Rare orchids, how to find out?

[Fernando]

Just remember, Kelo, that hunting for "rare" orchids has in the past destroyed habitats and does so still today. As with other "nice" things in nature, collecting the rare is one mayor reason for orchids being endangered.
We can all help - not buying endangered species and giving seeds of true species away for commercial growers. You get a reward and a "rare" species gets a wider distribution.

Fer

[Zozzl]

I think you can come up with a really nice collection by going for 1 really nice plant instead of multiple common ones at a cheap price. If I see a really nice orchid for $50. that I love I would rather pay that then come up with more plants that are not very exciting just because they are cheaper. It has taken me a lot of years to get to that point though. I used to just love "deals" but now I would rather buy something really nice that will grow well than have a bunch of plants that are not very interesting.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

To answer the question about how to find out if the orchid is rare.

Research and shop. That's it, there's no other way.

After a while you will be able to tell the difference between overall rare, rare in the trade, and rare in the wild.

You'll also start to pick out why they're rare...

1. Rare because of level of difficulty in cultivation.
2. Rare because of low level of production, whether intentional or not.
3. Rare because of lack of sufficient commercial interest.
4. Rare because of low importation numbers.
5. Rare because of limited supply.
6. Rare because of being endangered or threatened.
7. Rare because the plant is a relatively newly discovered and/or described species.
8. Rare because of all of the above.
9. Rare because CITES has limited or has currently banned the trading of a particular species, even if in the past the plant was allowed to be traded.

You get my point.

[Kelo]

Talking of cheaper sources, one European grower is charging 150 Euros for the same size plant I just bought for £15!!!!! It wasn't on an ultra special either - but 150 Euros?????? I'm not actively looking for rare orchids. I was just interested in finding out how they are found (growers/breeders), if they are available, why they are rare etc. I would certainly never knowingly buy anything, period, from the wild.

[SOS]

Using the word in your items description isn't a terrible thing. Someone lists a Dendrophyllax lindenii as rare, well compare that to a phal and it is rare. You could probably find 20 listings for one.

If you've been looking for a certain species or cultivar without success and see one on ebay. I would consider it rare. If someone came up with a good synonym for it I'm sure it create a trend.