Today I got this box. According to the shipping paper the order was placed March 14th and the box was shipped May 28th; it arrived today (June 7th). It contained eight hostas, two bleeding hearts, and three blueberry plants. While unpacking them, the soil in each bag had to be close to 120-degrees. The box was literally brought in as the mail truck was driving away, so it wasn't left sitting in the sun. The hostas look alright. I got them transplanted right away. The bleeding hearts were just dried up lumps in some dry potting soil. I planted them and gave them a good soak, but I don't know if they're salvageable. The three blueberry plants look like they had been alive when they were placed into the box, but what I got were three half-dead stems with crisp brown leaves. At least the roots look alright. I planted them into a large pot and gave them a thorough soak too. All of them are now out in the greenhouse (with the door and all windows open so as not to bake the plants).
This blueberry trio I bought from Michigan Bulb is supposed to include one each of Blueray, Coville, and Berkeley varieties. Unfortunately, they did not label which is which.
The rest of the orders that should be coming (whenever they feel like actually shipping it) should include one St Patrick rose, one Filigree hosta, one Tundra honeyberry, one Aurora honeyberry, and one Patio blueberry plant. They've already given out of stock notices for the white bleeding hearts and the apricot tree I had ordered along with the rest.
Unless the remaining order is somehow absolutely stunning, I think Michigan Bulb Co is going on the list of places I won't be spending my money in the future. I understand not shipping things too soon, but I got my Baker Creek and other live plant orders from other companies several weeks ago and they're all doing well (except the replacement strawberries from 4seasonsnursery that looked awful when they arrived).
I don't like to leave negative reviews. I know sometimes things come up and you just get a bad batch, or unusually rough shipping, or a bad customer service person. I get it. It's frustrating to spend money on something and then be disappointed on some level. These plants are almost a month overdue, the quality is severely lacking, the shipping method is clearly not in the best interest of the box contents, and the fact that products were out of stock months after ordering and after the initial (and secondary) shipping dates had passed is really pushing this from "frustrating" to "unacceptable." It is the combination of all of these together that has prompted me to openly name-drop and explain my reasoning here. Perhaps I will change my mind after the rest of my order arrives, but for right now, it's not looking promising.