Shipping

Our Guarantee--Cancellation Policy--Shipping Information:

Guarantee: 

We guarantee to send you properly named, healthy, vigorous plants that are ready to plant 

(bigger is not always better; perennials are all about the ROOTS).  We take the utmost care packing our babies for their trip to their new home to ensure they arrive safely and intact. We have received hundreds of mail order plants ourselves, so we have learned from the best!  Please read and follow the simple care instructions enclosed with your order.

We cannot guarantee our plants will grow for you or be hardy in your area.  We assume you have done the necessary research for plant survival in your specific conditions.  We are always happy to try to help and give advice when we can. As plants are living, changing organisms affected by innumerable factors beyond our control (i.e. severe weather, dog pee, gophers, overwatering, drought, improper planting, growing outdoor plants as houseplants, fertilizer burn, run over with the lawn mower, bugs ate it, got a disease, hit it just a little with the weed eater or weed spray etc.), we offer no warranty beyond plant arrival.  If your shipment is damaged in transit (please provide pictures) or there is a problem with your plants, we must be notified within 48 hours of delivery for a claim to be considered.  Under no circumstance are we liable for more than the price of the plant.

Cancellation Policy:

Cancelled Orders are subject to a 20% restocking fee.

Once a package has been shipped out and is in the hands of the shipping carrier, we will be unable to cancel the order.

About Our Plants:

We grow our mail order plants in 3”, 4”, and 4x5” pots to keep the shipping costs affordable. Specifically, the 3” pots measure 3 3/8” across the top, 2 5/8” across the bottom, and are 3 1/4″ tall (16 oz. capacity – some government official thinks this is important info for you); our 4” pots measure 4” across the top, 3 1/8” across the bottom, and are 3 1/2″ tall (25 oz. capacity) or 4” across the top, 2 3/4″ across the bottom, and 4” tall (25 oz. capacity); our 4x5” pots measure 4 1/2″ wide and 4 7/8″ deep. We use a high quality soilless mix. We ship plants IN THEIR POTS. We do not send them in baggies with half the soil removed… they may cost more to ship, but will arrive in a less traumatized condition! We have larger sizes available at the nursery and can price/ship them upon request.

We grow a lot, but not much of anything…we grow thousands of plants, but in small quantities. Order early for the best selection. Please contact us with your ‘want list’, as we have many plants in quantities too small to list. We do not sell any wild collected plants.

The information in this catalog is intended only as a guide! It is not a substitute for gardening experience or educating yourself about the plants you are purchasing. The more familiar you become with your new acquisitions, the more successful and enriching your experience will be! Please don’t let ‘my words’ become the ‘last words’ with your new plants! Ultimate plant sizes vary greatly with growing conditions… hardiness is affected by the multiple micro-climates in every garden… bloom time varies by zone and weather conditions. The Internet is a plethora of information! If there’s a question you can’t find an answer to, we will try to fill the information void for you, keeping in mind that most of our experience range is limited to the west coast.

Shipping Costs:

Note: We ship UPS. Please ensure that your address can accept shipments, or if not, please note that on your order in the “Order Notes” section, or contact us. We ship to Alaska by USPS only.

We ship out on Mondays (and Tuesdays during busy season). We only ship early in the week to avoid plants sitting in lonely boxes over the weekend.

During our busy season from March - July, shipping delays are possible. Please allow up to two weeks from your selected ship date. We are working as fast as we can.

SHIPPING ALERT: Please be advised – During times of extreme weather, shipping may be delayed. We will ship when we feel it is safe for the plants.

When you place your order, you will receive an email stating that we received the order. Orders will then be processed, pulled, and carefully packed for shipping (this takes time). If an item is out of stock, we will notify you as soon as possible. After your order leaves the Nursery, you will receive a shipping notice from us – we use UPS to avoid your plants spending days in a dark box, on bumpy roads, in possibly extreme temperatures! We ship all year (weather permitting).

Please determine the appropriate timing for planting in your area! We cannot guarantee plant arrival dates due to weather extremes, shipping inconsistencies etc., but we’ll try!

 Available in Spring: Orders containing these plants will be shipped when ‘spring plants’ are rooted, sometime between April and June.

Our inventory changes constantly and it is impossible to keep our website availability 100% accurate; if we cannot fill any item on your order we will let you know as soon as possible.

In the past we have not processed payments until the time of shipping. Since security updates on our shopping cart now require that your credit card information disappears after a short period of time, we have found it very difficult to chase down that information and input it manually for orders requesting later ship dates. All payments are now processed in real time shortly after the orders enter our system to make it as convenient as possible for our customers and for us.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  Please add secretgrwr@aol.com to your address book to ensure that any communication regarding your plant order does not go to SPAM!

Shipping to Alaska is by USPS.  At this time, due to plant quarantines WE DO NOT SHIP Hawaii or internationally. Since quarantine regulations are in a constant state of flux, there may be additional states that we cannot ship to…or additional cost for phytosanitary treatments/certifications etc. In this event we will contact you before preparing your order for shipment.

Shipping Costs:

Shipping Carrier UPS

STATES of CA, OR, WA: 
$12.00 HANDLING CHARGE PER ORDER,
PLUS $3.00 PER PLANT (MINIMUM PLANT PURCHASE: $35.00)

ALL OTHER STATES and DC:        (Except AK, HI)
$12.00 HANDLING CHARGE PER ORDER
PLUS $4.00 PER PLANT (MINIMUM PLANT PURCHASE: $35.00)

AK:  Shipped by USPS (Alaska only)
$15.00 HANDLING CHARGE PER ORDER,
PLUS $5.00 PER PLANT (MINIMUM PLANT PURCHASE: $35.00)

Standard disclaimer here: Due to rising costs of fuel and shipping fees, all fees stated are subject to additional charges.

Yes, moist plants are heavy and expensive to ship. With the cost of gas these days, the shipping is often cheaper than driving to the nursery (but not nearly as much fun!). Shipping plants dry has not worked out…we have actually received plants that appeared to have been ‘wrung out’ before getting boxed! And then there’s the old ‘remove the dirt to make them lighter’ trick…well we aren’t going there! Our pots are bigger than most mail order companies, therefore the root ball weighs a little more…we also ship your plants in their pots. There is no profit made in shipping, in fact it’s tough to break even!

Online Plant Orders to Pick Up at the Nursery:

Mon. - Sat.  10 am - 4 pm 


Please pick up orders within 2 weeks of due date. Orders not picked up within this timeframe will be cancelled and charged a 20% restocking fee.