McDonnell Nursery

We recently moved to Orinda and it is a very friendly town. Not so much at McDonnell. I was happy to give my business to a local family owned nursery to buy all of my indoor and outdoor house plants. However, if you have any questions, which I have a lot of since I do not have a green thumb, they act annoyed and really make you feel like you are inconveniencing them. I’ve been there a few times now, hoping it was a fluke, but each time they are rude. This last time the person helping me make such rude comments to my face about helping me and having to take the time to order a couple of house plants, that I definitely will not go back again.

My husband and I found this nursery on accident and are quite happy we did. They have a lovely selection of healthy indoor and outdoor plants that are reasonably priced.
Surprisingly enough they had a small variety of healthy tillandsia (air plants). They had small/​large sized plants for a great price.
There is also a nice selection of succulent/​cactus both in size and variety.
The service nice too. Very kind, knowledgable, and helpful. I highly recommend checking this place out.

I’m pretty disappointed. I’ve been in here several times and the grounds are beautiful. They do have a lovely selection of Japanese Maples, and they are reasonably priced maples at that.
Unfortunately, if you want to order anything they don’t have on site, you’re out of luck. They put you on a list in a book. Period. Maybe if one turns up some day, they might call you. Yeah, or not.
I’ve done a lot of gardening in my life, in many different places, so I’m no stranger to nurseries. I was tremendously surprised that a small, family owned nursery in the heart of Lamorinda wouldn’t say, «Sure, let me try to find that for you!» At least, maybe call a vendor or two? NOPE.
Instead, I ordered online. Disappointing. They’ve lost a green-​thumbed local resident.

Great selection of plants and behind the shop area to the right of the outdoor plants they have a nice section with all sorts of pots, garden furniture, trellises and other decorative objects for the garden. My only problem is that I am tempted into all sorts of impulse buys, but i have not regretted them.

It is a great family ran independent nursery! It is the only place in the area that Sells HOUSE PLANTS, they also have a great selection of what looked like redwood trellis of different shapes and sizes, also bamboo poles of varies sizes. The place looks small, but it is actually pretty immense, just have to poke around a bit. The plants are labeled decently and it always is organized, if you drive by, which i am sure many people do, just stop in and poke around! it is worth it! The place is a gem :)

10 years ago my ambition in life was dance every night in all the fashionable New York or L.A. clubs. Now… I am shopping for trees in Orinda for my very own garden! How is that for a stunning life re-​evaluation and philosophical statement !!! Last month, I was angling for japanese maples and someone told me McDonnell has a bunch of them. A bunch? Not only they have a zillion of them, but they are very reasonably priced. Truly. And healthy nevertheless. And some way above the shrub stage; you can picture them in a jiffy settling in your backyard, all limbs and grace.
I scoured the place a couple of times by myself, then brought the hubby for the final decision. We got great service at McD: trees were patiently moved in their pots to let us compare them side by side; trees were delivered to our East Bay address for a minimal fee, and trees arrived on schedule.
I am now developing a wisterias, camelias, and hydrangeas ambition, and, hmmm, my immediate future could very well be dancing on the McDonnell grounds till I fill my garden to the brim…

The service offered at this nursery is top quality. They deliver my plants the same day and even placed each one in my backyard where I asked. Last Christmas they delivered my tree and fiddled with it until it stood perfectly straight, saving my car from pine needles, my back from spraining, and my nerves from frazzling!

There’s not a whole lot of bells and whistles at this nursery but some good stuff nonetheless. Good selection of japanese maples. I plan my fall planting around their October 20% off sale. Their prices are comparable to other nurseries in the area so the October sale makes it worth a trip.

I have been buying plants at McDonnell Nursery for over ten years (landscaped 2 houses with their plants), and the quality of every plant– from trees to single cyclamen– is exceptional. In addition, the staff and owners couldn’t be nicer or more informed and helpful. I like supporting a family business, particularly as these people make it so easy to do so.

I don’t agree with the first reviewer that this nursery is small, in fact, it’s quite large. They have a lot of pots, though I was not impressed with the range of pots — they were mostly terracota. And a very large selection of roses. There were some interesting perennials available here that I had not seen in other local nurseries.
As far as customer service, I was asked multiple times while I was walking around if I needed any help, which was nice, but when I brought my purchases up and thought that one of my plants was a different price than they said it was, I was met with a rude «no.» They didn’t even offer to check the price. Just «no.»
It can also be a little hard to get out of the parking lot.

Quality Products, Superior Selection, and a Knowledgeable Friendly Staff, that provides excellent customer service! We’ve shopped McDonnell for 10+ years made the trip from Pleasanton; now from Danville. Sure its a drive for us but WELL WORTH THE TRIP!, we get a super product and their staff has been helpful with all my yard and garden questions. We even get our Christmas trees from Dan, Sarah and the staff; freshest we’ve seen anywhere and they put it on our stand for us!

McDonnell Nursery is fairly small, but seem to have quality plants. However, in the three visits I have made there, the staff have been cold and rude. I would much rather spend a little more and have a larger selection to choose from at Orchard Nursery where the staff have been much friendlier. The prices are not much cheaper at McDonnell to make it worth dealing with the staff.