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Wednesday 4 May 2011

First of the mail order critiques .. "Botanus"

Well the first plant goody package arrived and not with a totally positive feeling or impression.
First it seems that my "Midnight Oil" iris was not well packed at all .. most of the soil fell out due to poor attention to sealing it in better .. poor thing popped it's paper sack and threw up dirt !
Not a good point with that eruption !
See the dirt flung about ? perhaps a chicken got in there and was looking for dinner ?


Poor little iris going a bit yellow at the gills ...


One positive point was my free gift .. "Bright Eyes" I don't have a phlox paniculata and of course being pink was another positive .. so they are buttering me up !


Next was a small plant (but better than a bare root) Green Envy echinacea .. this one is hard to find so I resorted to the mail order thing ... I have high hopes ?


It doesn't look so bad at all really and at least it was packed better than the iris and was moist .. so that was a good point !


But my iris was so SAD .. good thing I had potting soil on hand on the deck to help the little critter out until I can plant them hopefully tomorrow !





So there was my Botanus order ... some bad .. some good .. hum?


Now how do I rate this ?


I think out of a 10 rating .. maybe a 6+ .. I would have liked better packing .. more attention to detail on that one .. larger plants would always have gotten my attention and appreciation ... On the plus side, I recieved a free plant which is always CANDY for me : ) Would I order from them again ? .. if they offer "White Licorice" Weeks rose I have to .. I can't find that rose and I am obsessed by it !

12 comments:

Darla said...

I'd say they all arrived pretty well Joy, it was a long journey I'm sure. I don't have the bright eyes but have seen photos and I think it's beautiful! I rate your first order an 8.

Lona said...

Joy Girl they did not do too well in their packaging. Your deserved a free plant after that. I have Bright Eyes phlox and it is so pretty. You will like her.

Lona said...

Edmunds Roses has White Licorice but they are not in Canada.
http://www.edmundsroses.com/dp.asp?pID=24691&c=7&p=White+Licorice+Floribunda+Rose

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Darla girl you are much kinder than I am ! haha .. I set pretty high standards and I was disappointed about the iris falling out and having its soil dumped like that .. but the bonus point was this free plant .. I hope I can find the right spot for my first Pholx !!

OH !!!! Lona you are such a tease girl !! I so want that rose and I was just that close to getting it, darn it all .. but I end up with a free phlox so I have to stop complaining right ? at some point ... right ?? hehehehe

Gatsbys Gardens said...

I know Joy, it's always a roll of the dice when we order online. I ordered this year again from Digging Dog Nursery in California and one of the Brunnera (silver Wings) looked a little sad but I noticed today it is sending up many new shoots.

Overall, I had pretty good luck ordering on line, roses, daylilies, perennials, etc.

Eileen

Barry said...

Joy:
I have heard less than positive things about Botanus and in honesty, I'm not keen on their catalogue so have steered clear. Seeing the packing job they did on a two item order [less the free gift] - I would have to give them a failing grade. I can't imagine what six or seven plants would have looked like! I am about to embark on an order from another BC supplier - shipping costs are exorbitent [20 base and then an addition $4 for each one gallon pot, but this is the price one pays for an established plant.... lets hope its established or you will hear me screaming all tyhey way in Kingston!.] I hope that all three thrive under your tender loving care. The perils of mail order plant buying!

RURAL said...

I am so disappointed that it didn't measure up to what it should have been. That sort of packaging is terrible.

Did you contact them?

They are based in Langley near me, and I have always gotten their catalouge.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Hello Eileen : )
This was a first time for me with this company and now I have the experience to go by .. we are pushed to order on line because we can't find what we are looking for in the local area .. so yes! a roll of the dice for sure .. now I am a little wiser ;-)

Hello barry dear : )
This was my first time and I was curious .. so now my curiosity has been satisfied and no, I would not order from them again UNLESS they have that darn rose I so want .. then I am forced to ? LOL
Wow ! but yup ! the price of shipping an established plant is high .. is that Phoenix Perennials by any chance ?.. I am VERY curious about them since they started mail order . so I want to know how it goes .. but if the screaming starts I'll have a good idea from that ? LOL

Hi there Jen girl .. I think I might just do that .. contact them with some pictures and see what happens from there .. a good way to find out how their customer relations is handled ? It was disappointing but never having ordered from them before .. I just had to find out ! LOL wink wink

Lisa at Greenbow said...

It is always so exciting to open one of these packages. I hope your plants are responding to being out in the garden already.

Anonymous said...

'White Licorice' looks outstanding from the photo on your sidebar. I hope you can get it sometime soon. I have 'Bright Eyes' phlox and she is a pretty thing indeed. You'll love her. As for the overall look of your order, I concur. About a 6+. It would have been nice for the plants to have been a little bit bigger, a little better packaged. I look forward to seeing your next order. Great post, girl friend. :)

Marguerite said...

Joy, great idea posting the results of your mail orders. Living in PEI there isn't as many nurseries to go to and I'm looking seriously at mail ordering many plants. Never heard of Botanus before so now I know!

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Lisa it is like Christmas when one of these arrives at my door .. love that "being a kid again" feeling and looking forward to how the plants will look as they mature!

Grace girl I so want that rose it is ridiculous, hopefully next year if I can't find it this year(rats!)
I'm looking forward to Bright Eyes and some how I just knew you might have her with the pink factor ? haha .. actually I have a foot note to post about Botanus .. keep reading ? wink wink
... and I am sure the others are coming soon so I better be ready to start the BIG planting session!

Marguerite this is the part of my gardening adventure that has happened for me now .. I have a mature garden and collected most of the plants I had thought I wanted .. now I have to reach further for different ones and this is about the only way I can do that .. so I hope this helps you if you have any questions or what not ! : )