Willis Orchard Company
Reviews and Complaints

Two of four trees did not emerge from dormancy-All planted in pots and cared for equally- 20- dollar store credit-Want 19 dollars to ship again-Their reps are not helpful and this company does not in any way compare to the huge number of mail order businesses I have dealt with. I have read many negative reviews about this company-Too Late for me but not for you. Do your research!!! Go to Dave's Garden and really read all of the reviews in depth- There are also many other sources to tell you about their lack of product and lack of service.

I bought 4 persimmons trees And none of them survive except there was a bunch of other vegetations growing at the bottom of the stems. I called and explain to them the problem and they told me to send them back which I will agree accordingly but who is going to pay for the shipping charges I will not recommend to anyone I expect a good customer service to handle this issue. This will be last time I ever purchase a tree from Willis I also hope that in future they will check their products before shipping them out Thank you

I ordered white oak trees in spring of 2013 and they sent me willow oaks. I had to send them pictures of the leaves to prove that they send me the wrong item. I then did not receive the replacements until fall of 2013. None of the items that were replaced survived. They said that they would not replace the trees unless I returned them pre- paid. I ordered white oak trees in spring of 2013 and they sent me willow oaks. I had to send them pictures of the leaves to prove that they send me the wrong item. I then did not receive the replacements until fall of 2013. None of the items that were replaced survived. They said that they would not replace the trees unless I returned them pre- paid. I ordered white oak trees in spring of 2013 and they sent me willow oaks. I had to send them pictures of the leaves to prove that they send me the wrong item. I then did not receive the replacements until fall of 2013. None of the items that were replaced survived. They said that they would not replace the trees unless I returned them pre- paid.

DOA 2 flowering peppermint peach trees. 1st response from them: "Send photos." The 2nd response was "wait," last response was "you return and you pay, we'll send trees." We wondered how could a business continue, treating customers like this.

ordered 4 grape starts in the spring of 2013. Paid more to get 3 year old grape starts and the website said they would produce grapes the next year. Didn't get the plants until late November. It is now spring of 2014 and 3 are dead and 1 is just starting to bud and will not produce this year. When we called we were told be had to send back the starts at our expense to get replacements and they wouldn't even be shipped until at least November again. We asked just to get a refund but they don't give refunds you have to get a store credit.

I ordered 4 PawPaw trees to be shipped to me in the Fall. I received them mid November after the ground was frozen. I had my professional Gardner come out and install them the same day they arrived. He told me that this time of year that they would not survive, they should have been shipped a month earlier. He was right, I have 4 dead trees. I sent an email asking for a replacement & they said that I would have to pay shipping & handling charges to get replacements or send the dead ones back at my cost & they would send out replacements. I asked them how it was my fault that they sent them out to late & they replied that this is their procedure and there is nothing they will do for me. Its back to Gurneys for me! Their replacement policy rocks and Willis Orchard sucks. Don't do it, not even for a second, Willis Orchard is a rip off.

In November of 2011, we placed an order for over $2k worth of trees - husband later said he'd seen some bad reviews, but they were the only company offering balled & burlapped trees of that size, so he decided to give them a shot anyway... The trees arrived in late March of 2012, shipped FedEx Freight at a cost (to us) of over $400 for shipping. When I'd called Willis Orchards to inquire what root ball size to expect, so that we could have the appropriate size holes ready, I was told 20-24". The baskets they were in were, in fact, 12'. The trees were NOT balled and burlapped at all- they were bare-root stock that had been severely root-trimmed, and set in baskets of wood chips; there was not a trace of soil on the roots. (a balled & burlapped tree is dug with the root ball intact, wrapped in burlap and the root ball secured in a wire basket) The cherry trees had less than 6" of root - several had less than 4". We planted them anyway, and hired a young man to water them every day, because we knew they didn't stand a chance otherwise. Most of them sprouted a few leaves before they died. It was obvious that most of them were dead by August. I called the company, and was told that in order to avail myself of their guarantee, I had to send back the lower portion of the tree & root ball within a year. In November, I pulled up the ones that were dead beyond any doubt(no digging was required, no roots had grown), packed and shipped them off - at a cost of over $70. I left five trees that hadn't gone completely grey yet in the ground... (most were also dead, only the peach survived, but I couldn't be sure until spring, which was 2 months after the guarantee expired). After some phone calls, I got an email with a $700 credit. Husband said to order smaller, bare-root trees this time, on the assumption that the butcher job done to the root system of the others was so they'd fit into the small baskets, and have them shipped in November. I tried - but despite Willis Orchards' assurance that I'd have fall shipping, and multiple emails to them inquiring where my trees were, I finally called last week - and they shipped them the next day. I also had to pay the $177.65 shipping for the replacements - their credit voucher was good for product only. The trees that arrived yesterday don't look bad - in the ground, where you can't tell that the roots were subjected to almost the same butcher technique. The roots on these are mostly 8-10" long, and I'm hoping they have a little bit better chance, but I'm still not optimistic. Since their guarantee is a one-shot deal, (they don't guarantee the replacements at all) if nothing else, I know I won't ever have to deal with this company again!

Last year I purchased three trees from Willis. They arrived in a timely manner but after planting two of them took a really long time to start budding out (June from a March planting). The other never did. I contacted Willis and they told me to do a heavy pruning. There was no effect and by August all of the bark was gray and the twigs brittle. I contacted them again and they said they would issue a "store credit". What this means is that they will give me my $16.95 back for the tree but I have to pay the full minimum shipping amount which at the time was $17.50. They took no responsibility for the failure. I even offered to pay actual shipping (about $4.50 according to THEIR shipping calculator) but they refused. I spoke to Willis several times about the problem and the last thing I heard was that the rep promised to "talk to Mr. Willis on Monday and call back". That was last September. They have low prices but, as you can see from many other reviews, you'll end up paying about the same as better quality companies when you factor in failures plus the headaches of dealing with people who really don't care.

I purchased a tree from Willis Orchard. They told me the tree had a grauntee. I pleanted the treee in the Fall of 2010 as instructed and in the Spring, no leaves sprouted. I called them and they informed me that sometimes trees don't grow leaves in the first year. They told me to wait another year and if it did not grow leaves, they would replace it. Now, we are in the Spring and still no leaves. I called them today and they said they could not help me becuase they only have a one-year garutee on their trees. Poor business and the worers were rude on the phone.

Let me start by writing: DON'T ORDER FROM WILLIS ORCHARD CO. OR THEIR AFFILIATES!!!!!!!!!!!! After dealing with Willis Orchard Co. and now reading all the posts, I am in complete concurrence with the negative posting consumers. And if it wasn't so absolutely frustrating dealing with this company it would be laughable at how absolutely inefficient they are! I placed a very large order in April 2011, had to call the 800 # because their order form wasn't clear for the items I wanted, being spring & fall plant deliveries. The rep placed two orders, one shipping "immediately" and one shipping fall 2011. The first one came in June! I should have known then to cut my losses... That order contained 2 very wilted and pathetic kiwis "plants" about 12" tall - much smaller than I ordered & paid for - and a sickly guava that soon died as well. I contacted Willis and was told to package the root balls up and send them back, with instructions on the credit, since I had several email communications stating I did not want more kiwis or guavas, but would like to use the credit toward more fruit trees. No problem they said! No communication for weeks...then received 2 more kiwis, again as pathetic as the 1st shipment! I emailed and said I was not paying for another return postage, they screwed up, I want the credit as agreed upon and wanted to order even more fruit trees. (Yes at this point I have to say I became a little insane myself for wanting to do this). After a couple of cryptic emails, they actually accused me of lying and not including a note but then saying "if this was our error..." and agreed to the credit against this 3rd order. Again, weeks - actually months - passed with no communication. I emailed on 11/4 asking about the refund and the fall order, did not mention the 3rd order because now I finally became convinced I did not want to do more business with this company and they seemed to have forgotten anyway! I received a reply from Jennifer a day later that the order would be sent "within the week" and she asked about the returned & reshipped kiwi plants, obviously "forgotten" the arrangement agreed upon for the credit, and then mentioned the guava as well, stating she wasn't aware until just now that I had returned a guava as well. She said she would issue me a credit for the guava only, completely not honoring the previous emails and kiwi credits. On 11/22 I emailed back saying to cancel the fall order completely, now over 2 weeks later and still no delivery, and please issue me the full credit on the 3 returned plants. On 11/28 she responds, a week later!! and mentions the credit but does not acknowledge the cancelled order. I emailed back and insisted she acknowledge the cancellation, now, a $190 order that I wanted money back on immediately! That was my primary concern as the ship has sailed on the other order and getting a refund or credit is going to be another long battle, I can tell. She then emails back saying she didn't realize - again! - that I had an unshipped order pending which I wanted to cancel. How do they not realize this? And since that was the original intent of that email string, what is wrong with these people??? She then stated she would cancel immediately, minus a 10% cancellation fee - this isn't even legal!!!! After all of their mishaps and bad handling now on top of it I am being punished again by losing almost $20. I am waiting for the refund to go through, then filing a complaint with every consumer action agency I can find. This company should be out of business.

The absolute worst company I have ever dealt with - every time - poor plants, poor service, poor at best. Go elsewhere, never buy from Willis - you will be disapointed! we ordered 3 trees, they arrived dead! we got a return shipment - which arrived very broken and in poor condition, the customer service is awful and they should not be in the business of selling plants - if they cannot provide good quality - at least sometimes! Do NOT BUY from them! We have many trees and lots of experience and know good from awful - they are awful! Never ever ever ever buy from Willis!

In October of 2010, I ordered: 2 1-2' Pawpaw trees, 2 1-2' white walnut trees, a couple 2 yr old grape vines, and a 2 yr old raspberry. They arrived on December 3rd. There was a total of 9 plants/trees. Yes, they get mailed to you looking like dead twigs... they're dormant. But, be patient and don't freak out about it!! Of the 9 plants, it looks like I only lost 2. Considering how cheap the prices are on most of these plants, that's not bad. I posted a very thorough post on my blog. It has pictures of what you can expect when the plants arrive and tips for getting your plants off to a good start. Here's the address: http://journeytoeve.blogspot.com/2011/05/in-depth-review-of-willis-orchards-with.html