I came in yesterday and the same owner/manager Geraldo is still running the place. Such a patient, kind and knowledgeable individual. He often sources cat grass and cat mint from local growers which I love. Earlier this summer when I visited there were Monarch Butterflies pollinating the flowers! I highly recommend this location for the above mentioned reasons. read more

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Wonderful service, selections, and prices! We stopped in to pick up a few things for our window boxes. We picked up the wrong size coconut husk liners and came by the next day to exchange them and their staff was so friendly and accommodating. 10/10 recommend this neighborhood gem. read more

We needed to buy a few live flowers, soil and flower pots. The staff was really friendly and helpful, the selection was really big - so many pansies, hydrangeas, and lots of other beautiful plants. And it's easy to get to on the bus. Happy spring! read more

Wow no sign but clearly a plant store. Inquired about the sign. The greatest challenge here is the worker's limited communication skills. If you know what you want and do not need a lot of conversation keep reading. Solid plant store with a decent variety. Plants looked in okay to good condition and seemed average in pricing. I would come back for the plants. read more

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This place is good but not great. Plants tend to be over priced. The selection is good and they have a wide variety, but the customer service was just, meh. Usually when I go to a Nursery the staff will ask questions about the lighting in my place, suggest where to put the plant(s), or introduce new varieties but I didnt get that here. read more

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I've purchased live Christmas trees for YEARS! The place we would normally buy trees was temporarily closed. We bought a tree from Old Town Gardens on 12/03. Mind you, all the trees I've bought in the past would live until 1st or 2nd wk in January. When the tree was delivered a lot of the stems were broken. The tree started wilting after the 1st week. I called to share the issues and no assistance was given. I would never return to this place again. I would never recommend. I would normally pay $225 max for the tree including delivery. They charged $290 including delivery. Very very disappointed!! read more

Was impressed after my first time! Walked 2+ miles to check it out again and will never be back. Things are marked incorrectly and then they charge you double or triple the price. Staff was rude and belittling. Wish I would have taken my money elsewhere. read more

I had a terrible experience at this garden center! The guy working the cashier office was incredibly rude and inappropriate. I had bumped into my neighbor and we were catching up for just a few moments. This cashier rudely told us that we were in the way and blocking his cashier box. He told us to move and literally nudged me out of the way! (he aggressively pushed my arm) I told him that he was being rude and explained that we are customers. I showed him my full cart of plants. He got even meaner and told me "there is the exit" as he motioned for me to leave. I was shocked. I spoke to the owner. She was nice but didn't do anything about it. She seemed to take his side. She said "well you were in the cashier area". No apology was offered. There is no excuse for being rude and disrespectful. I will go out of my way to tell everyone I know NOT to shop at this store. They have beautiful plants but they are incredibly overpriced. You cannot put a price on BAD service. read more

I would highly recommend avoiding these guys. The customer service I received post-sale was unacceptable: the manager intentionally disconnected the call with me twice as I was kindly trying to resolve an issue. Things started well, I purchased a Christmas tree and a stand from these guys. The stand says it requires 6 inches of bare trunk for the tree to fit on it. The gentleman helping me out (who was very friendly) knew this ahead time and cut off branches to make it work. I get home and the tree does not have enough bare trunk for me to mount it on the stand. I tried to cut the branches off, but I do not have the correct equipment at home. While attempting to make a makeshift mount happen, the stand then broke. This all started with the tree not being cut properly when purchased. I reach out to Old Town Garden by phone and the manager was very impolite. He blamed me and said that "I do not know how to put up trees". He then proceeds to brag about putting up 300 trees a year and requested me to pay him to come out and fix the issue. After refused to pay to fix an issue he created, he intentionally hung up on me. The call back to him was not answered. The third call was followed by rude screaming and a disconnect. The fourth and final call, their phone was off. It is unfortunate that the post-sale was not great. They were really nice and polite when I made the purchase. read more

Got a mid size snake plant from here. Felt it is a quite over priced. After a few weeks, noticed soil mites in the pot.

My wife and I just had an outrageous experience here. She bought plants on Saturday as a complete novice to gardening. She then got a call from the manager or owner today saying that they had sold us too many. We hadn't planted them all yet, so she volunteered to take some back. When she got to the nursery the owner insinuated that she had knowingly taken too many plants and lacked common sense. He then demanded that she give him more money. It was quite unbelievable. Speaking to him later, he refused to apologize and hung the phone up on us twice. We will never go here again and will tell everyone we know to do the same. Rude! read more

I just left Old Town Gardens and am so disappointed with their pricing. They charged me $4.40 for this dirty, used plastic pot. I was in a rush to replace a cracked pot with my toddler or else I would have gone anywhere else in the city. I know they are expensive for flowers and holiday decor, but to sell me garbage for almost $5.00 is too much. They have lost a customer. read more

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It's so weird, buying flowers makes me feel like my mom. But this was a really cute little place. The flowers seemed alive and not remotely droopy or sad-looking or dead, and the guys working here were super helpful and funny. read more

This place is a total scam and a rip-off! I found this place on yelp, I picked it based on the 4 stars (fake status ) it had. I bought few plants for around 600$, the plants died after 3 months bc the owner sold us sick plants. I tried calling and emailing him many times and he would never call or email back. When I finally got a hold of him, and told him about the plants, he tried blaming it on me, and did not offer a solution or any kind of expected exchange of the plants. He's an absolute scam, I would stay away from this "old town garden". Don't get fooled by the good reviews, I found out from his old employee that mostly of them are written by employees and family members!! read more

Old Town Garden is really nice. The people here are so knowledgeable and willing to answer any questions you might have. I live a couple of blocks from here and I don't have a car. About a month ago, I walked over and purchased alot of stuff I couldn't possibly carry myself. They loaned me their dolly to drag all my stuff down the street. The guy was super cool and said, " just bring it back when your done." They are awesome there. However, it can get expensive there. I rarely leave there without spending over 50 bucks. But they are really cool with providing organic plant feed and soil which i found most beneficial. I do wish that they had more things like bird feeders and wind chimes. I really like wind chimes! read more

I am an avid gardener and my garden is on display in the Sheffield Garden walk. All of my plants and pottery are from Old Town Gardens both in Old Town and their Spring stand at Menard's on Clybourn. They deliver healthy BEAUTIFUL plants and flowers and always seem to have interesting rare species. Some things in my garden from them are 18 years old and still growing! Geenah is a sweet heart and her husband Michael is a a really funny guy. I like to buy from local family businesses like this. They also pick out and deliver my Fraser Fir Christmas tree every year. FRESH No dropped needles (even when I forget to water) I Highly recommend this business. read more

What a little gem! I love you Old Town Gardens. So let me preface this review by saying, I am not a gardener. Unfortunately, I have killed every single plant I've tried to grow and cultivate in the past five years. It's like one of things that I get really excited about and then lose interest two days later and the poor plant suffers. The thing that really sold me was when the nice gentlemen at the cash register told me that I overfed my plant when "he starts to leak water out of the pot". Okay, I absolutely love the fact that he referred to the plant as a "he". That is a true friend to the flower. There was also a nice girl there who gave us lots of flower advice (i.e., what flowers were good in the sun, which ones were hard to kill, which flowers looked pretty together, which smelled the best, etc). They tried to sell us soil but I immediately begged for them to pack it for us themselves and I pretty much knew I'd somehow kill it when I tried to plant them in a pot. They happily obliged. A bit pricey for flowers but everyone there made it worthwhile! Also, as a side note, I brought two little 5 year olds here last week and everyone who worked there was super sweet and patient with the little guys! Always a plus for me! read more

When I was younger, I used to go nurseries like this with my mom and found them to be quite boring. I'm definitely not a gardener. I only know you a need reasonable amount of soil and water to keep a plant alive...right? Well, I am determined this summer to grow some basics. After the heavy rain finally settled down (knock on wood), I finally made my way over here to check out what they had to offer - plants and hopefully some suggestions/advice. I wondered aimlessly for a bit and inspected things that caught my eye. I picked at those little description things tucked into each little potted plant, trying to figure out which would fit best according to my sun and [lots of] water exposure. I asked for advice what I should start with and was given a few good suggestions. Some of the smaller flowers were about $1.49/tray, while the bigger plants were up to $20+ something. After some thought, I went with a potted freesia, a little pot of mini roses, and a small bag of organic soil, which seemed like a good start for now. They do have a delivery service for $25 I'm considering, but I have to see how well I do with keeping these plants alive. I would love to get next a couple of those jasmine plants but are just too big to carry on my own. read more

This is by far the best place I have ever purchased plants. The staff and owners are incredibly knowledgeable of the products they sell and top-notch recommendations. Each year I try and do a little something different in my little back-yard - I have been going here for about three summers now and ever since the first year the owner Gina has remembered my name and that I have a dog - so dog friendly plants only! Stop by during the Christmas season and find your tree, wreathes, fresh holly, garland etc. here. The trees smell perfect - exactly how a Christmas tree should smell. In fact, it might be weird, but I have had guests compliment the smell of the tree! They may be a tad pricey - but for something that you will enjoy all summer or during your holiday season, quality over quantity. read more

The House Without a Christmas Tree... I have been buying my Christmas Tree from Old Town Gardens for ten years. This year I picked out my tree ($110.00) on Friday, December 1st and scheduled a December 2nd delivery and set-up ($80.00). It arrived on Saturday (tips and water for the delivery men) and I immediately filled my tree stand with water. Checked the stand three hours later and noticed it didn't drink. We decorated it that night. I checked it on Sunday morning and it drank about a cup of water. Sunday night, Monday nothing.... I called on Wednesday and was told by the manager that the tree is so fresh that it doesn't need water yet...Huh??? By Monday, December 11th the tree was completely dried out and dead. I called the manager again who remembered me from the previous week, and he said that all sales are final. Did they not cut the bottom??? He then blamed me and said I must have put the tree in the stand wrong... Sir, your employees set it up for me. He said he has to speak with the owner and he will get back to me. That was three days ago. I don't expect to hear from them...and they shouldn't expect to see me again. I took down my decorations yesterday and dragged my dead tree to the alley. (BTW-Riccardo told me that all the trees are dead, isn't he funny.) read more

What a little gem in the middle of Old Town. It's refreshing to see a "family" business that is charming and affordable as well. It makes you feel good knowing that you're not going to one of those "box" stores to buy things for your garden. And the landscape designer, Chris, is so adorable and knowledgeable. I loved looking at his portfolio of gardens. Now if I only had a garden myself. Oh well, the pots he designs are fantastic! I love this place. read more

this is my favorite place to get my garden growing to my Christmas tree. Geena and Geraldo are so fun to wirk with. the staff is so helpful. love this place read more

Incredibly disappointed. We've bought our Christmas tree here for the past 5 years with great results. This year however, we've had our tree for less then two weeks... I've never seen so many needles fall off a tree. We touch a branch and it's bald in a second. Our ornaments are falling and breaking. I'm taking the tree down tomorrow and never buying anything here again. read more

The first three or four times i walked through old town i couldnt help but peek in this place, you can smell all the flowers from the side walk, once i finally went in i couldnt leave without spending $20, and if i had a car and didnt have to carry it i wouldve got more. every plant looks so lively and perfect, the staff must be very good at taking care of them, unfortunately for the plants i am not read more

Old Town Gardens - Nurseries & Gardening Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Decent selection, and a nice staff. Felt strange that they throw out their own prices on certain items, but what can you do.

Old Town Gardens is fantastic! Tucked in the heart of Old Town this garden center is find of the city. I was in need of a landscape designer for my gardens and I was introduced to Chris. He has completely transformed my garden into an oasis. He has such an amazing eye for design and always has new and fun ideas. If your garden or even balcony planters need help give OTG and Chris a call. read more

Can I give zero stars? This was THE WORST nursery and experience EVER! Rude owner! Horrible selection! Bad service! The owner cared more about his ego than helping his customers. Being that it was the end of season we understood that there was not much to choose from. He had no desire to help us and just kept reciting "You're late! You're late!" Then why even be selling your flowers? Then he tried to charge us a ridiculous price for flowers that he even admitted were not great. When we asked if he could help us out with price he completely snapped at us, started yelling, took our flowers away, and kicked us out. We were completely respectful the entire time and he was horrible to us. He also yelled at us as my baby lay there sleeping in his stroller. Beyond disrespectful man with no heart. He is a truly horrible soul who does not deserve your business. We just went to another nursery. They were helpful, friendly, had a great selection, and honest prices. Much happier! read more

This place is fantastic! The staff were all extremely friendly and helpful--even better than that, they know their stuff and were honest about it. My mom is an avid gardener and came to visit from Virginia determined to get me set up with the right kind of window boxes--she was extremely impressed with what we walked away with and with the prices. I'm embarrassed to admit I let her do most of the planting, but she kept talking about how healthy the plants were and how lucky I was to get them. It might be helpful to know that we'd been to one of the big box stores for plants two years ago and the plants all had bugs or disease that stifled their lives. Last year we went to a fancier garden place closer to our home at Clark and Ashland last year. Those plants were CRAZY expensive and honestly I found it a bit overwhelming and the staff a bit pretentious. My plants looked okay, but I got way more bang for my buck and I got way better guidance at Old Town Gardens. Lastly, thanks to Old Town Gardens, I have a cute red watering can that's both functional and charming! I'll definitely be telling my friends (hence my first Yelp! review ever) and I'll be going back there next year. read more

I pass by this shop on my way to Nookies. If you are new to plants like I am, it is a little intimidating. I was admiring their bonsai trees and finally decided to stroll in. The man working asked me a lot of questions about my place and which window the plant would be in, what kind of heating I have, how much maintenance can I afford to give the plant, etc. With that information he helped me choose the right one. It was in a pale green porcelain pot with beautiful stones and moss inside growing up the intertwined trunk of the tree. He taught me how to take care of him with monthly and weekly maintenance. I followed the advice and the bonsai is still thriving 4 months later. Thank-you Old Town Gardens. read more

If you have a chance to work with their new garden designer Chris, do it! He's fantastic and knowledgeable and very fun. I'll be honest, in the past I've been a plant killer, but Chris helped me find some plants that I've managed to keep alive! read more

I know this place is quite pricy but the quality and the customer service has been second to none for the last 12 years. They have come to my house with a truckload of plants and offered to carry them up 4 flights of stairs to my roof garden - and bags of dirt etc. NO EXTRA CHARGE. And at 7:30 PM long after they closed, no less. I've gotten a few dud plants here, sure, but every other nursery is no different, and I frequent them all annually - but OTG is my go-to. The staff there bends over backwards to help and carry things around, protect car seats, load up the car - they are standing out there before I've even checked out! And the location at the Menard's parking lot on Clybourn is no different. Sometimes they have a more robust selection in late spring and I have gotten 6 foot magnolia trees there for $19.99. And I never get the feeling that it is just because I buy a lot of plants there, because everyone in the place is being treated the same way. I am there weekly in the spring/early summer and have never heard anyone addressed in the way that has been discussed on this thread. The two owners are lovely and all of the staff is very helpful and kind. Maybe I have just been lucky, but this is a neighborhood gem. Home Depot is just up North Ave if that is what you are seeking. I don't know why, if people think that the items at a certain store are so expensive, that they just don't go somewhere else instead of bashing the store? Very strange. read more

I have had several bad experiences at this place. The selection is pretty good and some of the staff people are very helpful but the owners (could be the managers but I assume they are owners) are surly, not very nice at all. I had the owner/manager come up to me and tell me I was taking up too much of the salesperson's time, even though We had already picked out about $150 of plants that I was buying and still shopping for more. That made me change my mind about buying anything so I didn't, and felt I had wasted a lot of time and been insulted. My neighbors had them landscape their patio with flowers, trees, and shrubs. All the trees and shrubs died over the winter. I will not be returning to Old Town Gardens read more

Unfortunately, the worst service I have ever experienced. Unreliable, rude and disrespectful to customers. There are so many flower services in Chicago with great selection and service, but above all I prefer to support good people. This is not the case with this company - nobody should have to deal with these people. Specially when you are the one paying! read more

My first stop for summer gardening needs (though I've added Adams & Son to the list). Reasonably priced flowers, and I think they even have a larger display of plants in Menard's parking lot than they do on Wells. Packaged in little boxes for easy El/bus carrying. read more

While it is fun to walk through this place when the flowers are blooming and the weather is beautiful, I will never shop there ever again. The owner is one of the rudest, meanest, misogynistic jerks I have ever met. My first experience with him was when I interviewed for a job. I am a perennial plant expert with several years experience in the business. The center is near my home and my kids are older now and I don't need to be home as much for them as in the past. I love gardening. During the interview, the owner told me I was stupid because I identified a cedar as a juniper. Both are conifers - not my area of expertise. I walked out. His wife is really nice, though so I continued to shop there occasionally. For example, I bought a flat of English ivy this summer that was so tangled, overgrown, and old that I could not separate the pots. These plugs had been growing into each other for months. The jerky owner wouldn't take it back even though I only got about 5 usable plants out of the flat of 30+ plugs for almost $40. The perennials - about which I am an expert - always look sad, neglected and leggy. Watering is obviously not a priority. This Christmas the owner was pushy, annoying and in-my-face about buying one of their custom made wreaths, fresh trees and garland made on site. When I told him i was not interested, he persisted. i asked him to leave me alone twice and I had to walk out in order to get away from him. he is creepy and rude. He believes women are second class citizens and he treats us accordingly. I will never go back. I would not recommend this place to anyone with self-dignity. There is a great garden center in Andersonville that everyone should go to! read more

Excellent Selection Fair Prices Super Service High Quality plants These guys bend over backward to help. When you buy from them they will come plant for you and come back to do mainteance for $55 per hour. read more

I am an avid gardener and used to go to home depot but starting coming here when they opened this spring. I noticed other reviewers complained that they think its pricey however I personally don't think so considering its very convenient location. They were cheaper per pot or flat than what my mom paid for her garden plants in RI. I personally expect to pay~ $100 to plant all my balcony containers. I can walk here so it saves me money taking an uber to and from. They also have more variety of flowering plants for containers than home depot which I like as I can design my balcony containers to be a little different. They had all the herbs I wanted. I think home depot probably has a better selection of vegetable varieties but they have the basics. I found the quality of the plants to be very good as well. The owners and their staff have always been friendly and helpful every time I went there helping me find what I was looking for. read more

I've been a customer for years and after today, i will never return. The person who claimed he was the "owner" was extremely rude when i told him i couldn't pick up my planters immediately, even though i told them when i would pick them up when i purchased $100 of flowers for 3 planters. He said he was not his responsibility to "keep them alive". When they realized they misunderstood, there was still no apology - just complete disrespect. Also, while I was there, there was another couple explaining that their very expensive flowers were dying and were basically told "It was not their problem". This was the worst experience I have ever had at a local business. read more

Love this garden shop! They have beautiful pots and plants. The staff has always been very friendly. Great location! Stop by and support a local business! read more

This guy is a crook, Buyer beware. Paid 75.00 for spring flowers and in 4 days they were all died . Took one back to inquire as to why they died and owner starter yelling that it was my fault they died and would not replace the flowers. Total ripoff. I know why people shop at Home Depot now. Thought I would support a local business but not any longer. read more