Gardening Express Reviews 1,049

I ordered 2 ornamental grasses. Normally hardy things but both died in a month. One dying is one too many but both died which is so bad. Was told that the ‘guarantee’ is only within 14 days. Just didn’t care. Big scam.

I ordered 3 magnolia trees. They were bare rooted and the company web site promotes a 5 year guarantee for hardy plants.
They arrived in a battered state, but as they were bare rooted, I potted them on and hoped!
Almost one year later, no signs of growth in 2 trees though one has leaves.
I asked for 2 trees to replaced or refunded to no avail. I've sent photos etc as requested and now they say to write via post to complain.
The Company does not register via Revolver nor accepts PayPal - so to cut a long story short I've wasted £75 and just have one small tree with no flowers!
No way of escalating the complaint to the CEO Chris Bonnett.

Impossible to contact when things go wrong.
Customer service consists of an AI service which is not reliable.

I’d give them 0 if I could. Customers service is terrible. 1/2 my order failed to arrive - they are just blaming the delivery company and making no effort to resolve. Worth paying a bit more to a company that actually delivers

Dreadful experience trying to get a delivery date for my order ordered 18 days ago with no prospect of a tracking date/delivery.
Customer services couldn’t care less and do not respond to questions in relation to an update on orders.
Avoid this lot like the plague - utterly useless as is their complaints process with a CEO wholly uncontactable and a completely ineffective ordering system.
Will never order from here again - they do not appear to give a damn about the customer…
They have now said they have refunded me after I insisted on a cancellation but pardon me for my cynicism but I will believe them when I see my money back in my account.
Honestly, spend your hard earned cash with a reputable company and stay wide and clear of this outfit!
Caveat emptor!

Delivery late.
Parcel damaged - damaging plants inside.
No internal protection to plants.
Helpline waste of time - i.e. 'plants hardy they will come again'
Unlike my plants I won't come again.

I ordered a magnolia tree, followed the care guidelines and has shown no signs of life. Customer service responded with reference numbers and exemptions for the guarantee. Very much a grey area, especially when going through the purchase process on the website.
I put forward a response, there was no change in response and followed with an address for a formal complaint as they couldn't help any further. £35 down and months and months of caring, watering and talking to a dead twig in the ground! Saw me coming I think! Avoid!

Poor quality damaged plant. Very unhelpful customer services.
Wished I had read the awful reviews before. Avoid.

Arrived late but in good condition and well packaged, I deleted my previous review which was judged by delay in delivery.
Gardening express has always been good for me, plants have been healthy with good root and growth

I ordered many plants and sadly not one plant had arrived in a healthy state. One is already dead. I have reached out but haven’t heard anything back. Disgraceful.

You cannot get hold of them - there is no number to speak to anyone.
I never leave a bad review but I am so incredibly frustrated. It has been 7 days of being told it will be delivered and talking on the phone to delivery company and being told yesterday they garantee it will be this morning, to be told this morning that is has been sent back to sender due to damage?
I have tried to get hold of gardening express and to my emails they respond with a a generic email answering nothing, telling me to not email more than once. This was a Mother’s Day gift and I have missed work waiting around for it to be delivered. I have never known such terrible customer service. Do not buy

I am writing to express my disappointment with a rose plant purchased by my husband for Mother’s Day at a cost of £30. The item received is entirely unrepresentative of the product advertised online, which constitutes a breach of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, specifically the requirement that goods must be as described.

While I am aware that plants may be dormant, this plant is just a few dry twigs and does not meet the standard of satisfactory quality expected for a £30 gift. Furthermore, the accompanying Mother’s Day note was provided on a piece of torn, unprofessional paper.
As the product does not match the marketing images and the presentation was substandard, I believe we are entitled to a full refund under our statutory rights. I would strongly advise others to look elsewhere for plants, especially if you want your gift to be special and match their descriptions.

I've had two bad experiences with Gardening Express. The first, I purchased a Cercis canadensis tree. I repotted it on arrival but it didn't do very well. The roots died off. I sent them a photo and proved original purchase. They said I'd have to send the dead tree to them as recorded delivery covering the full cost of the tree and then their team would decide whether or not to refund me. Not worth the hassle! Secondly I bought a Hamamelis molis 'Pallida' as it stated it was grown in a 5L pot and the price was the same as other websites who were selling them in a 3L pot. When it arrived the tree had been clearly repotted at point of sale as there was no root growth coming close to the base of the pot and lots of fresh compost on top and around the sides. More than a simple top dress. I sent photos and proof of purchase and again they were very unhelpful and pedantic. They requested I send them a photo of the side of the pot which supposedly had a sticker on it. I couldn't see one but they still had all the info including the original plant label. Basically this company is very reluctant to provide good customer service and they send you on the run around in the hope you eventually give up!

I have been a loyal customer of Gardening Express for quite some time and have regularly chosen them when ordering plants online, which is why this experience was so disappointing.

I purchased three Boston Ivy bare-root plants in November. I planted them carefully and followed the recommended instructions. I’m also a fairly competent gardener and have grown many plants successfully before. Unfortunately, all three plants simply remained as dry twigs and never showed any signs of growth or establishment. It appeared to be a dud batch.

When I contacted customer service, I received a very unsympathetic response stating that the plants were not covered by a guarantee and that they could not assist me further. The email from Levi felt abrupt and dismissive, which was disappointing given that I have been a regular customer.

What makes this even more frustrating is that I am currently starting a large garden project and moving into gardening as a business. I had planned to continue buying plants from Gardening Express and recommending them to clients, but this experience and the lack of customer support have made me reconsider.

Selling a batch of plants where all three fail to thrive and then refusing to help at all is extremely disappointing. I expected much better customer service from a company I had previously trusted.

Terrible company, birch tree arrived poor quality specimen. Tried to get a return but told ‘ it is alive’. We could return it at our cost.
In our opinion, do not use this company

0 stars

Ordered magnolia tree, which after chasing gardening express for weeks to ascertain its whereabouts, it eventually arrived dead. Under the 5 year guarantee that it promotes, no refund was given, due to it not being returned within their time limit.
Would never purchase from them again, so please be warned

Ordered a magnolia plant, followed instructions soak roots etc. Plant is dead, contacted customer service & because it was on a deal it’s not covered for a refund or replacement.
Should have said Dead & not Deal, would not advise to buy from this company.

I ordered a sweet gum tree when it finally arrived the top of the tree has been cut off to fit in the box why earth would they do that..

Plants arrived two weeks late, dead and dying. I took a photograph and contacted gardening express immediately I received a response that said that they respond within two working days and not to send another email otherwise mine would go to the bottom of the pile. 10 days on still no reply or refund.

I endorse what the previous reviewer said. These people are a rip off and potentially criminal. I ordered two box plants which they say were delivered (they were not and they have no proof)
I have send three messages to them and not had a substantive reply. Nor have I had my money back despite request.
I would give lower than 1 * if I could.
DO NOT BUY FROM THEM!!!!!!
I am taking this further legally with other authorities as it my contention they should be shut down and taken off the net.