Orchid cost poll...

[Lady Tottington]

Hi friends! Well, this is sort of a follow up to my previous question. My question is, how much is too much to pay for an orchid? Or, to rephrase, how much would you pay for an orchid that you wanted?

I know some of you have said you wouldn't buy anything over $10, what about others?

What is the most you've spent, etc? No judgements, just curious if I need to recalibrate my mind (meaning maybe I'm getting carried away if I put something on my wishlist that I really have no business wishing for)?

make sense?

[WhiteRabbit]

Guess it depends on what you can afford and how badly you want a particular plant. Most of mine have cost less than 25 dollars. Generally the ones less than $10 have been small. I am also more likely to spend more on a plant which I feel fairly confident I won't kill. And due to budget limitations - given the option of getting a specimen size or an NBS (near bloom size) of the same plant - I'm getting the NBS.

[Call_Me_Bob]

the most i ever spend was $32.00 including the shipping. without the shipping, it was $19.00 but i include shipping in my prices. i usually spend not less than $20 but if i like like it alot, than i will get it.

[fotofashion]

Wasn't there a similar thread in another forum last year sometime? I remember participating.
Beverly A.

[Eyebabe]

If I really wanted it...
I prefer now to get larger specimens of large flowering catts with 4-6 pseudobulbs at least.
The most expensive one in my possession is a bit over $100 and was a gift.
The one I will soon receive as a birthday present to myself was a bit more and will be the $king$
With each birthday, my "limit" keeps going up

[cb977]

So far, my most expensive one has been V David Gardner 'Za Inat' at $60.00...and worth every penny

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...r-za-inat.html

[Eyebabe]

Originally Posted by cb977

So far, my most expensive one has been V David Gardner 'Za Inat' at $60.00...and worth every penny

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...r-za-inat.html

I agree!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Sometimes there's no choice but to pay a ridiculously high sum of money to get the plant you want.

In this case, it all comes down to saving up or waiting until prices drop.

I normally don't like to pay more than $60 a plant.

However when push comes to shove, $200 is the absolute cap for any one individual orchid.

$20 to $30 would be the average.

Obviously, the less the better.

If money is a real issue, the next best thing are either seedlings or seeds. This last bit here isn't recommended for those just starting out in the hobby btw. There are too many unexpected pitfalls with seeds and seedlings (some seedlings look nothing like their adult counterparts).

There's also a lot of give or take with determining how much I'd be willing to pay for an orchid.

Such as...

Scenario 1:

There are two vendors selling Vanda coerulea.

Vendor #1: V. coerulea is $6, but it's a seedling (2 yrs out of flask).

Vendor #2: V. coerulea is $45, but it's an established blooming sized plant.

For me, I'd pick Vendor #1.

Why?

1. I'm relatively young in age, I can wait.
2. I might need all the money I can get for stuff I need, but I have a little to spare for what I want (V. coerulea).
3. I'm confident enough in my skills that I feel that I can pull the orchid through to blooming size.

Scenario 2:

Two vendors are selling Laelia anceps.

Vendor #1: L. anceps is $6, but it isn't an awarded clone.

Vendor #2: L. anceps is $200, but won a ton of awards.

I'd pick Vendor #1.

Why?

It simply doesn't matter to me if the plant won awards. They're not rewards I won. I didn't breed it, so to me it's just another L. anceps. Form, size, patterning doesn't matter much in my case. If it looks like a L. anceps, if it smells like a L. anceps, and if it feels like a L. anceps, award or not it's still L. anceps. If I really wanted to, I can do my own breeding.

Scenario 3:

Two vendors are selling Pleurothallis gargantua.

Vendor #1: Plths gargantua is blooming sized and costs $15, but the root system is somewhat shabby and the leaves have got blemishes.

Vendor #2: Plths gargantua is near blooming sized and costs $25, but it's pristine and has a strong root system.

I'd pick Vendor #2.

Why?

Well, the difference in cost is not terribly significant for the quality I'm receiving. It saves me time and effort.

Stuff like this matters. Just saying.

[Call_Me_Bob]

Originally Posted by King_of_orchid_growing:)

Sometimes there's no choice but to pay a ridiculously high sum of money to get the plant you want.

In this case, it all comes down to saving up or waiting until prices drop.

I normally don't like to pay more than $60 a plant.

However when push comes to shove, $200 is the absolute cap for any one individual orchid.

$20 to $30 would be the average.

Obviously, the less the better.

If money is a real issue, the next best thing are either seedlings or seeds. This last bit here isn't recommended for those just starting out in the hobby btw. There are too many unexpected pitfalls with seeds and seedlings (some seedlings look nothing like their adult counterparts).

There's also a lot of give or take with determining how much I'd be willing to pay for an orchid.

Such as...

Scenario 1:

There are two vendors selling Vanda coerulea.

Vendor #1: V. coerulea is $6, but it's a seedling (2 yrs out of flask).

Vendor #2: V. coerulea is $45, but it's an established blooming sized plant.

For me, I'd pick Vendor #1.

Why?

1. I'm relatively young in age, I can wait.
2. I might need all the money I can get for stuff I need, but I have a little to spare for what I want (V. coerulea).
3. I'm confident enough in my skills that I feel that I can pull the orchid through to blooming size.

Scenario 2:

Two vendors are selling Laelia anceps.

Vendor #1: L. anceps is $6, but it isn't an awarded clone.

Vendor #2: L. anceps is $200, but won a ton of awards.

I'd pick Vendor #1.

Why?

It simply doesn't matter to me if the plant won awards. They're not rewards I won. I didn't breed it, so to me it's just another L. anceps. Form, size, patterning doesn't matter much in my case. If it looks like a L. anceps, if it smells like a L. anceps, and if it feels like a L. anceps, award or not it's still L. anceps. If I really wanted to, I can do my own breeding.

Scenario 3:

Two vendors are selling Pleurothallis gargantua.

Vendor #1: Plths gargantua is blooming sized and costs $15, but the root system is somewhat shabby and the leaves have got blemishes.

Vendor #2: Plths gargantua is near blooming sized and costs $25, but it's pristine and has a strong root system.

I'd pick Vendor #2.

Why?

Well, the difference in cost is not terribly significant for the quality I'm receiving. It saves me time and effort.

Stuff like this matters. Just saying.

i agree, although in scenario #1 i might buy the more expensive one, because i can be impatient lol

[cb977]

I don't want to fill up the page with the quote again but I totally agree with all the scenarios but I think I might also go with the more established V. coerulea