Henry Fields and Gurneys
chaz
suspected, but look at their web sites.......no way its coincedence :)
Bruno
--
Bruce (the bug guy)
Utah (USA)
Tom Engel <ten...@bellatlantic.net> wrote in message news:386A1A95...@bellatlantic.net...What has been customer reaction to plants, products and service of the above two companies? I get their catalogues but they look too much like Michigan Bulb catalogues. I would like to give them a chance if any gardeners out there can vouch for them based on a few years experience. Randy
BJWakeland
<ten...@bellatlantic.net> writes:
>What has been customer reaction to plants, products and service of the
>above two companies? I get their catalogues but they look too much like
>Michigan Bulb catalogues. I would like to give them a chance if any gardeners
>out there can vouch for them based on a few years experience. Randy
>
I have never dealt with Henry Fields but do order from Gurney every year. I
have always been well satisfied with their seeds.
Bob
www.lds.org
I made me gardens and orchards, and I planted trees in them of all kind of
fruits: Ecclesiastes 2:5
Olin
above two companies?
Have had good success with seeds from both for years. Never tried their
plants. Somewhat less pricey than those with the slicker, glossy
catalogs like Burpee, Johnny;s, Park, etc. -Olin
Tom Burkhard
I've ordered from Gurney's many times. They aren't perfect, but they
definitely don't deserve the kind of reputation Michigan Bulb has.
Gurney's has a low fixed shipping charge. That's the first thing I check
when I get a garden catalog.
They ship most plants bare root which some people object to but I've had
very good success with the plants I've gotten by following their planting
instructions. Last year they left out part of my order so I emailed them
and they responded within a couple hours and I had plants on my doorstep
within a week. I got the impression they are interested in repeat
business.
Occasionally I've been disappointed with the plants I've received. Last
year I ordered a two-for-one special on butterfly bushes and got two
spindley little twigs. They might be decent plants in a couple years. I
could have gotten decent plants for a couple more bucks locally. I
didn't complain so I don't know how they would have responded. Sending
them back would have been more hassle than they were worth. Some of
their prices on seeds and plants aren't a great deal so I check other
sources also. They don't usually list scientific names so if you're
looking for something specific, I'd look elsewhere.
On the other hand, they always have 'specials' which they describe as
'row-run' plants often for 99 cents. When I first ordered one of these,
I expected to get a twig with root or two on it. More often than not
though, I am shocked at what I receive. Once I ordered an American
bittersweet and got a 3 foot root. (I managed to kill it because I really
didn't have a proper place to plant it. I'm sure they would have sent me
a replacement if I had asked.) Normal price for bittersweet is something
like $8 and I paid $1 or maybe $2. I wish they'd have that special again
because I've got the space now. Almost all the specials I've ordered have
been bigger and healthier than the butterfly bushes I was disappointed
with. A few things have been small (hops, spearmint, yarrow), probably
because they were vigorous enough to make a good plant from a small root.
Anyway, I'm waiting anxiously for my Gurney's catalog. It should arrive
any day. (I've heard Henry Field is the same company but that their
quality isn't as good. I think their prices are higher also. I've never
ordered from them though.)
Pinetree Garden Seeds (http://www.superseeds.com) is good for small
quantities of seed.
Everthing above is just my opinion and I have no interest in or grudge
against any of the companies mentioned.
Tom Burkhard
Columbus Ohio USA
ten...@bellatlantic.net (Tom Engel) wrote in
<386A1A95...@bellatlantic.net>:
><!doctype html public "-//w3c//dtd html 4.0 transitional//en">
><html>
>What has been customer reaction to plants, products and service of the
>above two companies? I get their catalogues but they look too much like
>Michigan Bulb catalogues. I would like to give them a chance if any
>gardeners out there can vouch for them based on a few years experience.
>Randy
><p>chaz wrote:
><blockquote TYPE=CITE>Have yall noticed these companies must be the same
>outfit? I have always
><br>suspected, but look at their web sites.......no way its coincedence
>:)
><p><a
><href="http://www.gurneys.com/index.html">http://www.gurneys.com/index.ht
><ml</a> p><a
><href="http://www.gurneys.com/index.html">http://www.gurneys.com/index.ht
><ml</a></blockquote>
>
><p>--
><br>ten...@bellatlantic.net
><br> </html>
>
Tom Wilson
Fields catalog in the sam emailing BTW).
Waiting for spring..........
Tom
<snip>
Bill Morgan
> What has been customer reaction to plants, products and service of the
> above two companies? I get their catalogues but they look too much like
> Michigan Bulb catalogues. I would like to give them a chance if any gardeners
> out there can vouch for them based on a few years experience. Randy
> <p>chaz wrote:
> <blockquote TYPE=CITE>Have yall noticed these companies must be the same
> outfit? I have always
> <br>suspected, but look at their web sites.......no way its coincedence
You should bookmark the following URL:
This list of catalogs gives customer reaction to a great many nurseries and
seed companies. You should check with it whenever you are thinking of doing
business with any given firm.
But I can tell you something about the reactions to these suppliers. It is
decidedly mixed. When people post questions about say Michigan Bulb on
rec.gardens and r.g.ed, the response is almost unanimous in being negative.
If they ask about Johnny's and some of the others, it is nearly all
positive. But Henry Fields and especially Gunrneys bring out such different
responses you wonder if everyone is talking about the same place.
In general, people are pleased with the seeds they buy from these places.
You really don't hear many complaints about that. But ask about the plants,
particularly trees and shrubs, and that's where the wildly different
experiences come in. Some people say they have good luck, others say that
everything dies.
The really strong points of these suppliers are:
1) They offer varieties that can hack the nasty climates of SoDak and Iowa.
2) They sell some really strange varieties. If you have a taste for the
unusual, here's where you can find some of it.
Regards,
Bill
--
Bill Morgan <wtmo...@pilot.msu.edu>
"Those who do not learn the lessons of science fiction are condemned to
live them."
Courier 24
order from Michigan Bulbs
Gary Cooper
> Have yall noticed these companies must be the same outfit? I have always
> suspected, but look at their web sites.......no way its coincedence :)
>
> http://www.gurneys.com/index.html
>
> http://www.gurneys.com/index.html
>
The fact they they have the exact same catalog is sort of a tip-off. They
are located in different states, but obviously are branches of the same
enterprise. Perhaps they were originally independent, but merged somewhere
back in time.
Gary
pasley
results with my little twigs and roots. One bush didn't take well and they
replaced it. I didn't have to send the dead twig in. I found later that
the problem was my soil. I never ordered seed except for the kids jumble
packs a few times. The seeds took off like rockets and we had some very
tasty veggies and pretty flowers. I also ordered from Michigan a few times
and got lousy stuff.
FarmerDill
>The fact they they have the exact same catalog is sort of a tip-off. They
>are located in different states, but obviously are branches of the same
>enterprise. Perhaps they were originally independent, but merged somewhere
>back in time.
>
>Gary
>
>
It was not too long ago actually. Henry field in the seventies-early 80's
offered some quite different varieties. Their Hi-X tomato was one of the best
early's I ever tried. They also offer white fleshed Japanese watermelons, Kazak
melons and a tiny white (shape and color of a honeydew) with yellow flesh melon
"Sweetie" that were superb. But like most eveything else have sucumbed to to
the buying, selling, merging frenzy that is bringing a uniformity to the
marketplace.
dill
Gary Woods
>You should bookmark the following URL:
>
>http://pbmfaq.dvol.com/list/
Most excellent site! Does anybody have a listing of who owns whom in the
seed world? I really have no problem with a company having multiple
personalities... (I do myself...), but I'd kind of like to know who I'm
really buying from.
I find open-pollinated stuff more and more appealing, and I've been saving
what I can of my best stuff... more bragging rights that way!
...Just waiting for that century odometer to roll over....
Gary Woods AKA K2AHC- PGP key on request, or at www.albany.net/~gwoods
Zone 5/6 in upstate New York, 1200' elevation.
Bill Morgan
<gwo...@albany.net> wrote:
> wtmo...@pilot.msu.edu (Bill Morgan) wrote:
>
> >You should bookmark the following URL:
> >
> >http://pbmfaq.dvol.com/list/
>
> Most excellent site!
Certainly useful. Pass it along...
> Does anybody have a listing of who owns whom in the
> seed world? I really have no problem with a company having multiple
> personalities... (I do myself...), but I'd kind of like to know who I'm
> really buying from.
I don't know of any such resource. If you find one, please let the rest of
us know. This changes every year, not like in the old days when stability
was the rule.
RE: Gurneys and Fields, they do not have the same website as indicated by
the original poster. At least not in the new catalogs I have.
Field's is:
Gurney's is:
But:
The Field's catalog also touts another site:
MySeasons.com
Which is a joint effort of the National Gardening Association, Fields,
Gurney's, Breck's, Spring Hill, Stark Brothers, & Vermont Wildflower Farm.
It does make you wonder how many of those are really separate companies.
Regards,
Bill
> I find open-pollinated stuff more and more appealing, and I've been saving
> what I can of my best stuff... more bragging rights that way!
>
--
Zaphod & Trillian
>
> In article <22vp6sko5lapbvh3n...@4ax.com>, Gary Woods
> <gwo...@albany.net> wrote:
>
> > wtmo...@pilot.msu.edu (Bill Morgan) wrote:
> >
> > >You should bookmark the following URL:
> > >
> > >http://pbmfaq.dvol.com/list/
> >
> > Most excellent site!
>
Many thanks for this URL! I have ordered from Nichol's in
Oregon for years- nice to see the comments of others in the
FAQ.
Beth M. Baker
When you say Kazak melons - are those the ones that look like a huge
white cucumber [2 - 3 feet long] and tastes like a cantaloupe? Know
any other sources? I became quite enamored of these when I was in
Kazakhstan 2 years ago.
Thanks
Beth
Jason Hernandez
>http://www.gurneys.com/index.html
>http://www.gurneys.com/index.html
..but you gave two Gurneys links! Where's the Henry Fields link?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Jason Hernandez
Naturalist-at-Large
Charles Hall
Bill Morgan
> You apparently mis-read my original post......I said their web sites are
> almost identical in layout and content......
Well, no. I don't think I misread your original post. I think you miswrote it.
Your post was:
> Have yall noticed these companies must be the same outfit? I have always
> suspected, but look at their web sites.......no way its coincedence :)
>
> http://www.gurneys.com/index.html
>
> http://www.gurneys.com/index.html
An easy mistake to make. People who are new to computer things like cutting
and pasting don't know how easy that kind of error is, but I do. Don't
press a key down far enough, and you don't pick up the new line that you
want to use. So the first line you copied stays in the buffer. You pasted
it again and didn't realize that it had not changed.
Being a bit poor on the proofreading is not a major fault IMO. I do it all
the time. I can't fault you for that.
So no, I didn't misread. You pasted the same thing twice. I was ready to
think that HF and Gurney's had the same website, because they are so
similar. You are 100% right when it comes to the similarity, as far as I
can tell.
Gurney's and Henry Field's are just too similar for it to be coincidence. I
haven't looked at the websites, but if you say that they are almost
identical, I certainly believe that. After all, the similarity of the
catologs is phenomenal. The same strange cultivars. Some of the same
pictures.
So their websites *are* different, but your overall point is intact: the
two companies must be closely associated one way or another. The
coincidence potential is almost zero...
I've been on UseNet for many years, and I still make that kind of mistake.
I figure that many people are in those same shoes.
The bottom line here is that your original point is correct: Gurney's and
Henry Field's are just too similar for it to be coincidence.
Regards,
Bill
Jerome R. Long
big...@utdallas.edu says...
>
>On Wed, 29 Dec 1999, chaz wrote:
>
>> suspected, but look at their web sites.......no way its coincedence :)
>>
>are located in different states, but obviously are branches of the same
>enterprise. Perhaps they were originally independent, but merged somewhere
>back in time.
>
I just got both of these catalogs and they are NOT the same. I would easily
believe they have a corporate connection and that they use the same agency to
produce the catalogs...BUT they are not the same size, are not organized alike
and do not have identical variety lists. I think that every subscriber to
organic gardening gets both catalogs on approximately the same day every year.
chaz
Look at their Web sites......Identical content......
Gary Cooper
The two catalogs are different formats (paper sizes), and some things are
presented in different order (on different pages). But what varieties does
one offer that the other doesn't? Not many, I think (Field's forgot to
send me a catalog this year, so I'm recalling last year's).
Gary
FarmerDill
The ones Old Henry sold, and he did state that he found them in Kazakstan, were
much smaller, about the size and shape of "Yellow Canary" but white in color
(football). Never had much luck with them as they were quite susceptible to
foliar diseases. It is possible that seed savers exchange may have picked up on
them since they were open pollinated.
dill
Jason Hernandez
>Henry Field's are just too similar for it to be coincidence.
True. How can one not notice?
>After all, the similarity of the
>catologs is phenomenal. The same strange cultivars. Some of the same
>pictures.
The pictures by themselves might not prove anything, since several companies
may well buy the same picture (produced by the supplier?), but yes, when both
offer the same oddities, that is just too much of a coincidence.
Still, what does it matter? Quality of the products are what count.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Jason Hernandez
Naturalist-at-Large
Bill Morgan
(Jason Hernandez) wrote:
> >The bottom line here is that your original point is correct: Gurney's and
> >Henry Field's are just too similar for it to be coincidence.
>
> True. How can one not notice?
You don't have to be a Fox Moldier-than-thou to suspect collusion here.
>
> >After all, the similarity of the
> >catologs is phenomenal. The same strange cultivars. Some of the same
> >pictures.
>
> The pictures by themselves might not prove anything, since several companies
> may well buy the same picture (produced by the supplier?),
True, but in last year's catalogs (I haven't looked at the current ones
that closely), there were *a lot* of duplicates. Too much for chance, I
thought. Unless they don't do any of their own photography (possible), or
one is something like an antagonistic splinter of the other, trying to make
a run at the same clientelle (also possible). Still, the simplest
explanation is that they're the same...
> but yes, when both
> offer the same oddities, that is just too much of a coincidence.
>
> Still, what does it matter? Quality of the products are what count.
Absolutely.
Jerome R. Long
that they are the same company, but that they are retaining the same
organizations to prepare their catalogs and www sites. For all I know, Fields
and Gurney may have common ownership, but there are definitely significant
differences in what they offer...and they both have some interesting and
unusual products.
In article <wtmorgan-ya02408000R0101000912480001@msunews>,
wtmo...@pilot.msu.edu says...
>
>In article <22vp6sko5lapbvh3n...@4ax.com>, Gary Woods
><gwo...@albany.net> wrote:
>
>> wtmo...@pilot.msu.edu (Bill Morgan) wrote:
>>
>> >You should bookmark the following URL:
>> >
>> >http://pbmfaq.dvol.com/list/
>>
>> Most excellent site!
>
>Certainly useful. Pass it along...
>
>> Does anybody have a listing of who owns whom in the
>> seed world? I really have no problem with a company having multiple
>> personalities... (I do myself...), but I'd kind of like to know who I'm
>> really buying from.
>
>I don't know of any such resource. If you find one, please let the rest of
>us know. This changes every year, not like in the old days when stability
>was the rule.
>
>RE: Gurneys and Fields, they do not have the same website as indicated by
>the original poster. At least not in the new catalogs I have.
>
>Field's is:
>
>www.henryfields.com
>
>Gurney's is:
>
>www.gurneys.com
>
>But:
>
>The Field's catalog also touts another site:
>
>MySeasons.com
>
>Which is a joint effort of the National Gardening Association, Fields,
>Gurney's, Breck's, Spring Hill, Stark Brothers, & Vermont Wildflower Farm.
>It does make you wonder how many of those are really separate companies.
>
>Regards,
>Bill
>
>> I find open-pollinated stuff more and more appealing, and I've been saving
>> what I can of my best stuff... more bragging rights that way!
>>
>