- Fri Jul 26, 2013 3:49 am
#183124
I know I've seen another review for them somewhere here, but I'm going to add my own.
I ordered two plants, a Sarracenia 'Dana's Delight' and a Darlingtonia. Overall, I would give my experience a 2.5/5, for the following reasons:
Shipping: Shipping was slower than I'd anticipated. I ordered on the 18th, the same day as I placed the order for my FTS Fuzzy Tooth plant. I received an email that night stating it was marked as shipped, and an email the next day with tracking information. USPS did not receive the package until Monday however. My FTS package arrived on Monday. These plants were coming out of Washington state, so it really isn't that much more distance. Anyhow, upon arrival, the plants were not in as good of condition as I'd expected. Several pitchers on the Darlingtonia had turned brown, one completely dried up, so I suspect it had begun prior to shipping, or he packed them the day he marked them as shipped. The Sarracenia was pretty beat up too, two pitchers starting to turn brown, one broken off, one new (not fully developed) pitcher bent at the top from having the box folded around it, and the one normal pitcher was browning from nutrient burns. So until it starts growing new pitchers, it's in pretty beat-up shape.
Plants: Aside from above, the plants were listed as being 4-year-old and 3-5 year-old plants, respectively. I would like someone to weigh in on this, as the Darlingtonia is about 3" tall, and I don't know how tall it should be at that age, as I know it's a slow-grower. I was told it should flower next year. The Sarracenia is about 6"-8" tall, with the biggest pitcher's outside diameter slightly less than a dime. It is supposed to also be likely to flower next year. How true is this? I'm happy to have the plants, so don't get me wrong, but from a seller/purchaser standpoint, if I were selling the plants, I wouldn't have shipped these, or at least trimmed the pitchers on the Darlingtonia.
Service: They were quick to respond when I asked about flowering for the plants, and about combined shipping (which they did do, down to $7 instead of $12!). They were also quick to respond when I asked about the above mentioned issues, only to be told that, "That is normal for shipping. your plants will recover quite well!" Now, having seen how my flytraps have been when they have come from FTS, I know this isn't true. Even with the slight shipping damage that came this time around, it was clearly due to the USPS. This...well, there were no pieces of the broken pitcher, and the plants were wrapped in damp paper towels, put in plastic bags, so they weren't without water. I also am uneasy that I paid $10 for the Sarr, and $30 for the Darlingtonia, and today I see that he is now listing them for $20 and $50 respectively. While granted, they have every right to raise prices, it seems like a rather large rise.
Overall: I purchased the Darlingtonia because I couldn't find one anywhere else. The Sarracenia was added just because it was pretty, and I expected a much larger plant (I'll include their pictures from the listings, so you can see what was advertised versus what I received.) than what I got. Overall, I'm happy with what I received, because I know that they WILL grow and recover, but I'm really unhappy to pay $47 and end up with damaged plants that obviously weren't in that great of condition when they left the store, and appear to be considerably different from what was advertised. They have a disclaimer that the picture shown is representative, but SIMILAR to what will be shipped. Next time, I'll ask for an ACTUAL image of the item before purchasing. -.-; Lesson learned.
I ordered two plants, a Sarracenia 'Dana's Delight' and a Darlingtonia. Overall, I would give my experience a 2.5/5, for the following reasons:
Shipping: Shipping was slower than I'd anticipated. I ordered on the 18th, the same day as I placed the order for my FTS Fuzzy Tooth plant. I received an email that night stating it was marked as shipped, and an email the next day with tracking information. USPS did not receive the package until Monday however. My FTS package arrived on Monday. These plants were coming out of Washington state, so it really isn't that much more distance. Anyhow, upon arrival, the plants were not in as good of condition as I'd expected. Several pitchers on the Darlingtonia had turned brown, one completely dried up, so I suspect it had begun prior to shipping, or he packed them the day he marked them as shipped. The Sarracenia was pretty beat up too, two pitchers starting to turn brown, one broken off, one new (not fully developed) pitcher bent at the top from having the box folded around it, and the one normal pitcher was browning from nutrient burns. So until it starts growing new pitchers, it's in pretty beat-up shape.
Plants: Aside from above, the plants were listed as being 4-year-old and 3-5 year-old plants, respectively. I would like someone to weigh in on this, as the Darlingtonia is about 3" tall, and I don't know how tall it should be at that age, as I know it's a slow-grower. I was told it should flower next year. The Sarracenia is about 6"-8" tall, with the biggest pitcher's outside diameter slightly less than a dime. It is supposed to also be likely to flower next year. How true is this? I'm happy to have the plants, so don't get me wrong, but from a seller/purchaser standpoint, if I were selling the plants, I wouldn't have shipped these, or at least trimmed the pitchers on the Darlingtonia.
Service: They were quick to respond when I asked about flowering for the plants, and about combined shipping (which they did do, down to $7 instead of $12!). They were also quick to respond when I asked about the above mentioned issues, only to be told that, "That is normal for shipping. your plants will recover quite well!" Now, having seen how my flytraps have been when they have come from FTS, I know this isn't true. Even with the slight shipping damage that came this time around, it was clearly due to the USPS. This...well, there were no pieces of the broken pitcher, and the plants were wrapped in damp paper towels, put in plastic bags, so they weren't without water. I also am uneasy that I paid $10 for the Sarr, and $30 for the Darlingtonia, and today I see that he is now listing them for $20 and $50 respectively. While granted, they have every right to raise prices, it seems like a rather large rise.
Overall: I purchased the Darlingtonia because I couldn't find one anywhere else. The Sarracenia was added just because it was pretty, and I expected a much larger plant (I'll include their pictures from the listings, so you can see what was advertised versus what I received.) than what I got. Overall, I'm happy with what I received, because I know that they WILL grow and recover, but I'm really unhappy to pay $47 and end up with damaged plants that obviously weren't in that great of condition when they left the store, and appear to be considerably different from what was advertised. They have a disclaimer that the picture shown is representative, but SIMILAR to what will be shipped. Next time, I'll ask for an ACTUAL image of the item before purchasing. -.-; Lesson learned.