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Post by sirplantalot on May 13, 2011 20:11:29 GMT
OK Paul. I placed my order on the deadline for orders to be in and was told it would be early to mid May when I would receive them so they were spot on there. I got an email yesterday to say they had be sent out that morning and they arrived around lunch time today. The packaging was fine with no plants damaged in any way. All the plants were well rooted in biodegradable plugs so they could go straight into pots without disturbing the roots and as for the quality I would say they were very good.  |
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Post by Lou78W on May 13, 2011 20:23:28 GMT
It is very pretty Geranium...It often happens that the description is nothing like the actual bloom  |
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Post by Tel on May 14, 2011 6:19:31 GMT
It is very pretty Geranium...It often happens that the description is nothing like the actual bloom Remember the variety windmill, that WF and myself purchased.  |
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Post by Lou78W on May 14, 2011 6:37:48 GMT
It is very pretty Geranium...It often happens that the description is nothing like the actual bloom Remember the variety windmill, that WF and myself purchased. Thats the one I was thinking about Tel |
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Post by (DahliaMan) Cornish Paul on May 14, 2011 11:38:28 GMT
OK Paul. I placed my order on the deadline for orders to be in and was told it would be early to mid May when I would receive them so they were spot on there. I got an email yesterday to say they had be sent out that morning and they arrived around lunch time today. The packaging was fine with no plants damaged in any way. All the plants were well rooted in biodegradable plugs so they could go straight into pots without disturbing the roots and as for the quality I would say they were very good. Hi Sirplant Thank you for swift reply. Thats good enough for me, so I will 'trial' them next year with a small order, maybe 1/2 dozen plants or so. I like to try someone different most years with a small order, helps me decide who is worth staying with and who not, and to offer other growers my HONEST opinion. On that basis of the 5 commercial suppliers I have purchased dahlias from this year my top 3 and from whom I recommend are: Taylors Dahlias (excellent plants, excellent communication), Halls of Heddon (consistent as ever, regarded as the 'main' suppliers to us Cornish growers), Ridgeview (quality of plants, very good all rounders). I recommend them all. The other 2 suppliers I wont mention on this forum suffice to say I would be unlikely to order from again. In addition the 6 Weston Kelipe from 'our Lou' are looking in excellent shape as on the day I received them. Sirplant could you advise if you have purchased from any other suppliers, particularly ones I havent mentioned here? Please feel free to send me a private msg if preferred. Regards, Paul |
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Post by sirplantalot on May 14, 2011 11:49:25 GMT
The only other Dahlias I have purchased Paul are tubers from garden centers or ebay. This is my first season growing Dahlias so next year I maybe looking to try other suppliers.  |
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Post by scrumpy on May 14, 2011 12:24:32 GMT
OK Paul. I placed my order on the deadline for orders to be in and was told it would be early to mid May when I would receive them so they were spot on there. I got an email yesterday to say they had be sent out that morning and they arrived around lunch time today. The packaging was fine with no plants damaged in any way. All the plants were well rooted in biodegradable plugs so they could go straight into pots without disturbing the roots and as for the quality I would say they were very good. Hi Sirplant Thank you for swift reply. Thats good enough for me, so I will 'trial' them next year with a small order, maybe 1/2 dozen plants or so. I like to try someone different most years with a small order, helps me decide who is worth staying with and who not, and to offer other growers my HONEST opinion. On that basis of the 5 commercial suppliers I have purchased dahlias from this year my top 3 and from whom I recommend are: Taylors Dahlias (excellent plants, excellent communication), Halls of Heddon (consistent as ever, regarded as the 'main' suppliers to us Cornish growers), Ridgeview (quality of plants, very good all rounders). I recommend them all. The other 2 suppliers I wont mention on this forum suffice to say I would be unlikely to order from again. In addition the 6 Weston Kelipe from 'our Lou' are looking in excellent shape as on the day I received them. Sirplant could you advise if you have purchased from any other suppliers, particularly ones I havent mentioned here? Please feel free to send me a private msg if preferred. Regards, Paul Just to answer Paul, Halls supplied me with some abysmal ruskin bride...out of 7 plants, only 3 were half decent. Out of the other 7 varieties i ordered, i would say a third of the cuttings came from leaf joints, not the tubers. The cuttings didn't have much root on them. After growing them on, i would say that none are of the standard of any of the cuttings i have taken myself from my own tubers. The plus from Halls was that they arrived on time. However, of the 40 or so plants obtained from Station House, all were spot on, very well rooted. The minus was that they were 3 weeks late. Halls have the biggest choice, and as i was having a major change in varieties this year that's why i ordered from them. They would certainly not be my first choice for varieties i could get elsewhere on the basis of what i have received this year. |
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Post by Cherry on May 14, 2011 13:14:00 GMT
You are allowed to mention firms you are not pleased with. Members of the forum do not want to be caught out.
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Post by scrumpy on May 14, 2011 13:40:51 GMT
You are allowed to mention firms you are not pleased with. Members of the forum do not want to be caught out. do you mean not allowed? |
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Post by (DahliaMan) Cornish Paul on May 14, 2011 13:45:05 GMT
You are allowed to mention firms you are not pleased with. Members of the forum do not want to be caught out. Cherry The reason I am reluctant as you can see is that three suppliers now will not sell to me because I dared to put in a complaint regards quality of dahlias recieved. And in a couple of those cases I was comparing their plants quality against their standards of previous years. This year from one supplier I duly sent a cheque for an order and it was returned with something like 'we will not supply to you and our methods havent changed'. So I take their guarantees with a pinch of salt. I consider that there are people inevitably trying to get 'free' plants by making false claims of quality or not received etc. And I firmly believe my 'genuine' complaints are 'grouped' in with them. Nothing could be further from the truth. Conversely I have contacted firms in past years to thank them for quality of plants, packing, communication etc. I have purchased off many well known and maybe less known suppliers and some quality has been abysmal. This year after not ordering for many years from Frank Taylor, I ordered a few dahlias. Quality excellent and Frank rang me asking if he was okay to send the plants if I could take delivery. Cant beat that. In my role as club secretary I used to have a task of contacting firms asking if they would like to donate a prize for our winning exhibits/raffle/tombola. On one occasion from someone remaining nameless he dontated 2 vouchers for plants. Before the years shows we sorted what prizes to give to what, and these vouchers were of a value worthy enough for Best Exhibits at our two shows. I won both Best Exhibits and aforesaid vouchers fairly and squarely. I placed the order and plants arrived, but not what I had ordered. I rang the individual and trust me when I say I was subjected to a torrent of abuse, I mean swearing of all expletives, and was told my winning was 'very dubious' and I had gotten the F...ing plants for free. I was shocked and shaken. He cut me off and I rang him back, to face more F'ing etc etc. I was that cross I took the following measure. At our shows for many years we had professional filming done (Main Show), and filming by me for own use at the Late shows. To prove my fair winning against serious competition, I used my films and recording and created DVD's and posted them too him. I've heard nothing to this day. So there we go. And all our shows are judged by qualified judges, many of our main shows by Cyril Watkins. I have no influence, indeed after staging and packing up I always go home for my Sunday roast, then come back judging all done, to narrate on the filming. So when I say anyone I recommend, and that can even be on a yearly basis then I truly mean it. The brilliant thing about a forum such as this is an opening to discuss these findings, if only people would talk more. If anyone wishes to know suppliers I would not purchase from again then feel free to private message me. Regards, Paul |
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Post by (DahliaMan) Cornish Paul on May 14, 2011 13:58:58 GMT
Hi Sirplant Thank you for swift reply. Thats good enough for me, so I will 'trial' them next year with a small order, maybe 1/2 dozen plants or so. I like to try someone different most years with a small order, helps me decide who is worth staying with and who not, and to offer other growers my HONEST opinion. On that basis of the 5 commercial suppliers I have purchased dahlias from this year my top 3 and from whom I recommend are: Taylors Dahlias (excellent plants, excellent communication), Halls of Heddon (consistent as ever, regarded as the 'main' suppliers to us Cornish growers), Ridgeview (quality of plants, very good all rounders). I recommend them all. The other 2 suppliers I wont mention on this forum suffice to say I would be unlikely to order from again. In addition the 6 Weston Kelipe from 'our Lou' are looking in excellent shape as on the day I received them. Sirplant could you advise if you have purchased from any other suppliers, particularly ones I havent mentioned here? Please feel free to send me a private msg if preferred. Regards, Paul Just to answer Paul, Halls supplied me with some abysmal ruskin bride...out of 7 plants, only 3 were half decent. Out of the other 7 varieties i ordered, i would say a third of the cuttings came from leaf joints, not the tubers. The cuttings didn't have much root on them. After growing them on, i would say that none are of the standard of any of the cuttings i have taken myself from my own tubers. The plus from Halls was that they arrived on time. However, of the 40 or so plants obtained from Station House, all were spot on, very well rooted. The minus was that they were 3 weeks late. Halls have the biggest choice, and as i was having a major change in varieties this year that's why i ordered from them. They would certainly not be my first choice for varieties i could get elsewhere on the basis of what i have received this year. Scrumpy Many thanks for this. You speak as you find and that is my philosophy all along. It is my opinion that dahlias are not the best travellers in the post/courier no matter who from. Regards Halls the only 'problem' I have had a couple of times is mis-labelled plants. Of course too late to know until they flower. I contacted Halls and David Hall replied saying how would suppply replacements following year and this was done. So acknowledging the error and righting it. Cant say fairer than that. Regards, Paul |
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Post by Cherry on May 14, 2011 14:05:13 GMT
Goodness. That is really serious and lets the dahlia exhibitors and ordinary buyers down. You have paid the forum a compliment and you are right suggesting that people should talk more.
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Post by scrumpy on May 14, 2011 15:08:59 GMT
to follow up what i said , and to address the balance a bit, i have had the odd bad plants from Station House in the past...staleen condessa springs to mind... and this year am still waiting for one variety to arrive that should have arrived early April  So i think it's a swings and roundabouts situation. I think the main problem with the nurseries is actually us, the buyers. None of us want to spend any money if we can help it, until of course we lose all our tubers over winter and then it's a mad lets place our order time to replace what we've lost So the nurseries, desperate to complete the extras, probably send out whatever they can rather than let anyone down. And then of course, if our tubers that have survived don't throw out enough cuttings, chances are the nurseries may have the same problem. That's why i don't complain about my plants when things aren't what they should be. The other good thing about Halls is that it's far easier to speak to someone about a variety and it's habits prior to purchase. |
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Post by scrumpy on May 14, 2011 15:17:22 GMT
Goodness. That is really serious and lets the dahlia exhibitors and ordinary buyers down. You have paid the forum a compliment and you are right suggesting that people should talk more. Paul, Yes, very serious. I'd have thought it would be in the best interests of the nurseries to listen to complaints rather than take it out on the people that pay their wages. Still, you've voted in the best way possible...with your wallet. |
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richardr
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Post by richardr on May 14, 2011 15:43:14 GMT
I think the main problem with the nurseries is actually us, the buyers. None of us want to spend any money if we can help it, until of course we lose all our tubers over winter and then it's a mad lets place our order time to replace what we've lost So the nurseries, desperate to complete the extras, probably send out whatever they can rather than let anyone down. And then of course, if our tubers that have survived don't throw out enough cuttings, chances are the nurseries may have the same problem. That's why i don't complain about my plants when things aren't what they should be. As a commercial grower I'd say you are spot on Scrumpy. It's odd how one year a particular cultivar will be difficult to propagate from when one would normally expect it to be prolific. This year White Ballet springs to mind. I only send out rooted cutting and plants t hat I would be happy receiving but find that there are folks who buy rooted cuttings just because they are a lower price and do not really know how to handle them. We then get complaints because they are not thriving. I think many people do not realise that recently rooted cuttings, however strong the root growth, are still pretty delicate little things and need the correct compost and watering regime. As a note, I have bought in extra stock from major growers and received stuff that I would not have sent out. I have also received stuff that I have been entirely happy with. Fingers crossed that we have got through this year without any major damage to packages. All our plants have gone with City Link courier, excellent service. Rooted cuttings went Royal Mail; still waiting for a number of packages to be delivered (two to the same address, one being the replacement for the first!) and that is First Class recorded delivery. Still, they are prompt in paying the compensation, but that is no real answer. Pity they can't deliver the packages in the first place! |
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