one plant.

Anyway, I e-mailed them and let them know how the plants were doing and mentioned that one expired. They promptly replied they could send another one free of charge.

I didn't take up the offer because it was my fault. But is that service or what?

Highly recommended.

I just received my second order from Cistus. Both orders were processed and arrived in less than a week, in perfect condition. The plants are huge! This is by far the best place to buy rare plants. The staff is very friendly and helpful. Be sure to look at the 2004 catalog.

John

I visited this nursery a couple of weeks ago and absolutely loved the place and the staff. They were immensely helpful and all the plants I purchased are doing great. I highly recommend this nursery and the prices are super.

Unbelievable! I just received an 8' Crinodendron hookeri from these guys. They strapped it in box on a pallet and took care of FedEx shipping. A rare plant, specimen sized arrived 3000 miles away still in full bloom. A pleasure to work with. Can't say enough good things about them.