Colonial Acres Nursery in Altamont, NY, is the kind of full-service operation that combines a working garden center with a real landscape installation crew. Located on Western Avenue just west of Albany, it serves the Capital Region with plants, trees, bulk materials, and the installation services to put them in your yard.
I have not visited Colonial Acres in person. The picture below comes from current Google reviews and public business data. The 30-review sample is smaller than at larger urban nurseries, but the pattern across the reviews is clear enough to give an honest read.
Quick answer
Colonial Acres Nursery in Altamont, NY, is a 4.4-star Albany-area garden center and landscape installer. Open seven days a week, with healthy plant inventory, bulk materials like topsoil and mulch, and an installation crew led by owner Gary Gillespie. Honest negative: one reviewer described a frustrating phone experience for a specific tree order.
What Colonial Acres Nursery actually is
Colonial Acres is genuinely two operations sharing the same property, and that combination is what makes it useful.
A full retail garden center. Plants, evergreens, trees, shrubs, grass seed, fertilizers, and bulk materials. Reviewers describe finding a wide assortment of healthy stock for general garden and landscape needs.
A landscape installation crew. Owner Gary Gillespie also directs a crew that installs the plants and trees you buy. One reviewer specifically describes Gary helping with the plants, directing his crew at the customer’s home, and the install being completed quickly and professionally. This is rare. Most nurseries either sell plants OR install them, not both.
Open seven days a week. Including Sundays from 10 AM to 4 PM, which is genuinely useful for Capital Region plant shoppers with normal work schedules.
The combination of retail and installation under one roof is the differentiator worth knowing about before you plan a visit.
What Colonial Acres Nursery actually sells
The reviews show four clear inventory categories.
Evergreens, trees, and shrubs. This is the strongest category. One reviewer specifically describes buying several evergreens and getting helpful planting instructions from owner Gary. Another customer purchased dogwood trees with installation. For Albany-area homeowners filling out a landscape, this is the right kind of source.
Flowering plants and ornamentals. A long-time customer describes coming for years for flowers and landscaping. The selection is described as healthy and well-rotated.
Bulk materials. Topsoil, mulch, and similar landscape supplies. One review specifically mentions a staff member named Scott helping load two bags of topsoil and two bags of mulch into the trunk, with the customer noting they always shop here because of the prices.
Lawn supplies. Grass seed and fertilizers round out the inventory for full lawn-and-garden projects. The breadth supports a one-stop visit rather than running between specialty shops.
What customers consistently say
Across the 30 reviews, four themes show up clearly.
Named staff and owner are part of the reputation. Gary Gillespie (the owner) is mentioned by name in multiple reviews for plant advice and directing installation. Scott gets a specific shout-out for helpful loading. When customers know staff by name at a small operation, the service quality is usually real.
Plants are described as healthy and top-class. One long-time customer describes the stock as always in top-class shape. Another first-time visitor describes the assortment as the biggest and healthiest they have seen. These signals are consistent across years of reviews.
Repeat customers are common. Multiple reviewers describe coming back for years, which is the strongest signal a nursery can earn. Unhappy customers do not come back.
Pricing is described as fair. Several reviewers specifically note good prices on bulk materials and reasonable pricing on plants. For an independent nursery competing with big-box retailers, this is the right reputation to have.
Where the experience has limits, honestly
A few things to know.
One extended phone experience went badly. A potential customer describes spending a month and a half trying to buy two dogwood trees by phone. Each call returned the same answer: the new shipment had not arrived, call back in a few weeks. When the customer finally called again, they describe being told staff was too swamped with deliveries to engage with the sale.
This is one report against many positives, but it is detailed enough to take seriously. For specific tree orders, an in-person visit or email confirmation may produce better results than repeated phone calls.
Review sample is small. Thirty reviews for an independent nursery is workable but means each individual review carries more weight. Both the positives and the one negative should be read with that caveat.
Spring and summer are busiest. This is true at any seasonal nursery, but particularly noticeable here based on the staff-too-busy comment. Mid-week visits and quieter times of day get more attention.
No reported indoor houseplant selection. Reviews focus on outdoor, landscape, and lawn categories. If you are specifically after rare houseplants, this is not the right destination.
Is Colonial Acres Nursery worth the trip?
For most Capital Region plant shoppers, yes.
For Albany-area homeowners building out a landscape with trees, shrubs, evergreens, or flower beds, the combination of healthy stock and reasonable pricing makes this a solid default option.
For landscape projects that need both plants AND installation, the in-house crew run by the owner is rare and useful. Calling ahead to confirm scheduling for installation makes sense, especially in peak season.
For bulk topsoil, mulch, and lawn supplies, the pricing reputation is strong. Several reviewers describe this as the main reason for repeat visits.
For specific tree orders like dogwoods, plan ahead. In-person visits to confirm stock work better than phone for special orders based on the one detailed negative review.
For indoor houseplant shopping, look elsewhere. This is a landscape and outdoor nursery, not a houseplant boutique.
How to make a Colonial Acres visit work
A few practical tips drawn directly from the review patterns.
Visit in person for tree orders. Based on the dogwood-by-phone negative, in-person visits get clearer answers about stock and timing for specific cultivars.
Ask Gary about planting recommendations. Multiple reviews credit the owner with helpful planting advice along with the sale. Coming with photos, soil notes, and sun exposure information lets him help you choose well.
Ask about installation if your project warrants it. For homeowners not wanting to plant trees and shrubs themselves, the in-house crew is worth pricing out. The combined plant-and-install might land competitively against using a separate landscaper.
Time bulk pickups for weekday afternoons. Saturday mornings and busy seasonal weekends mean longer waits. Quieter times get more loading help.
Bring vehicle capacity for bulk. This is a real landscape supplier as well as a nursery. If you are buying mulch or topsoil bags in volume, plan for a vehicle that can carry them.
Confirm before driving
Plant availability and tree shipments shift through the season. For specific cultivars or larger orders, calling (518) 456-5348 in advance or visiting in person works better than repeated phone calls. Reviews reflect a snapshot in time and current details may differ.
Final thoughts
Colonial Acres Nursery is a small Albany-area operation that punches above its size. The combination of a working garden center with a real landscape installation crew is unusual.
The owner is named in reviews, the staff is named in reviews, the plants are healthy, and the prices are fair. For Capital Region plant shoppers wanting both retail purchasing and installation under one roof, this is a strong independent option.
If you visit, I would love to hear what you found. Tell me in the comments which plants you brought home, whether you used the installation crew, and how the experience matched the reputation. Real reader experiences are the best update for a profile like this.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Colonial Acres Nursery located?
Colonial Acres Nursery is at 2552 Western Avenue in Altamont, NY 12009, just west of Albany in the Capital Region. The location serves customers across Albany, Schenectady, and the broader Capital Region within a reasonable drive.
What are Colonial Acres Nursery’s hours?
Open seven days a week. Monday through Friday 8 AM to 5 PM, Saturday 8 AM to 4 PM, and Sunday 10 AM to 4 PM. The seven-day schedule is useful for working plant shoppers in the Albany area.
What does Colonial Acres Nursery sell?
A broad selection including flowering plants, evergreens, trees, shrubs, grass seed, fertilizers, topsoil, and mulch. The inventory supports both small-garden purchases and larger landscape projects. They also operate a landscape installation crew.
Does Colonial Acres Nursery do planting and installation?
Yes. The owner Gary Gillespie directs an installation crew that can plant trees and shrubs you purchase. Reviews describe the crew arriving on time, knowing exactly what to do, and finishing professionally. This is a real differentiator versus nurseries that only sell plants.
Are there honest negatives to know about Colonial Acres Nursery?
The overall reputation across 30 reviews is strong, but one extended negative review describes a frustrating month-and-a-half phone experience trying to buy two dogwood trees, with shipments repeatedly not arriving and staff eventually too busy to engage. For specific tree orders, in-person visits or email confirmation may work better than phone.
Is Colonial Acres Nursery worth the trip from Albany?
Yes for most Capital Region plant shoppers. The selection is described as healthy and the staff as knowledgeable and friendly, particularly the owner Gary and team member Scott. For landscape projects needing both plants and installation, the combination is genuinely useful and harder to find elsewhere.
