At one time a e-tailer send me trees two to three weeks after ordering them then six months down the road I buy another tree and they do not have courtesy to send me any kind of message that they are waiting 'till the leaves drop. I understand that it's safer on the tree to ship in dormancy. Please, don't ship some trees right away and some whenever you feel like it with no explanation whatsoever. The lack of e-mail support is the worst thing you can do to a customer. Is it really too much to ask that if the trees are not going to ship right away to drop an e-mail explaining this?

David,

I'll second your comment. My wife and I recently found a new internet store front by a seller I was not familiar with. Being that I spend a lot of time online dealing with maples, I am always happy and surprised to find something new. To my surprise, I found that they had a couple of locally named varieties as well as three very rare plants that I have not seen offered elsewhere. At $40 to $50 for what they called a one gallon, I figured I better ask a question or two. One plant they offered has not been for sale on line in at least 4 years and very few people have it. I respectfully asked a couple questions about their business and where and how they came by that plant. Since they pirate most of their photos from other internet site, I asked if they might have a photo of their own plants.

I used the link they provided on their site and as you would guess, never a word! We all know what one gallon on the interent equals: VERY SMALL PLANT. Anyone with the guts to ask $50 for one better be willing to answer an email. These sellers also need to realize that if the want to pirate and steal all of their photos from books and other internet sites (they even stole a photo from another online forum gallery) then they better be prepared to answer a few questions and maybe provide a photo or two. Do they think I will drop $300 bucks on my first order when they won't even answer an email--yeah, just click the "add to cart" button and hope for the best--NO WAY--I have been burned enought times with good and bad sellers.

Customer service is even more important on the net. Sellers can't screw with shipping practices and plants sizes and expect repeat business. If I get a nice full one gallon one time and and a 3 bud twig the next--that is a problem and I won't be back. To say a plant is 6 to 12" means nothing. One is a twig and the other is branched. One is a fresh graft and the other is almost a season old. Yet they are all in the height range. Don't ship me something a person wouldn't buy in person!

Enough! These sellers are burning themselves and they don't even realize it. It will be these rants that become the same rants with their names in big print! Even many of the $9.95 ebay acutions are going without bids, where a year ago they were all bidding wars. Is anyone listening???

MJH

I hope more of you folks will come into this discussion...it is SO important. MJH makes some good points that also bug me.The suggestion to ask for a photo is really important especially if it IS OF the actual plant they are offering ;>)Also plant size is also a big question and not always easy to figure from seller. Are they measuring from dirt level or bottom of pot. Plus what MJH said about branched and twig is really true a 12" plant with full branches for 20-30$$ or in a rare or dwarf JM even 40-60$$ may be worth it....but a stick twig ...no way. Also age IS important and there seems to be some disagreement one what "years" mean. Is a two year graft one month into it's second year like a jm grafted march of 04 and it's now apr.of 05 which in my mind is still a ONE year graft!!! It all comes down to VERY specific email questions asked and answered and done so in a prompt way.I suggest everyone put their imput on JM dealers they have dealt with into Dave's Garden so others can benifit from your good and bad experiences. They have a fairly extensive listing of JM dealers and you can and should imput your experiences and it's all free...and check out Dave's before purchasing.I hope more will enter this discussion... David

Fantastic subject! My experiences with ebay maple retailers has greatly diminished my impulses to purchase in that manner. One purchase I made with the seller that has the most incredibly colored photos of his maples did email, but sent a disappointing plant. Another offered the option of receivig either a low graft or a high graft, I opted for a low graft, received a high graft with no email as to why. Oddly enough, the very first maple I received through ebay came from a seller that never responded to multiple emails. This seller actually sent me one of the nicest maples I have. I would have purchased more maples from this seller if the effort had been made to respond to my emails.
Like I said, I do not feel inclined to purchase maples through ebay now. My poor experiences pushed me to find other sources, and now I have an online source that has sent me nice trees for the price paid. This person also responds to any email questions promptly and seems enthusiastic about his maples. I also agree with Daves Garden being an important resource for finding reputable retailers. That was how I found the maple nursery that I use now.
Redwing

Here's the way you're suppose to do business . SADLY this is the exception rather than the rule. This company unfortunatly doesn't "do" nursery stuff but an example of HOW to do internet business. Yes it's generic but do I and will I want to do business with them again YES... and here we are talking about other companies that don't even respond to emails period ... David

Hello:
I want to take time to thank you for your past order(s) of generic "velcro" at www.buyhookandloop.com. I appreciate your business and hope that you have been happy with our product, price, service and ease of online purchasing. As I am always trying to improve on all areas of our business I hope that you will contact me directly if you have experienced anything other than complete satisfaction. Please visit us again soon to see the latest and greatest in New Products! Thanks again for your business.
Best regards,
John Kimball, VP/General Manager
www.buyhookandloop.com
A Division of Eastex Products, Inc.
275 Centre Street
Holbrook, MA 02343
P: 781-767-4511 (x10)
F: 781-767-4611
Email: jkimball@eastexproducts.com
www.buyhookandloop.com

MJH1676: What cultivar were you seeking that wasn't around for 4 years?
I have never bought any plants on the internet.I prefer to deal with a few sources who have been in the business for many years.Another way is to swap scions with other collectors and graft them yourself or have someone do it for you.Personal communication is a "Must" when buying or selling something.

Hi Konifer--

I am kind of wierd when it comes to maples. To tell the plant will identify who is selling it. It is quite desireable, but the chance it is the correct plant is slim. I would not want to validate the seller or the plant.

I hope to work with scions soon. I have reserved a couple hundred plugs for the spring and will begin summer grafing next year to protect my collection. I suspect then I will have other options beyond the folks that care little about the plants and quiality and are out for a quick buck.

Best regards,
Michael