Groundcovers Greenhouse

I can’t stress how horrible the staff is at this establishment. The owner I later found her name is Keri. She was the most vile woman I’ve met. She told me that I clearly was not suited to plant, as she became irritated by the questions I had regarding planting. Her attitude was comparable to nothing I’ve experienced, being that terrible. Her staff is no better, constantly engaging in drama amongst themselves. I overheard one of the managers saying «we will charge that dumb#@$$, twice plus labor to transplant.» They were referring to an old gentleman, who had trouble speaking, since he spoke another language. I have never been so appalled in my life! That is when I noticed an employee smoking in one of the greenhouses, but she quickly put her cigarette out when she spotted me. No one asked me if I needed assistance, only if I went to them. I then asked to speak to Keri, and she refused to converse with me, but instead had me talk to one of her managers, Shelly. This woman rolled her eyes when she saw me and responded with «yeah?» She informed me that I was overreacting, and proceded to ignore me, as I tried to tell her what I saw and experienced. Here’s the kicker, she ends up kicking me out, for «not agreeing with her.» Worst greenhouse in the area. Please don’t go here, unless you want terrible customer service and HIGHLY priced plants that are poor in health and appearance. There are plenty of other greenhouses that are fairly priced and with a pleasant atmosphere.

Echoing other reviews– yes, you have to wander through the over-​crowded inside retail space. It’s almost like they set up a non-​path to the outdoor plant area.
The outside plant area is quite peaceful compared to the clutter of the checkout building. Last year I found the folks outside to be generally affable.
Prices are… high, at least for the common perennials– there are plants you can get at Home Depot or Lowes for lower prices and there’s a Home Depot a mile up the street.
Overall, they stock way more kinds of perennials at once than Home Depot, so I ended up at least wandering through to see what plants I was «stalking» on the internet looked like in person.
I did get some 3 for 2 deals at the end of the season.

I like Groundcovers because of the plant variety. As someone else said, they have you running a maze from the curio section, through the packaged bulbs, then to the plants. Aisles are narrow and if you take a cart and try to pass another shopper coming from the opposite direction, also with a cart, you have to back out. Plus, the last time I was there staff were crowding the aisles and plant trays were on the floor so that I couldn’t get through several aisles. Not good for their business. They have a planting station for staff only which takes up a lot of room. They have a limited selection of pots and planters that aren’t ceramic and the ones they do have I couldn’t reach. No staff in sight to help. So I had to move everything myself to buy a single pot.
I do wonder where the bad reviews are coming from. In spite of the problems noted above, it’s one of my favorites, way above Country Fair. I also go to City Floral, another favorite.
Here’s the problem. Any city garden center will be limited in space and have no room to expand. So they rearrange every year to try to accommodate customers. But I still like these places and shop there every garden season. You do have to get used to fending for yourself in every one of them. So stop whining.

Yeah, not that impressed. They do have pretty good variety, although I’ve noticed over the past few years their selection is getting less unique and more «Home Depot-​ish» for far more $$, especially in their Veggie and Herb selection.
But what ticked me off from my recent visit was that two of the four people I solicited opinions from were VERY rude and the other two were nice, but completely clueless. Then when I went to check out she scanned one of my plants and it rang up at $ 6.99. I said, «Oh those are only $ 6.99! I think I’ll go back and get a few more.» She rudely said, «No… that’s the wrong price… they are $ 12.99» and she manually entered $ 12.99 for both. HUH? They *scanned* as $ 6.99, but you are just going to charge $ 12.99? If something scans incorrectly, go ahead and change it for the future, but honor the scanned price this time.
Also, I hate that they have a sign that says, «Only dogs that can be carried are allowed». If you don’t want dogs in your place, fine… just don’t allow any dogs. My friend wants to carry her rottweiler/​lab in there one day… (BTW, Country Fair around the corner loves all dogs. :))

The staff is rude and not knowledgeable about plants AT ALL. The management is shoddy and does not care how the place is run, Their plant selection is quite good, but I won’t ever patronize them again. Stick to country faire – nice, knowledgeable and care about customer service and great plants! I had been shopping at groundcovers for about a year but after many times of encountering rude and not very bright staff over and over again plus one major incident I thought this place deserves NO ONES business

High quality plants, unusual varieties, knowledgeable staff. Prices are very high. I had a problem with something I purchases and the owner/​manager was so rude. Did not appreciate the way she treated her staff. I have shopped here for years and will not go back-​too bad. Five stars on plant quality.

Most helpful staff in town and excellent selection at good prices. I have found many Xeric plants here and everything I have bought has been healthy and thrived. Got a question on what to plant were? Just ask the staff.

First off, I always try to support the small neighborhood businesses. Great centrally located greenhouse with an average perennial plant stock. You can find a few unusual plants… but for the most part, they carry common perennials. Plants are healthy and well cared for. Prices are a little higher than some of the other independent greenhouses. Staff is not always the most helpful or knowledgeable. Plant returns are almost impossible. For example… I purchased a rock garden plant that was unmarked as far as cold hardiness. I took the plant home, looked up the name on the internet, to find that the plant was hardy to zone 6. I immediately call Groundcovers to ask if I could return the plant in exchange for another plant that would live through our Colorado winters. I was told by a staff member that it would be no problem if I did it within a week. Returning after 3 days, I was told by one of the nursery managers that plants are never sold at their greenhouse that will not survive Colorado weather! She at first refused to exchange the plant. But eventually gave in. Very unpleasant experience! I will never return to this greenhouse. I would rather drive a bit to a quality greenhouse that will appreciate my frequent business.

This is one of the «in the know» spots, because it is hidden on a side street off Colorado Blvd. I stumbled on it by accident the first time. Despite the appearance from the street tha it is a small place, it actually stretches out over a full city block. They have an amazing selection of perennial and annual plans, and, early in the season, veggies. Quite a bit pricier than Home Depot. Staff is friendly and knowledgable, and will help you load your car if you need it.

Going to Groundcovers is kind of like going to a tourist attraction or a great museum — in reverse. You know how you’re always forced to walk through the gift shop before exiting a ride at Disney World? Well at Groundcovers you enter through double metal sliding doors and have to wind your way through their version of the curio shop (stocked various colorful items to display in your garden including every type of cute, colorful garden animal and gnome — and yes boxes of the obligatory pink flamingos). At the end of this diversion are racks of «garden fashions» including croc-​ish shoes and gloves etc. If you make it through all this without picking up a must-​have, you’re doing well. Ultimately though you make it through to Groundcovers exceptional greenhouse with just about every type of plant you could imagine for your house or garden. Outside of the greenhouse you’ll find a large selection of trees and shrubs.
The best thing about Groundcovers however is the staff. Consider the fact that I pride myself for my black-​hooded thumb (translation: I have a knack for killing all things plant), I have always gotten excellent help for those who work there — many of whom have been there for years. The outdoor tree/​shrub staff are great at helping to diagnose problems and coming up with solutions.
Although slightly more expensive than big-​box stores, their professional staff sets them apart and has kept me coming back every season for many years.
Oh, and then there are the pink flamingos which after my last visit are now proudly displayed in my back yard.

We have been going here for years (decades, actually).
Everything you need.
Very friendly AND knowledgeable staff.
Way better than Home Depot and not that much more expensive.