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On Sep 12, 2009, frogandtoad2 Greenfield, MA (Zone 5a) wrote:
Ah, White Flower Farm, publishers of catalogs so beautiful and seductive that I've dubbed it "plant porn."
I've ordered a number of things from them over the years, and have had similar experiences to other posters... in a word, mixed. WFF's bulb collections are wonderful, simply wonderful. I just received 200 more daffodils (2 collections of "The Works") to join my 500+ from them, and as usual, they are as fat and beautiful as healthy babies.
Their "Unique 50" daylily collection (of which I have 3 or 4) is nice, too, worth the price, but not quite as over-the-top as the daffs. Their Iris reticulata, allium, and crocus bulbs, also very nice, and while not cheap, definitely recommended.
On the other hand, I'm sorry to say, their perennials are lacking, especially when considering the steep price tag. I just got a re-blooming iris that is an okay size, but not 13.95 worthy. I was very disappointed in the Monarda I got a few years ago... tiny, tiny, tiny, ridiculous price for the size. It looked a cutting that had recently been dipped in rooting hormone and stuck in a 3" pot. One of the three didn't overwinter. All the (same variety) Monarda I got from a local nursery (overflowing pots, half the price) not only survived, but thrived. The hedge roses I ordered 3 or 4 years ago... eh. They just haven't performed. I've seen much stronger plants for less locally. I've been underwhelmed by the perennials I've ordered. I love my wisteria standard, but $149 plus shipping? Good thing I had that gift certificate.
Customer service used to be better. I get the impression that the company's gotten too big. The staff seemed overwhelmed and distracted the last couple of times we interacted. This was for ordering and simple questions; I haven't had to see how they were in resolving a problem.
In short, I'd highly recommend WFF's bulb collections (remember to order your daffs early, you get a discount) without reservation, but would advise someone to shop their local independent nursery for perennials.
On Jun 12, 2009, kkirschbaum Yonkers, NY (Zone 6b) wrote:
I started ordering from White Flower Farm last autumn, so until now I had only bought bulbs from them. They seem pricey, but I was satisfied with the bulbs I received. This spring I succumbed to the temptation of their catalogue and ordered plants. When my order arrived, I was disappointed to see that the cleome 'White Queen' I had ordered were not in the box, and the invoice said "to follow" which I took to mean they were back ordered. I emailed to find out when the cleome might follow, and indicated that I might prefer to just cancel that part of my order. Customer service responded 3 days later and explained the plants were just being released from the greenhouse and would follow the next week. Well, this week I did get cleome from White Flower Farm -- but they sent a different (magenta/pink) cultivar than the 'White Queen' I had actually ordered. I have not yet had a response to my email about this, so i don't know if this was a substitution or if there was a mistake. I doubt it can be corrected since 'White Queen' is now listed on their website as sold out. Unfortunately, I have no use for cleomes in the color they sent me, and I'm now stuck trying to find white cleome elsewhere.
The point of all this is to say that I will definitely think twice about ordering from them again. The plants I have received from them do seem to be large, healthy, and well grown, but given that their retail prices are on the high side, I frankly expect perfection in every detail.
If this was a mistake, well then how confident could one feel about future orders. I've spent thousands of dollars mail ordering plants, and honestly I've never been sent an incorrect plant. If they ran out of the plant I ordered, I would sooner they contact to me to ask if I want to choose something else instead of sending me their choice of a substitution -- how can anyone know what made me choose a certain plant and what criteria to use in selecting an substitution. This would have been especially appropriate since we had traded email about when the cleome would ship anyway.
I have been ordering from WFF for over 25 years; I am sorry to say that the quality of the plants offered has deteriorated somewhat. This year I was given a $200 gift certificate. The D. Austin roses arrived in fine condition as did the hydrangea petiolaris. The clematis terniflora is miniscule and has had to be placed in a nursery bed. I have been told that all WFF's plants are all outsourced at present. I feel that their prices are too high for most of what is offered.
I have a very positive report on their tomatoes. They were great and flourished. Some annuals for pots were OK but some did not even bloom. The shade pot with Begonias, Fuschia were great but the plants over shadowed the Coleus and they never 'saw the light of day'. The perenials I ordered were a BIG disappoinment. As many have noted they are delivered very tiny and look like they will take many years to grow to full size. An expensive daylily never grew, was replaced by them and still never grew (in an area where other daylilies that are flourishing). I replaced teeny sedum with some from the local nursery which have done beautifully. The White Flower sedum are still the same size as when delivered. I just replanted them and the roots have not developed at all through a very good growing summer. I may order the tomatoes again but never any flowers. What an expensive disappointment.
I bought a number of plants from WFF last year and have been very disappointed in the results. About 75% of my plants either failed to over-winter or failed to thrive. I don't know if this was due to the CT winter of 2007/08, but I am hesitant to purchase from them again. I wasn't too pleased with the previous year's plants either compared to the first time I bought from them.
Have they expanded too fast and lost sight of quality control?
Plants at their nursery and the ones they supply to local nurseries are large and healthy, but still relatively expensive.
Their mail order costs are very high both for the plants and shipping. I don't think I will be bothering to buy mail order from them again as I can get much better value elsewhere.
On Jun 2, 2008, NEflwrpwr Voorheesville, NY wrote:
I ordered a bunch of bulbs from there and 100% came up and where absolutely beautiful.
But...I ordered perennials - Amsonia WFF Selection, Heucherella Stoplight and a bubblegum pink coneflower.
The plants were tiny, tiny and I planted them in perfect locations. They did nothing last year when I planted them...no biggie.
This year I need binoculars to see the Heucherella, the Amsonia had two shoots. The conflower is up, but still tiny, tiny and I'll be suprised if it flowers.
I would definately order bulbs there again, but will stick to my favorite nursery in my area for perennials. I would've received huge plants for the same price at my nursery. Everytime I walk by them I get annoyed. They are dwarfs compared to the rest of my garden.
I shopped from them in the past and when we lived in Connecticut ( still have a lilac and irises from then), and I was somewhat disappointed in my recent order (prompted by a gift certificate) compared to previous purchases. Plants were smaller than the same plant ordered in the past (specifically pink Convallaria), several plants were out-of-stock, and the Dicentra King of Hearts was much smaller than the same plant at my local nursery at a lower price. Not up to the previous standard.
I ordered Dahlia Happy Single Party and received Dahlia Mystic Illusions instead. As best I remember, there was no place on the order form to indicate whether I would accept substitutions or not. It was not an unreasonable substitution: both yellow with dark foliage, but the overall effect is not a pleasant.
This is typical of my experience of White Flower Farm over the last decade: looks great in the catalog, but what you get is inconsistent: as to size, quality, or even variety in this case.
On Apr 6, 2008, peachespickett Huntington, AR wrote:
I have ordered from many online gardening stores, and many more on e-Bay....I know my plants, and I do research beforehand to find the best quality and size for the best price....My rating is neutral, because I have not ordered from White Flower Farm, and cannot attest to plant quality, shipping, etc....but I have done many comparisons between WWF and other nurseries carrying the same particular plants, and there is something seriously wrong with WWF's prices, in many, many cases charging outrageous prices for SMALLER plants....I'll give a few examples using the Forestfarm (which has a proven record of quality) catalog as a comparison, though many plants could be found for even cheaper than Forestfarm could offer them...
1. Cercis canandesis 'Covey'...WWF carries this as 3-4' bareroot for 75$...forestfarm has 4-5' in 5-gallon container for 59$ (a teller plant in a container for 26$ less...I have personally bought a 4' bareroot Covey off e-Bay for 25$, of excellent quality.
2. Kolkwitzia amabilis 'Dream Catcher'...WWF carries this in one gallon for 24.95$....Forestfarm has one gallon for 12.00$.
3. (this is a good one) Wisteria sinensis 'Caroline' ...WWF carries bareroot, 3' tall for, get this, 149.00$....Forestfarm carries 3-4' tall, 5-gallon container size, for 49.00$....ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS LESS, FOR A LARGER TREE THAT"S NOT BAREROOT....How can any company justify a 100$ difference for a smaller plant? And that 100$ doesn't include shipping.
4.Thuja 'GreenGiant'...WWF carries one gallon for 28.95$...Forestfarm carries one gallon for 12.00$...you could look on e-Bay and find 5 or 10 one gallon GreenGiants together for less than 28.95$.
These are all just examples, but it's indicative of the pricing in the whole WWF catalog, and I urge anyone thinking of buying from them to use PlantScout here on Davesgarden and compare the price first.
On Mar 5, 2008, rah127 Dalton, GA (Zone 7b) wrote:
I received a 25 dollar gift card for subscribing to a magazine from White Flower...The catalog has beautiful plants, but they are very expensive when compared to other companies. And overall, I didn't think my butterfly bush did very well this year. I am hoping it will do better this coming year. Their packaging is very good (much better than foam peanuts!) Don't know if the plants are worth the extra cost or not after just one experience, but my guess is not...
This is my first year of ordering from White Flower Farm. I ordered Astrantia Star of Snow, Hemerocallis Black Plush and 3 Chocolate Delphinium. It's true the plants are expensive and very small upon arrival, but they have interesting "must have" plants that every gardener is looking for to display in their garden. The Chocolate Delphinium was the "must have" for me. I ordered 3 and was excited upon arrival. They were small, but looked healthy so planted them within the hour. They grew tall and to my surprise..purple, not chocolate. I called WFF and after talking to customer service, then a supervisor, I was told they were shipping me chocolate delphinium to replace the purple ones and that they were arriving 2nd day UPS. When I realized UPS messed up the 2nd day delivery and the plants were in a hot box over the weekend, I called WFF and a supervisor apologized and said if they weren't okay to call and they would take care of it. I was happy with that. When they arrived they were completely yellow with no green and soil completely dry. I called and spoke with customer service and told them the story and what I was told. They offered to refund my money or replace them. I told her I wanted plants, but not the delphiniums, just to send 2 tikki corn flowers. I figured they would handle shipping better than the delicate delph. The customer service person was annoyed and didn't quite believe me about the delph. experience and said ok we will send them out and promptly said good-bye without giving an order #. I felt bad about having to even call to say the delph. didn't live because of heat in the box for 5 days. I am hoping the corn flower arrive sooner than later. Will I order from them again....? Yes, because they will have more "must haves" next season, but I will be concerned about calling to replace any mishaps.
I have placed two orders with this company.
The first was via a gift certificate I got for my birthday and got two Clematis. They arrived awful. Reminded me of a dried out twig I'd find on the floor of the forsest or something. I planted them both anyway. Oddly enough, one of the two has started growing, albeit slowly, under and up my climbing New Dawn rose. I ordered 3 Clematis plants from another company in CA which arrived in much better shape and each plant was about $7 less than the $20 per Clematis at WFF.
My second order was recent and I went with bulbs. The fall bloom variety are all growing but one (5 of 6). Those that are coming up are beautiful and I am hoping since they went intop the ground not even a month ago, the last one will bloom next year. The autumn bloom crocus is starting to sprout so we shall see. I also have 50 lily bulbs that I need to plant this W/E from them so let's hope they grow!
On Oct 4, 2006, mt_horeb_garden Mount Horeb, WI wrote:
I recently ordered two "Going Bananas" Daylillies from WFF. They arrived about two weeks ago, the perfect time to plant here. They were bareroot plants, with just a bit of sprouting on the top. The roots were huge compared to daylillies I have received from other mail order companies, and they are growing beautifully in the garden already. I am very pleased with the purchase I made. (On a sidenote, several years ago I ordered some Foxtail lilies from WFF and had some problems with them blooming. I was willing to give them some time, but all along the way WFF was willing to work with me to make it right if I requested. They did bloom after two seasons of not blooming, but to the credit of WFF, I did not plant them in an ideal location.)
On May 10th, 2007, mt_horeb_garden changed the rating from positive to neutral and added the following:
I changed my rating to neutral as the daylillies I ordered from WFF were the only daylillies of mine that did not make it through the winter this year. To WFF's credit, they did offer to replace them no questions asked, but after a goof up that delayed the replacements I simply requested the order be canceled and requested my money back. The customer service folks I worked with were very helpful, nice and professional. I have ordered from WFF twice and twice have had problems with the plants. Both times however the customer service has been excellent.
On May 5, 2006, DCUrbanGardener Washington, DC (Zone 7a) wrote:
I am a prolific mail-order gardener, and WFF has been a good experiment over the years. Their customer service has always been cordial and helpful whenever I run into any problems; horticulture expert is very keen on offering recommendations and suggestions either.
The descriptions of their plants and more importantly, the sizes they come in, are clearly stated on their websites to avoid possible confusions.
To kick off my 2006 planting season, I have placed two large orders separately and everything arrived well - no damaged plants, no DOA plants and no loose soil. Everything looks good. After acclimating them to the outdoors elements, I am happy to report that out of the 18 plants I ordered only two haven't, and one still don't seem to respond. I have since called WFF to report the situation. The two plants that didn't make it, they were glad to issue replacement certificate, since those plants had since sold out.
They have however they have made a note on my account, on the remaining plant I am waiting on. I will give the plant two more weeks to come out of its dormancy. If not, I will for sure follow up with WFF and work out the details.
They have pretty good stocks, and I have been happy with them. Prices are a little high for some choice plants, but we shop at WFF for our respective reasons.
All in all, very positive shopping experiences.
On May 17th, 2006, DCUrbanGardener changed the rating from positive to neutral and added the following:
That plant mentioned above, which has yet to come out of dormancy, still hasn't demonstrated any sign of life. This has been two months. I called them, asking for a refund, since that particular plant has been sold out. They said the refund would be expedited.
Three of the 28 lily bulbs I bought have shown stunted growth. That's a little strange since they are all planted in the same bed. The other lilies are thriving. I have emailed them outlining the situation; have yet to hear from them.
Earlier, I also ordered a Clematis cultivar from them, and thought the price was reasonable for a 3"-pot plant. I have since found out that I could buy the same cultivar in a 5.5" pot (and older) from another mail order nursery for an additional 2 dollars. This is unbelievable. I am planning on returning the plant to WFF.
I recently ordered for the first time from White Flower Farm. Based on their catalog and prices, I thought my merchandise would be top-notch. The two shrubs I ordered--a hydrangea and an ilex--were pretty good, but the three campanulas were just unbelievably small for the price I paid. Just seedlings! I have since potted them in larger pots, because I don't think they're ready to go into the garden. Later, I found the same plants at Home Depot--huge things at half the price. I think I'll use WWF's catalog as an idea source only in the future.
On Jan 22, 2006, bestgardener Cincinnati, OH wrote:
Hello,
White Farm has a few unusual perennials, but their prices for annuals such as agelonia are outrageous. I would recommend that gardeners might go to their local garden centers for the annuals at much cheaper prices and in larger pots.
I like the quality of their perennials and would continue to but perennials from them, but annuals are a different story.
On Aug 19, 2005, sanity101 Dublin, OH (Zone 5b) wrote:
Bought their 'pink dafodil mix' to plant last spring. While most did come up (eventually) they were small, late, and not particularly pink. So while nothing was specific enough to complain about, I'll take my busniness elsewhere in the future.
I have ordered from White Flower Farm on a number of occasions over the past few years with mixed experiences. Like another poster, ordering from them usually leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth, probably becuase of the high price of the merchandise. It seems as if with every order, I have at least one problem with a product. HOWEVER, their customer service has always, always, always been very good, and I have received replacements or credits for all merchandise that has not performed.
My experiences, combined with the fact that most of their offerings can be found through other sources at much lower prices mean that going forward, I will most likely order from them only if they offer something truly unique. I don't really worry about the quality, because, in general, it's very good. I know that if I do get a plant that isn't healthy or fails to grow for me, the matter will be rectified. I would just prefer not to have the hassle.
I live near WWF and have been doing business with them for more than ten years. When I pay so much for their products, I expect good plants. Problem is a lot of time they substitute without asking and also do not deliever when they initially state items will be delivered. The only thing I would recommend purchasing from WWF is bulbs. Everything else is risky. Quality of their stock is getting more marginal with time. My husband is a spine surgeon and takes care of a lot of the WWF workers and the WWF employees themselves comment that WWF plant quality is deteriorating.
Usually I purchase about 1200$ worth of stock a year from WWF and am consistently disappointed. Much happier with vigor and health of local nursery things. However, when WWF stock does survive, their quality of plants as far as their appearance and bloom size are good. I have had problems with WWF sending dead things and not willing to refund me but wanting to replace with more dead stock. I am not referring to bareroot items, I mean dead items. And yes I get placed on hold for ever waiting to speak to their horticulturalist only to have her attempt to brush my problems aside. So this year-no WWF orders from me.
On Oct 29, 2004, slubberdegulion Roanoke, VA (Zone 7a) wrote:
I have mixed feelings about White Flower Farm. I've placed a number of orders from WFF over the years and I think the plant quality has decreased. This Spring a plant order I placed arrived on time and mostly healthy, but the plant sizes (for the prices!) were very disappointing. Last year, I chanced an order on plants too and found one snapdragon's colors to be nowhere near the description. To be fair, I find WFF's bulbs to be competitively priced and usually healthy (although I sometimes am just a little disappointed with the mixes). I will be sure to look around at other nurseries for plants I see and like at WFF until I'm convinced the quality has improved.
I recently ordered a dwarf Meyer Lemon tree from WFF, and then found out afterwards that the tree is both small (8-12") and young (~1 year old, and thus not of fruit-bearing age yet). The estimates I have got indicate that it will be 1-2 years before the tree will set fruit.
This would have been all right if these trees just have to be sold that way, though it would have been nice if WFF had put the info about age and fruiting on their Website. However, fruiting-age Meyer lemon trees appear to be readily available from other vendors (some receiving very high marks on this Website) at essentially the same price that WFF charges for its younger plant. I saw one site selling 1 year old trees for half of WFF's price; most don't openly offer trees of that age.
Since I blame myself for not researching the topic more closely before buying, I can't really say that this has been a negative experience, but it certainly hasn't been a positive one.
On July 16th, 2005, schiang68 added the following:
I'm still neutral at best on the Meyer lemon I got from WFF last summer. The plant is still alive but has not grown much and suffers from scale (which came with the plant, by the way). It did put out a lot of flowers this past spring, so I haven't lost hope, but another Meyer and a kumquat that I obtained from a different vendor are both doing much better than this WFF plant.
I don't know about WFF's performance with respect to other plants, but I do not plan to order from them again.
I ordered 3 Little Honey hydrangeas in January which arrived last week. I unpacked as directed. They were very small plants in large containers, but they had little baby leaves. It poured here and was unusually cold for the next several days, so I kept them sheltered. By yesterday, one was dead and the others are pretty puny looking. I called WFF and they immediately offered a credit back to my account, no hassle at all. WFF is expensive for some things, but their bulbs are often a good deal and my experience overall has been positive. I'm sorry these plants are so weak looking. I love hydrangeas! I will continue to comparison shop and use them when I need to. Despite the annoying pretentiousness of the catalogue, it is a source of inspiration to me for container plantings (most of which can easily be found locally).
They are quite expensive and can be argumentative about what my local conditions are. In addition, because of their money back guarantee, they do sometimes seem indifferent to getting shipments right the first time around.
The crocus bulbs I ordered two years ago were lovely, so I decided to order several other types of bulbs and plants from them last fall.
A few days after I ordered the bulbs, there was a family emergency that was to take me out of town for three weeks. I called their customer service to request they hold the shipment. No can do, I was told. So it had to sit on my open front porch.
When I got home, I checked the date the bulbs had been sent. It was shipped a week after I had called. Why they couldn't have held it is beyond me.
When I opened the shipment, planting instructions were missing for several items. However, when I e-mailed their customer service, they got back to me promptly with the information.
So far the delay in planting does not seem to have effected the bulbs, which all came up.
I love their catalog and use it for ideas, but they would have to be the only practical source for an item before I will buy from them again.
My small order last year arrived promptly, and two ailing plants were courteously and quickly replaced. However, they are ridiculously expensive. If you absolutely MUST have a certain plant and cannot find it anywhere else, consider WFF. Otherwise, your money is much better spent elsewhere.
I no longer order from this company. They have nice stuff, and their plants ship well, but they're incredibly expensive. They're also less than candid about how plants will do at the edge of their zone, or about plants that are aggressively invasive. I prefer to spend my money with other companies.
On Jun 30, 2003, emskware Old Bridge, NJ (Zone 7a) wrote:
In early spring I ordered two macrophyllia blue hydrangeas, because I had never seen them locally. I received 2 very small plants (for a total of $56!), which were both damaged by poor packing (packing tape was placed OVER the leaves, the catalogue was thrown on top, and the stems had broken off). I emailed White Flower Farms and they quickly wrote back that they would send replacements, which they did. These replacement plants were slightly larger than the originals, but still small in my estimation, for the price. I planted both and in the meantime found two more of the same plants at a local nursery; the nursery plants cost the same as White Flower Farm, but were literally 10 times larger! In the meantime, one of the replacement plants died, and the other has only grown 2 leaves in the meantime. The nursery plants, however, are already starting to bloom! I emailed the company again telling them of the dead replacement plant, and they have agreed to refund the purchase price to my credit card. Unlike a lot of people here, I found their customer service representatives very responsive, but the quality of the plants (in relation to the prices charged) rather poor. It's a shame, too, because they have beautiful product. Therefore the neutral rating.
I ordered bulbs from White Flower three years ago. All were big, firm, beautiful bulbs.
Because of a problem with their website, the company mistakenly sent and charged me for two orders, despite the fact that I had instructed the customer service rep to verify that I would only receive one order. I had some hassles getting credit for their mistake, but ultimately, I was very satisfied with the resolution (they let me keep the extra bulbs at no charge).
The catalogue is beautiful. The prices are somewhat high.
On Jun 8, 2003, RubyStar Madison, WI (Zone 5a) wrote:
The cat is gorgeous, of course, and very enjoyable. But this company will never receive more than a neutral rating from me because it is much too highly priced for my taste. Regardless, their packing is excellent, their customer service friendly, and the plants I've received from them have always been healthy. They also tend to have nicer cultivar selections than what are available locally. But the only plants I've received from them that I thought justified the high cost was the calla lily tubers, which actually were huge and much healthier than any I've seen elsewhere. Otherwise I've found that I can buy comparable plants at a significantly lower price in other places.
On May 25, 2003, Illinigardener Port Byron, IL (Zone 5a) wrote:
Here is how I use White Flower:
First their catalog is second to none. It can be used as a reference even if you don't order.
Second, if you want top quality for the price, I order from Song Sparrow first. White Flower quality is not as good but their prices are just as high.
Third, if I can find the variety I want from Bluestone, that is a better choice for reasonable prices and good quality.
Finally, if Song Sparrow and Bluestone don't have it, then White Flower is my choice. But with their prices you have to be picky as to what you order from them.
Last year I ordered expensive lady fern rhizomes form White Flower Farm. They arrived with and were very small. Of the six for $30.00 only three srpouted out. Better to find them localluy.
Beware -- the plants are good quality, but this company is way, way overpriced. I foolishly ordered a hydrangea from them that cost me around $30. The quality was good, and it came well-wrapped, but it just was not worth what I paid. I have since ordered hydrangeas of the same size from Spring Hill for around $8, and I have since found out that mature hydrangeas at my local garden center cost about $20.
On Feb 20, 2003, testygardener Caledonia, WI wrote:
I read the most recent review and have to tell you to check out Green Mountain Transplants. They sell by the plug tray but quality is excellent -- Grasses bloomed the first year and were astounding!
On Feb 3, 2003, cathyb53 Newfield, NY (Zone 5a) wrote:
I have had a number of experiences with WFF, and actually got to visit the site several years ago. The catalog is beautiful and tempting - too much so for what they actually deliver - and I have found it a good source of info & ideas over the years. However, I prefer to buy my plants elsewhere when I can find them. Over the years I've ordered most of their main "offers" - The Emerald Isle & its littler brother Emerald Atoll (hosta mixes), the Unique 50 (daylilies), The Works (daffodils), Old Ironsides (astilbes), Dawn & Dusk (rose & clematis),the unnamed peonies, and most of the lily collections & mixes. The only plants I've found entirely satisfactory, especially as I've gained experience and found more mailorder plant sources, have been the lilies, and 1 of the 4 or 5 roses I've ordered from them. And the unnamed peonies are an unqualified success story - because they arrived late in the fall, and I had had a major injury that kept me from getting them planted, they spent the winter in their unopened packing box on my back porch. In the spring, I was about to just toss the whole box, figuring they would be long-gone, but my DH opened it up, and lo and behold!, there were the roots with multiple vigorous "eyes" just pleading to be planted; I stuck 'em in the ground, and since their third season they have been the most glorious, showiest things in my garden at peony time!
I have had mixed encounters with their customer service, but on balance I would have to say that they've been rather unhelpful most of the time. The first order I ever placed with them was for several different lily collections; not one of the lilies in one collection came up, and one of the other collections was obviously mislabeled - I'd ordered a pastel mix and a bright mix, and obviously received 2 bright mixes. When I called to try to make it right, they argued with me about my lily-growing conditions, and when I explained that I had dozens of lilies growing happily in the same section of my garden, they refunded only a portion of the cost of the group that didn't come up at all. PLUS they argued about the mistaken colors of the lilies - like, HELLO-O-O, it doesn't take a horticultural genius to see that hot oranges, reds, and yellows were not pale pinks & creams & pastels! (They ultimately replaced the wrong-colored ones.)
But I still have lots of good-looking lilies from them that come up faithfully, and their color mixes are a pretty good bargain. I've also had some good daffodil collections, too. The daylilies, OTOH, are massively overpriced - I had a pretty poor showing from them. A number of olants I've ordered have arrived in poor condition, and they have not been reasonable about replaceing them.
Overall, I much prefer to order from Bluestone, my mail-order plant super-heroes. I've had better results with bulbs from Scheepers and Von Engelman, at considerably better prices. So I prefer not to order from WFF. But who can resist that catalog?!
On Jan 5, 2003, connoisseur Indianapolis, IN wrote:
White Flower Farm is pricey, but it does stand behind its products (in my experience). If you are dissatisfied and don't want a store credit, ask for a refund to your card.
Because of WFF's high prices, I have tried less expensive competitors. Unfortunately, less expensive mailorder options have resulted in products with less quality.
Nevertheless, WFF's prices make local nurseries more acceptable. Besides, you can pick exactly which weekend to plant (not raining, when in town) if you buy locally.
On Jul 3, 2002, golddog Western, PA (Zone 6a) wrote:
I used to order a few 'hard to find' plants each year. But the costs have risen way above what I am willing to pay. I can usually find them now on the internet or at a local nursery that now has about 2,400 varieties of perennials.
Wonderful catalog, some good information, but too pricey for what you get. Bought the pastel tulip collection, but it wasn't pastel. Have bought other hardy plants, but they didn't survive. Great to daydream with but I go to buy elsewhere.
I have enjoyed the White Flower Farms catalogs for years. But I want to caution anyone who is thinking of visiting them. I went 100 miles out-of-my way to visit them (an invitation that is in the catalog). I got there and found a small gift shop. Everything growing was off-limits to visitors.
