I have had no experience with them. However, I received some plants from TheChileWoman (thechilewoman.com) today. Just gorgeous plants, perfect shipping method, timely. I was amazed how lush they were.

I highly recommend ordering from them.

Chris

Kendra and I have ordered from Cross Country for a few years now without any problems. (this is the first year we started from seed)Almost all of the plants we received were in great shape, lush and ready to plant. Once or twice when a plant just didn't survive, they graciously shipped a replacement. If they are out of a variety you ordered, they will try to replace it with one(s) that are most like it. Contact them right away-they will make it right, they seem like good folks.
Chile Woman also has some very nice plants. We made a late decision to grow some Datils this year, so we tried her out. You only have to order 6 (instead of at least 12 from CC), but you cannot pay online-you must download an order form and mail it in. But all in all, they're both excellent nurseries!
b

I've had a great experience with Cross Country. The plants I've ordered from them are doing better than the ones I've grown from seed or bought elsewhere. As far as not having the plant you wanted in stock, I would recommend ordering much earlier in the season to ensure they have what you want. You can place your order early in the season, and specify the date you want them to ship to avoid frost.

for what it is worth, i have never ordered from them but what setzuanfire said i have heard many many many times before. give them a shout and see if they will make it right.

i bet good things will happen.

I ordered from Cross Country this year and was very pleased. A few of the plants were bent over but they straightened up after transplanting. And djcorrosive is right - ordering early is the way to go.

If you followed their post-shipment directions (water if necessary, let them rest in the shade, etc.) and they still don't look good then give them a call. I'm sure they'll make it right.

Ive been waiting on this one.....last year i placed my first order with Cross Country....18 plants arrived beautuful and healthy,then it happened,i drowned the poor things after transplanting them.I e-mailed pics of the sick babies to Janie,(owner i believe)and called her for advice,Not only did she tip me off on my next move with them,she sent me the exact same order again at n/c.,(how often you find a stand up place like that ?)I am happy to report from the first shipment only 4 plants did'nt make it and i wound up with 32 awesome plants from them,plus the 9 i sprang from seeds purchased elsewhere...so 41 plants ALL in containers in a hot Texas summer,beleive me,my hands were full and i had more peppers than i could give away...as far as customer satisfaction..i'll just say you can begin ordering on Jan.1 and i did at 1 am,12 new babies again,all perfect and i pledge to order from there every season !...i HAVE to say Thanks to Janie and C.C.N,you've got a customer for life !

I stART my own from seed, but all my friends use CC and have no problem on shipment. Give them a call theY will do you right.
dan

LET IT BURN

I agree with everyone (am the kendra in setzuanfire's post). Call Janie (the owner) or email her. She will make things right. They do say on their order form that if they are out of a variety they will autosubstitute unless you tell them what you want them to do. But she is very friendly and will work with you if there is something wrong

kendra

> First off, the one pepper I was so excited to get wasn't in there.

Bent over bent over or bent over broken? Nothing wrong with a bent over plant. It will straighten out.

Just curious.... what plant did you not get?

Do you snip bottom leaves and plant deep like a tomato? Works for misshapen or lanky seedlings.

Thanks for all of the responses people. The plants are starting to perk up a little now. One will die for sure but I think the rest will make it. The one I really wanted but didn't get was datil sweet. Really excited about it, but oh well, life goes on. I really think UPS is to blame here. I think they must have kicked the box all the way to my door. LOL.

I've ordered from chileplants.com the last five years or so, and they've always done right by me.

This year's order was mostly capsicum baccatum, and they were bent way over in the box. The Baccatums tend to be lanky and tree-like, so I kind of expected this. Once transplanted, even the wispy chimayo chile started to thrive.

I also order extras in case of hail, rabbits, and other natural disasters :)

Did she substitute a pepper for the Datil sweet? Which one was it. Just curious
I grew datil sweets from her last year and was not that impressed with the chile. The aji dulce and the st. lucia seasoning were much better.

kendra

She substituted it with Trinidad Perfume. Like I said I am definately not blaming them for all of this, mainly UPS. Just a bummer when plants look terrible from shipping and on top of it I didn't get that one. All in all I think I just had an unfortunate experience, and I am not holding it against anyone. It definately won't keep me from ordering from them in the future.

She usually tries to substitue with something very similar so I would think that the Trinidad Perfume should give you a very close representation.
I am glad you are taking this well...:)
They really are a very good company and I am glad that you would be willing to give them a 2nd chance.
If that one pepper dies on you, email her and she will give you a freebie replacement next year. That happened to me and she remembered the next season and popped an extra one in my box.

kendra

Trinidad Perfume has a chinense flavor without the heat. The sweet datil I grew turned out to be very hot.

sweet datils are not supposed to be very hot though.

aren't they supposed to be datil flavor with little heat?
Mine had little heat last year.

kendra

No, not supposed to be hot. Had the same experience with Trinidad Seasoning which was also supposed to be mild but was very hot. I believe the hot gene is dominant so if there is any crossing you end up with a hot pepper.

john

I now have experience with Cross Country Nurseries. :) I got enticed by their offer for plants for $1.75 (end of season sale). I ordered some Bhut Jolokias since my grown plants from seed don't look great. There were also a few other C. Chinese I wanted to try from there.

I am very impressed with their plants. Great packaging, nice looking translants. I give them a thumbs up. No damage at all in transit.

Chilewoman's plants were a bit larger and more lush, but both companies are very close. I'd feel confident with either place that the merchandise is top notch.

I'll always grow from seed for the most part because I couldn't afford to buy the quantity of plants I grow each season. But for specialty ones or those growing lesser quantities, I think these places are wonderful outlets to buy plants!

Chris

I have ordered from them 3 times and have always been satisfied.

I just received my Grenada Hot, Harold's St. Bart, Cayenne Carolina, Salmon Cayenne, Yellow Rocoto, and 2 plants I didn't order Amarillo Chiltepin. I had ordered the Amarillo Chilhuacle (I wanted to try making some chicken mole) and they made a mistake.

Janie is sending out the Chilhuacle this week, no charge.