The scoop on 'National Arbor Day Foundation'

Company Profile   National Arbor Day Foundation Mailing Address: 100 Arbor Ave. Nebraska City, Nebraska 68410 (United States) Phone: (402) 474-5655 Paper Catalog Cost: n/a Visit National Arbor Day Foundation at: Arbor Day Farm in Nebraska City, NE » E-Mail them » Visit their website Recent reviews: Past month Past 6 Months Past 12 Months Positive 0 4 6 Neutral 0 0 2 Negative 0 2 5 This company specializes in: Plants: Ornamental Trees and Shrubs

Company Comment, posted on October 11, 2002:   The National Arbor Day Foundation is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to helping people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. Our shipping seasons are in the Spring from approximately February 2nd to May 30th and in the Fall from approximately November 1st to December 10th depending on the weather factors that allow us to ship safely. The trees are shipped at the appropriate planting time for your horticultural zone. For more information about shipping bare-root stock, please call the National Arbor Day Foundation Member Services Department at 888-448-7337 or contact us at http://www.arborday.org/contact. The ten free trees that you receive for becoming a Member of The National Arbor Day Foundation are shipped via the U.S Postal Service standard mail which means that these may take a bit longer to arrive. These trees can be shipped to a P.O. Box or to a physical address. Our Tree Book or nursery stock is shipped by either USPS Priority Mail or UPS depending on the shipment size and cannot be sent to a P.O. Box, they can only be sent to a physical address.

Feedback History and Summary   49 positives 20 neutrals 41 negatives

Comments:

Rating Author Content Positive withad Warren Center, PA (4 reviews) September 08, 2009 My first order was for their 10 free trees for a $10.00 donation, 10 little sticks arrived. Wow, got burnt on this one. All 10 planted according to directions( with fencing) WOW all 10 sprouted and are doing well( second year) the crabapples are over 4 feet tall already. Second order ,15 different Azaleas, all died. Called them, got order replaced for free including shipping and all 15 are doing terrific. So I guess I can't complain, except for the amount of promo they send out I am pleased with their products and customer service. Positive henderson9 Camden, SC (8 reviews) September 07, 2009 I just don't understand the harshness of many of the comments directed toward National Arbor Day Foundation. Ten trees for ten bucks, what does a person expect for that? I have joined NADF many times. The small seedlings of varying quality are immediately placed in one gallon nursery pots. Generally about 80% live. I leave them in my nursery area from a year to three years and eventually place them in the yard. The plants have done very well over the years, and for only ten or fifteen dollars I supported an important organization, and also ended up with 7-8 trees that eventually made it into the yard as healthy transplants. I've also ordered many trees from the foundation. Those trees are higher quality than the freebies, and are at a very reasonable price. In the next day or two I'll order three of their kousa dogwood trees. I challenge anyone to find as nice a tree for anywhere close to the $6.98 price tag. Positive gardencurmudgeo Omaha, NE (1 review) June 29, 2009 We all need to remember that the Arbor Foundation sends bare root plantings. They are often referred by seed companies as "lining out stock" (less than 12") and "whips", up to 3' or so. No body should expect guaranteed success or large potted trees for just a few dollars! I generally order from the Arbor Foundation oak and pine not carried in local nurseries. This is extremely valuable, as most nurseries don't carry some of the best trees, as they can be slow starters or just aren't trendy. I also research what I will order, finding that some distributors are less frank than others about tree performance, effect of soil, climate and pests. I have learned that the "sticks" referred to by some can be successful if: trees are. planted immediately, as directed. Use of a growth stimulant can make a big difference. So does soil type and initial watering. These are minimal risk offerings where the best results are to a large degree up to the gardener and his/her research and gardening practices. Other sources have delivered dry root stock to me in poor condition, but I cannot say that of the Arbor Foundation in the last 15 years I have used them in Nebraska. Negative kentuckywoman2 Louisville, KY (1 review) June 02, 2009 Last spring I gave a $10 contribution for which I was to receive 10 flowering trees and 1 crapemyrtle. I expected the trees to be shipping in the spring or early summer, but by NOVEMBER I still had not received my trees. I called and got no response to my inquiry of "Where are my trees?", so I emailed and finally got a response. However, the response was that since I was in hardiness zone 7, the trees would be shipped in December! First of all, I'm in hardiness zone 6, NOT 7. When I alerted the Arbor Day Foundation to that, they said that they were the ONLY organization to "update" the hardiness zones, and now I was in Zone 7. Then, the customer service gal, Carla, proceeded to tell ME what my weather is like here in Kentucky! I finally escalated the call to speak to her supervisor, who shipped me my trees around the end of November. Unfortunately, we had already had a couple of freezes and since our soil is mainly clay, I had a very difficult time trying to dig deep enough to plant the "twigs" they sent me. Needless to say, THEY ALL DIED. I recently requested a replacement shipment and was told, by the same Carla, that my replacement trees would be shipped in Spring of 2010, unless I wanted them to be shipped in Fall 2009! Unacceptable! Again, the last time they shipped in "Fall", it was actually way past Fall and into Winter. Again, I informed them that their zones were not correct, according to our weather patterns, and again, this Carla proceeded to tell ME what our weather here in Kentucky is like! Finally, I requested a refund of my $10 and I'm now told it will take about 3-4 weeks. At least that's faster than they ship their "twigs." I have been a member since 2003 and this Carla person was the last straw. She's rude and arrogant and if she's the best they can do to represent their customer service department, then they have a real problem. In any case, I'll do my tree and shrub buying from a local nursery. I'll not do business with the Arbor Day Foundation again. They are clueless. Absolutely clueless. Negative jbarton7 Arvada, CO (1 review) June 01, 2009 I gave a donation to the Arbor Day Foundation over three months ago with the promise from them that I would received 8 free trees and a lilac bush. I have yet to recieve them. I don't expect to receive something in return for a donation but I do expect an organization to honor its promises and to remit promised goods. I cannot respect a company that uses a bait and switch tactic to suck donations out of people. I can respect a company that does simply ask for a donation and doesn't promise anything to me personally in return, and I can donate to those organizations. All I have received from ADF is more solicitations for money and more (empty I'm sure) promises of goods. As a company, I mean organization, that seems very commercially interested, this is very poor business practice as I will never buy a plant from them and will talk anyone out of it who threatens to do so. To make things worse, I have been trying to email them about my complaint for over a week now and their website is broken and supposedly being repaired. It makes them seem to be hiding from the complaints. I have little faith at this point that they are interested in anything that has to do with improving the earth. I am sure the only thing they are interested in is taking as much money as they can get their hands on. And they do not care how unethical their methods are to obtain it. Positive forsythiasue Goldendale, WA (1 review) May 19, 2009 Received my 10 free trees as well as a few things I ordered seperately. Had my doubts about the little twigs surviving but after following the included instructions, weathering a horrible snow storm, being trampled by deer, my little "twigs" are doing great! My 5 free Forsythia are about 3 feet tall, my Rose of Sharon actually bloomed the same summer I planted them. My Red Bud tree is also about 3-4' tall and I have no qualms about ordering from them again. You only have to follow the directions, read the description of what you're ordering so you understand what they are shipping, and water them faithfully. Ordered last spring and all have been in the ground for only 1 year and show substantial growth. I paid my membership and received 5 free Rose of Sharon 2 weeks ago and they are already leafing out. 5-19-2009 Negative twettie Petal, MS (1 review) May 11, 2009 I sent $20 and got 10 twigs, 7 of which had a hair root on each, and 3 with no roots and the size of a pencil. The seven with the roots were about the same size as a pencil. Of the seven planted a month ago 4 are showing some very small growth on them. I pulled the rest out and their roots had not gained any hairs so I threw them away. I should be dead by the time they are full grown trees. I feel dupped. I could have gone to a tree nursery and got a better deal. I will not order any more trees from this organization, and would advise anyone else not to unless they want to give a donation to an organization that is deceptive about what they really send you. Neutral OneAkela Chesterfield, VA (Zone 7a) (1 review) April 27, 2009 I was a member for one year, drawn in by the 10 free trees offer. Along with the free offer, I also placed an order. Two of my order trees died. At least two of the free trees died. Some of the others are not growing fast. I am giving a Neutral rating as what they sent me was a mixed bag. Some grew and some didn't. Also, curious note: what they said was a flowering dogwood, seems to be an oak tree.... huh? Funny thing is, they keep mailing me membership materials every 3-4 weeks. You'd think that after 3-4 mailings, they would get the message that I am not renewing. Positive LadyAethelwyne Harriman, TN (1 review) March 21, 2009 I became a member of Arbor Day last year (2008). Received my baby trees in a little bag like the kind newspapers are put in, and I was worried as I've never tried planting baby trees before. The tree roots were moist and covered in hydrating gel. I let them soak in water like the book said, then planted them carefully. This spring, I've noticed little branches sprouting from all of the "twigs", and two have tiny leaves on them. They are doing so well! I ordered 8 more trees, a bit worried because I read the feedback here and was expecting more "twigs". However, to my delight, I received a box about 5 foot tall in the mail today. Tied to a bamboo stick for support was a 4 ft tall maple, a kousa with lots of little branches and green buds, a budding saucer magnolia, and three arborvitaes that looked like the baby christmas trees bought in a store. Only the Japanese maples looked like sticks, but all of the trees had very long and (in some cases) very thick roots. I thought I would have to nurse these in my garden like the babies, but I'm thrilled that I can go ahead and plant them in my yard! On customer service, I made my order but forgot the kousa dogwood. I sent an email, and the kind representative cancelled my order so I could do a new one with the kousa included. My new order arrived in just a few days! Positive plantgnome Coram, NY (26 reviews) January 19, 2009 Most of the feedback made me laugh-which is a good thing. I received my free twigs in December of 07. I couldn't tell which was which tree. until i noticed microscopic paint spots on them. I planted them the next weekend, after soaking them per their instructions. Kind of hard to do as they kept floating around. They are in their temporary fenced in area, until or if they survive. Since planting them we have had three snow storms and an ice storm. So I really don't have high hopes for them. If they grow, I'll be happy, if not I hope my donation helps with their cause. No big loss. (They were very quick to reply to my email regarding shipping time, however I think they were shipped much too late.) On April 12th, 2009, plantgnome added the following: Well my twigs are growing, my crabapple is leafing out and several of the others are getting buds. Needless to say I am astonished, but very happy. I also ordered a downy serviceberry tree with a free red maple. The serviceberry is budding and the maple is doing fine. I am happy with all their products, will get other trees from them in the future. So never say never until you give it a try. I do baby the "twigs" and have treated them with biological tree growth activator, which probably helped a great deal, whatever the reason, they did make it thru the first winter! On May 18th, 2009, plantgnome added the following: Out of the ten "twigs" I received eight of them are flourishing, have leaves and have grown taller. So in another year, I can move them to their permanent homes! Negative yardener Greenfield, OH (Zone 6a) (16 reviews) January 16, 2009 What do you expect for 10 bucks. Over the years its been kind of a hobby for me to see if the sticks will grow into anything. After ordering 40 flowering "sticks" (the last order was 5 years ago) I have 3 Washington Hawthorns and 2 crabapples. Lets see, thats 1 out of 8 that make it to waist height in 10 years. Thats $8 per tree. Still a good bargain? I wouldn't waist my time. I've had over 85% success rate with better bargains at other tree sources. If you want a challenge, order from NADF. If you want trees, go somewhere else. Neutral gsteinbe Trenton, NJ (10 reviews) January 13, 2009 As some others have noted, the National Arbor Foundation is a good cause but not always a good supplier of trees and bushes. I've gotten several free deals from them, and usually only one or two out of 8 or 10 plants survives -- but since they're free, who could complain? I joined their Hazelnut Project with great anticipation. I'd like to raise more of my family's food in our own yard, and hazelnuts sounded like a good idea. The first year, the hazelnuts arrived and showed no signs of life -- in the package or in the ground. When I received my survey a year later to ask how the hazelnuts did, I said that they never showed any signs of life. I received a nice letter asking if I would be willing to continue in the program and get more free hazelnuts. I said yes. The next shipment of hazelnuts looked much, much better. They had signs of life. I planted them with much anticipation and excitement. They promptly died. So, I've declined further requests to continue in the Hazelnut Project. Instead, I bought some hazelnuts from Oikos Tree Crops and planted them in exactly the same spot as the second year's National Arbor Day Foundation hazelnuts. The Oikos hazelnuts did just fine all summer and fall. Negative GideonOrchards Springboro, PA (4 reviews) January 10, 2009 NADF is the bad result of trying to mix business and charity. I've ordered from them a couple times over the years. Currently, they are having a competition with Autumn ridge to see who can sell the smallest twigs and call them "trees" without breaking into maniacal laughter when you call and ask, "um, hello, you sent me a handfull of twigs by mistake, I ordered trees." I fully expect that the Scarlet Oaks they sell will soon be shipped out in the form of an acorn. It will simplify planting. Apples and pears I ordered were borderline acceptable. Other trees (cherries and such) were too small. Folks, it's pretty simple. You'll spend 5 or 10 bucks on the most useless crap, so spend 5 or 10 bucks on a tree that will then produce fruit for you 5 or more years earlier than what this charity/business sells you, and you avoid the aggravation of trying to find your new plantings among the clover and dandelions. Support the cause with a straight donation - buy your trees elsewhere. Positive farrissophie Pocono Summit, PA (1 review) November 08, 2008 I ordered from Arbor Day, about 6 years ago, I ordered the ten free flowering trees, all lived but two, I left all but one of them at my old house, it is now over 4 feet tall, and last spring was the first time it produced beautiful cherry colored blooms, I just recently gave them my new address, and this time I order ten free Norway Spruce trees, they all arrived very healthy, and with a good root system, I planted the way the told me to, and they are doing great, my yard will have privacy from the neighbours sooner than I expected. Thanks Arbor Day! Positive wildeflower Monmouth, IL (1 review) October 16, 2008 I have been a member since 1992, and have joined in the hazelnut research program too. I have a nice 7' x 5.5' Colorado Spruce that I received as a "smaller than pencil" bare root freebie among redbud and others. I have a hazelnut bearing for the first time this year in my front yard. I am a satisfied member, still contributing, and appreciating the free literature and online information forms. I am a college horticulture student at present and find their infomation to be accurate, and more thorough than some. I am a zone 5A resident of IL. Positive rexymama Bristol, CT (1 review) August 12, 2008 This past spring I placed several orders with the Arbor Day Foundation. I was drawn to them because of their selection and prices. I am also planting in my yard with the intention of enjoying the growth process of the trees/shrubs (ie not looking for full-grown trees for fifty times the price). All items arrived bare-root, like I often get online. I followed the directions--soaking the roots, digging holes, etc. I laughed a little looking out at the "sticks" in my yard. Within a couple of weeks, however, I was excited to see the first growth. The most impressive plant so far this year (just over three months since I planted) is the Elberta Peach, which went from an 18-inch "stick" to an amazing tree almost 5 feet tall. The Goldenraintree and Purpleleaf Sand Cherry are doing well, approximately doubled in height. I planted a 50-foot row of privet hedge which started as "sticks" between 6-12 inches long, which have grown to about 2 feet tall and branched out well. Amazingly enough, the only things I got from them that haven't flourished are the free red maple trees that they send with each order. It has taken them about 3 months to get their first leaves...no big loss since I didn't order them specifically. I will not hesitate to join again for the upcoming year. It is such a small fee to join, it is a non-profit, and I intend to send next year's "free" membership trees to a local school, since I don't need them right now. Negative Bethli Durham, CT (1 review) August 11, 2008 Buyer Beware! Trees are smaller than a #2 pencil and most won't grow at all. Worst of all this applies to purchased trees not just the 10 free trees that comes with the membership. The trees are so tiny that if they grow at all they need to be planted in a protected garden for at least a year. At the size they arrive it is doubtful that they will be able to survive a winter. If you want to support the Foundation, do so. Just don't bother to order trees. Save your money for a site with a proven track record. Positive krodero Avon, CT (4 reviews) July 07, 2008 I have been a member for a number of years now and will continue to support this company. I orded 3 nanking cherry bushes and a scarlet spiral willow from them this year--their prices are the best. My willow is looking great out there and has sprouted up about 6 inches in the 2-3 months since I planted it. My cherry bushes--2 arrived DOA. I planted them anyway to see if I was wrong, but they had not passed a scratch test and remained as dead as I had expected. A few weeks after their arrival, I called arbor day. Their policy says they will replace plants at half price if they don't live, but I was afraid of sending good money on top of bad, but figured I'd call anyhow just to see what they said. The man on the phone got my name, linked it to my address and when I said that they had arrived dead, he did not question me in the slightest. Just said he would send replacements right away. They came quickly with great root structures (unlike the poor sticks that had come the first time) and are thriving--as long as the deer leave them alone. Thanks arbor day! Positive donicaben Ogdensburg, NY (9 reviews) May 29, 2008 My free trees looked great! http://www.localnet.com/~donicaben/norway.jpg http://www.localnet.com/~donicaben/norway2.jpg And the trees I orderred were bigger than one's I've orderred from big nurseries! They're a little slow on shipping, but that's because everyone buys trees from them to save a buck so they are constantly backlogged with orders. On June 6th, 2008, donicaben added the following: Well, my free trees are turning orange (they're Norway Spruces). :-( I'm still keeping this as a positive though until I see how my purchased trees survive through the next year. I want to believe that this is a good company because it's a non-profit. If you're looking for speedy deliveries and high-tech order updates and such I wouldn't reccommend. Positive BotanicalBoi Carrollton, GA (Zone 7b) (1 review) May 16, 2008 I can not believe the people who have the nerve to leave negative comments for a NON PROFIT GROUP! People get a grip! The free trees are a thank you for your DONATION. I have actually had a high percentage of the trees that they have sent live. Not too bad being that seedlings don’t always have the best odds. Negative dkgarber Franklin, MA (1 review) May 15, 2008 I wasn't expecting much out of the 10 free trees, so when I opened a package of sticks, I wasn't too disappointed, as I figured they'd be crap. However, I did buy 4 Pee Gee Hydrangeas and was flabbergasted when they arrived in the same condition and size as the free trees. Wait a minute..you mean I paid good money for these? It's now 2 years later and my Pee Gees are only about a foot tall. I have to mark them with red ribbon each spring or they'd get pulled as "weeds". They are a moderately fast growing tree normally, but mine are about the same size as 2 years ago--they 've sprouteda few branches, but not much. I just topdressed them w/some humus and cmposted manure to try and boost them up a bit. I am beyond disappointed. I expected them to be "experts" but was I wrong. Positive pittsburghTrees Pittsburgh, PA (1 review) April 16, 2008 It amazes me these negative comments. Saplings have a very low survival rate. 60% of saplings die and 90% do not survive the 1st year in nature. You can hardly blame Arbor day for Mother Natures survival rate of trees. You can improve the odds by planting them with TLC and keeping them safe from animals and competing plants. They sent out 8.7 million trees last year, which is very impressive. I know going into it that the 10 membership saplings are very small and have a low survival rate. It is well documented on the website that these saplings will be very small and need a lot of love in order to survive. If you want trees with a higher survival rate, you need to stay away from saplings. You can get older trees through Arbor day as well, for a good price. But no one should judge Arbor day for the naturally low survival rate of saplings. Positive CaptMicha Brookeville, MD (Zone 7a) (27 reviews) December 23, 2007 For some reason, I received a couple of free Dogwoods from them. I didn't order, sign up or even contact them that I know of. The packing sure was strange. The instruction sheet (regular computer paper) was in the same newspaper bag like sleeve with the trees so the paper was wet. And that was the extent of the packing. No box, insulation, cushioning or anything. Even though the trees were packed so poorly, they were dormant and both looked fine with some green and I have them sitting in my garage ready to be planted out when it warms up. Positive lindakilgore10 Dothan, AL (Zone 8b) (1 review) November 11, 2007 I have had very good luck with them. I would buy from them again. Positive centuri Agency, IA (1 review) July 23, 2007 I have personally never had any trouble with this company. I have been a member for several years, and all of the products I have ordered from Arbor Day have been of relatively good quality, especially the fruit trees I ordered in 2005 and 2006. Positive Buddy44 Eagle Rock, VA (16 reviews) June 08, 2007 This is the second, and last, year I will receive dead plants from this organization. Last year the free red maple was the only tree that sprouted. All the fruit trees were DOA. This year, one of the plum trees was dead. I don't mean that they just didn't sprout. I could find no living tissue on the plants. I was not disappointed in the size to price ratio, but I am disappointed that the organization supporting tree planting nationwide would ship dead plants. I won't order from them again. On March 19th, 2008, Buddy44 changed the rating from negative to positive and added the following: I am tardy in writing this. Last fall, National Arbor Day Foundation replaced my orders for 2006 and 2007. All the plants were of good size and in good condition. They arrived the first of December, which is pushing the late button. All were planted promptly. They are beginning to bud out now. Thanks NSDF! Neutral ladypcer Litchfield, IL (5 reviews) May 20, 2007 I ordered a Koosa Dogwood, Lilacs, and a Sugar Maple, along with the 10 free trees, last fall. They sent a free Red Maple. The Koosa and Lilacs were very small, and the Sugar Maple and Red Maple were about 3 foot whips. I planted all of them and although the Dogwood, Maples and Lilacs are looking spindly, they are alive and growing, although slowly. Out of the 10 free trees, only 2 are leafing out, the rest appear to be dead. Not a big deal about the free trees, and the others didn't cost enough to lose sleep over, but I won't waste any more money on plants from the NAF. Neutral scully931 Pittsburgh, PA (9 reviews) May 19, 2007 On one hand, I feel I should not complain about anything given as 'free.' But, on the other hand, the company's goal is to get more trees planted... I'm assuming they mean LIVE ones. I laughed when I read that people found all ten trees in their mailbox, but I thought they might be exaggerating just a little. They weren't. All ten of mine fit easily into one medium size pot. That was about two months ago. Today I noticed that one of them has one leaf sprouting. The rest look exactly the same as they did two months ago. Yeah... I'm betting they aren't going to be providing much shade this year. ;-) Neutral SteveFtWorth Fort Worth, TX (Zone 7b) (21 reviews) May 19, 2007 I guess I have mixed feelings about this company. Not sure where the .org comes in, as they certainly have the facilities/amenities and corresponding business ventures of any corporation. I was a member for two years (didn't renew this year), being annoyed by the constant ploys to get my money and the incessant mailings asking for it. Looking at their site and what these dues are "paying for" is kind of insulting. That said, even if the 10 free trees for $10 annual membership fee is nothing more than a clever marketing gimmick, it IS a buck per tree, and you can't really expect a 4 or 5 ft specimen that you'd pay 10 - 20 times or more for elsewhere. The free trees I have grown have done well as a group and I have some 10-20 ft tall nice trees to show for it, which is not a bad return on a few bucks. I did order some of their "regular" maples (which incidentally are much larger than the "free" ones) that have actually ALL done phenomenally well. Their website also has great information if you're doing research on trees or need help identifying them. Neutral jennabgood Irving, IL (2 reviews) May 19, 2007 I also received the 10 sticks and one extra stick that was to be a lilac bush. There were maybe 3 of the sticks that were quite large and had a good root system, but all the others were very puny and looked like nothing more than twigs! The reason for the neutral rating is I planted everything in pots a few weeks ago and must say, for the most part, that all of the sticks I got, except for one, are sprouting and growing huge leaves like crazy! There are a couple of them that we feel are big and sturdy enough to transplant to our yard, with protection of course. Since we have 5 acres, my inlaws gave us their 10 tree order as well. Since we did not have any more pots and most of the sticks were already sprouting leaves in the bag, we decided to go ahead and transfer all of these to the property. So far, no luck with those. Some of them I can't even find anymore. I figured they have gotten trampled by wild animals, or they have been overgrown by the rest of our property. But they ones that I did find look dried up and have no growth anymore. What a waste, we should have put them in pots first. After I get all the potted trees put out in the yard, I will continue to see how they grow and then change my rating accordingly. Negative LLCOUTY Hagerman, NM (2 reviews) May 17, 2007 I also got 10 twigs, only one grew, this company is a big JOKE !! Neutral shubuty Morgantown, WV (2 reviews) May 17, 2007 I've planted several of the "ten free trees" over the past few years. They are all started in the nursery area (fenced in vegetable garden) and grow there for a couple years to get some size. While many of them die/never grow at all/dead upon arrival, the ones that do survive and get transplanted are healthy and nice. Negative Brian_H Athol, MA (1 review) May 17, 2007 I placed my order in the fall and planted the day they arrived. By this spring everything had died (approx 10 trees) except for the two free forsythias they sent. Conversely, everything I ordered from Miller's Nursery is doing very well! Yes the prices on Arbor Day Foundation are cheap, but is the disappointment worth it? Negative svd Adams, TN (1 review) April 14, 2007 We started a membership with NASF to help landscape our combined business and home property. I heard good comments about them over the years, and looking at their prices figured they were a safe bet. Our 'premium gift' for membership was ten flowering trees. Looking at their catalog, we assumed these 'trees' would be 1-4 foot branched seedlings/saplings. We were disappointed when they arrived today small enough to fit in our mailbox. To make it worse, the mail carrier expressed her sorrow that her 12-years of experience showed this was about the best we could expect from them. The seedlings were bound in one bundle, non-branched and gel-coated, with an average size of about 8 inches. Basically twigs with a few roots. Our plan was to plant these with our three girls. Instead I dug some quick holes while they were napping as they would have been heart broken to see them. I went to the extent of fencing around them to keep the errant leaf or running squirrel from knocking them flat. It felt like a scene from a Charlie Brown cartoon. I planted thousands of trees with the Scouts in Washington for lumber company reclamations and with the Forest Service for erosion control. Even those trees which we packed sometimes miles into the mountains were larger and healthier than what Arbor Day 'gives' away for $10 along with a ton of fliers asking you to spend more. The giveaway plants at the local nurseries are at least branched 3 footers - and they are free add-ons to any purchase. A nursery couldn't give away what NASF sent - even without a purchase. Very sad for $30 million a year foundation. A mistake I'll never make again... Neutral zeoplum Mobile, AL (Zone 8b) (4 reviews) March 30, 2007 After making and order yesterday, I came by this website to see if anyone else had left comments. Was shocked to find a rating of 58%. After a couple of hours, I just didn't have any peace about the order so I called them up to see if it was too late to cancel. It wasn't....so I did. I am leaving a comment here to say that I was impressed with how they handled my cancellation request. They were prompt and pleasant and didn't question me about my decision. Positive Leahyohio Columbus, OH (2 reviews) March 25, 2007 I been a member since 1998 and just think about these trees as babies, they just need a tad of love. There are trees that I ordered that died, but then I considered the fact that I may have planted the new fine roots in a rock hard clay. I read the one person said make a hole and add planting soil to just give a good start for the roots and so on. I ordered a lot and there are trees that all you do is just stick it in the ground and leave it alone, but there are less strong trees that require more thought. Overall I think they try their best, I just let it go when one dies. When I get my new shipment soon I'll use the potting soil and I feel that is best for the less shock... Oh yea to the people that said they received trees when the ground was soild, trees and other woody plants transplant the best during winter, I buy plants left over from stores in dec and they do just fine (you may have to think). Take Care and I think anyone that has trees that died to contact Arbor Day and tell them... How else would they know if they are strong or they made a mistake, they can't guess. Positive edalejrfan Williamsburg, OH (3 reviews) March 23, 2007 I have been a member of the National Arbor Day Foundation for 5 years and I am renewing my membership for the 6th year this month. I am highly satisfied with the free trees I have recieved I have very big healthy trees for much less than I would have paid anywhere else. They do take time to grow but they are well work the wait. The 2 flowering pears I recieved my forst year are now about 10-15' tall and one of the crabapples has a weeping growing habit. A few trees have died out of the 50 I have recieved most were when I forgot to plant them and they stayed in the house all winter in the bag they came in but amazingly a few did grow. It doesn't matter to me if any die since i am paying to support their mission not to get free trees. I also made a donation and recieved 10 free lilacs which are doing great and bloomed for the first time last year and they were beautiful. I will continue to renew my membership for life. A small tip: Use a bulb planter to make the holes and fill them in with a mix of purchased top soil and the soil from the holes, and of course don't forget to keep them watered. Negative tangaloor Benton City, WA (5 reviews) December 20, 2006 I ordered a starter set of trees (2005) and did not receive them until the ground was too frozen to plant (late December). I potted them to over winter in my garage following instructions, but none survived to the following spring. Won't be ordering from there again. They ship too late for my part of the country. Positive blossombloom Griffin, GA (1 review) December 01, 2006 Hello everyone. A couple of years ago I became a member of the foundation. I received ten free flowering trees, I don't recall when I received them but I'm thinking some time around spring. The trees were bare root and they were moist and in good condition. I never had the chance to actually plant them. So I can't blame NADF for my lack of responsibility. Later I had ordered two apple trees, red and yellow delicious apples. I ordered them for a friend and they are doing well, they haven't produced apples yet, which takes a couple of years anyways. I also received a free Maple tree that I planted in a pot. It is doing good as well. Of course I had to figure what was best for a bare root plant. They do seem to work better if you plant them in a pot their first year, however, I have not yet transplanted my maple yet. I plan to do this in the spring. Overall I have had a good experience with them and plan to order again. Only this time I know what to do and what not to. If you have no knowledge of what bare root is, do your homework before ordering from them. Because the reward is worth it. Positive aveeno Ann Arbor, MI (1 review) November 08, 2006 We were disappointed by the blue spruce trees we received for planting in the spring-they arrived moldy and really too late for planting in our area so they did not live. We read the comments on your forum and decided to contact the National Arbor Day Foundation Member Services department. This Department was very accomodating in settling our complaint about the trees to our satisfaction. If you have any problems with the National Arbor Day Foundation, please contact their member services department which we found to be fantastic.

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