After years of dealing with Jackson and Perkins, I have come to never be surprised when the plants show up. Some years they have showed up real early and some years real late.

Where are you located, midnightgardener?
There are three nurseries within a 5 mile radius of my house that carry a good selection of J&P, Stars and Weeks roses and always their new introductions, so I don't even think of mail ordering from them (I don't buy that many of them anyway).
Masha

After my experience with Jackson Perkins last year I will never order another rose from them again. Roses that didn't grow and numerous phone calls to receive replacements that were also below the standards of the nursery I believed them to be reliable and with a good reputation. My experience was not the worse. A friend spent over 800 dollars on roses and 60 percent never grew. Good luck with your order and as you stated buyer beware.

"Where are you located, midnightgardener? "

There are also numerous nurseries near me, however, I choose to order online because none of them had roses in stock in December. I have since visited one of them and it took me a couple of hours just to look at all of the roses they had in stock. I did get a Vavoom, Double Delight and Bluegirl from the local nursery. What sucks is that the roses I ordered from J&P were also there but having already paid for them I am not going to buy them again. At the rate they are taking to get my roses to me though it looks like I may have to purchase locally. Next year I will know better and get in the car and get my roses at my local nursery.

I suggest you call your credit card company and dispute the transaction.
In most instances they will side with you and reverse the charges.
You can then let J&P know exactly what they can do with their roses.
I used to deal with J&P a lot but since the sale I have heard way too many stories like yours.

Wow, thanks for sharing and I hope you get your roses soon. I was going to place an order from them in a few days (Valentine's present) but I don't think I will now. Please let us know when you get them and in what kind of shape they are in.

Shades of Hortico. Remember, that J&P is no longer an entity of itself, but rather, is a division of Parks Nurseries in Greenwood, SC. Parks has never known diddly about roses anyway, so I am not surprised at your tale. If I were you, I would order the group from someone else, and when and if your roses do show up, send them back, collect. Hound them continually until you get your money back, and if not, sue them for it. These are the people who give rose nurseries a bad name. As I have repeatedly said, "Ignorance can be cured, but stupidity is forever."

That's such a disappointment! Sorry to hear you have had such problems. I got some roses from J&P each of the last few years without any problem, but this year since they have been bought out, I decided not to chance it. Call your credit card company and tell them you have been charged for stuff you haven't gotten and let them deal with it.

Don't call your credit card company without SENDING a letter specifying why the charge shouldn't be paid. Be specific as to dates, and to lack of answers from J&P.

Send a copy to the owners of J&P.

I was going to order from them but have put it off for a few days, and after reading this I am so glad I did not place that order. It is a shame that another rose company has gone down the tubes. I get their catalog all the time, but I think I will not even waste my time looking at it but toss it. Thanks so much for posting this and I hope you get your money back.

Roseman's right on target.

I grieve for every rose nursery we lose.
As far as I'm concerned, J&P, with it's long history of fine roses, is dead as a doornail.

The name lingers on, but it's like a zombie occupying the corpse of a loved-one.

Rest In Peace, J&P.

Jeri

J&P won't get my money. I would dispute the charges also, with Ann's advice.

Carla

I had a similar experience with them last year. I ordered two standards from them. When they arrived, and god only knows how long it took for them to arrive, they were covered in white fuzzy fungus. When I called and complained they said no problem, we send you two more. After an other long period, only one rose arrived, which was also covered in fuzz and most of the main cane dead. I called and complained again. They said since they have run out of the veriety I ordered they did not include it in shipment. I chose a replacement and they were suppose to send me two new ones. When the box arrived, there was only one rose in it and it was just a horrible example of a rose.

I called again, (each time I had to call, I had to go over the long story and convice them that I knew what I was talking about. Not only some of the reps did not even know what a bud union was, but also tried to correct me and teach me about roses.) Mind you, I ordered in Feb. and by the time the last rose imposter has arrived it was in July and past their shipping date. They refunded my money, but not the shipping. That is the last time I am buying from them directly.

FJ

Gosh, their catalogs are a pleasure to look through. Guess I'll look and hold back on the impulse to order.

This thread has been a real eye-opener for me. I thought that JP was a reliable company, and I agree that their catalogs are just wonderful. With the economy in the condition that it is, you would think that companies that provide non-essential goods would be extra careful about customer relations. ( I'm sorry to call roses "non-essential" - please forgive!)
I ordered 3 yellow Simplicity own-root roses from JP about a year ago. I have never planted anything that died so quickly. At the time, I blamed the climate, but now I'm not so sure...

Hang onto your old J&P catalogs. The bush shots have some really creative photoshopping. They are getting better than the year that they had the same half a rose (really, half with a straight cut line where the other half was missing) eight different places on same photo.
Cheap fun.

Last time I looked at a J&P catalog, several photos were of the wrong rose (way off, like a yellow rose shown as Firefighter!), rose names misspelled, and the information was not accurate. Like Ann said, good for a laugh but for rose shopping? Not so much. Too bad as they've come up with some wonderful floribundas and even a few shrubs out of their hybridizing program.

Update:

I received my roses today. Although I am no rose expert, they don't look to good to me. And my understanding of the way bareroot roses were supposed to be shipped was that the roots came wrapped in sawdust or something. These roses were truly bareroot, no dirt, no sawdust, nothing. As to my original post, I debated quite a while before I made my post. I don't want to talk bad about any company, especially in these tough times, but these guys deserved it. I am including some pics of the roses they sent me. Ok all of you rose experts, what do you think, do they look sickly or what?

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Are there enough roots to support the canes?
Looking at the roots, have they cut the roots back or can you tell if all the roots are healthy and intact?

The canes look good, although I'm surprised how huge some of the secondary canes are.

The middle photo of three has a problem with a rotting cane with a new growth emerging from just below the metal tag. I'd expect that rot to spread and take the new cane that's emerged from just below it.
Also on that bush, is the white stuff washable-off?

They trimmed those roses just before shipping; watch the cuts to make sure that their secateurs didn't spread fungal problems.

I ordered from J&P in Dec also and the receipt showed 2 roses I hadn't even ordered. After several calls and a constant repetition of they were shipping the next week. They never were shipped and I totally cancelled the order. I will never order directly from them again tho I do still buy their roses at the local nursery where the bare roots are already potted up.

I'll never order there again either! I ordered 6 climbing roses from them last spring. I found out after the fact that the roses I ordered were not hardy in my zone! Jackson and Perkins does NOT list the hardiness zone recommendations on their site. What a way to do business! I have since learned and will not order from a company that doesn't even have the courtesy to list a zone. I will probably replace those roses this spring, but not at J & P!

I echo Jeri here. J&P was a great company. My first few orders came from them. All of their roses thrived. The customer service was great and there were knowledgeable people who actually talked to me.

I've only been into roses for about 6 years. What I've seen in this market, in such a short time, is astounding. It makes me sad.

midnightgardner,

I am sorry to say that the roses that you posted the pics of do not look good to me either although the pith in the canes look ok, I would plant them and see what happens. That is really ashame, what is the matter with these companies, charging you so much money for these roses and this is what you get, its awful! I'm growing my own.

midnightgardner:

The roses they have sent you are disaster. Call the company and demand to speak to a supervisor. Ask for your money back and do not accept replacement. Make sure they know that you will list these pictures on Dave's Garden and any other rose site that you come across. Make a note of the name of the person you talked to, location, and their extension.

Seriously, the way they are doing business is ridiculous. Let this be a lesson to all of us when we feel tempted to order from them.

FJ

Midnightgardener,
Perhaps those roses are not in great shape, but the canes are thick and live. I would cut out that rotting cane in the middle, plant them, and expect them to grow :-).
Masha

I think Masha's right.
They're not great, but I've seen a lot worse.

Jeri

"I ordered 6 climbing roses from them last spring. I found out after the fact that the roses I ordered were not hardy in my zone! Jackson and Perkins does NOT list the hardiness zone recommendations on their site. What a way to do business!"

While it isn't asking a whole lot to have a company publish hardiness ratings, I think it is ultimately the responsibility of the buyer to do their own research before purchasing; caveat emptor. You might have obtained that information by simply calling J&P and asking them for their recommendations. Failing that, you could ask people in your climate if they had any experience with the varieties you were considering. I don't think its really all J&P's fault that you ended up with unsuitable roses.

That said, I am not particularly interested in defending J&P in any way. I had some interaction with two of their sales reps once that brought vastly greater richness to the meaning of the word rude. I guess there comes a time when you can afford to p*** off your customer base.

Ahhh, as we used to say about a certain phone giant, "we don't care - we don't have to."

Sad.

-Greta

I just got through planting them. I did cut out the dead/black looking cane. That cane was on the Mr. Lincoln. I also cut a couple of canes off of the other ones because they looked like one cane was rubbing against another and that can't be good. As far as demanding my money back, no way. I am done with them and don't need nor want the grief. I'm considering it a $60.00 lesson. I did send them an email telling them that the quality of their roses is terrible and I also let them know that I am going to post a warning about them in my blog and on every rose forum I can find. Here is the response I got to my email:

"Dear **********,

Jackson and Perkins Order #295620

Thank you so much for contacting us here at Jackson and Perkins! We value our customers comments and questions highly, and we appreciate hearing from you.

Our records show that your order was shipped 2/10/09. I hope you will enjoy the new additions to the garden.

Again, thank you for writing to us. If you have any further questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact us. To help us serve you better, please use the Reply button to respond so that all previous communications will be included. Thank you for gardening with Jackson and Perkins!

Barbara
Jackson and Perkins Customer Contact Team
2 Floral Avenue
Hodges, South Carolina 29653
Telephone: 800-292-4769
Fax: 800-242-0329
http://www.jacksonandperkins.com
email: service@jacksonandperkins.com"

That's just laughable!!!

It sounds like they didn't even read your e-mail. It looks like they just sent a reply that they send to everyone regardless.

Breaking news!!! J & P has just declared themselves a bank and are getting $76 million and you are considered the bad assets the government just bought from them. Wave that flag.

"Breaking news!!! J & P has just declared themselves a bank and are getting $76 million and you are considered the bad assets the government just bought from them. Wave that flag."

Lmao! Amen brother! Pass the shovel cause its gettin deep!

I am sorry that you have had problems with J&P. I order the Hybrid Tea Test Rose Panel every year and usually a couple of other roses as well for good measure. I have luckily never had any issues with them at all. On the rare occasion I have had problems with the roses they have been eager and quick to make amends by refund or replacement.
John

Always check the Garden Watchdog before any mail ordering. Here's the scoop on JP. I would suggest adding your reviews.

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden Watchdog scoop on Jackson & Perkins

I haven't bought a J&P rose in well over 20 years. Now you know why.

I bought from them last year and was very happy. I suggest you plant your roses, and give them a chance.

Your reply from JP sounds like an automated response. I'd bet no human being ever even saw your original email, let alone typed in the response. It sounds to me like a canned script that picks up your name from your email, retrieves the ship date of your order from their database, and then sends out this automated reply.

No, there is no Barbara. It's all just a computer database script. That's the direction customer service has been going for some years now.

I'm sorry you've had such trouble. They used to be an ok company. The roses in your photo don't look all that bad, but the service was horrible. And yes bare root roses are often shipped totally bare, no sawdust or anything. The white fuzzy stuff on shipped roses is usually botrytis. Light infestations die off quickly once the plant is in the open air, but heavier infestations have to be trimmed off.

Let's hope your roses grow fine!

To those who love the catalog, all I can say is that the first J&P catalog I received was in 1975 (I was fifteen). I got a few more, but never bought (no $$) and then went to college (as a horticulture major). The next time I got a J&P catalog was a couple of years ago.

I was stunned (in a bad way) at the difference!!

Perennials? Lawn furniture????

This used to be one of the country's premier rose nurseries! Those 1970's catalogs were 100% roses!

Since 1999 through 2007 I have ordered a total of 142 rose bushes from J&P. In 08 & 09 I did not order any as I have NO room in my yard for any more plants!
Of the 142 I still have 139 J&P bushes. 3 did not make it. That is pretty good I think. I am sorry to hear about their decline in service.

My Jackson and Perkins roses arrived last week. Healthy, good roots and canes - just fine. I have no complaints with their product or their customer service. I was very happy with the roses I received from them and will order from them in the future if they have roses I want. I have ordered from them since the 70's and have never gotten a poor quality rose. If one didnt make it, they sent me another with no questions asked.
Judith

Well, it sure sounds to me like the majority of people find this company horrible. When MerryGro Roses was in business,(a J&P dealer who grafted their roses on fortuniana), I sure had my share of troubles with the quality of their roses, and their lack of customer service and/or lack of response. No luck with J&P directly either. Only after disputing my credit card charges did I ever get a return phone call or e-mail. The bank forced them to resolve the issue.

I sure won't ever deal with them again! There are lots of other wonderful rose nurseries that I deal with, that deserve my business and have my utmost loyalty.

Sandy