Castle Seed Bank Review

[Dr. Yo]

I had some major problems ordering from Attitudes website recently, so partially out of frustration, I decided to give Castle Seeds a try.

http://www.castle-marijuana-seeds.com/

Even before Attitudes problems, I had been pondering the possibilities of ordering individual seeds for a while. I've been impressed with Castle's selection/prices/simple yet effective website design.

Placed an order a few weeks ago, and another a few days after the first. I used the guaranteed shipping method, which was included in both my purchases (if you spend over 50 GBP, which is almost exactly $80 at current exchange rates).

You get a tracking number, which works for both the Royal Mail Service where they ship out of, and the USPS when they assume control of the package in the United States.

I've been anxiously checking both tracking numbers several times a day, yet it appears both packages are tied up in customs right now (I guess), so who knows how long that'll take.

I've used Canadian seed banks in the past, so I'm unfamiliar with shipping times from the United Kingdom, although I hear Attitude-orders take people around 9-14 days in the U.S. to receive, so I'm probably right on pace.

I'll be sure to update any progress, and we'll see what we see.

 

[tokenjoker78]

ive never ordered from castle but have from attitude numerous times and each time the tracking says its stuck in customs and i have my package in 12 days usps tracking is the worst in the industry. I live in the great plains and never not gotten my seeds.

 

[j6s6u6]

I am also probably going to order from castle,there prices are cheaper then attitudes by far...
I realy dident want to spend 80 on my first order just to get the free shipping,anyone know how much
shipping to the states would be,for just a 10 pack of seeds?

 

[cannabisguru]

I live in the central united states and I've ordered from Attitude plenty of times. I always get my package within 7 to 12 days.. I've made 6 orders from Attitude.. got all of them in a reasonable amount of time.

Same thing goes for Nirvana.. I've probably made 10 orders in the past 2 years from them.. and I've always gotten them within 7 to 12 days as well.

You just gotta accept the fact.. that sometimes things happen that are beyond anyones control you know? Shit happens. Sucks, but its life.

If you make an order from Nirvana.. they'll make it right with you. Not sure what attitudes protocol is.. but I know Nirvana will make it right if you

don't get your beans. Talk to Alice over at Nirvana.. if you have any problems. Just make a ticket.. and explain what happened (be nice though) and

she they'll make sure they make it right.


Hope that helped.

peace.

 

[Dr. Yo]

I am also probably going to order from castle,there prices are cheaper then attitudes by far...
I realy dident want to spend 80 on my first order just to get the free shipping,anyone know how much
shipping to the states would be,for just a 10 pack of seeds?

Well if you look at their site, you buy seeds individually, so there really isn't any pack price.

It's 5 GBP for non-guaranteed shipping for small orders and no tracking number, or 10 GBP for guaranteed and a tracking number ($8, or $16 for guaranteed).

BTW, thank you everyone for your replies, helps lower my blood pressure a little bit.

 

[Dr. Yo]

One thing that is kind of curious is this statement that Castle Seeds puts in their 'Delivery' section on their website:

The average shipping time to the USA is less than 8 days from when you place your order. Orders have even been known to arrive within three or four days!

Seems from my limited experiences, and the testimonials of many other Castle-Seed customers, orders take a minimum of 2 weeks from ordering to delivery in the U.S., but most get their packages from 3-4 weeks.

 

[tingpoon]

3-4 days is a pretty hard promise to make for transnational companies.

i dont know where castle is from - but if its uk then i disbelieve that claim.

 

[Indicator]

Day 12 since shipping conf; recv'd remaining contents and notice... snagged in Chicago. Very poor stealth, IMO.
Bummed as it was only my second attempt... didn't purchase "guarantee" since there is no guarantee that they won't just send it the same unstealthy way again. So, my stats are 50%.... two attempts, only one delivered (different vendor).

 

[Dr. Yo]

I just checked the status of my 1st order with Castle, and this is the message on the USPS tracking website:

Your item was processed through and left our JAMAICA, NY 11430 facility on January 30, 2011 at X:XX pm (time edited by me). The item is currently in transit to the destination.
Information, if available, is updated periodically throughout the day. Please check again later.

So far, it's taken a little over 2 weeks for the package to go from the UK to New York, USA, and then to clear customs. At this point, it'll probably be just a few more days for final delivery.

My 2nd order was placed five days after the first, so with any luck, I'll see that package sometime next week.

 

[Dr. Yo]

One more update on this order so far...

I just checked the 2nd orders tracking number, and apparently it's also cleared customs earlier today.

That's kinda funny; the 2nd order cleared before the 1st one.

That's great; maybe they'll both arrive around the same time.

 

[Dr. Yo]

I think I got some solid info on why orders have been taking a little longer to deliver than usual for Castle Seeds.

When asked about that 8-day guarantee in an email reply from me, Castle wrote back:

I'm unfamiliar with the exact sources you've read online, but I would imagine that most if not all were from December/January, the time of year when all international post is inevitably slowed up, and when orders from any UK-based seedbank will unfortunately take a little longer to arrive than usual.

Makes sense to me.

There isn't a lot of info out there about Castle Seeds, because they're a newer company (if I'm correct, I believe I first started seeing them early last year, like March of 2010).

So far, I've been provided with good info on the delivery, and even better email support from the company itself.

 

[Indicator]

I would be curious to know if the "guaranteed" shipping method is the same as mine apparently came. I will refrain from saying how it was packaged, but it is a very common method that pretty much is a beacon to customs by now. A basic letter/card would have been better. Was only 8 beans.
I was also very surprised by the quick turn-around. 12 days from shipping even with the interception.

 

[g13skunk]

this site seems just like the single seed centre watch out 4 duds

 

[Dr. Yo]

I would be curious to know if the "guaranteed" shipping method is the same as mine apparently came. I will refrain from saying how it was packaged, but it is a very common method that pretty much is a beacon to customs by now. A basic letter/card would have been better. Was only 8 beans.
I was also very surprised by the quick turn-around. 12 days from shipping even with the interception.

I guess as long as you got your seeds, that's all that matters.

Castle seems pretty confident in successfully shipping without interceptions (even without the guaranteed shipping), so apparently it's not as big of an issue with U.S. customs as you may think.

I just honestly don't hear a lot about package seizures, and you gotta think a large percentage of RIU members have ordered internationally. If seizures were common, there undoubtedly would be more mentions of it in the forums.

 

[Indicator]

The beans were removed by customs.

 

[Dr. Yo]

Well, both packages showed up today!

So from ordering online, to delivery, it took about 20 days to get both packages on the same day.

Pretty happy with the seeds too; they all look healthy and viable. Each seed came individually packaged, and in each package, there was a piece of the original breeders pack.

I was actually able to put a few of these cardboard pack-pieces together (for each of the 6 strains), as you'll see in the pics below:

Some positives from my overall Castle Marijuana Seeds experience:

-They promptly answered the two questions I had via email
-Delivered exactly what I ordered
-Contents arrived safely and in perfect condition
-Tracking Number for both UK and USA mail services to follow the shipping progress
-Prices competitive with other major seed banks
-Provided email updates as soon as the purchase is made, and then also when products are officially shipped out

....And this final positive was what made me finally order from Castle Marijuana Seeds:

-They actually had the seeds I wanted in stock


Some negatives about Castle Marijuana Seeds:

-20 or so days for delivery was on the edge of too long. If the order takes 21 days or more, Castle Seeds apparently refunds or replaces your order for free (Delivery section on their website).
-Wasn't so impressed with what appeared to be an 8 days or less guarantee in their delivery section online. Seemed far-fetched, and now after 3 weeks of waiting, it really seems far-fetched
-Wish they would carry a few breeders that Attitude carries (Reeferman for one)
-Wasn't too impressed with the 'stealth' shipping, but it worked fine for me, and will probably continue to work as it would be very difficult to screen for


Really excited to get all these strains going.

Here is the strain list (all regular seeds):

Jack The Ripper (TGA/Subcool Seeds) --- 4 seeds
Querkle (TGA/Subcool Seeds) --- 4 seeds
Cataract Kush (DNA Genetics) --- 4 seeds
Auto Assassin (Short Stuff Seeds) --- 4 seeds
Auto Blueberry (Lowlife Seeds) --- 5 seeds
Diesel Ryder (Joint Doctor Seeds) --- 5 seeds

Only problems I had were how long the order to took to be delivered from purchase, and I was annoyed about some possibly misleading statements about delivery guarantees on their website.



IN CONCLUSION, Castle-Seeds got the two major parts of a seed order right (IMO):

1. Great prices & seeds were IN STOCK (although as of right now, all 3 auto strains I ordered are sold out.....whew, by the skin of my teeth).
2. Seeds were delivered safely and in great condition.
3. 4 out of 5 stars in overall satisfaction with Castle-Marijuana-Seeds.
4. HIGHLY recommended.

 

[Indicator]

Congrats! Was wondering if it arrived. Damn, I'm jealous!

 

[Dr. Yo]

Congrats! Was wondering if it arrived. Damn, I'm jealous!

Thanks man, I think you just had really bad luck honestly. I bet you could do 10 more orders, and they'd all get through ok.

 

[Diggz]

Place an order and got my seeds today. Got my seeds approximately in a week and two days, living on the east coast.Came in a DVD case, pretty stealthy.Got 5xBarney's: Phat Fruity,2xDutch Passion: Shaman, and 1xDutch Passion: Hollands Hope. Gonna be doing my first grow,outdoor, this spring.

 

[Illumination]

Please delete that part of your post as it wont be stealthy long...thanx

Namaste