50 replies to this topic

[PALM MOD]

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[George Sparkman]

I have been buying seeds from Toby for many years and have been pleased with the products & service.
The seed trade is not easy since certain species require more speed in delivery then sometimes possible.
Any business will have some problems and it is about how the company deals with the problems that determines how good or bad they are.
Toby has always taken good care of me.

Happy germinating,
George Sparkman
Cycads-n-Palms.com

[Kostas]

I second what George said,RPS seed quality has been great for me the vast majority of the times i have bought(which is many but i guess cant match George's )and service has been very friendly and helpfull all of the times! Toby is always eager to make a deal right if for some reason something doesnt go as it should
RPS has mostly been my sole palm seed source over the years and i am very pleased to find rare favourites of mine availiable from time to time. With every update of its catalog,there is always at least one new species i would like to get!

[Sim01]

I've always been pleased by the quality of seeds, as a cycad collector, it's one of the only way I have to get interesting species.

Simon

[Kathryn]

Many of the seeds I've received from Rare Palm Seeds over the years are now nice plants in my yard and many othersthroughout the New Orleans area. When the only palms available around here were Syagrus romanzoffiana and Phoenix roebelenii, I was able to get great viable seeds from Rare Palm Seeds by the 100's. It is one of the two place I first check for seeds when I'm in the market.

[richnorm]

It is obvious that a huge amount of effort goes into providing a fantastic range of seeds. I sometimes get 0% germination but when you consider what the seeds go through to get here that's not surprising. Well done Toby and the team.
cheers
Richard

[Donald Sanders]

I have finally found seed from RPS that I am interested in buying. I met Toby in Costa Rica at the beinnial, I sent him an email inquiring about purchasing seed to be sent to Hawaii, before Xmass and again early Jan. He never replied to me. I am very disappointed that RPS never go back to me.
I am not sure what I have to do to get a permit to buy a small quantity, I quess I must get one even for a small purchase. I was curious because my family lives in Holland and they could get the seed there from him without a permit and get them to me. I wanted to find out about viability sending seed this time of year and if RPS even sends to the Hawaiian Islands. Perhaps my order would be too small although I don't mind paying a minimun to get the seed I want.
Please if anyone can help me with advice on purchasing seed as far as permits go and why do you think RPS has not responded to me.
Thank you to anyone who can share some wisdom about purchasing seed through the mail from Europe.
Thanks, mahalo and aloha,
Don

[cagary]

I have finally found seed from RPS that I am interested in buying. I met Toby in Costa Rica at the beinnial, I sent him an email inquiring about purchasing seed to be sent to Hawaii, before Xmass and again early Jan. He never replied to me. I am very disappointed that RPS never go back to me.
I am not sure what I have to do to get a permit to buy a small quantity, I quess I must get one even for a small purchase. I was curious because my family lives in Holland and they could get the seed there from him without a permit and get them to me. I wanted to find out about viability sending seed this time of year and if RPS even sends to the Hawaiian Islands. Perhaps my order would be too small although I don't mind paying a minimun to get the seed I want.
Please if anyone can help me with advice on purchasing seed as far as permits go and why do you think RPS has not responded to me.
Thank you to anyone who can share some wisdom about purchasing seed through the mail from Europe.
Thanks, mahalo and aloha,
Don

Toby does have a 100 Euro minimum which equals about $135 US. This is wriiten quite clearly on his website. Technically, you do need a import permit. Its called something lile "Small packet seed permit", but my seeds arrive from RPS without one attached to the package. I do have a seed permit which one can get free rather easily from the USDA website. As far as seed viability goes, its hard to say. I don't think its a problem that concerns the time of the year. Problems can occur when seeds dry out. This can happen quite quickly with small seeds. You might want to get on Toby's mailing list. As soon as a new group of seeds arrives, you get notified via e-mail. This way you are assured that you are getting relatively fresh seed.

[freakypalmguy]

I have finally found seed from RPS that I am interested in buying. I met Toby in Costa Rica at the beinnial, I sent him an email inquiring about purchasing seed to be sent to Hawaii, before Xmass and again early Jan. He never replied to me. I am very disappointed that RPS never go back to me.
I am not sure what I have to do to get a permit to buy a small quantity, I quess I must get one even for a small purchase. I was curious because my family lives in Holland and they could get the seed there from him without a permit and get them to me. I wanted to find out about viability sending seed this time of year and if RPS even sends to the Hawaiian Islands. Perhaps my order would be too small although I don't mind paying a minimun to get the seed I want.
Please if anyone can help me with advice on purchasing seed as far as permits go and why do you think RPS has not responded to me.
Thank you to anyone who can share some wisdom about purchasing seed through the mail from Europe.
Thanks, mahalo and aloha,
Don

Toby does have a 100 Euro minimum which equals about $135 US. This is wriiten quite clearly on his website.

100 Euro For Wholesale only, small packets only require 30 Euro min which is what Donald quite clearly stated he was looking for.

Donald, the best thing I can suggest is to just go ahead and order from their website. They are good about filling orders promptly, just severely lacking in the communication department. They send out the small packets without phytosanitary certificates.

Matt

[cagary]

Matt is correct about the small packet order minimum.

However, when placing an order, wholesale prices are significantly lower which is why I buy that way.

Euro prices
Dypsis minuta 10 seeds 6.20, or .62 a seed. 100 seeds 14.00 or .14 a seed
Dictyocaryum lamarckianum 10 seeds 15.60 or 1.56 a seed. 100 seeds 59. or .59 a seed.

Also the problem with small packets is that there are only 10 seeds in them. Buying wholesale (100 seeds) greatly enhances your chance of getting germination.

Admitedly you do end up spending a lot more money, but with seeds I like the odds with 100 of them rather than 10.

Note that Toby sometimes only has a limited number of seeds. This means that he will only have small packets available for some seeds, so you might want to check both lists.

[Robert Pittman]

Toby and Rarepalmseeds is the best. I have bought many seeds from him and many of the plants are grown now and have been sold.

My Borassus aethiopium and Jubaeopsis caffra all germinated. I was very pleased.

Thanks Toby

Rob Pittmam
www.aqualityplant.com

[ixigena]

Until now, my brother has not receiving any seeds, yet. Since he paid on 8 January 2010.
First, Toby emailed the wrong shipping company & tracking number. Then Silke emailed the German Post tracking number which did not give the clues where the packet is. What a service !!

[Philpalm]

Toby has been good to us with service, always count on the delivery in good time.
Here in the Philippines the postal system isnt that good.
Seed quality is as equally as good as any other seed company.
I have bought many thousands of seeds from toby in the past few years or so.
I know how hard it is to get fresh seed sometimes you cant be certain to its
viability as we all know.
The seeds that have been rotten or simply too old
have been kindly replaced by Toby (no questions asked).
The amount of sp. on Tobys list is incredible!!
I have not seen such a list in 25 years growing palms.

Keep up the good work Toby!!!

From all of us here at Philpalm nursery.
Batangas
Philippines.

[Gallop]

This post has been deleted by the moderating team. If anyone has a valid issue, bring it up, but posts with hearsay are not acceptable and WILL be removed.

[Kris]

I have been buying seeds from Toby for many years and have been pleased with the products & service.
The seed trade is not easy since certain species require more speed in delivery then sometimes possible.
Any business will have some problems and it is about how the company deals with the problems that determines how good or bad they are.
Toby has always taken good care of me.

Happy germinating,
George Sparkman

Even i have the same opinion...And iam a regular buyer from RPS.And my purchases are all limited number of seeds,say 10 to 12 seeds of the varities that i choose from.And i have had good results..By the way iam not a commercial grower or a nursery guy.

Love,
kris.

[totony]

My first purchase was made with RPS seed, comunication and service was great.
The delivery was fast here in Mexico 3 weeks.
The germination rate was good, except from Licuala valida that until now I have 0% germination.
Positive vote.

[palmsOrl]

I would also like to give rps a positive vote. I recieved my third order from them last week, and all three have been on time. The seeds were of good quality and the selection is second to none, I definitely recommend this vendor for hard to find seeds.

-Michael

[Sim01]

I bought cycad seeds from Toby several times, I've always been pleased. In december I purchased some Zamia nesophila seeds, which are very hard to find. I only had 3 germination on 11 seeds, I told Toby what happened. Last month I ordered new cycad seeds and when I received them, I've been pleased to find 7 new Zamia nesophila seeds, 3 are already sprouting.
RPS seeds are quite expensive but of good quality which is not always the case with other cycad seeds sellers.

Simon

[Tyrone]

I've been dealing with Toby since 2002 and have bought thousands of seeds from him over the years. His service is very good and he stands by his quality. My collection has been greatly enhanced by RPS.

Tyrone

[cfkingfish]

I wanted to say that Toby more than held up his end of the deal concerning a trade earlier this year. Thanks for the great seeds Toby.

[Collectorpalms]

WholesaleSeeds ordered/paid Nov 8th 2010, have not received as of Dec 12, 2010. to usa. Never personal communication/ customer service.

[totony]

I paid 2 weeks ago, and I dont have response from any emails. That's a shame, it was my second purchase.

[PiousPalms]

totony, don't worry... 2 weeks is not a long time to wait for an order. Be patient, Rare Palm Seeds will make good on the order. They are top notch in their line of work.

[palmtreesforpleasure]

Hi All
i have bought many seeds from RPS for many years and always receive my seed, sometimes in 10 days , sometimes in 4 weeks or so, especially at the moment , teh snow in europe slowed down everything including family xmas presents.
It is accepted that Seed merchants can only control the seed when they receive them, then after that the postal services take over, have had seed sent 1 day apart date on the envelope, then arrive 3 weeks apart
thats the postal service around the world.
regards
colin

[MichaelS]

I have ordered small packs of seeds from RPS and was happy with them. I am a hobby germinator.
Michael

[totony]

Thanks Toby, I received the seeds after 2 months that was the purchase.

[peachy]

I found with seeds purchased from RPS that I have very poor germination rates. Often I get 0 success. When I am sent seeds from private people either purchased or as gifts, my germination is about 75%. Last year I stopped buying from RPS for this reason. A couple of months ago, I saw some seeds in their catalogue that tempted me to break my resolve not to purchase from them again. I finally ordered them, they arrived and 4 out of 10 seeds from one species crumbled in my hands, and the other species, when I cracked the shells, 6 out of 10 were completely rotten inside. Maybe its because I only order small amounts that I am sent inferior stock. I won't be buying anything from them again and definately cannot in all honesty recommend them to anybody.
Peachy

[apaandssa]

I've been happy with my RPS seed orders. I have 2 Sommiera,at least 5 Pigafettas and almost all of my Coryphas and African cardamoms (tropicals) are up. None of these plants were available in shippable sizes at the time I ordered so without the seeds, I wouldn't be growing the palms. No rare licualas up yet from one packet, but not ready to give up on those either. Considering I'm a novice at growing palms from seed and order only packs of 10 seeds, I'm enjoying the results. I also learn from the website's photos and information and thank RPS for supporting Palmtalk with the ad. I've had 0% germination from batches of non-palm seeds bought online from several other sources,so I rarely take a chance there anymore. I'll continue to order from RPS when I see something I "need".

[colin Peters]

most all of the seeds I have ordered have germinated. Some of these have to be collected from the most inhospitable places
on the planet. Not in peoples backyards. I realize this when I order them. I had a packet of C. Tanga seeds confiscated at
customs here in Hawaii. This is a hard state to get things into, and for very good reason. There are enough invasive species here
already. Anyway, Toby replaced them. I know they are very, very rare and probably one of the most expensive RPS sells. Nothing but
positive things to say about RPS.
aloha
Colin Peters, Oahu

[Cedric]

I have used RPS twice, second time very very recently.

I have to be honest and say the results have been excellent to very poor both times and at the same time.

They are a mixed bag of quality. Customer service again ranges from excellent to non-existent again at the same time.

I tend to order a number of different species16-24 and I think this is where I myself am going wrong as not all seed or batches thereof are equal at any given time. No matter what we may believe just because seed is listed as available doesn't mean and it cant possibly if you think about it mean that they are all at their prime and ready for dispatching at the same time.

I find the more expensive the seed the better shape a percentage of the seed is on arrival that is to say a guaranteed percent will germinate almost immediately having been pre-primed for the job before dispatch, these can also arrive already germinated and depending on the species is either a good thing or a disaster. But in the batch at least 50% has been pre-primed for germination from viable seed.

This I feel is just ok as it leaves you at least happy that you got a good % of expensive seed primed to germinate but a bit puzzled why the rest are fossilised duds or random select and usual smaller as well and not primed for anything other than the compost bin, i.e. as I said not all seed seems equal in the same batch always.

The cheaper more common seed the more hit and miss the entire batch seems to be, I only got three viable Dypsis leptocheilos seeds to try and germinate for example, the rest crumbled and where soft empty or black inside after one nights soaking. The expensive seed % that took off extremely well out of my order did not offset this disappointment or others at all, as I needed seedlings of these for example to plant in situ for a particular project. The expensive seed was a rarity perhaps and would have been of a novelty interest value only but wasn't in my mind the plant I needed the most to do the job. The Dypsis was so my plans were thwarted there. thing is there I was thinking the Dypsis would be fine as they are relatively easily available fresh.....but seems I stand corrected.

I feel I must mention the service aspect to RPS they are very fast to respond to an order and even faster if you chat to them on the phone but once payment and the order is settled almost anything is possible. You get no notice when the seed has been sent or when it will be sent you get no update on the orders readiness at all. This I feel is short sighted.

After placing an expensive order it makes no sense to dispatch it without notifying the recipient, I for one like to be prepared for the arrival of expensive seed or any seed I order. Both times it was pure luck I was even around to receive the order as both times they sort of fell out the sky with no warning at all. I could have been in Thailand or Vietnam or anywhere for that matter and the seed would have sat until my return not something that would please me at all as I like to get em prepared immediately as I assume at least a good % should be fresh. In this I am sure I am unanimous (lol) growers like to have things ready.

A bit of positive criticism if you like, but the lack of Customer service is not ideal at all and nor is the overall quality of multiple species order.

I suspect the best service you would receive is if you ordered one species at a time and a good amount at that. This way they may have more control over sourcing the seed for the quality they send and the timing. Though without being in contact and actively pursuing them by phone (certainly not e-mail post order receipt) yourself Im not sure you would know when to expect anything from Toby to ever arrive.

I myself would prefer to see a shorter more frequently updated list of the freshest seed at any given time and the actual age of the rest of the "available" seed from ripe fruit of everything they sell. There is absolutely no reason why not as they will know this information so why not the customer. Proper storage of seed is all good and well but I think the customer is still entitled to know for how long it has taken place since arrival pre departure to the dear customer.

I get the news letter but to be honest this is more about new species in stock than the freshness or viability of the seed, that is "new" doesn't mean fresh and they don't pretend it does or at least it's not always implied to mean that a all.

Edited by Cedric, 23 December 2011 - 06:18 AM.

[santoury]

My experience with the RPS started out positive - Toby, and Silke (whoever that is) were very friendly, and answered my emails promptly, and I put together a $400 order. When I requested a final total, with payment / shipping info, all communication ended abruptly. No emails have been responded to, since a few weeks ago, leaving me with a bad taste in my mouth. I, then, decided to look him up on google, and was surprised to see that this is something that happens often.
I gave him the benefit of the doubt, and gave him more than plenty of time to get back to me, since he does travel, but... nothing.
Toby - you're a good guy - but don't treat customers this way. If you disappear, at least let us know.
Thank you

[amazon exotics]

I will most likely never buy seeds from RPS again. PERIOD !! Not a happy camper here !

[Z4Devil]

Just 2 words: highly recommendation.
Not sure if you know the website of him where he sells live trees?

Go to www.palmeperpaket.de

I guess he offers a lot of palms and is the market leader in Germany with his palms.

[DT5000]

Seeds came fast in what appeared to be good shape. Germinating as I type this. So far so good.

[pilou]

I will most likely never buy seeds from RPS again. PERIOD !! Not a happy camper here !

Even if I'm not so happy with RPS, I continue to buy some seeds sometimes... for trying...
RPS has very big choice... correct price... but for me, very low result... and I continue to think that the quality is medium-low...to very bad
If I compare, I should say that it's with RPS that I have the lower result...

[Jeff Searle]

Toby,

My last request for seeds was sent(via fax)on monday,May 21st. I'm very curious if the seed was even sent yet. No confirmation, no nothing. Almost 4 weeks!!!

Jeff

[PranaVidaCostaRica]

Hello, and I apologize that my first post is starting off on a less then positive note, but a friend who turned me on RPS them as a company suggested I look for some suggestions here.
I have had an undelivered order form Rare Palm Seeds for a couple of months now, and I am having a hard time getting much info back from them.
I won't go into all of the details here for two reasons.
One, I don't want to be spreading any bad comments about them here, that is not my aim. I'm quite sure that they must be an excellent company, I just seem to have fallen through the cracks for some reason.
Two, the details are quite boring,
Long story short, I feel that they should have either sent me new seeds by now, or granted a refund.
It seems that the seeds may or may not have been lost in transit, but I never got them.
They basically only respond to me after my credit card company requests info from them, and then I don't hear anything again from them.
Any suggestions on who and how to talk with someone who can help me get this "unstuck"?
I really just want the seeds. Rainy season is well underway here in Costa Rica, and it's the time that I need them.
Thanks for any suggestions, and again sorry to bring up such an uninteresting subject on this very interesting site!

[Trópico]

I am a long time customer and some of my first seed orders from them are now beautiful palms in my collection that are beginning to trunk. I order about once or twice a year. For seeds that I suspect are difficult species I tend to order from their "new arrivals" list. By experience, in Central Florida, USA, an order takes an average of one to two months from ordering to arrival in the mailbox. I already voted POSITIVE like a long time ago, and would vote again POSITIVE if it's allowed. A very VERY happy customer here of many years and hopefully for many more. This is the most viable source of palm species for me, since there are none in my area and I have to drive long miles to get my hands on an uncommon species (which I do whenever time and work allows it). Seeds are by nature very touchy and things can go wrong very quickly and I hardly blame RPS for bad seeds, which they are very happy to replace.
To PranaVidaCostaRica, please check with others from Costa Rica that have placed orders as well and can tell you about their experiences. Every country's laws and regulations regarding customs and agriculture are different, and there is always the possibility that your seeds are stuck in the bureaucracy. I have learned very sad stories here about members whose seeds get confiscated/burned for very inane reasons.
Thanks once more Toby! Please keep the new Calyptrogyne species coming!

[manoj]

I had ordered some seeds of Lepidozamia peroffskyana from rarepalmseeds. The seeds arrived within 10 days and were of very good quality. to top it all half of them very already germinating. This was my first purchase. thanks toby and silke for such a rewarding experiance.

[Pedro 65]

A1  Supplier/Seller.. RPS doesnt only stand for RAREPALMSEEDS it also stands for REALPROFESSIONALSERVICE.    Rare seeds at the click of a button, I look fwd to  "Every New Update"  Seed from RPS happily germinates here all year.   Pete