FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

FAQ SHIPPING.

HOW MUCH DO YOU CHARGE FOR SHIPPING?

We try to keep our shipping costs to the absolute minimum. We hate people that give low prices then gouge you on the shipping to make up their money. We never do that. We charge you what it cost to ship and items plus whatever it costs us for packaging. This means the cost of the materials and the time it takes someone to package up the items.

SHIPPING FOR SEEDS WITHIN THE UNITED STATES.
Orders of $45 and greater ship free. Otherwise for small (standard) packets we charge $1.70 for the first packet. Thereafter we charge by weight. This we calculate from the post office rate chart and charge you what they state plus a small amount extra for packaging. (Envelopes and packing do cost money). In these cases you will need to add the items to your shopping cart before you can determine the shipping costs. You can use the estimate shipping option in the shopping cart to get the price that you will be charged. We hate sites that surprise you with shipping in the end.

HOW DO YOU SHIP ORDERS?
Small seed orders are sent via the United States Post Office. Small orders are packaged in bubble envelopes and have no tracking information. Orders over $15.00 are usually shipped "Ground Advantage" and always have tracking information. These will either be shipped in bubble envelopes or small boxes. Bulky orders are sent UPS and also have tracking info. We try as much as possible to keep shipping charges as low as possible. Back

HOW SOON DO YOU SHIP ORDERS?
We try as much as possible to ship orders the next working day for receipt. We try to send online orders out the next day but during our busy periods it may take 2-3 days to ship orders. Back

CAN YOU SHIP SEEDS TO CANADA?
Yes no problem. However delivery takes slightly longer. Seed orders of $45 and over ship for a flat rate of $10 and will be tracked. Smaller orders are shipped by cheapest available USPS rates. Back

CAN YOU SHIP SEEDS OVERSEAS?
Yes but its getting more difficult to many countries. While we can legally export and ship to anywhere your country may have import laws. We cannot check the import laws of every country in the world so it is your responsibility to ensure that you can legally import the seeds you are buying.
Many countries now require a phytosanitary certificate if you are importing seeds. We do not supply these.
Some countries also allow a 'small order' license. This you will have to check with your country and obtain before you order seeds from us.
If you order just a few small seeds it may be possible to ship them to you in a business envelope but any order you place is at your own risk.

What we can do.
If you order a few packets of smaller seeds we will attempt to ship them to you in a tyvek business envelope. Seeds that are larger we place in foam to prevent them from rattling and attracting attention. In this manner almost all of our overseas customers receive their purchase. However this is at your own risk and MUST be fairly small orders only. It is impossible to disguise a large order. We also cannot send large seeds that will bulk out envelopes so no beans or other really large seeds. Medium seeds only in smaller quantities. If you really want a particular seed buy a small packet and take the risk.

Floral Encounters is not liable for any shipments that are stopped by customs, confiscated or returned to us. We do not offer refunds for returned items its always at your own risk. Some countries are more strict about checking seeds see the ever growing list and decide for yourself if you want to chance an order. This list is not all inclusive just the ones we know about. It is impossible for us to determine the laws of each country, plus laws are always changing so it is impossible for us to keep up with worldwide customs requirements. If your country is not on the list we can attempt to ship to you but again are not liable if your order does not reach you

It is best if you check with you own country's import restrictions before ordering. Most countries have websites where you can find this information, even if you do need to do a little digging to find it. Anything over one or two seed packets will require us to complete a customs declaration form so its going to be obvious what the package contains. You will also need to check your countries notification process if they alert you that a parcel has been stopped or not. Some countries do others apparently don't. Back

CAN YOU SHIP OTHER ITEMS OVERSEAS?.
We no longer ship dried materials or dried herbs overseas as these also require a phytosanitary certificate. If you know that your country does not require one please contact us and ask if we can ship to you. In most cases we will be happy to do so. However we are not responsible if your order is confiscated or returned to us and we do not give refunds its always at your own risk. Back

ORDERS RETURNED AS UNDELIVERABLE.
It is the responsibility of the buyer (you) to ensure that the address you give us is correct. If the address you give us is incorrect or for any reason the shipping carrier cannot deliver it, then it will be returned to us.

If this happens we will contact you and tell you that your order was returned. At this point you have two choices:

You can give us a correct address AND send us the cost of reshipping the order to you. Once addition shipping costs have been received we will send the order to the corrected address.
You can request a refund. We will refund your purchase price, minus the cost of the first shipping.

In no case do we bear the burden of shipping when items are returned because they could not be delivered for any reason. Back

FAQ PAYMENT.

WHAT KINDS OF PAYMENT TO YOU ACCEPT?
We accept Visa, Mastercard, Discover or American Express credit cards through our secure ordering system. Our PayPal option is being redone at present so is temporarily not available. We also takes checks from US banks and money orders see below for details on ordering.

CAN I PLACE AN ORDER WITHOUT DOING IT ONLINE?

You certainly can!

U.S. ORDERS
We accept checks and money orders issued by U.S. banks or the U.S. post office. If ordering with a check the order will not be sent out until the check has cleared. With money orders we ship the next business day if possible

OUTSIDE THE U.S.
For orders outside the US the only option at present is to send us U.S. dollars cash via registered mail. If doing so we recommend that you also send us an email (via our contact us option) with a copy of the order. This alerts us that an order is on the way and also gives us your contact information so we can alert you when your order is being sent out and communicate any problems that may arise.
Please do not try and use Western Union or other money sending options the will charge you huge fees for overseas shipments we do not want our customers ripped off by money senders. If you find a different method you think will work for you please contact us before sending so we can ensure it will work on our end. Also please refer to the overseas shipment section above to ensure your order will reach you. All overseas orders are shipped at the buyers risk, we are not responsible for any orders seized by customs and do not offer refunds.

We are looking into other options for overseas payments.

How to order offline:

Print out the Order Form. (or print the order once you have everything in the cart from your computer print screen).
Add all the items you want to buy to the online shopping cart on our site.
Click on the "Cart" link on right side of top menu bar to display the shopping cart
Enter your zip code to estimate the shipping costs to your location
Copy all the item information from the shopping cart to your printed order form.
Add the shipping costs, total up the order
IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT YOU DO THIS OR WE CANNOT CALCULATE THE SHIPPING CHARGES OF YOUR ORDER. ORDERS WITH TOO LITTLE SHIPPING WILL NOT BE SENT.
Fill in your name and address on the form
Fill out your email address. This is so we can notify you when we have sent the order. We do not use the email for any other reason.
Zero out all the items in the cart, press update cart to clear the order then exit the cart.
Make checks payable to Visual Encounters Inc.
or send us a money order to the same company.
Send the order to:
Floral Encounters
341 Sharon Rd.
Hightstown NJ 08520
PLEASE PRINT LEGIBLY! IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO FILL ORDERS OR CONTACT YOU IF WE CANT READ YOUR WRITING!

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DO YOU ACCEPT RETURNS?
No. All seed sales are final. No refunds given or returns accepted.

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FAQ GENERAL.

I SENT A QUESTION AND DID NOT GET AN ANSWER OR I DID NOT GET A SHIPPING NOTIFICATION.

We always answer all legitimate questions and comments that come to us. Spurious and sales messages are usually ignored.
If you are having problems please check the following:
1. Make sure that you have added "floralencounters.com" to your e-mail white list. If you have not done so check your 'junk' box to see if our email landed there.
If your provider is removing spam before it reaches your email you may need to check with them to ensure that they are not blocking mail.
2. Ensure that your in box is not full. All shipping requests are sent out via a non returnable email. If it hits a full box and bounces back we will not know and will not resend the message. If we answer a legitimate question and it bounces back from a full box we will wait and attempt to send the message again. However we only try 2-3 times then give up.
If you are still having problems please send your question or comment again, state that you have tried before. Back

I DID NOT GET A SHIPPING NOTIFICATION.
Make sure you have added "floralencounters.com" to your e-mail white list. Most commonly we get complaints about no notification and its stuck in 'junk mail'. We always send shipping notifications when the order has been shipped. This is usually within 1-3 days of order placement on a working day - that is Monday to Friday. We don't ship orders on weekends. In some cases if we are busy, backlogged or out working the fields orders may take two days to process. Sometimes we get behind in sending our notifications out but we do send them. If you sent us an order via regular mail make sure you include your email address or we cannot send you a shipping notification. Back

DO YOU HAVE A PRINTED CATALOG?
No. Everything is on our website. We are a small company with only a limited number of items for sale as yet. We are looking at having a downloadable catalog but its going to be a while before we have a printed one. Back

IS EVERYTHING ON YOUR WEBSITE IN STOCK?
We try to keep everything in stock but sometimes there is a run on a particular seed and we sell out. IF this is the case all items will be noted as sold out and you will not be allowed to add it to your cart.. We never take orders for items that we no longer have. Back

I TRIED TO ORDER A PARTICULAR SEED BUT IT WONT LET ME!
This can happen if you have asked for more seed than we have left in inventory. Its not common but occasionally we have customers buying 50 or more packets of one kind of seed. That may be more than we have left so our system wont let you order. Sadly our system is not smart enough to show you how much stock we have so you need to reduce the number of packets you are asking for until it accepts the number. Back

WHY DON'T YOU HAVE A PHONE NUMBER SO I CAN CALL YOU?
We used to list our phone number but sadly had to remove it. This was because we were constantly getting calls asking for advise on how to grow plants. In most cases they were not even plants that we grew and sold! While we are happy to help our customers if they have a genuine problem we found that these few 'internet entitled' people spoil the service for everyone. They would call again and again demanding more and more of our time to help with their plants or for advise on all kinds of other issues. Some days many hours of productive work were lost, and with a small staff of anywhere between 1-4 people working on our farm we could not afford to have one person just answering questions and giving advise that often had little to do with our own business.
So we had to remove our number. We were all very sad about it since it cuts of genuine customers, but to continue to run our own business we had no choice. If we grow larger and can afford to have a person who just answers the phone they we will most likely restore it. Back to top.

FAQ FOR SEEDS.

ARE YOUR SEEDS ORGANICALLY GROWN?
Yes we use no pesticides or other materials on our plants. All we use is liquid fertilizers that are accepted for use on organic farms. Back

WHAT IS SEMI CLEANED SEED?
Semi cleaned means that not all the plant material from around the seed is removed. Removing every scrap of 'non seed' material is extremely time consuming and is the main reason that seeds cost so much. All our seeds are cleaned and processed by hand not through machinery, so we remove as much material as we can but many seeds are small or the material around them is very difficult and time consuming to remove so we have to leave it there.
We like to tell you ahead of time that this is what you will receive. Many companies do the same as we do but don't tell you that you will get more than just seeds in your packet. We try to keep the amount of material to a minimum which is not what many others do.
The weights we use for seeds take into account the additional material. In most cases you will receive more seeds than listed in the approximate seed number. This process keeps our costs down and provides you with a more generous amount of seed for your money. Back

WILL THE MATERIAL IN MY SEED BE A PROBLEM?
No it's just bits of plant material from around the seed that cannot be easily removed. Just plant the seeds in the way you would normally the plant material will just decompose and become organic fertilizer for your plants. Back

WHY DON'T YOU CLEAN ALL YOUR SEEDS?
Some seeds are very difficult to remove from their associated plant material. You either need lots of people doing it manually or very expensive and hard to find machines. If its too time consuming to remove it would not be cost effective for us to sell the seeds. So to ensure you have access to these seeds we do not remove every scrap of such material but offer it in a semi natural state. One of the main reasons seeds are expensive is that they are so hard to clean up. Leaving material with the seeds allows us to provide you with seeds at much lower cost and larger quantities. It also means that we cannot offer some seeds for sale as they are just too difficult to clean. Back

HOW DO I CARE FOR MY SEEDS?
All our seed packets come with an growing instruction sheet to make things easy for you. This information is also posted on our website along with photographs of the plants so you always know what to do and what your plants will look like. We recommend that you put your seeds in the refrigerator as soon as you receive them and keep them there. Remove the packets only when you are going to sow the seeds. Any remaining seed should be returned to the refrigerator. This ensures that they stay fresh and viable. Many seeds kept under refrigeration can remain viable to quite a few years. Back

WHY DON'T YOU OFFER MORE VARIETY?
We are increasing our offerings every year but we are a small farm and only have a limited amount of growing space. We also prefer to specialize in seeds for health and pollinators rather than be a general seed company. This way we can offer many seeds that large companies do not have. Back

ARE YOUR SEEDS FRESH?
Yes! We sell only seed collected from the previous growing season. All our seed is stored under refrigerated conditions to ensure that it stays in the best possible condition. Seed companies that do not store their seed this way may be selling you old or dead seed as many seeds to not remain viable for long if left in hot or damp conditions. Always unsure you buy seed from a company that stores their seed under refrigeration. Back

ARE ALL THE SEEDS LISTED ON YOUR SITE AVAILABLE?
Yes! If we don't have a seed available this year or if we run out of that seed it is removed from our website. We never leave anything up and visible that is not for sale. We hate sites that do this! Back

DOES FLORAL ENCOUNTERS OFFER PHYTOSANITARY CERTIFICATES?
No we don't. A single phytosanitary certificate can cost they buyer anywhere between $125- $200! This is not our choice its how much we get charged to create one. Its only really worth it for buyers who want large amounts of seeds which we cannot usually supply. Its not worth our time and money to go through this process. More info on phytosanitary certificates Back

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

SHIPPING QUESTIONS

PAYMENT QUESTIONS

GENERAL QUESTIONS

SEED QUESTIONS

FAQ SHIPPING.

FAQ PAYMENT.

FAQ GENERAL.

FAQ FOR SEEDS.