Comments regarding Antique Rose Emporium

Posted on September 8, 2020, updated May 9, 2021
Posted on April 16, 2020, updated September 8, 2020
Posted on April 12, 2018, updated April 16, 2020
Posted on July 2, 2016, updated April 12, 2018
Posted on May 11, 2016, updated July 2, 2016
Posted on May 25, 2015, updated May 11, 2016
Posted on April 23, 2004, updated May 25, 2015
I ordered all old garden roses from this company: Marchesa Bocchella, Rose de Rescht and Zephirine Doughin. All were potted, with healthy foliage and tiny buds appearing. They are not as large as those from Edmunds, but I believe that this is normal for old garden roses. They are great specimens, very nicely packaged and easy to plant. I will not hesitate to order from them again.

I ordered a 'Graham Thomas' rose for fall planting, which arrived well-packed and sensitively pruned. It had no foliage when it arrived, but started to bud immediately. Several weeks later, it's a very healthy-looking little plant. I'm very pleased with my experience, and intend to order from Antique Rose Emporium again.

This top-notch vendor never disappoints. I received my latest order of big, beautiful OGR plants from ARE and couldn't be happier. Antique Rose Emporium is one of the last great suppliers of quality ownroot vintage roses--in two gallon sizes, no less! I'm personally very thankful that they're still going strong so many years later. A+++ in every way.

I bought two roses last year and have recently received my third rose, a climbing iceberg. I could not be more pleased. This is a great company, very professional and I would highly recommend them to any of you. The roses they sent me were healthy and are doing well in my garden. The roses were well-packed with care, and it's obvious this is a great company to do business with.

Overall, was pleased with the roses I received. You may pay a few dollars more for their roses, but it is worth it, especially if you value a larger plant that does not require as much babying as a small band.

Shipping charges were not clearly explained on their website. Would recommend calling them before ordering to clarify.

I have ordered online roses for years. Some of them arive so-so in terms of their foliage, canes condition, etc; others are too small; others pakaged in a really lousy way...you name it. Until I found this company. They are extremely meticulous with their packaging and the roses come wrapped and protected. More so, these plants that I got today are way more than a skinny stick. They come in a gallon container (surprise) and ready to plant without the hastle of potting and repotting. I am officially in love.

Due to the success of the roses I have received from ARE, I have become a avid rose grower. I have been ordering my own and receiving gift roses from relatives for the past 4 years from ARE. My rose plants have arrived from November and March thru May. I live in Arkansas Zone 8 and find late Fall gives my roses the best start but all have done well. In all cases, the roses have been well packed and arrived healthy. All Mar - May plants have bloomed in the first month of arrival. The are nice size plants in gallon containers. I sought and received helpful phone advice twice since our humid climate can get terribly hot some summers. I want to stick to roses which are heat tolerant and disease resistant. I highly recommend ARE as an excellent source of roses for the South - both mail order and walk in. The web site is very easy to navigate and you can sort their catalog by any category such as color, height, kind etc.

Two roses I ordered last year have done very well. I just received this years order and it looks as good as the 2013 plants. I like the fact the plants are shipped potted not bare root and they have their own roots. Plants seemed to acclimate faster than bare root roses I have ordered from other sources. Shipping is reasonable given weight of a full 2 gallon pot. Selection is vast!

I have now ordered a total of 8 roses from ARE. All have been beautiful healthy plants. Also got their long armed gardening gloves that are wonderful. I love this company and am trying to convince my husband a spring road trip to Brenham is necessary.

My first order was well packed and the roses were leafed out. 6 weeks later there are many blooms on my Le Vesuve, Blush Noisette and Souvenir de la Malmaison. I will definitely order again.

I placed my first order with Antique Rose Emporium a couple of weeks ago. The representative on the phone was very helpful and my order arrived right when she said it would. I received a "Peggy Martin" climber and, although it was stripped prior to shipping, it was already starting to leaf out when I opened the box. It was very well packed and in great condition. I planted it in the bed the weekend before last and it has already grown a great deal and is very healthy. I wish I could afford to buy all of the beautiful roses that this vendor offers...great experience!

Posted on April 24, 2013, updated April 24, 2013
My negative rating is pending outcome of ARE customer service resolving my issues. I live Z6B (more of a Z7 micro climate along coast). I operate a garden services business, specializing in rose/flowering shrub maintenance/care. I personally own over 100 roses and frequently incorporate into client garden design. I am not a novice gardener. I was looking for a grower offering own root roses. I stay away from the huge commercial growers because of quality control issues – I simply cannot tolerate high rates of return in my business. After reviewing positive posts on ARE, I decided to order this past winter Cecile Brunner shrub, Cecile Brunner climber (both on valentine special), Graham Thomas (for client), Francesca (for client), Mutabilis (for client) and two climbing white Iceberg roses (for client). This past fall I ordered Zephirine Drouhin (for client) and Pinkie (personal). All roses hardy Z6. The ZD arrived with nearly all leaves removed. I called ARE customer service said they strip all leaves at shipment. Obviously black spot I didn't mind considering black spot was rampant last year all over the country, the ZD was hard to find at the time and positive posts on this forum assured me all would be fine.. The P arrived with more leaves, but clearly leaves removed and black spot on canes. I treated both roses with lime sulfur spray, rose food. they took off well enough. The P was for me so I thought I'd roll with the black spot. As with all roses I own and others I care for, they were overwintered with 6" compost and topped with cedar mulch. Earlier this month compost and mulch were raked away. The Z survived the winter and the P had substantial cane death. The CB bush and climber arrived this month healthy, bushy with all their leaves...hmmm. The Graham Thomas arrived with most leaves striped off, remaining leaves black spot and fungus spots on canes. Disappointing for Spring delivery of roses overwintered. Yesterday Francesca and Mutabilis arrived. Mutabilis was healthy, fully leafed and clean. Francesca had NOT ONE LEAF - none in the box with black spot on the canes. Both Graham Thomas and Francesca had been previously subjected to the worst severe hack pruning I've ever seen. Canes were pruned horizontally with a dull shear and actually are splintered down canes. Mind you there is less than 10" of cane to work with on both roses. Pruning below the hack job would be severe and could shock the rose. ARE ought to know better and shipping both roses in this condition was not an oversight. I emailed ARE requesting return label and refund on Francesca stating the diseased condition was unacceptable. Still haven't heard back from them. I question the quality control at ARE. Clearly the Francesca should never have been shipped and the Graham Thomas is questionable. So until this matter is resolved, I rate ARE the worst negative rating available. I was looking for an own root source, but I may have to pass on ARE for future purchases - I'm not an ICU unit for roses.

I want to start by saying I am new to ordering plants online. However, my first shipment with ARE, I was very,very impressed. I had ordered two climbing pinkies, and the plants were beautiful and well packed for shipping. I was so impressed, I decided to order 4 more plants. I ordered 2 Belinda's Dream, a Buff Beauty and Duchesse de Brabant. I was home when the delivery arrived. I could tell from the outside of the boxes, it wasn't going to be good. Dirt was coming out the tops. Somehow during shipment, I think the boxes must have been upside down.
When I opened the first box a large bug came flying out. ( I killed him). There were a few broken stems and leaves, but that's kind of normal, I would think. I don't blame ARE for the shipping issues, they can't control how the boxes are handled. My Buff Beauty only had about half of her container of soil. The Belinda's have some dark spotting on them, which I don't know if it's normal. I got them all planted, and I hope they will all be fine and they didn't get too shook up on the way here.
Not sure if I will order again, if I had to base it on my last shipment. They do ship quickly and are pleasant on the phone to do business with. I did write them about this shipment, but have not heard back from them. As long as the plants do well, I'm fine...and would probably take my chances again. They do offer a nice guarantee on their roses if they die within 6 months. You need to have the plastic tag from the rose and $5 to cover shipping. So, that's pretty nice, I think.

I just received my first order. I was a little hesitant placing the order because of high shipping cost, but it was worth it. Excellent packing, very large healthy plants. I can't wait for my first blooms.

Posted on November 17, 2011, updated October 27, 2012
My mom ordered me a " Ballerina" rose from Antique Rose Emporium. Order arrived in time. Excellent packaging. No damage. Rose is very healthy too :)
S. V. Salisbury,NC

I bought two Peggy Martin roses last year and they are doing even better than I had hoped for because of our drought. They were healthy plants when I received them and still are. They are growing so much I had to add an extra trellis to hold the new growth up and they are blooming beautifully. Thank you.

I planted most of my seven roses in the last 2-3 years. I was just doing spring time garden maintenance and noticed that the roses from the Antique Rose Emporium were all flourishing like green bay trees. The roses from elsewhere looked quite spindly or, in one case, dead in comparison. These have all gotten the same care.

I also remember that the roses from the Emporium were very healthy when they arrived. An A+++ company.

Last week I received my order of 2 rose plants, and was very satisfied. The packing was great, and the size of the plants even greater. I would order from them again, and am very pleased.

I ordered three roses from the Antique Rose Emporium and am very pleased at how healthy they look and how well wrapped the bushes were. The roses I purchased from them last year have been doing well, and I'm sure these new ones will too. This is obviously a company that pays attention to quality and good customer relations. Thay have a wonderful selection as well.

Ordered five roses during the end of the Texas Summer. Rose shrubs came stripped of leaves to allow for better travel. For reorders probably better to order 2, 4, 6, 8 to keep shipping costs down as the 5th rose added more shipping as it shipped by itself. Planted and watered for a couple of months and then left them to their own devices. All of the roses are flourishing great in a lucky mild Winter. Two of them are already a couple feet round and tall maybe larger. Very happy with my purchase and have reordered. Also want to mention that I like the selection and website.

I placed an order fro three roses on a Monday (online) and received notification that the plants would arrive Friday (yeah, right!). Lo and behold, I received my order on Friday at 4:30 pm. Plants arrived in great shape, were of good size, and well packed. I could not have asked for better service - they really seem to have their act together.

Only inital concern was the cost of shipping - basically the cost of a fourth plant. HOWEVER......the plants arrived in great shape and were well packed - so actually the price charged was an accurate reflection of the value received. I realized that I would rather pay a bit more for packing in order to receive a well-grown plant in good shape vs. paying less and receiving a damaged/dried out/dead plant as I have received from other mail order companies.

Will definately be ordering from them again.

I ordered 6 yellow roses for a very particular client and received perfect rose bushes. They were well packaged and healthy. I will definitely order with you again. All the roses bloomed well and are still doing fine. Thank you for being such a wonderful source with great employees who go over and beyond to help out buyers.

Two roses arrived in great shape and are thriving. Have been a customer of ARE for years and never been disappointed.

WOW!! I love this place! I'll order again :)

Almost ten years ago, I planted a Antique Rose Garden at my honey & my first home.(Used ARE!) Now,two kids and several moves later, I am creating a new rose garden. What a blessing to return a company and find them just as reliable, as charming, as helpful, and even more knowledgable than before! We ordered three roses to begin. Called in the order. Service was prompt and respectful! Roses came early! All three are healthy and vigorous. All three have buds, blooms, or new growth. My daughters squealed with delight to see the ARE box on the front porch- and it did not disappoint! Spending our time now making a list of what to order in the Fall!

This spring, 2011, I ordered five roses from J&P, two from David Austin and two from the Antique Rose Emporium.

The two from Antique Rose Emporium were in pots, healthy and took right off. The others were bare rooted and did well.

I have to say that for the price and time required, Antique Rose Emporium was an excellent value! and superior to the others.

I will be ordering at least five more plants from them this summer. My experience was exceptionanaly positive.

Posted on September 22, 2010, updated May 4, 2011
Posted on April 25, 2010, updated September 22, 2010
I ordered seven varieties of Texas A&M designated Earth-Kind Roses and requested delivery the following week. The roses arrived as requested on April 20th and I planted them out the next day. I was very impressed with the packaging of the plants; four to a box in specially designed cartons that you could turn upside down without leaking soil or damaging the plant. The plants were exactly as described: one to two year old roses grown from their own root. I was specially impressed with the soil the plants were grown in. It was very close to real life, well prepared garden soil. It wasn't that light commercial mix so many plants come in where the root ball falls apart trying to take from the pot. Their soil is so close to the real thing that transplant shock is kept to a minimum. The plants arrived in excellent condition and several were blooming in spite of the light trimming necessary to make them fit in the shipping boxes. It's now been four days since I planted them out and several have grown new shoots in excess of two inches and others have put on buds. I highly recommend The Antique Rose Emporium, especially to people living in the southeastern U.S. where climate and soil conditions can be challenging.

i have ordered twice from this company; last year and this year. I was having a hard time choosing what roses to plant in a hedge because there were so many pretty ones but they helped me decide on Carefree Beauty. They all did fabulous. I bought a bunch of Iceberg's this year which i have planted and now can't wait to see the blooms.
They are very knowledgable and helpful.

Ordered a Madame Alfred Carriere Rose in May of last year, planted it in an unfortunately hot summer and the rest is history. It is now 6 ft tall and heading to the roof, I suspect.

Posted on April 29, 2010, updated June 11, 2010
Great, healthy plants, shipped promptly.

Arriving today is my first order from ARE.. WOW!
The roses were spectacular!! Lush, healthy, vigorous plants. In the past I have ordered from J&P (and still do), this is quite a change in shipping style! And the shipping was PROMPT.
Thanks to ARE for giving us back all the old timey roses and introducing the new ones!

Excellent experience with Antique Rose Emporium. I ordered the Felicia rose which arrived when expected and larger and healthier than other roses I have ordered via mail. The Felicia rose has grown very quickly and looks and smells gorgeous. I would definitely order from A.R.E. again. :)

great Rose nursery; have ordered from them several times and all plants have been exactly as described, healthy and vigorous.

Posted on April 18, 2009, updated March 30, 2010
Amazing quality! Large, healthy roses delivered in perfect condition due to the wonderful packaging. It doesn't get better than this!

I have ordered from Antique Rose Emporium several times. Each time my roses have arrive healthy and ready to plant. (and packed with the greatest of care). When I have questions I email them and they get right bake to me. As someone who owns their own business I do understand that despite your best efforts sometimes things go wrong, so to all of you out there that have had a bad experience with this company I am sorry that your initial dealing was disheartening. I happen to admire there work and think that they deserve a second chance.

I have mail ordered roses from the Antique Rose Emporium for years, in addition to buying their roses from local nurseries in the Fort Worth, Texas area. Finding their roses and their catalog in a now defunct garden shop many years ago led me to my great love and appreciation of old garden roses. I have never had a negative experience with them, either online or on the phone. Their plants always arrive healthy and well packed. They have a wonderful variety of old roses available. I have also grown or given as presents several of their own Texas Pioneer roses, and they have all been beautiful and hardy. Their display gardens in Brenham, Texas are a "must visit" if you are a true rose lover. It is a great way to see so many of the roses they offer in their full and mature beauty in the landscape. One day I will make it to the San Antonio location and display gardens as well. These folks deserve only positives, according to my experience!

I have been ordering roses from ARE for years. The roses have always arrived healthy and well-packed. All of them have lived and produced beautiful blooms. I have had especially good results with the Mutabilis.

I ordered 2 Therese Bugnet and 2 Sir Thomas Lipton rugosas as well as 1 Iceberg Climbing rose.
All the roses were very nicely packaged for transit and arrived in excellent condition.
Three days after planting, they have already set leaves and look to be very vigorous.
I am so pleased with this company, their products and the extremely careful packing, which was the best I have ever received.
Definitely will be shopping with them again.
Colleen in Polson, MT

I was delighted to find exactly the roses I was looking for at ARE. Even though the catalog said that they were two gallon roses, I expected something a lot smaller. I was surprised when the roses arrived in full size, two gallon nursery pots. They were well packaged in a box obviously designed especially for the roses. Despite the three days in transit, the roses looked healthy. After less than a day in the ground, the leaves have already perked up. If I had more sun, I'd defintily buy more roses.