Orchid on eBay for $.01

[Sara]

I was browsing eBay, and someone is selling a dendrobium for $.01. Now, This is a steal, but, should I be suspcious of a plant that is being sold for a penny? The seller is strangsha.

[orchidsinjersey]

What's the eBay feedback like and what are the shipping charges?

[Orchid_lady]

I have seen some seller's that list their plants like that, that way he might get more bidders interested, and more chances of bidding. In the end he gets more money for what he enlisted it for. I guarantee you that the plant will not be sold for one cent.

[Sara]

Well, so far this guy has 100% positive feedback, and shipping is $7.
Yes, I have absolutely no doubt that it'll go for a lot more than $.01. Who can resist? lol

[orchidsinjersey]

But how many feedback? 10? 100? 500?
As long as you're satisfied that spending about $10 altogether on the orchid is OK, go for it. does he have a picture of the actual orchid, not a representative? Ask for one if not.

[desertgal]

I'm a former ebay seller and I checked out this seller's feedback. He only has feedback from 6 buyers. The other feedback is from people he has purchased from. The pictures are not of the orchids listed. If you check out the listings on his feedback you will see that he has used the same pictures before for other listings. He is saying that you will get a plant similar to the one in the picture. You can always ask him how many canes the plant has and whether or not it has bloomed from the present canes. Also if it has new canes developing. I learned the hard way that I needed to ask questions. I purchased an oncidium in spike. Yes, it was in spike, but a small branch off an old spike that had finished blooming. It also had been replanted recently and had not had time to establish a good root system. But, I also purchased a great mini phal on ebay. An established honest seller will gladly answer your questions.

[solay]

I've purchased a lot of orchids recently from e-bay and most plants arrived in good condition. However, I sometimes wonder how accurate the feedbacks are because it seems the buyer is cautious about leaving negative feedback in fear of getting a negative feedback in return. I of course is guilty of this because I tend to leave a positive feedback even if I'm not 100% satisfied.

[patticake]

I've bought several plants from e-bay. If they charge a tiny amount for the plant and 7.00 for shipping, they probably are doing o.k. for themselves. You could buy the same plant at a nursery for 6 or 10 dollars with no shipping. The shipping cost is sometimes a lot less , so they come out even. I have several small plants, but I'm willing to wait. I have a lot of new growth in roots, etc. so I know it will be worth it in the long run. It may be a couple of years before I see a bloom on some, but It's a good way to build a collection at a minimal cost.. So long as you can keep the little ones going strong....

[Hummer344]

I am rather suspicious of sellers on e-bay at large. I can't tell you why. I would rather buy from a reputable nursery (Oak Hill for one, Jerry for another, ie) or a retailer, then bid on something. Yes, I know, many people have had great sucess buying and selling on e-bay but I, for one, will stay away.

[fred]

I am like you Hummer

I go with orchid nursery's also other orchid growers like members of a orchid society

one thing I don't do is buy orchids without name tags.

[Andrew]

As Orchid Lady said the cheap listing price will get bidders in. It also cuts the sellers listing fees. I don't know what postage charges are like on your side of the world but I have never known anyone to list at 0.01c on the Australian eBay site who hasn't bumped up postage costs to break even in case it goes for the start price.

[kmarch]

The auction may start at a penny but will it finish there?

[LouisW]

Another thing to consider is that these plants are often immature and usually disappointingly small(especially when you are expecting a large plant in spike). Once you know what to expect from ordering orchids online you will be more able to judge what you are really paying for and whether its worth it.

That said i have had much good luck on eBay and more often then not you will get a healthy plant in good condition.(in my experience)

[BunnytheOrchid]

I see this thread was started back in 2006. I'm curious Sara if you ended up buying the penny den.

[Uechi]

Being wary of E-Bay sellers or buyers for that matter is prudent. I however, believe that reviewing feedback is an important step. It is also wise to pay with a credit card, that way if there is a problem you have an easy recourse to contest payment. As far as preferring a reputable nursery over an E-Bay seller that is fine, but the last three Encyclias I purchased where not available from nurseries. I have done extensive and I mean extensive searches as well as asking for help on orchid forums all to no avail. I found the orchids on E-Bay. Not all nurseries but, many offer the most popular plants and don't offer some of the more obsure or endangered species. Many nurseries are also strong on hybrids not so strong on species orchids. In any transaction is always " Let the Buyer beware ".

[jerrymeola]

The orchid sellers on Ebay often sell their plants at the shipping cost and the profit is built in. Anything over zero is extra profit.

I shipped a den this week to a geek and my shipping cost was 0.84 so that would have been a $6.13 selling price for a plant we recently did on the hybrid project for $4.

As retail buyers you do not see enough plants to know their real value (cost). I can buy dens for as little as 0.90 and as much as $25 not even considering the higher cost of the scarce ones. Like everything you get what you pay for.

I will be cleaning out some dens at the GreenThumb festival in St Petersburg this week at a small faction of this 0.01 + shipping price.

Uerchi
Paying by credit card does not give you any recourse. If the plant is bad what do you get the 0.01 refund. And if you pay by PayPal you have no recourse because they are not the seller. What will the shipper do offer you a replacement you another for another shipping cost?

Ebay sellers do not raise plants but buy them from wholesalers. I can look at a sellers Ebay list and tell you from whom they were purchased. After all I buy the same ones.

This makes me very cautious when you say you can not find something from a grower and it is on Ebay. Are you really getting what is offered or are they selling a name. It may be 2-4 years before you find out it is not the correct plant.

Everything is available but not everything can be raised every year. Inventory is rotated. So what is common and popular this year is what the cloning labs "guessed" would be desirable 5 years ago when the clones were made. Seed propagation can look like anything when it grows to blooming size, not necessarily what you wanted.

This is why I like to sell blooming plants at shows. What you see is what you get. With non-blooming plants, I either am very careful about the source (the only den I offered on the hybrid project came from University of Hawaii stock) or I sell so cheap that any pretty flower is OK.

[Jirel]

Quote jerrymeola]"I will be cleaning out some dens at the GreenThumb festival in St Petersburg this week at a small faction of this 0.01 + shipping price."

Oh sure, MAKE me go to that festival. I have a feeling the Saturday night gang will be getting their OWN food this Saturday instead of me cooking for them.

[Uechi]

Sorry Jerry, but I disagree. When you make a payment with a credit card ( at least American Express ) it covers the payment which includes shipping. I have successfully had my card credited on several occasion for the total cost including shipping. I admit not on orchids, but on many other items. I haven't had problems with ( Name Edited ), at least not yet. It doesn't take rocket science to tell if a plant looks healthy or not. Most E-Bay sellers with more than a few sales are willing to offer a credit or allow return including shipping. When those sellers are not, your credit card company comes into play. Paypal covers fraud if the plant is sick/misrepresented it is covered. To be safe when I pay thru PayPal I use a credit card.
Please note we also don't agree on the idea that some how all or most orchids are available just not every year, It ain't so. Growers grow and sell what is most in demand. That is why more growers sell Phalaenopsis, Cattleyas and Paphs more than any other types and most of these are hybrids. Yes you take a chance that the seller is selling you something else and calling it what you are looking for, but that can happen with any seller whether E-Bay or a grower on line or at a show unless the plant is in bloom. Good idea just selling and buying blooming plants that is what I usually do. Regards.

[berkeleysgr8]

Other than orchids I've purchased from Baldan's (a reputable seller... often with nifty species!) and darkfallsorchids (DFO), I've usually been disappointed with my eBay orchid purchases. Shipping costs usually make eBay purchases less than a bargain. I've been VERY happy with buying directly from Oak Hill and paid a LOT less than I would have on eBay for the same varieties. I'm giving up on eBay... unless I buy from Baldan's again (and I'll know with Baldan's that I'm paying waaaay too much for shipping).

[cupcake]

I have bought from ebay 3 times. 1 A seedling that was only just out of flask and of course died
2 A cymbi which I lost, but due to my own inexperience
A phal, out of flower, from a reputable orchid nursery, which is going strong, flowered just after Xmas
I actually go onto the sellers feedback, then send a message to several of the buyers to ask if they have been satisfied. Foolproof as they have no reason to fear for their feedback and will give you a true picture.

[cym 1972]

i have bought quite a few cymbidium orchids from valleys orchids on ebay no problems

[Andrew]

Originally Posted by cym 1972

i have bought quite a few cymbidium orchids from valleys orchids on ebay no problems

I find Valley Orchids are pretty good too. I can't fault them on service or the quality of the plants.

To be honest most eBay orchid listings don't interest me too much. While the commercial nurseries may be easier to trust most simply list catalogue items at catalogue prices (why would you enter a bidding war for a plant you can get at the start price by mail order). I tend to ignore the nurseries on eBay and only look at what's on offer from the smaller sellers. As these sellers are usually selling off divisions of their own plants they tend to be the ones listing plants you can't get from commercial nurseries (botanicals, orchids that don't mericlone well) and for less than what you'd pay if you could find them commercially.