Comments on: Burpee’s Act of Garden Vandalism: Heronswood is Gone

By: Andrew

Andrew — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 05:11:30 +0000

The above comment by user ‘Paul’ was mass-spammed to dozens of gardening-related blogs by a Burpee employee with the IP 69.248.162.148 in Pennsylvania. It is a rather shoddy example of astroturfing in an attempt to simulate support for Burpee’s actions. You can verify this with the following google search:

http://www.google.com/search?q=%22I%27m+happy+that+Heronswood+moved+out+this+way%22&filter=0

Thanks for your opinion, ‘Paul’.

By: Paul

Paul — Fri, 04 May 2007 01:39:30 +0000

As an East Coast person, I’m happy that Heronswood moved out this way. It’s allowed for me to go to the East Coast opens now. The last one was very good. Nice article here talks about the last one. Picked up some nice hellebores.

http://www.mcall.com/features/custom/hg/garden/nurseries/all-gardenstopshops0427.5817119apr27,0,2361228.story

Future Opens
http://www.heronswood.com/openevents.asp

By: Richard Silverstein

Richard Silverstein — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 22:03:57 +0000

Gardeners selfish on the west coast? Since when? And what do you know about the west coast, the gardeners here or the gardening climate here? Unfortunately very little it seems. Gardeners here are some of the most generous I’ve encountered & I’ve gardened in several regions of this country.

We’re condemning Burpee because they destroyed a thriving NW gardening enterprise & then dismantled it & took it to the east coast. Hinkley had one of the most distinctive gardening companies & plant choices available anywhere in the country or the world for that matter–& Burpee came along & drove it into the ground.

There are thousands of successful gardening enterprises in the Pacific NW. The fact that Burpee crashed & burned is a reflection on them & not on this region or gardening in general here.

Pls. spend some time out here or at least learn something about our region before you speak. You’d come across much more persuasively.

By: Donna

Donna — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 14:53:00 +0000

I always thought gardeners were some of the nicest people, but they seem so selfish on the west coast. I just read an article in Horticulture magazine on Dan Hinkley and his partner’s beautiful new home and garden overlooking Puget Sound. I can see where the profits from Heronswood went, which is their right. THEY decided to sell. Why is everyone condemming Burpee? They tried for 6 years. It’s a business decision. I’m mad a HGTV for taking off so many gardening shows. But I guess it’s business decision. I garden in Z 6 in the midwest and feel the Pacific NW is a very limited climate for a US gardening company. Why don’t you all encourage Dan to start a new business.

By: Jake

Jake — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 21:02:19 +0000

I just had a speech from George ball in one of my horticultural classes. Heronswood is now located in my town and I have been there to visit once, from what I can tell it is a pretty beautiful place. As for the original Heronswood I never heard of it nor new of its existence. I can tell you about George ball from what I know from his speech. He’s a very intelligent man from a business as well as plant breeding side of things. I’m sorry to hear of the “rape” and “pillage” of the original Heronswood but as another mentioned it wasn’t like burpee was holding a gun to the original owners head. They were doing what EVERY other business does and that’s expansion and if expansion does go well you bail out and take what u can…. Sorry for everyone who lost jobs… Hope none of you will be sour towards me if I work for burpee this summer….:( I am a student and need a variety of experiences before I can graduate….

By: deb

deb — Sat, 29 Jul 2006 16:26:28 +0000

Remember White Flower Farms acquisition? Same thing was pulled on the owners so it’s not new in the world of big business. Once a large corp. owns our company they can promise you anything and deliver nothing.

By: Richard Silverstein

Richard Silverstein — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 05:49:59 +0000

Virginia Brown: You’re certainly entitled to yr opinion but I think you’re being far too harsh on Dan. You don’t know what use he made of what he earned. Perhaps he plowed it back into furthering his botanical travels and research. I’m not saying he is blameless as I’m sure he feels terrible about what happened. But I just think you’re going to far in yr criticism.

By: virginia brown

virginia brown — Sat, 08 Jul 2006 17:35:06 +0000

EVERYONE IS FAILING TO MENTION that DAN HINKLEY SOLD US ALL OUT THE DAY HE GOT GREEDY AND SOLD HERONSWOOD - CALL A SPADE A SPADE - BURBPEES MAY HAVE THE LAST say in this - but we would have expected that from a large corporation NOT from someone who professes to be a man of the people and plants of the world - WHAT ABOUT ALL THOSE EMPLOYEES WHO ARE OUT IN THE COLD - he states they are great employees and would be happy to share their names with other nurseries - WEREN’T THEY SO GREAT WHEN HE SOLD THEM ALL OUT!
YOU, DAN HINKLEY ARE THE GUILTY PARTY - YOU GOT TOO BIG AND TOO GREEDY -

By: S. Parsons

S. Parsons — Fri, 07 Jul 2006 03:41:25 +0000

I, as a lover of Heronswood, will never buy any Burpee product and will encourage everyone I know to do the same. On my last visit to Heronswood in May of this year, my friend and I were privileged to have a garden tour by Hinkley himself! What a remarkable man and I certainly hope he will establish himself in the nursery business as soon as he can.

By: Richard Silverstein

Richard Silverstein — Thu, 06 Jul 2006 01:47:40 +0000

Christopher: Thanks for pointing out the irony of those Burpee ads. I’ve filtered them fr. my Adsense results so you won’t see any such ads on this site in future.

I think all of your “nits” (which of course weren’t nits) are precisely right. There were warning signs that weren’t heeded. I just hope that Dan & his partner are wiser for their experience and when they enter their next gardening venture (which I hope they do as soon as their non-compete clause expires) they won’t make the same ‘mistakes’ (if they were that) again.

As for Burpee, a pox on their house. People should buy fr. Territorial Seeds, Seeds for Change & all those other great seed sources. I wish our local nurseries would cancel their business w. Burpee in solidarity w. Hersonswood.

You ran a beautiful site in its day & I wish you continued success in yr web management & nursery work. Thanks for leaving yr comment here.