As of today, Tues. May 16, I have sent Pickering one email and one phone call, with no response so far. I know they are a very reputable company, and I would hate to give a negative rating at Dave's Garden, so if anyone here knows of a reason why they might be "experiencing shipping difficulties" I would be grateful to hear of it. New York is wet but not experiencing flooding so far, and mail and packages are not hindered.

nastarana-
I sometimes ship packages TO Canada in my business. About two years ago my Canadian customers experienced long delays in receiving their packages. I inquired at the post office and it seems that customs was delaying packages. Waits for packages at that time to pass through customs was about a month. Sometimes if there are heightened security measures in place everything is inspected. I don't know for sure if this is the case with your package, but with Bin Laden gone now, and some of his followers seeking revenge, there may be added security in place for packages coming into the country.
I'm just saying it may not be Pickering's fault, but is is odd they did not reply to your emails and phone contact!

Thank you for the response. I suppose my roses could be held up at customs. I wonder if they will be alive when/if I receive them. Pickering is likely receiving a lot of calls and emails, so I will give them a few days to respond.

Yesterday their site posted the message that they were no longer taking orders for the year citing the unusual demand this year. Maybe it has something to do with the border inspections.

My Pickering order was delayed this year also but that was a few weeks ago. I had asked for mid April shipping. They sent me an email stating my order would be delayed but didn't say for how long. I was pleased when the order arrived the following week and in good shape.

I hope they are not experiencing any difficulties as they are my prime source for roses.

Valerie

My Pickering order came in early April and wasn't delayed; I'm in central Illinois. Truth be told, I had it delivered far too early for my convenience. But I was pleased with the quality of the plants and the service.

I was disappointed with them...this was my first year ordering. They told me it would be delayed. I asked until when, they said it would be there by the end of the week. It wasn't. When it arrived it was disappointing...see below. I don't know if they are just having a bad year, but I will think long and hard about ordering again. The problem with being a very reputable company is that you have to keep it up!

This was my email to them, which I sent on May 6 and they never responded to:

Hello. I am writing to express my disappointment. My roses arrived (not by the end of that week, but early the next week). Apart from the delay itself, and I do not know what occasioned it but suspect that the roses were in the box for a long time, the roses themselves (except for the Lovely Fairy polyanthas) were very small and spindly, and had numerous broken stems and three of them actually had mold growing on them. I rinsed them off, and planted them very carefully. I hope they make it, of course, but the experience (my first with online bareroot roses) was disappointing so I wanted to let you know.

Simon.

The first and only time I ordered from Pickering (this was year before last and they had a great reputation too) I bought John Cabot and I think it was Ramblin Red, and both never broke dormancy. I waited a couple months and nada. How disappointing! Those were of course bareroot and had soaked ahead some too.
I also had bought 3 Twister mini roses that I had problems with them balling on me. But those didn't do too bad otherwise. I have since replaced all with own roots from another source and they've done wonderfully.

I have them shipped in mid-March--that way I don't have to worry about them getting too warm during transit. They can sit in the garage if the ground hasn't sufficiently thawed for planting.

I received an email this morning stating that my plants had been shipped today, May 17. Temps are still cool, so I am not worried about them getting too warm.

Simcan's comments re roses in a box a long time and mold are rather alarming. I am still learning how to garden in a cold winter climate, and I would rather not have to deal with more abused roses. I shall hope for the best till they arrive.

I also had my shipment delayed for 10 days about 3 weeks ago. The roses however, arrived already and are first class.

Seven gallicas were shipped earlier this spring, exactly as promised. The roses were in great shape and are starting to put out foliage.

I've only ordered twice from them but was very happy both times. Gean

This was also my first time ordering from Pickering Nurseries and I have no complaints. I placed my order in March at which point they had told me they would ship my roses on the 19th of April. I few days before they were scheduled to ship I called in to change and add roses to my order. They were very accommodating. They did tell me that because of the changes to my order there might be a delay.

I received my rose May 3rd which was surprising since I was expecting them to take longer. I had ordered a lot of the smaller specimens but was surprised at how large they actually were.

I soaked them overnight in water and planted them the next day. Nothing was broken. Nothing had any mold. Overall they were better than I had expected.

Almost 3 weeks later and they all have new growth and seem very happy. I would use them again although next year I will also be trying Palatine which I have heard good things about.

I ordered roses for a fall delivery date last year. They arrived later than originally schedule due to unfavorable field conditions, but this was not a problem I planted them promptly. The root systems grew during the winter and they began to bud out in mid winter. They are all growing well and all 8 have bloomed; it appears that one may be the wrong rose, but we will see a second bloom cycle before we seek a replacement. The specimens have larger root systems than those produced in the US that are grafted onto Dr. Hewey rootstock, but the caliper of the canes is smaller. All are growing well. Of the 10 that 1 received last year: 8 are huge and doing very well; one did not make it (a smaller specimen sold at a $2 discount); and one was mislabeled. They promptly provided credit for the mislabled one and for the one that died. I have grown Pickering roses grafted onto multiflora rootstock in 2 homes in Central CA (Gilroy and Oakdale) and in one in south eastern TX (Houston area) and all have done very well. I had the chance to visit their facility in Ontario, Canada around 5 or 6 years ago and enjoyed meeting the owners. They are really nice people and are genuinely interested in pleasing their customers. All shipments that I have been sent have been in excellent condition and with no mold. I will continue to order from them as they have an excellent selection, their prices are reasonable, and their quality (at least for me) excellent.

Thaank you to everyone for the testimonials. I continue to hope for the best, especially in view of Pickering's stellar reputation.

Roses arrived today! Wow! Huge bareroot plants. Grafted onto something, multiflora I suppose. Alba suavolens, Celestial, Mme. Legras en St. Germain, Amelia.

I have never understood why albas need to be grafted, but I am not complaining. The plants had been washed and were still wet, so I can understand why mold might grow with a long transit time.

They are loafing in a mud bath right now.

Well, I am delighted that there are so many positive experiences, though of course it doesn't help my situation any! And the fact they never responded to what was a polite complaint is a bit hard to swallow. Anyway, not trying to cost them any business, just stating my experience. I am glad I appear to be the exception.

This year I ordered from Pickering exceptionally late, some plants were available only in smaller size but all arrived in great shape and all are blooming already. So far so good, as usually is with them.

My order shipment date was 05/03/11, but I still did not receive my package. This was my first order from them, so I did not know what to expect.

Earwig, I sent an email and left a phone message, with no response, but a few days later came an email stating that the roses had been shipped that day, and the roses themselves arrived 2 days later. Maybe you would want to call or email a gentle reminder?

Mine were the largest bareroots I have seen.

Hello,

I ordered from Pickering in the second week of April and they also told me there would be a shipping delay. I am in Toronto, so it's not US customs causing the problem. My roses were shipped 3 weeks after I ordered them, and only after I had called twice to inquire about the delay. The woman I spoke with, Donna, was extremely pleasant and understanding, but it didn't much help me get my roses until the second phone call, at which point she suggested that she would take them to the PO herself by the end of the day. The shipment did go out the next day, actually, and Canada Post was fine with getting it to me within 2 days or so. My roses arrived in good shape - American Beauty, Disco Tango, and Koen. Danemark - and all of them are leafing very well. This was also my first time ordering from Pickering. I would advise calling them if your roses are very delayed. I called them on the 905 area code number (not the 800 number) during normal business hours and both times my call was answered without delay.

I order from Pickering in the Fall. They are all OGR's and are getting ready to bloom! Have Patience they will arrive.

I received my order today, in great shape, with well developed root system. I planted right away 2 Paul Himalayan Musks and 1 Super Dorothy. Both ramblers are intended to cover 2 large trees in my backyard.
Overall I am happy with my order. Delays can happen anywhere, and the companies do not have enough staff to notify everybody.

I received my order earlier in the week. I was really happy with the quality of my plants.