Cripes Liza....That stinks! How were they shipped? USPS? A few weeks back when the bulbs went on sale I too ordered a few.I asked to have them shipped via USPS only because they garage the trucks.I'm sure WFF will replace them or problem solve for you.Is it possible to have them mailed to an address on Mainland that you could pick them up from? The nearest post office on mainland maybe could hold them there? I have had my share of frozen,frostbit,peel the mushie sore orders this winter..Fed up with that eh.Next season I wont order after freezing temps arrive here in Minnesota.Good Luck there Peace,Mark

I'm so sorry to hear about your frozen babies, Liza... how horribly disappointing!

I've been exceedingly lucky with bulbs sent during cold weather... I always request a shipping date, Priority Mail with Delivery Confirmation, and decent packaging from the company... and our small Post Office is good enough to hold packages if I call and ask. Sometimes, she'll even call me and let me know that we have a package, and ask if I'd like to come get it instead of having it ride around in the vehicle all day.

I did have one package recently that felt rather cold, but once it warmed up, I was relieved to note that they were not frozen, just a little chilly. We're having a very frigid winter this year, and I'm glad I haven't ordered very many bulbs... although, I really do miss getting all those beauties and watching them grow.

I hope you're able to reach some kind of an agreeable solution, Liza... I feel what you feel, and I'm saddened... :-(

They will replace all but the Sunrise, which they are out of, but that of course was the one I most wanted! I am hoping their may be a tiny kernal of life left in the bulb under the frozen soil.

I decided last year not to order after Jan 1, but I had been really wanting these bulbs and thought their prices were rediculously high! (Not so much the bulbs, but the shipping...so ironic tht this is where the breakdown ooccurred.

There answer was that they "Do not use bubblewrap or styrofoam peanuts". Well, great...But can't they insulate them some way in the deep winter? I feel like I slaughtered these beautiful bulbs myself! I Asked them if they can at least use newspaper to wrap them in...

I'm sometimes amazed at how different plants arrive when shipped... so far, the best packaging I've seen belongs to John Scheeper's, Logee's Greenhouse, Heirloom Roses, and Bluestone Perennials. Colorblends does a great job, too.

Most plants I've bought through Ebay have come packaged very well, as have those items from everyone here on the forum.

I'm glad you're getting replacements for most of the bulbs, Liza! I can't understand why companies don't properly pack their items before shipping... all it takes is a few moments of time, and a few handfuls of shredded paper or packing peanuts. After all the replacements they must send, you'd think they would learn.

I wish you the best, Lizalily!

When I sent Kitty her Evergreen, I packaged it in a nice jacket of quilted insulated paper (thick packaging used by Netherland Bulb Company)...and filled the box with newspaper. Since the USPS dropped it by the box outside and it was left overnight when it was 15 degrees (BRRRR!) it must have worked, as the bulb recovered. Kitty....scape or just leaves?? It only takes an extra minute to make a big difference. All seeds sent to "cold" areas will be specially packaged. I just don't like to disappoint!
:-)
K

As you know, I too received frozen bulbs from White Flower Farm. They have re shipped them 3 times and each time they have still arrived frozen. They are just going to give me a credit. Each time they were delivered by UPS and they were frozen off the truck. Sorry to hear you are going though the same thing.

Heather

I've never liked using UPS or Fed-Ex... I rely on the USPS, mostly Priority Mail or Next Day Air, and I'm never disappointed. We print our labels right online, so all we have to do is run the box to the Post Office.

I take special precautions with everything I ship, even smaller envelopes. I know that even the USPS uses automated machinery to sort, so I never put seeds in regular envelopes. Those go through rollers that crush them flat when being sorted. I usually use padded envelopes or small boxes for seeds.

One would think that after sending bulbs twice and having them arrive frozen, the company would look for an alternative method of shipping...

My method of receiving items is to know exactly when they shipped, so I can keep watching my mailbox for the packages. If a company can't give me a date of shipment, they're not getting my order.

It's not impossible to send and receive tender items during cold weather... and I don't understand how some companies just can't get it together!

I wonder if these people have never lived in colder climates and just have no conception of what winter means to the rest of us? It seems a crime to murder these bulbs this way!

Maybe there is a business opening here for one of us!

For those in colder climates, who have you had the best luck with shipping in winter? Last year easytogrowbulbs.com did the best for me...but I have most of what they are offering right now on sale.

Van Engelen didn't disappoint with shipping. They were packed very well. I hope they can live up to that next year! I would love to try them again.

Believe it or not, my last box to come from Royal Colors arrived in fine shape... and they're not know for their quick shipment or stellar packing. That would have been later in winter because the first box got lost, if some of you remember.

I think some of these companies neglect to stamp PERISHABLE, or DO NOT FREEZE, or LIVE PLANTS ENCLOSED on their packages... and even that can make a huge difference. It will be the last box thrown on the trucks in the morning before delivery, or the package handlers won't leave it out in some unheated area overnight.

Normally, I'm fairly cheap... but I always spring for the fastest and best method of shipping during colder and hotter months. You do really get what you pay for.

WFF's box was well labeled "Live Plants" but apparently the UPS guys do not understand what that means!

YOu mean they dont care...