Gardening Express Reviews

Name: Gardening Express
Address: Gardening Express, Chelmsford, Essex
Rating: 1.16

1.2 Rating 1,790 Reviews

3 %

of reviewers recommend Gardening Express

Company Reviews

Questions

Metrics

1.2

Based on 1,790 reviews

Shipping & Delivery
Delivery Methods	Courier
Average Delivery Time	Over A Month
On-time Delivery	Greater than 16%
Accurate And Undamaged Orders	Greater than 30%
Customer Service
Communication Channels	Email, Live Chat, Telephone
Queries Resolved In	Over A Week
Customer Service	1.1 out of 5
Returns & Refunds
Refunds Process	Difficult
Returns Process	Could Be Better

Phone:

08448 044 253

Location:

Gardening Express, Chelmsford
Essex
CM1 4UA

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Gardening Express 1 star review on 2nd September 2025

Varese

Gardening Express 1 star review on 24th July 2025

Anonymous

Gardening Express 1 star review on 27th June 2025

Anonymous

635

Anonymous

Anonymous // 01/01/2019

Sort by: Most Recent Most Recent Highest Rated Filter: None None 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Stars Helpful

“Do not order from this company. They simply take your money, give you no way of contacting them and your goods don’t arrive. Disgusting service. Don’t fall for it.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Please avoid ordering from Gardening Express. Simple. I had a terrible experience no replies to my emails. After over a month they posted plants they were diseased and broken. I literally had to put them into my garden waste bin they were even covered in slugs. As mentioned no replies to my emails so I have had to request a refund via chargeback with my back which has been processed this evening no thanks to Gardening Express as I am sure they would have never responded to me or processed my refund. In the big scheme of things first world problems so not really an issues as they are only plants however for what is supposed to be an online only gardening business I would expect far more and the emails they sent me regarding COVID-19 makes me feel they are using this situation as a smokescreen to cover unacceptable service and products.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Do not waste your money and time, quotes 2-3 weeks and now not answering emails requesting a refund as it’s been 5/6 and reading other reviews has been 8+weeks!!, now having to go through credit card for a refund. Shame on you taking people’s money for orders you can’t fulfil! DO NOT ORDER!”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Very poor communication, exceptionally slow service. Had to abandon the order after the plants hadn't turned up for six weeks. Sought a refund through my bank as none was offered. Even generously allowing plenty of leeway, this has proved to be the worst shopping experience since the beginning of lockdown. I rarely, if ever, write reviews of purchases (good or bad) but thought I would add to the sea of awful feedback deservedly being directed at this company.Please save your money and avoid this company.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“They are totally useless... we ordered months ago and still waiting for delivery. I emailed and advised we would cancel if not received by 12/6 . Have requested full refund via my credit card. They should be ashamed of themselves taking orders that they know won't be fulfilled. Do not order from them!!!!”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“The worst company I've ever dealt with. Waited over 2 months without delivery and there was only enough communication to deny several requests to cancel the order, despite it being our legal right. As if by magic, once we lodged a visa claim, our order started processing after 60 plus days. Having now seen hundreds of photos of damaged, dead and diseased plants received by other customers we refused delivery and will continue our visa claim. I will also be reporting the company to Trading Standards Far from being a small, family run business, a quick check of Companies House shows they had a turnover of over £5m last year. Wretched experience. Avoid at all costs”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Placed my order for lupins on 15th May and as of 24th June still showing as processing on order. No updates in recent times and now past flowering season. Has anyone had any joy with trading standards? Really wished I had read reviews and not been taken in by website.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“After waiting nearly a month for my rhododendran plant it finally arrived today. I must say that the plant is in first class condition and was packed very neat and securely. I know people, including myself, have complained several times about the long delivery times and conditions of the sent goods but I must speak as I find and say the plant was well worth the extra two or three weeks wait. Will certainly deal with them again if all their stuff is dispatched in this condition.”

Gardening Express 4 star review on 24th June 2020

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“My first order with them and would never order again, ordered on the 12th April and received the plants 6 weeks later, they were in a bad way, packaging was battered and the plants were half dead but I planted them anyway and its taken all this time to get them to a reasonable level, still waiting for a "to follow" plant, opened up a support ticket but its pointless because they send a generic email and then ignore it, I wish I had read the reviews and ordered from the company I have been using, so do yourselves a favour and order from Plants Direct!”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“If I could leave no stars I would. I ordered plants at the start of lockdown. They took 9 weeks and 5 days to arrive. In that time I requested a refund twice - due to the fact that it was an excessive length of time and garden centres were now opening- both requests were completely ignored. I received an email to say my order was being prepared 18 days before it was eventually dispatched. I kept optimistic as facebook comments were suggesting the plants were worth the wait despite the delay, and I do appreciate it is a difficult time, but nearly ten weeks was far too long. It also seems that it's only positive comments that are showing on Facebook. The plants arrived in a terrible state - some dead, some dying. I emailed pictures and requested a refund only to be told that is how they would expect them to look and if I wanted a refund I would need to pay a courier to return the dead and dying plants!! Shocking service, terrible communication, awful product. Could not be more disappointed and frustrated with them and will never use again!”

Gardening Express 1 star review on 24th June 2020

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Dead on Arrival. What the blazes is going on with this company? IMO, this situation has gone beyond poor customer services and tipped into criminality. I have contacted Trading Standards. Has anyone managed a refund yet?”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“I ordered wallflowers in march Cutting a long story short. After waiting all this time and raising numerous of their forms which is the only way of contacting them I told them it was in the hands of the credit card company. We received four half dead wallflowers. Still waiting for the refund we requested weeks ago. Goodness knows how much money these con artists have made but let's stop them making any more.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Arrogant and inefficient company. I ordered some plants 5 weeks ago and they still haven’t been despatched. The website makes it deliberately difficult to communicate with the company or raise a complaint - no phone number, no email &c. Instead just a lot of blah blah about the impact of Covid19. Ok, but don’t take people’s money if you can’t provide the goods: it’s called theft. The company should get some ethics and close its website as other much better nurseries have done temporarily during the lockdown. Avoid,”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“DO NOT USE!! Absolutely horrendous!! My first purchase from them and never again! As all the other reviews below, a ridiculous wait time with automated email rubbish asking you to be patient and to not contact them again. They’ve shut down all social media messaging access for customers and you can only send them an email which gets lost in hundreds of messages that they are no doubt getting from irate customers who now have realised that they’ve been duped by this website. Logged my issue an auto sends an appalling list of instructions that basically in an eggshell tell you to not expect a reply from then but they will try and they can’t refund an order etc. Feels like these cowboys have just taken my money and run or if they do fulfil the order they are sending out plants you may has well discard in the bin by the sounds of the reviews. I heard they made the news last week too due to their lack of service and orders unfulfilled for months. I really wish I’d read reviews before placing my order!! I will certainly be referring their details to Trading Standards and the Ombudsmen and suggest all others do the same! They shouldn’t be in business and I can’t believe they still continue to take orders. Shameful!”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Absolutely horrendous! DO NOT USE!! My first purchase from them and never again! As all the other reviews below, a ridiculous wait time with automated email rubbish asking you to be patient and to not contact them again. They’ve shut down all social media messaging access for customers and you can only send them an email which gets lost in hundreds of messages that they are no doubt getting from irate customers who now have realised that they’ve been duped by this website. Logged my issue an auto sends an appalling list of instructions that basically in an eggshell tell you to not expect a reply from then but they will try and they can’t refund an order etc. Feels like these cowboys have just taken my money and run or if they do fulfil the order they are sending out plants you may has well discard in the bin by the sounds of the reviews. I heard they made the news last week too due to their lack of service and orders unfulfilled for months. I really wish I’d read reviews before placing my order!! I will certainly be referring their details to Trading Standards and the Ombudsmen and suggest all others do the same! They shouldn’t be in business and I can’t believe they still continue to take orders. Shameful!”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Ordered begonias and hydranga in mid may. Supply time 7-10 days. As did not arrive attemepted to contact supplier. They have disconnected phones and email so impossible to contact.Communication impossible. They sent out email once a week saying would be a delay but unless you cancelled them in first 24 hours you had to receive them. Plants arrived today 23rd June. Packaging was damaged . The potted hydranga was yellow and sprawling and the begonia corms which needed to be planted at least a month ago had broken shoots due to the fact they were stuffed down side of the pot.If you return them you have to pay for the postage. They are rubbish. This is the worst company I have ever dealt with. DO NOT USE THEM”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Plants ordered 18th April they arrived today mostly dead ,dried out broken plants!!! and several missing says to follow at later date but their season is now over? Not the fault of courier packaging arrived intact I ordered lupins that would have been in season when I ordered them but as only arrived today their season is over. Plants also so tiny I think they must have only been sown when ordered? Surely they should realise these plants were not suitable to send to anyone what a waste of my money. BIG MISTAKE ORDERING FROM THIS COMPANY”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Dreadful company. Advertise plants they cant supply in any decent condition. When they eventually do arrive they are damaged and out of date. No way of contacting them or cancelling DO NOT USE”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“ordered lots of plants in may 2020 and time of ordering delivery time 2 weeks, now has been over five weeks I have nothing. i send quite a few enquiry via their so called ticket which a robot and keep getting same reply, deliveries are delayed by further two weeks due to covid which we know lockdown started in march 2020 therefore it should state at time of deliver. found an email which bounced back not delivered there is no contact number although its a uk based company so very disappointed. i don't read or write review as its opinion, in this case i checked so negative i wish now having read them i would have not made an order”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Such a disgrace. The wait was almost 3 months, and while I understand issues were caused by COVID, the company had no right in taking more orders than it can handle! Even if I was to forget about the wait, the state in which the plants arrived was appalling. They were all blended and wrapped in plastic bags, half dry and already out of season! Ridiculous experience that I will get reminded of every time I look at the poor sad plants.”

Gardening Express 1 star review on 23rd June 2020

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

Gardening Express is rated 1.2 based on 1,790 reviews