Annoyed at Park Seed...Again

14 years ago

I said after last year's fiasco on the onion seed, I would never order from them again. I did because they had some flower seeds on sale that I wanted....ordered the onion seed too....seeds came yesterday.

And they back-ordered the onion seeds again. I think I will call and cancel them. What on earth is their excuse this early in the year.

My deadline used to be by Valentine's Day.

The SESE seeds came within a few days of ordered. Still waiting on Baker Creek......

I may break down and order from Dixondale. The plants Dawn generously sent me last year did outstandingly well.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (2)

Okiedawn OK Zone 7
14 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Glenda,

Although Park Seed aggravates me in general, I ordered 3 packs of seed from them 2 weeks ago and received my seed within a week, so this particular time I can't say anything bad about them. (In some previous years, though, I've been in the very same boat you're in.)

I already ordered almost everything (and more) that I think I need for 2010, except for seeds I want from the few companies who haven't updated their websites yet for 2010.

I think the seed companies are caught between a rock and a hard place on this one. I believe they are trying to update their websites and get their catalogs out earlier and earlier to please those of us who shop early, but they haven't even received their seeds from their wholesale growers, most of whom are overseas. Few of the major seed companies sell seed grown only in the USA any more.

Some of the seeds I have ordered (notably, the two Brandymaster varieties of tomatoes at Totally Tomatoes that I didn't already have) are backordered too, and I assume that's because the seed hasn't arrived from the wholesale grower.

I noticed last week that Johnny's Selected Seed already had "Back Ordered" on a lot of its 2010 variety listings along with the date the seed is expected to be available there. Then, this week, their 'new' website was supposed to be up, but instead it is misbehaving.

I know that when I ordered from Baker Creek, I used the "new cart" so I could order 2010 varieties, and they stated that "new cart" orders wouldn't begin shipping until sometime after mid-December, so I wasn't expecting that order right away.

The three companies that have shipped amazingly fast this year for me have been Willhite Seeds, Renee's Garden Seeds and Seeds From Italy. In all three cases, I received my seed orders less than a week after I placed the online order. In fact, I think in each case, the seeds arrived 3 or 4 days after I ordered online. SESE usually ships within just a couple of days of receiving the order too.

I've been less and less happy with Burpee and Park for several years now. Their prices keep going up, the seed counts in the package keep going down, they have to backorder constantly and they are much slower to ship than they used to be. I only order from them to get exclusive varieties that only they carry.

As for Dixondale, you know I love them, but they are pricey. You can save money by combining your order with other nearby gardeners because the more bundles of onions you buy, the more the price per bundle drops. All of the seed companies could take lessons from Dixondale. If they tell me they are going to ship my onion/leek order on Feb. 12th (they ship by the date they believe is correct for you based on your zip code, unless you override that with your own preferred date), then I know they will and I know I'll receive the onions on the 13th or 14th or 15th depending on how fast or slow the USPS is. Dixondale is the most dependable at shipping that I have ever seen, and I think a company that is that reliable and which also sells a great product really has their act together and deserves our business!

Dawn
gldno1
Original Author
14 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
The thing that aggravates me the most is that it was the onion seeds again!

What always surprises me is that even though we live in a rural area, I don't know anyone personally who gardens! My immediate neighbors are quite elderly (more than me!) and have cut way back. My youngest neighbor (40'yish) can't quit playing with her horses long enough to garden.

So, there we are. I might try posting on our local forum and see if anyone nearby would be interested.........and maybe not.
Related Discussions
Landscaping away the annoying neighbors
Q
Comments (22)
I have also suffered from noisy neighbors, one who plays an electric guitar and several others who allow their dogs to bark all day while they are at work (I work from home). I fixed the electric guitar man by calling the city noise officer. He measured the sound with a sophisticated machine and told the guy he was double the legal volume. I had tried and tried to talk to him and he was always nice but never turned it down. Played at all hours and not very well, I might add. Not a kid playing Rock but a man in his mid to late 30's not even playing whole songs, lots of exercises and such and singing way off key into a microphone. When he didn't know the words he sang lah lah lah. It was ridiculous. Could hear it in my office with doors and windows closed, even my clients could hear it over the phone sometimes. Anyway, no more from him since the noise officer visited him several times. We also put new siding on our house and bought new windows. There was little insulation so that was all done too. The windows are double paned. The house needed this badly. New roof too. DH had to repair a bunch of broken rafters and all sheeting was replaced on roof and walls. The house is much, much quieter now. Wind, rain, dogs, booming bass in cars driving by, all much less bothersome. Whole house used to shake in the wind, no more. Got tax credits too. Still have barking dog problems and also have to look at ugly yards and street full of cars. IF DH would let me I would have built a masonry wall around the front yard to create a courtyard a long time ago. I grew up in the Southwest where many homes have such courtyards. You do plant on the outside of the walls and on the inside most have patios with fountains and it extends your private garden area. If done correctly it does not look like your house is a fortress. I believe a front courtyard could be adapted to almost any house/yard. You can use formal hedges or wood fencing or whatever goes with the style of your house. I hate feeling like I am in a fishbowl when I garden in front but my front yard is bigger than my back. I have no choice if I want to collect plants and I do. DH refuses to let me remove the lawn and he refuses to let me plant tall shrubs to block all the bad views. I went on a tour of private gardens recently and this man had blocked his house from view from the street using plants and a berm and it was absolutely gorgeous on both sides. You could not see neighboring houses much from his front or back yards. You might as well have been miles away from anyone else. He is about a block from a major freeway too but all I could hear was birds singing. He did have fountains front and back too. This is view from his tiny front lawn towards the street: Street side views: I know this is more plants than many want to deal with, this guy is a professional landscape designer and plant geek but thought you could see that planting out your neighbors doesn't have to look like a stockade.
...See More
parking lot tree death and why it annoys me...
Q
Comments (14)
I agree I can't understand why malls etc pay for trees, and then ignore them. Many moons ago, when young, my hubby did landscaping for GE and Samsonite, and his estimate included care (to get them going well) and if they died, replacement, so he took a lot of care getting them going. But then, maybe thats good ol American pride in a job, which seems to be sorely lacking these days. In all fields. I have to say that at least, there is an attempt to have trees and plantings, which is a step in the right direction. We all talk about "going green" and all the possibilities. I've talked til I am blue in the face about one plan. That if there was a "law" that every acre of land MUST have "X" number of live trees on it, one way or another, groupings, fence lines whatever, maybe we can make a difference. I think it would make a HUGE impact. The forest service already gives away free trees. So no one can say they "can't afford one." But as a landowner, you are responsible for its care. You can "own" the plot of earth, but apparently care of it needs to be legislated... Oh yeah... I forgot... Legislating the pollution of a plot of earth didn't work, why would just caring for a tree??? Sigh. Maybe the trees WOULD be cared for, if they hid where the dumping was going on! :0 I don't know why these companies haven't thought of going underground? Wouldn't that be cheaper for climate control? When you are in a mall, you don't know whats outside. Then they could build a gorgeous park on top... Draw people who then might decide to go in and buy something. And now I am shutting up before I write an epistle. Poor trees. Wish I could water them all.... A forest lover...
...See More
Annoying house guest
Q
Comments (39)
The last time my "show up unannounced" non-stop talker of a friend visited, I was watching TV, waiting for a favorite program to come on. I normally turn off the tv and give her my attention. Well, this time I decided her tales of woe and lengthy recitations of family history was not going to win out. So I kept seated in my recliner, with the movie "Total Recall" with Arnold Swartz. playing! ha I asked if she wanted coffee, yes she did. I gave her the cup, she said "Did you want to go into the kitchen?" uh......no....not going to be trapped in the kitchen. Me: "No, that's ok". So the whole time she is talking, she is disgusted at the movie, hides her eyes, looks down, makes remarks about it (she rarely watches tv). Until an ad about Trump came on and she got all animated about him and went on a tangent. Finally, she realized I wasn't going to turn off the TV, made another snarky remark about the movie and said she had to leave! Oh my, I have never acted that way towards a guest. But we actually parted ambically on the front porch, and she called me a couple days later. : )
...See More
What annoys you the most?
Q
Comments (134)
"Two AM this morning" is redundant, and so the AM is the redundant part, but it does sound a bit better better than "Two o'clock this morning." It is important to keep the "this morning" part to identify the day, and "Two AM today" does not sound exactly right either. Normally I am also opposed to redundancy, but I think I might let this one slide. One could say "At two this morning," which is probably what I would say myself. I don't think people say "o'clock" so much any more and have substituted AM and PM to indicate that they are talking about time. What bothers me more is when people begin sentences with "Me," as in "Me and X did something." I heard a doctor say this today on CBS This Morning, and it made her sound uneducated. English pronouns are not that complicated or difficult to learn how to use correctly. Other languages have many more options and therefore more ways to say something incorrectly. It bothers me also when people use reflexive pronouns incorrectly, which happens a lot in English, both by Americans and British. I commonly hear people answer the question "How are you?" with "... and yourself?" This bothers me no end. No one says "How are yourself?"
...See More

Annoyed at Park Seed...Again

Comments (2)

Okiedawn OK Zone 7

gldno1
Original Author

Related Discussions

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Annoyed at Park Seed...Again

Comments (2)

Okiedawn OK Zone 7

gldno1Original Author

Related Discussions

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

gldno1
Original Author