Never, NEVER order from Aloha Orchid Nursery. The Better Business Bureau says "this company has an unsatisfactory record. . . . Company failed to respond to the BBB to resolve or address the complaint issues. . . . Unpursuable - The company cannot be located or is out of business." Yet they're still selling stuff. My sister sent me "4 Blooming Dendrobium Orchid Plants" for my birthday. When I received them, they weren't blooming, and in fact two appeared to be dying. I called and spoke to Mahehalani. First she told me that there was absolutely no guarantee for orchid plants, even if they're already dying when they're mailed and further damaged by lousy packing. I told her the plants clearly weren't "blooming," and she claimed "budding" was the same thing. Realizing I was going nowhere fast, I pointed her to the "Tropical Flower Guarantee" on their website (http://www.alohaorchid.com/flower_guarantee.aspx) stating "We offer 100% unconditional guarantee on all of our tropical flowers." She claimed that this doesn't apply to orchids -- which are clearly tropical flowers -- and in fact ONLY applies to anthuriums, WHICH THEY NO LONGER SELL. Apparently, then, the guarantee doesn't apply to ANYTHING they sell. I emailed the sales department and they confirmed what Mahehalani said: that I was stuck with ugly, dying plants. See photos at my website and decide for yourself if I've been defrauded. But please, please don't give these people your business. Here is a link that might be useful: My website

I'm excited too. Mine are suppose to be here today! This is my first time! Where do I find the pomegranate list for next year? Thanks and take care, UPDATE: Gottem as I was in the middle of this email! The only one I couldn't get was the Adriatic (boo-hoo) but I got the other five- NOW what do I do? yikes- (just kidding) Taking Jon's step by step but mine will be housed on top of the fridge till they start rooting! You guys are great- would never be able to do any of this without your help- Thanks again! Christy

There is no phone number. I submitted the order to Bernie Prins, as the instructions below the order form download page. In the body of the email, I simply stated, "Please find and confirm attached request for plant material", along with a "thanks for everything you do!" (because I seriously appreciate it!!). About 3 weeks later, I got a confirmation email from someone at UCD along with my order # and a thanks for footing the bill on shipping - NOTE: your spam filter on your email may catch the confirmation email as spam - you never know. I have the fortune of running my own mailserver, and use methods other than spam filtering to prevent getting spam email. This is something to think about though, or, if possible, set your spam filter to allow delivery of all emails from anyone "@ars.usda.gov" When I found that they had Verino and I totally missed it, I'm sure it is a burden for them, but I emailed the person who confirmed my order and requested "please please please add Vernino to my order, I'm a blockhead and forgot it." They were kind enough to oblige. Very gracious. I'll never make that mistake again, and would recommend that everyone else double-check, triple-check your order before sending it off! One other thing to note is to see on the page where you download the order form, it specifically says to email to "Bernie Prins", and this is what I did. I see some people in posts above talking about how there is a lot of "any questions? email Howard Garrison" at the bottom of several pages. Howard is not the person you're supposed to email your order to.

greenpond, My favorite pet peeve! I just love it when a customer comes to my store, opens the back of their Explorer, and asks me to load that 150 lb recliner in the back which has 2" of clearance on each side. Usually, its a slightly built woman (sorry ladies!) and there is just no way I can lift that in there without tearing up myself or the furniture. That has happened more times than I can count. How are you going to unload it at home? Pulling a 150 lb recliner out of an SUV is awkward, and is a perfect way to wreck your back. You will never see anyone in the furniture business deliver in a truck that requires them to bend over and reach - or crawl into a minivan and duck-crawl with a piece. I've seen a lot of people hurt themselves or drop the furniture over the years. We in the business have developed lifting techniques and have the tools to load and handle furniture safely without injuring ourselves. When you pull up in an SUV and ask us to load into it, we are at risk of hurting ourselves as well, yet we try to grin and bear it for the sake of customer service. Here's why stores prefer not to do this. These don't load smoothly due to confined spaces, Pieces can get bumped or bruised either during loading or in transit. Because the store assisted loading, we are legally liable for damages to the piece. I learned that lesson the hard way in the 80's. And if we place it on the sidewalk and say 'there you go' then that looks bad as well, as if we don't care. That's why we offer delivery, where we have all the right equipment to load, pad, and secure in a truck a person can stand up in. But yes, delivery does cost money, and many people do not want to pay for that service. I would estimate we damage 1 piece in 5,000 on my delivery truck. Customers hauling their own run a damage rate of about 1 in every 100. Oh, the stories! Here's a couple: * Did you know boxed furniture tends to fly out of pickup trucks at about 45 - 50 mph? Goes right over the tailgate and hits the highway. When it does, the customer has no insurance to cover it, as its cargo in transit which means it requires an Inland Marine rider to your auto/truck policy. You probably don't have that rider. I've had at least a dozen customers lose boxed furniture out of pickup trucks, including 250 lb sofas that they assumed were heavy enough to stay put - smashed on the interstate. * NEVER send a man to pickup furniture during his work day. They are always in a hurry, fail to load carefully or secure, or even pad the pieces, and ultimately I get a tearful call from the Mrs. hours later asking how to repair damages. Even more true if hubby is in the construction business and has a work truck full of wood, concrete and building residue and debris. Big mistake. There are times when for whatever reason its not practical to use the store delivery service. Maybe you have a beach house three hours away, or need the recliner for someone coming out of the hospital today. If you choose to haul yourself and the piece is heavy, sometimes its best to rent a cube van with a walk ramp, hand truck, tiedowns and pads. If the pieces are lighter, then SUVs and pickups can work, but bring plenty of pads (furniture-grade, not worn-out blankets) and tiedowns. Bungee cords at the very least, camlock rachets preferred, but not clothesline rope - and never nylon rope as it stretches. Plastic palletizing wrap is a godsend to keeping pads attached to the piece while loading. Have plenty of egress for the piece in question to load. Its no good to try to get things in with one inch to spare - thats always tough. And finally, bring your own muscle to the store. We'll supervise and be glad to give loading advice! Deliveries are not a profit center for most stores. We try to break even on them (most the time I lose money with diesel at $ 4.00 a gallon) but in most cases its the safe way to do it for both bodies and the furniture. -Duane Collie