Hey Orchid Experts. Was I cheated? Miltassia Shelob from SecretGarden

[MrHappyRotter]

Sorry, I had to edit because I misread things.

The Oncidium Twinkle is blooming sized. They're small, floriferous, and and start blooming quite small and young. The Bratonia is near blooming size for sure, some might even list it as blooming size. I think those terms, while not well defined, are pretty accurate here.

I think a lot of sellers take the absolute most permissive view of what constitutes blooming size as meaning under ideal conditions at least some of the seedlings of a similar size and in this same sized pot can or will bloom within the next year. A number of genera can bloom for the first time while really young. Phals and Oncdiums are common examples, it's really not unusual to see some seedlings bloom while still in their compot, at most a year or two out of flask. So, technically, that means very young, small plants are blooming size. And yes, those first spikes usually produce few flowers, smaller flowers, and lower quality flowers than what the plant is actually capable of.

Near blooming size is usually used for stuff that's 1+ year away from blooming, as in it will likely skip the next blooming season, but in good care, could bloom any time after that.

The plants themselves appear to be correctly labeled in so far as much as you can tell from the foliage, have multiple growths, and are very healthy. I can see why you'd be disappointed or even feel mislead, but given the evidence, I don't think the vendor cheated you either.