The scoop on 'Sand Hill Preservation Center'

Company Profile   Sand Hill Preservation Center Mailing Address: 1878 230th St Calamus, Iowa 52729-9659 (United States) Phone: (563) 246-2299 Paper Catalog Cost: Free » E-Mail them » Visit their website Recent reviews: Past month Past 6 Months Past 12 Months Positive 0 5 7 Neutral 0 0 0 Negative 0 0 1 This company offers a variety of gardening supplies and seeds. Other helpful information: Signed Safe Seed Pledge

Feedback History and Summary   70 positives 4 neutrals 9 negatives

Comments:

Rating Author Content Positive TanyainNH Strafford, NH (1 review) April 3, 2013 I ordered some unknown garlic bulbils to me late last fall. They were generous and healthy. They didn't have all of the varieties I requested, so they sent me a credit form, which was great with me because their mission and seed selections are truly awesome! I just sent in my order for poultry and seeds. Very excited to receive my order. I ordered Assorted Heavies with a few requests, it will be exciting to see what we get. We lost all of our chickens last week to a weasel, so lost without chickens. We are new chicken enthusiasts (two years). It forces us to redesign the coop and of course try different heritage breeds! I am truly thankful for the work they do and am looking forward to my order! Positive jeremybro Saint George, KS (4 reviews) January 24, 2013 We ordered seed from them last spring because they had varieties I couldn't find elsewhere, and because I admire their mission. We will order from them again this year because of their great quality. The peanuts and popcorn were exceptional. The dent corn failed due to drought. I indicated on my order form that substitutions were acceptable, and they sent 3 different packets to replace the one that was sold out. Near 100% germination, vigorous seedlings -- would have had excellent crops all around if the weather had cooperated. Positive ammeier West Lafayette, IN (1 review) January 17, 2013 My husband and myself have been patiently waiting for the Sand Hill catalog to arrive. And we have just received it last week! This will be our third time ordering seeds from them. We do like that it is not some kind of a huge company focused on profit, and we do not mind their catalog being very simple and not in color. They are very personal as well. All of their seeds thrived in the lasts years hot Indiana summer. Especially the chard mix : ) I just wanted to express my gratitude for their hard work and that they are here providing me with all their awesome seeds! Positive pryz84 Rock Falls, IL (1 review) January 5, 2013 I Have ordered from Sandhill for several years and have always had good experiences. I love that they do this. I can't even imagine how much work it would take to do all this on their own plus they have full time jobs.(I don't know about anyone else but, I know I would not be able to do all this. I have trouble keeping up with my part time job and the large veggie garden). I mean look at all the variety! there has to be at least 500 different tomato varietys alone. probably 50 different pepper, over 50 types of melon, over 50 types of beans. etc. and on and on. they have every type of garden vegetable available. I love that they are non GMO. I have great germination rates, and healthy, strong plants from their seed. I enjoy reading threw the catalog too. I will always order from this company. can't wait for the new catalog to come out so I can start planning my next garden season! Thank you sandhill for providing us with non GMO, heirloom seed. Positive Gypsi Fort Worth, TX (2 reviews) December 20, 2012 Not your normal expectation for customer contact, no online order verification, no credit card acceptance, I did not know whether I would receive slips until they came, but their website stated that orders were first come first serve and might not come depending on crop. Best sweet potatoes I have ever grown or eaten, I ordered from 2 places, theirs arrived in deep hot Texas summer (late may or early June) but arrived in better condition, took off and did better than my earlier planted slips. I will be trying their seeds and chicks in the future. Positive ct3312 Ashland, WI (1 review) September 7, 2012 We have ordered from Sand Hill for the last two years and will order again for the 2013 year. We have ordered seeds, chicks, turkeys and ducks. We have received most of your chicks on own first choice of delivery days (we place our order in the Fall). Our ducks were delayed a year but was totally fine about that. That nice spring was sent some of the ducks with few filler ducks and was refund for the rest of the order. Have always receiced timely emails from them. Very nice to work with. We use the different breeds we order from them to educate people at our local county fair. Thank You for all you do. Todd Negative twoisone Westfield, IN (1 review) July 24, 2012 My experience is pretty much the same as a lot of the other negative feedbacks regarding sweet potato orders with condescending customer service and last minute notification that they cannot fill the order. In March I could not get a return email when inquiring about two varities of potatoes. Early April I placed my order. May 26 I receive my confirmation letter stating my order would be shipped by June 25. The problem here is they do not state in the catalog or in this letter that you could be out of luck if there is a crop failure, and that didn't occur to me. I assumed with this letter we were good to go and my slips would be on the way, so I did not order with anyone else. June 29th I got my check back with a letter saying they can't fill the order because the demand was tremendous and that they were already sold out in early April. I called and left a message about ordering something else but did not get a call back. I sent an email July 21st about being unhappy with their lack of customer service and asked if they were already sold out, why did they not return my check immediately so I could order with someone else. NOW I get a response with a nasty and sarcastic email from Mr. Drowns telling me that "he's sorry I don't understand they are not super human and cannot just snap their fingers or turn a crank and produce more of a product." They had crop death with some of the old standbys and they were not aware of this before the letters went out. Yikes! The letter I received with my return check said nothing about crop failure, but rather the demand was tremendous and that early April they were sold out of the regular season slips. There is nothing in the catalog about receiving a confirmation letter does not necessarily mean you're going to get your order, so you might have a back up plan. However, after saying that he's tried very hard to explain to me how things work and I still seem to think they can just make plants appear, he is offering to send me my 2012 order for free in 2013. Positive 3critterfarm Gardiner, ME (1 review) July 20, 2012 Over the past 3 years, I have ordered a variety of heirloom seeds from Glen and Linda. Without fail, their seeds germinate and produce far better than several other catalogs that I had religiously ordered from in the past. I am able to find EXACTLY what I am looking for each and every year. Linda had ALWAYS returned my calls within a weeks time and answered any questions I asked. As long as customers understand that this is a SMALL operation and PATIENCE is necessary, I feel the experience of dealing with Sandhill has been totally positive. Honestly, I couldn't be happier with their variety of seeds and quality of their poultry! My only wish is that they were able to squeak in a Facebook page! Thank you for all that you do, Glen and Linda! You are great! Positive Sherilou Panhandle Gulf Coast, FL (Zone 8b) (15 reviews) May 9, 2012 Their seeds had an excellent germination rate and they grew into gorgeous, healthy, productive plants. Their prices are still great... so is their postage and handling. Positive Brokenroadranch Claremore, OK (2 reviews) May 1, 2012 I think this company is great! They actually sell peanuts! And sweet potatoes! Two things I can't get from Baker Creek! And to the people who complain about customer service. I have a feeling you aren't the most pleasant people to deal with either! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK! Positive emi2 Forest Hill, MD (3 reviews) April 23, 2012 Sand Hill is not a source for the 'needy', but for the patient. This is a part time job for them, and you have to give them credit for running an organic seed company in the middle of Monsanto country! My order of seeds arrived after two weeks, and the amounts were generous, packaged well, germination rate excellent. And there is a great variety, free shipping on orders over $10., bargain sweet potato slips after season, bonus seeds, and great prices. I have placed two orders with the company with no complaints, except, not knowing ahead of time when something is sold out. Positive HoobieSchott Bertram, IA (1 review) February 23, 2012 This place is wonderful. Quirky, sometimes a bit grumpy in their catalogue, but truly impressive in what they do. What you get from ordering from them is access to a vast variety of heirloom and rare seeds, sweet potatoes, and poultry, as well as other more typical products, from a company whose mission is to preserve the genetic lines of these species. The drawback is that they are a small operation that they produce almost all the seeds they sell themselves. They can run out of a product or get a little behind in fulfilling orders as they wait for things to grow or hatch. Understand them at the start and you'll have a good experience. I've been ordering from them for about five years. All of the seeds I've gotten from them have germinated quite well. At least twice I haven't gotten exactly what I ordered, but it works out fine. As an example, my first order I ordered some odd variety of corn. It turned out they were sold out BUT in my order they included TWO packets of a similar variety PLUS a voucher for the price of the variety they couldn't send. On the order form you can indicate if it's okay to substitute a similar variety. A couple times I've received an extra packet of seeds to try out, too. Last year I ordered sweet potatoes as well. They arrived when expected, all alive, and 1 or 2 extra of each variety I ordered. All grew very well. As they say - repeatedly - on their website and in their catalogue - they aren't a huge operation and all their work producing poultry, seeds, and sweet potato slips happens here in Iowa. So, bad weather, a flood, or whatever could put a kink in their system, but they'll do their best to smooth it out. Knowing this before you order might help. It seems like some of the negative reviews were from people who were in more of a hurry than Sand Hill's system could accommodate. Don't count on them shipping your chickens before they hatch, as it were. Ordering from them might not be to everyone's taste. If I absolutely positively definitely had to have exactly one specific cultivar that I could get somewhere else, I might not order that from them. If I needed something delivered on an exact date, I wouldn't order from them. I'd also be sure to notice that they make absolutely NO representations that they can oblige exact shipping dates. Usually I have a little bit of flexibility, and I enjoy doing business with them. Their variety and commitment to providing quality products and service outweigh any drawbacks. I wish they would talk to an efficiency expert to reduce some of the quirks in their process, and I wish they'd ask me to copyedit their catalogue so it didn't sound gruff in places, but regardless I expect to be doing business with them for years to come. -hoobie Positive bella_trix Montgomery County, PA (Zone 6b) (4 reviews) November 10, 2011 I have ordered both seeds and sweet potato slips from Sand Hill for five years and have been extremely satisfied with my orders and the quality of their seeds/slips! They are a fantastic company, but a local, family owned, small, fantastic company. They grow their own seed, start their own sweet potato slips (in IOWA) and ship out with a very small work force. If you are expecting seeds very quickly or a guarantee on everything being available, this is not the company for you. They are at the whim of the weather and with sweet potatoes (in IOWA) that can be tricky. Last year was horrible weather for starting slips. They are not some huge company that pays cheap labor to grow everything out of the country. In case the above makes you hesitate to order sweet potatoes...trust me, just order them!! It will be the best thing you ever did, even if you don't get some of the varieties that you wanted or at the perfect time. The varieties of sweet potato that Sand Hill has taste so much better than any regular sweet potato I've had. I love Betty's, Maryland 810, Korean Purple and Heartogold. And you can start your own slips the following year; it is easy on a small scale. For seeds, Sand Hill's prices are extremely reasonable and the Heirloom varieties are top quality. Most of my "must plant" varieties originally came from Sand Hill. I have had good germination. Some of my favorites from Sand Hill are: Uncle Steve's Italian pole bean, Red Acre cabbage, Nobel spinach, Grape beans, Cochita Pueblo popcorn, Oaxacan Green dent corn, Cherokee Squaw dent corn, Saravejo Bamija Okra, Cream of Saskatchewan watermelon, Tatume summer squash and Odessa summer squash. As a repeat customer, I recommend Sand Hill highly. Plan ahead, order early and have some patience; it is worth it to order from this company. Positive Soulsecho Baltimore, MD (2 reviews) September 25, 2011 This is the second time I ordered from Sand Hill. The 1st time, there were no issues, I got what I ordered when they promised delivery. My sweets arrived in June, after the sweets I had ordered from another company. I will say, Sand Hill's started slowly but took over by harvest time. This year I ordered several specific varieties and the closeout special. My varieties were not delivered due to field conditions, but I did get a refund. The closeout special had more varieties then I anticipated, I had to scramble to find space for all of them. I look forward to my harvest. I totally enjoy working with this company. Positive Patty4853 Pierson, FL (1 review) September 25, 2011 My experience with Sandhill has been 110 percent positive! The company is definitely a "labor of love;" giving people an opportunity to receive very rare varieties they would not be able to find elsewhere. These people are not getting rich; in fact I don't know how they break even. All of their prices are very low and they have to be losing money on shipping. I have ordered seeds and poultry from them and have been thrilled with the rare breeds and varieties. My crested ducks and rare chickens gave me pleasure for years! Linda and Glenn are amazing people. I can't wait to order again. Positive NapaFamilyFarm Saint Helena, CA (1 review) July 29, 2011 I couldn't be happier with my experience with Sand Hill Preservation over the five years I have been ordering from them. Let me say first that, yes, I have read all the substantial disclosures in their catalogue and on their web site. Actually, I had previously thought it was all a bit overkill, I mean if their crops didn't produce and I don't get my ground cherry seed or sweet potato slips, it's not like my world will come to an end. Having read some of the negative posts here though, I realize why they wrote such a lengthy disclosure about their limited time for customer service and the uncertainties and hazards of farming seed crops and animals ! Roosevelt gave a speech long, long ago about how "It's not the critic who counts...The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood." I'm so very thankful for the dust and sweat and blood these folks endure (in what I read on their web site, it is a hobby undertaken in addition to another full time job!) for those of us interested in a genetically diverse, non-GMO supply of seeds and poultry and sweet potatoes (maybe they supply other things I'm not aware of, but that's all I've gotten.) Over the years I've gotten chicks, ducks, seeds and sweet potato slips. Some years, my selections weren't available for whatever reason. As it says in their lengthly disclosures, I didn't get any advance notice that I won't get that part of my order, they just sent me a refund at the end of the season. It's been oh-so-VERY-rare that I haven't gotten something I ordered, and I order a pretty large number of different things each year. I got every sweet potato slip I ordered this year. They came later than I thought they might but HOLY COW they are growing like crazy. I'm not going to have any problem getting a great crop and we have a pretty short season in this part of the US. I should mention that like their catalog suggests, I place my order early each year. On the seeds, I would estimate I'm well over 90% on the germination rate of a really diverse group of crops. (and truth be told I'm not that great a gardener :) I've gotten nearly 50 chicks from them and only 1 was not alive on arrival. Of the remaining 49, only 1 other has died in the last 3 years. I have gotten ducks from them as well and had the same exceptional experience as the chicks. I always get a nice "thank you!" on my receipt with each order and the one time I had to call I received a pleasant response. I always feel I am getting way more value for my money than any other place I've gotten poultry or seed. I am so very thankful to be able to buy the things for our place from a small family business. I am so very thankful there is someone who cares about genetic diversity to put up with the "dust and sweet and blood" for those of us lucky enough to share in their fine efforts. I'll add...it's not the critics who count. Read the disclosures on their web site and in their catalog -- and know that they are not like the big catalog companies with a online, full-time customer service department. If I remember right, their names are Glenn and Linda and I think it's just the two of them doing most everything (I just can't imagine that in addition to a full time job), which to me makes me appreciate them and their efforts all the more. I'll order from them every year and continue to connect my family and friends with Sand Hill. Best wishes to all for a bountiful harvest this and every year. Negative Janna Mahwah, NJ (Zone 6a) (26 reviews) July 27, 2011 I placed an order with this company in February and was so excited about my new sweet potato collection! The company offers many varieties and I was really looking forward to it. In mid-May the order never showed up, so I called and was re-assured that the order will ship soon after a small delay. The woman was not very friendly on the phone, she blamed the delays on the bad weather. I agreed to wait and did not order my potatoes elsewhere (what a mistake!). Then I called again few weeks later, and this time a long recording was re-assuring people that their orders will ship no later than "next week." After July 4th I got the sinking feeling that I am not getting anything from this company. In a week or so I received a letter saying that my order will not be fulfilled and my check was returned. Well, thanks! So I will not grow sweet potatoes this year at all because of Sand Hill Preservation Company's procrastination practices. I would appreciate if you at least let me know earlier that you can't ship the potatoes, at least I would have had a chance to order elsewhere. Now what? Why businesses do this?? Please have respect for your customers and be honest with them upfront instead of holding their money and making false promises that you can't fulfill. I am very disappointed, and what a shame, since they have such a large collection. I almost recommended your company to my gardening friends, now I certainly won't. Company representative comment on July 28, 2011: On Jul 28, 2011 9:22 PM, Sand Hill Preservation Center responded with: We are sorry for your disappointment, but as we clearly state in our catalog and on our website, our slips are started here in Iowa, in the field. Therefore, we are totally dependant upon the weather as to whether we will get a crop. As an avid weather observer for over 40 years, I felt that the cold spell would not linger as long as it did and delay the slips' growth. All indications from previous years, with the heat building in the Southwestern United States that it would eventually spread northward and we would finally have normal growing conditions. We had enough roots bedded had we had normal weather to produce enough slips. When we did not get normal weather by the middle of June, it became a crisis situation for us. We attempted to keep people updated with messages on the "News and Updates" section of our website and via messages on our voice mail. We did all that we humanly could to try to reach every person, but we realized that we would not be able to please everyone. What this person recognizes is the fact that we do have a huge collection, of which it is our goal and mission to spread as many varieties around the United States to as many people who have never had the opportunity to grow sweet potatoes but can with some of the unique varieties that we have. There is a reason why the large scale producers only offer a few varieties, because those are the ones that are predictable sprouters and produce large numbers of slips so that they can guarantee a crop. We try not to focus on those varieties, but instead, focus on ones with unique characteristics and genetic diversity. The unfortunate situation is many of these are not predictable sprouters and in some cases produce very few sprouts. We never ever advertise or try to convince people to rely totally on us for their sweet potato crop. We, instead, prefer to stick to our mission as being a source of genetic diversity for those who are adventurous enough and patient enough to deal with the uniqueness of some of the ones in our collection. We wish this person well on the search for sweet potatoes for 2012. Negative lynnward Madill, OK (1 review) July 18, 2011 I placed an order for sweet potatoes very early this year along with a seed order. There should have been plenty of time for the company to get the sweet potatoes sent in a timely manner, at least in time for planting in my area. I recieved a letter stating that the rest of my shipment would be sent ( the sweet potaotes). I waited and waited, the optimal time for planting passed, I emailed and got no response, I called their number and the message there stated that "if you had not gotten a confirmation letter you probley would not get your order', I asked at that time ( left a message, as they do not actually answer their phone or email you back) for my order to be cancelled and requested a refund. I did not recieve my refund as requested and will chalk up my experience with Sandhill preservation center as a waste of money, time and aggrivation. A lot of us work regular jobs and do lots of activities on the side. I imagine that a lot of us would be able to find time to respond to others that had sent us their hard earned money for products we were selling. If they would have called or emailed me and let me know I would have obtained my slips else where. Will not be ordering from them again. Company representative comment on July 28, 2011: On Jul 28, 2011 9:07 PM, Sand Hill Preservation Center responded with: We are very sorry for this customer's disappointment over the sweet potato situation. It is extremely difficult for many individuals to understand that our sweet potato slips are grown here in Iowa in the field (not in a greenhouse) and are not drop shipped from the southern states. This is the reason that we are able to offer well over 100 varieties --- because we grow them ourselves. We grow the roots one year and make our starting beds to produce the slips the following April. This year was an exceptionally cold Spring and we were not able to get the slip beds started until the first week-end in May. We did not have very many warm, sweet potato favorable days in the month of May and the cold stretch extended into June. To help explain the process of how sweet potato slips are produced, you place the roots on the ground in 2" x 4" frames and then cover with peat moss. We then soak that down with water and cover with plastic for a couple of weeks until the slips start to show. In normal weather, you can harvest the slips every two to three days and a new crop keeps coming on. Normal sweet potato slip weather is highs in the 80's and lows in the 60's. The perfect temperature seems to be about 90 in the daytime and 70 at night as well as very humid. Sweet potatoes produce very little growth with temperatures below 70 during the day. We had one full week in June when it rarely reached 70 during the daytime and was close to 50 at night and they simply did not produce slips. We indicate in four places what our normal shipping season is - - - in our catalog, on our website, on the order blank, and on the confirmation that is sent when we receive the order. Our normal shipping season is May 25 to June 25. We in no way attempt to deceive the customer that we are able to provide them earlier than that. We, ourselves, here plant ours when our normal shipping season of June 25 is over and before we start shipping the "Season Closeout" specials. This person's order number was in the 400's and was for some varieties that were slower to sprout this year. These varieties were also extremely popular and there were many orders ahead of hers. Her slips were shipped on June 22 and the only communication that we can find from her was a telephone call on June 23 cancelling the order. I attempted to contact her and was told by the person who answered the phone that she did, in fact, receive the slips but not when she wanted them. I am not sure what we can do further when we clearly indicate what our limitations as far as shipping times are. Negative DarkBrownEggs Macclenny, FL (1 review) July 6, 2011 *************** The Nightmare from Hell! I ordered 15 Golden Cascade ducks last year so to make sure I got in on a early hatch and early delivery and was told I would get a conformation and possible delivery date by the first week of January, never heard from them. March I contacted them asking about the order and when I could expect the ducks and was told the order hadn't been paid for yet (these were a gift from a person that lost her flock to a bob cat inwhich I was supposed to get) Finally got a hatch date of May 17th and on that day got a call telling me they were shipped, box arrived on May 19th with 5 dead and the smell was like something had been dead for a week which my locale PO can verify. They come home and are put in a warm brooder and with in 24 hours 6 more drop dead (total 11) so I called and left a message and the following Tuesday May 23rd I get a call back saying I would get a full replacement but being other orders need to be filled they didn't know when I would get my replacement ducks so I wrote a very pleasant email and sent a hand written insurance form saying I would gladly take substitutes and gave them 2 other breeds, also said I would take a mixed order of left over ducks after other orders were filled so not to put someone else out of their order and have never to this date heard back about my request for substitutes. I have called every 2 weeks and sent emails asking about a possible mixed shipment and that I did not want to be brooding baby ducks late in the year, actually didn't want to do this twice being they are so messy...never heard back from them until finally after me writing and telling them how horrible they were about customer relations and to send me something so I can be done with them and I promissed to never bother them again with any future orders...I even asked for chicks as a substitute just to be done with this nightmare and finally got a reply saying "There are NO Golden Cascades to send" and thats it... so I replied asking about a substitute and again was ignored again. I sent a very unpleasant email July 1st and get a reply from Glen saying "I haven't read any of your emails but my wife said" blah blah blah and that I have not asked for any substitures or they would have been sent and goes on and one about looking at the stars and smelling the roses and I can't be pleased and lies out of both sides of his mouth just like he has done in his replies here to others that have given them a negative feedback here and I will bet he will do the same after mine but I have every email I sent begging them to please respond and with the same substitute info on every message and nothing. Glen tends to place the blame onto his customers when he is at total faught. Every one I know that has bought from SandHill has had the same experience with waiting on orders and no responce from Linda or Glen. I was ignored by Linda, lied about from Linda and then was told by Glen I was about to get my replacement order but he changed his mind because of the way I wrote them asking for someone there to respond. again, more lies from Glen and Linda....I was told I would have a check by the end of this week July8th, I am willing to bet thats another "checks in the mail LIE" I will NEVER deal with them in any way other then report them to better business and possibly call every state agency to report the sick animals they are sending out to customers....I have since lost another duckling, one was a runt and never grew an inch in over 6 weeks and finally died... As stated I can prove I have sent emails after email asking for mixed or substitutes to take care of getting my replacement. and I have the finale response from Glen saying he never read my emails but: blah blah blah and I expect him to do the same here...How about the truth Glen, for once. Company representative comment on July 28, 2011: On Jul 28, 2011 8:50 PM, Sand Hill Preservation Center responded with: We have waited to respond to this posting until we received verification that Mr Higginbotham not only received our check for a total refund, but had actually cashed the check. Now that that has occurred, we are going to present our side of the story with facts and minimal emotion. On December 13, 2010, we received an order from a long time customer of ours for 15 ducklings to be shipped to the above individual. No money was enclosed with this order and, not knowing if it was a surprise gift, we sent the confirmation on January 3, 2011, to the individual that placed the order indicating that we would need payment by January 20 if the order was o.k. as confirmed. On that confirmation, we indicated the first possible ship date of May 17. In the rush of the Spring season, we did not realize that we had not received payment for this order until March 13 when Mr. Higginbotham called wanting to know where his ducks were. We indicated to him at that time that we had not received payment for his order yet. We did receive payment for this order on March 21. On May 17, we shipped him 17 ducklings. On May 19 he received them and 5 were dead. He called the next day and indicated that 11 total had died. At that time when he called we indicated to him that we were very booked up on the breed of ducks he needed replaced and that we would work him in for a reshipment just as soon as we possibly could. With our odd Spring weather that we had, duck fertility did not hold up well and when we were running behind, it became more apparent from his e-mails that he wasn't patient but that he also kept changing the breeds and species that he wanted us to send as replacements. Therefore, on July 2, I sent him an e-mail indicating that I would send him a total refund including postage and indicated that I would pray that he would be able to come to peace with this situation. I then went out to do chores and, over the course of the next 1 to 2 hours he sent 4 e-mails and 3 telephone messages that were filled with filthy language and violent threats against our personhood. The things that he mentioned that he would do to us personally should not be placed in a public forum where children might have access to them. As far as his reference to us as being a nightmare, it is us who has the nightmares wondering if he will show up to carry out those violent acts. We have contacted our County Sheriff's office to alert them of this possibility and were told to call immediately if anything devloped. He has received a complete refund. He was not sent diseased birds. Our flocks are inspected twice a year by a certified veterinarian and we comply with all the rules, testing and guidelines of the NPIP. Therefore, he should have nothing more to say about this issue. Positive purple53 Rohrersville, MD (2 reviews) June 13, 2011 Posted on February 4, 2011, updated June 13, 2011 I have ordered seed and sweet potato slips from Sand Hill for many years now for my large organic home garden in western Maryland. Last year's sw. pot. shortage was of course a disappointment, and our season here was brutal, so my harvest was a bust. This year I managed to place my sw. pot. order early (in Dec.) and look forward to a good harvest--assuming we get the solar-powered electric fence netting in place to deter one vile groundhog! Sand Hill's faithful work to preserve old varieties of garden plants (now with organic certification) and poultry breeds is in itself something worth supporting. But they deliver, too. I think some of the criticism of customer service may be legitimate ONLY as it regards phone communication. Glen and Linda are not in the business of coddling anyone. If you call about an order or a problem it's important to remember that these are people working very long, hard hours at a "hobby" business, with only a few hours to devote to phone calls and emails. I kept that in mind when I had to call last year to clear up a problem with my charges--a mutual error, as it turned out. The people who run small, dedicated family business are humans first, business people second. Perhaps at some point Sand Hill will have the resources to hire someone for customer service. Until then I am grateful for their continuing good service and rare, wonderful offerings. On June 13th, 2011, purple53 added the following: The slips for 7 varieties of sweet potato that I ordered in early winter arrived safe, sound, and beautiful today. With the weather we were having here in the Mid-Atlantic--extreme heat and no rain, after dark, cool days and flooding rain back in April and May--I've had my hands full getting beds ready and plants in the ground. But I WILL have the sweet potato beds ready by tonight or tomorrow! This is one crop I care very deeply about. The solar-powered electric netting around the garden is saving me from groundhogs; the high tensile fencing is still keeping deer at bay. Sand Hill is the source of not only my sweet potatoes but my heirloom tomato and pepper seed as well. Everything is healthy so far, and I'm happy. Positive miles2go Saginaw, MI (2 reviews) March 11, 2011 My order went out in the mail Feb. 16, received the seeds Mar. 5. Seeds nicely packaged, order complete. Nice freebie seeds included, too. I would definitely order from them again. Positive Moodene (Nadine) Devers, TX (Zone 9b) (4 reviews) March 7, 2011 I ordered okra seeds called Jing Orange from Sand Hill Preservation Center and was amazed how fast I got them in a timely manner by snail mail. Will buy from them again. I only found these seeds in 2 locations and other site was sold out. Positive dreaves Hutto, TX (Zone 8b) (6 reviews) March 7, 2011 I ordered some seed (Orange Jing Okra) that I had been unable to locate anywhere else along with a few other types of seeds. The order was processed quickly and accurately. To be honest, I'm somewhat amazed since I know that the operation is done on a hobby basis, with paper-base systems. The Sand Hill goal of maintaining genetic diversity is something that I can support, and I will order from them as often as possible. Positive drthor Irving, TX (Zone 8a) (8 reviews) March 2, 2011 I have just received my seed order. This company was the only one that has a fantastic red variety of Okra from Africa. I couldn't order on-line, so I sent a check with my order. The seeds arrive in perfect time. The package has lots of seeds. I also received a free package of seeds ... I am guessing because it was the first time I ordered from them. I am very impressed and I will order again. Positive Tabacum Mantua, OH (Zone 5a) (16 reviews) January 28, 2011 1/28/11.........Received seeds ordered from Sandhill Preservation Center......they arrived well packaged and with adequate seed packets....Prices are reasonable..... This group adheres to the practices of genetic preservation of seeds and poultry.....something to be admired in today's world of agriculture practices.... Have ordered from them in the past with seed rate germination adequate.... Positive JollyRoger Oliver Springs, TN (Zone 6a) (1 review) July 28, 2010 Ordered from this company for the first time this year. (Feb 2010). Very pleased with the seeds and fast service. They offer a very large variety of tomato seeds and I tried several including the free Medford sent with my order. Great experience and I plan to be a regular customer. Negative MotherGoose2 Lobelville, TN (1 review) June 21, 2010 Posted on June 21, 2010, updated June 21, 2010 I ordered a "Fancy Goose Assortment" in early March- they arrived on June 19th. One was dead, and I recieved 2 White Chinese goslings. No, there's nothing inherently wrong with White Chinese, but they are hardly considered "Fancy", and are not listed as one of the breeds I might possibly get. I'll have to say that I'm more than a little dissappointed with this order- and I will most likely not deal with them again. On June 21st, 2010, MotherGoose2 added the following: I was contacted later in the day with a message saying that they intended to send me a partial refund since they didn't send me the breeds I had ordered. He was rather short and accused me of hanging up on him twice- please! In any case, we'll see what kind of refund I get. It will be only established poultry houses from now on- rest assured. Positive LadyRadagast West Grove, PA (1 review) June 17, 2010 This was my first poultry mail order and I could not have been more pleased! I chose Sand Hill because I support their mission of preserving and improving heritage-breed poultry and maintaining the health and genetic diversity of their stock. They have an excellent selection of rare and interesting breeds to choose from. The breeds we had initially chosen were in high demand and we ordered late, so when they were unable to fill our first requests, we were sent substitutions instead. (When you order, you will be asked whether or not you will accept breed substitution, so be sure to indicate that on your order form. Do remember that Sand Hill is a small, family run operation and as such they are at the mercy of the laying/hatching rate as well as the changing desires of their customers each year). The folks at Sand Hill were very kind about everything and sent us some extras above and beyond what we'd expected to make up for it! All chicks arrived on time at our post office alive and well. Within minutes of getting home they were drinking, eating, and running around! It's been over 12 hours and everyone is alert and active. There are no signs of lethargy or ill health, and zero mortality. Sand Hill has given this first-time poultry keeper the best possible start! Thank you so very much! I will be recommending Sand Hill Preservation Center to all my family and friends! Positive VAgardener2 Richmond , VA (Zone 7b) (10 reviews) May 12, 2010 Posted on April 30, 2010, updated May 12, 2010 Posted on April 30, 2010, updated April 30, 2010 I ordered seeds from Sand Hill Preservation Center for the first time this spring. I mailed my order on April 13th and received the seeds on April 23th. This is an amazing turn-around time considering that everything was done by mail and at the peak of ordering/planting season. The seeds were packaged very well. I will try to give an update later about germination rates. I also really like their website. I support their mission of preserving heirloom seeds and highly recommend this company to every gardener. On April 30th, 2010, VAgardener2 added the following: I wanted to add that I got a free seed packet of Kale. I would never have considered growing it, but will try it now that I have some seed. Free seed packets are a good way to try something new. Thank you, Sand Hill. On May 12th, 2010, VAgardener2 added the following: I wanted to add that there is no shipping charge for orders over $10, and $2 shipping for orders under $10. That's the best shipping policy I have seen. And their prices are very-very reasonable. This is my top 5 mail-order seed company. Keep up the good work. Positive DonFromNJ Secaucus, NJ (5 reviews) April 26, 2010 Seeds were received within the guidelines offered by Sand Hill. It's remarkable that they get everything together as a "hobby". Quite an admirable undertaking. I was particularly interested in obtaining seeds for the South American squash, Zapallito de Tronco. Sand Hill was the only retail supplier I could find in the US. This squash is a household staple in Argentina and Uruguay, yet is almost unknown in America. It is a winter squash, generally harvested in an immature state and used as a summer squash, often stuffed. I'm hopeful that something with such great popularity in a country whose cuisine is similar to ours might become a useful addition to my home garden and my home cooking. Positive Doug9345 Durhamville, NY (Zone 5b) (7 reviews) March 26, 2010 This is the first time I ordered from this company. I mailed my order on 3/6 and my seeds were mailed 3/19. Not bad for mail having to go both ways. I ordered from them because ethy had a number or corn varieties that I couldn't get otherwise. All the seeds I ordered were included. I'd like to see them include a packing list with the seed to make it easier to check the order and to have something to file so that I know what I ordered when I look next year. I'd also like to be able to order online. Positive Missyinbama Fredericksburg, VI (Zone 7a) (34 reviews) March 13, 2010 I placed and order for chickens and seeds, relatively late in the ordering season. The turnaround time on the seeds was very good. I'm also actually pleased that they seem pretty accomodating to my chicken order since they are one of the few places that have the breed of chickens that I am looking for- and I looked around! Positive blueeyeskms Waverly, KS (Zone 5b) (28 reviews) March 9, 2010 So far I have been pleased with this company in the past. Extremely displeased that I cannot choose my own varieties this year and had to order a general assortment instead. Will wait to see how many varieties are included and report back after receiving order. Negative m8247 Davis, CA (2 reviews) March 6, 2010 I have ordered from this company for the past 3 years and while I admire the mission, I have grown less impressed with the customer service over time. I ordered sweet potatoes the first year and those came packed well and performed well. The seeds have also been fine and I really do enjoy the rare varieties they offer. My sweet potato order 2 years ago was not filled due to weather/flooding (understandable), and last year I ordered an assortment package that did not get filled. While both those circumstances were understandable, my concern is that I find the customer service to be very unprofessional. The website has a bunch of bold, somewhat condescending statements about what not to expect from them. Meanwhile the ordering process is more labor intensive and lacking in communication/updates about orders. Today I pulled them up on the web with my list in hand and after being reminded of their negative tone, I concluded I will shop elsewhere this year. Positive digly Mountain View, CA (2 reviews) February 9, 2010 After reading the company ratings on this Dave's Garden website, I chose to order seeds from two companies. One of which was Sand Hill Preservation Center in Calamus, Iowa. With respect for the old fashion way of doing business, i was very impressed with the turn around time. It did require me to write a check and print out forms and fill them out which wasn't that difficult and then mail it to San Hill. I ordered toward the end of Jan. 2010 and it took 12 days including the day i mailed my order for me to receive all of my 8 seed packages which i ordered. The seed packets probably averaged 45 seeds per packet which was very nice, along with a freeby packet which i will give a try in the garden. I do wish they would have updated their website before the first of the year, as i choose not to order seeds which the website stated were "out of supply" as of mid year 2009. There website has been updated as of early Feb. 2010. I will followup with the germination rate. Positive chikentrain Earlton, NY (1 review) February 5, 2010 Got my 1st flock of chickens through Sandhill and they were/are just the most wonderful birds . Always been a pleasant experience dealing with them prices are GREAT on the assortments. Such wonderful people and birds ! Can't wait too get this years flock ! Positive DonShirer Westbrook, CT (Zone 6a) (15 reviews) November 15, 2009 I have been ordering from Sand Hill for at least 4 years. I am impressed by the number of different heirloom varieties hard to find elsewhere, especially tomatoes. Every selection has germinated well and given me more seeds than I can use so I share with others. Only problem was that the bugs ate some cabbages, but that's not Sand Hills fault! Positive maam Chester, CT (2 reviews) November 9, 2009 this year was my first experience with sandhill. i ordered 60 sweep potato slips to divide among friends, all early or midseason types. they all looked very healthy. three varieties were substitutions, and we received at least 70 slips. my 20 ( 9 varieties) went into big pots on june 15. they had barely doubled by july 13 because of the cool weather. i was able to pick young leaves and tips by early september, and harvested the first week of october. even with 5 plants giving 1/2 to 2 pounds each, the total yield was 80 pounds !! i was extremely pleased, and have already placed my order for next year. i had some questions about some other vegetables i bought as seeds. glenn was very helpful, did not rush the conversation, and gave me useful, and correct, information. i am happy i have discovered sandhill preservation. Positive yentzn1 East Orleans, MA (12 reviews) October 29, 2009 I've had great experiences with this company. This year I ordered korean purple sweet potatoes,and the slips were the most beautiful and healthy I have ever seen. Excellent! Negative containergarden Los Angeles, CA (8 reviews) October 27, 2009 We had a very poor experience with Sand Hill Preservation Center sweet potatoes as well as with the staff. We are both Master Gardeners and have successfully grown sweet potatoes before from slips we produced at home from supermarket sweet potatoes. This year we decided to branch out and order a variety of slips from Sand Hill for ourselves and our fellow community farmers. So we put in a reasonably large order with Sand Hill. As a back-up, we bought an organic Whole Foods sweet potato to make slips ourselves. Needless to say, the Whole Food slips produced heavily. However, Sand Hill took more orders than it could reasonably fill, and failed to respond to a series of messages I left concerning the order I had already paid for. When a woman finally responded, she was unpleasant, seeming to blame me for her failure to respond or to satisfy the order. Nevertheless, she petulantly promised to satisfy my order. Although the slips spent no more than two days in the mail, many of the Sand Hill Preservation Center slips were dead on arrival and had to be discarded. We planted those with any sign of life in them, but got only meager harvests from them. Some of the stunted potatoes were clearly diseased, even though sweet potatoes are normally disease-free in southern California, ideal growing country. So we can only assume that the slips themselves were diseased. The way Sand Hill seems to fill orders is to start collecting slips and then wait until they have the full order, which may take a long time. The result is that the earlier collected slips are dead and only the later collected slips are remotely viable. In short, a regrettable expenditure of about $50 for a useless product. Fortunately, we have since located a reliable, responsible, and friendly California supplier of a wide variety of sweet potato slips. Company representative comment on November 5, 2009: On Nov 4, 2009 9:08 PM, Sand Hill Preservation Center responded with: We are very sorry to hear of the poor experience this customer had. This posting on Garden Watchdog is the first that we have heard of this customer's problems with our product. Had they contacted us directly at the time of receipt of the order, we would have immediately sent replacements for what was damaged in shipping. It has been four months since the sweet potato slips were shipped out and this is the first we have heard that there was a problem. As we start our slips in the field here in Iowa, we are at the mercy of the weather and we indicate that both in our catalog and in the "News and Updates" section of our website. We indicated on the website in April that we were all sold out for the season. We attempted to keep people updated on the website with the progress of the slip production. We kept anticipating that warm weather would be forthcoming, but we never had an extended warm period which is needed for the roots to sprout and form slips. We have never had a case of disease on the slips here at our farm. We do not collect slips and hold them. An order is all pulled at once, carefully labeled, wrapped and packaged for shipping within minutes. We start pulling orders each morning once the dew has evaporated and they are mailed out that same day. Nothing is held once it is pulled. We regret that this customer did not contact us directly to allow us to make things right with them. Our goal is to spread the diversity of the sweet potato world across the country. As our name indicates, we are a preservation center and therefore are trying to preserve these varieties not send out inferior slips that will not produce. We have many heirloom, regionally adapted varieties that have allowed folks in areas otherwise thought to be non-sweet potato growing regions to harvest many diverse and tasty roots. It is important that folks realize that not all sweet potato varieties will grow the same in all soils. Some like heavy, clay soils. Others like loose sand. We hope that in the future that others who have problems, concerns or questions about their orders will contact us directly and that we won't have to try to search our records and figure out who has "anonymously" posted here on Garden Watchdog. We can't help someone who will not contact us to discuss their problem. Glenn and Linda Drowns Sand Hill Preservation Center

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