Selling cmv infected orchid plants on Ebay

[judith_arquette]

Originally Posted by AnonYMouse

There must be more than one. The one I saw is C. Alice duPont `Waldor' HCC/AOS.

According to them, under "description", they have a whole collection of virused plants. I do give them credit for their honesty but personally won't be buying any orchids from them...my concern would be the transmission of the virus in their collection of known virused plants to all the others.... Maybe they're all kept separated but I wouldn't be willing to take the chance

[Ray]

I am of the opinion that orchids - just like us - carry everything to which they have ever been exposed, and I suspect the vast majority have been exposed to viruses.

However, having the virus and exhibiting the symptoms don't necessarily go hand-in-hand. With proper culture and elimination of stresses, a virused plant can live for years, blooming freely.

It's just like the chicken pox / shingles thing. I carried the virus for over 50 years before my immune system - I suspect weakened by the onset of cancer - allowed the virus to take over. (For anyone concerned, both are gone...)

All that said, I still don't think I'd intentionally bring a known-infected plant into my collection.

[wintergirl]

Originally Posted by AnonYMouse

There must be more than one. The one I saw is C. Alice duPont `Waldor' HCC/AOS.

Here is the other one, it has CymMV in the title:

Pot Scarlet Dynasty `Ming' Am AOS Original Division Cattleya Orchid Plant Cymmv | eBay

[silken]

Well, luckily I don't own either hybrid! I agree with Ray that there are lots of other viruses for plants and possibly all or many of them harbour some of them. But we all get a common cold, which is a virus and it doesn't affect our lives too significantly during and after it is over with. Other viruses like HIV or shingles would have a major effect. I have always heard that CymMV and ORSV are two of the worse viruses an orchid can have and it can be spread by bugs moving from plant to plant, as well as the normal unsafe handling practices. I don't want to knowingly have plants with those two viruses among my collection even if all my other orchids have other minor viruses that I am unaware of. To me, those two viruses are the HIV's of the orchid world.

[Leafmite]

We had a very elderly gent as our speaker once and he told us that when virus was first announced in orchids all those years ago, he remembers Hausermann's having 'bonfires' to cleanse their collection of virus-infected orchids. I think that is the right route to take. If you have a very precious orchid with a virus and you don't want to destroy it, it is your right to keep it but no part of it should ever be sold.

The problem with diseased plants (bacteria, fungus, virus and pests) is that diseases can spread into the native flora and agricultural crops and devastate our food supply. Even if the current version is not too harmful, viruses and bacteria can easily mutate and become more damaging.
We have many examples of diseases being moved from place to place and causing havoc when introduced. Currently, our chocolate supply is suffering, citrus growers are battling Citrus Greening and I have lost a few fruit trees, now, to Fire Blight. My Chestnut is fighting American Chestnut Blight, something that was brought to America and wiped out one of the most common trees of many forests. Some types of fungus can even make people very ill and they are brought to new areas with the movement of plants.
Plants, when sent outside an area, should be certified disease free to protect native flora and our food supply. I am amazed that we do not do this after history had repeated itself soooo many times.

[theloyalplum]

Originally Posted by Ray

I am of the opinion that orchids - just like us - carry everything to which they have ever been exposed, and I suspect the vast majority have been exposed to viruses.

However, having the virus and exhibiting the symptoms don't necessarily go hand-in-hand. With proper culture and elimination of stresses, a virused plant can live for years, blooming freely.

It's just like the chicken pox / shingles thing. I carried the virus for over 50 years before my immune system - I suspect weakened by the onset of cancer - allowed the virus to take over. (For anyone concerned, both are gone...)

All that said, I still don't think I'd intentionally bring a known-infected plant into my collection.

My gosh... as a human seedling I cannot imagine how horrible that must've been.

But nevertheless, I agree. I have a few plants that are obviously virused but still grow fine and flower fine. Just gotta outgrow the leaf drops!

[Joseia]

Ray wrote: It's just like the chicken pox / shingles thing. I carried the virus for over 50 years before my immune system - I suspect weakened by the onset of cancer - allowed the virus to take over. (For anyone concerned, both are gone...)

Oh man, when I saw the cancer part, my first thought was - Ray can't die, I want to buy more of his orchids and more of his very well priced orchid supplies! Yeah, selfish I know, but seriously, don't scare me like that again.

[camille1585]

This is just wrong. Yes, plants can live and bloom fine with the virus, but keeping known virused plants around will do nothing to limit the spread of those viruses.

One of the ads says that they are "cutting down on some of our collection of CymMV positive plants". For me, if you are a vendor and have CymMV positive plants, the only sort of cutting down that you should be doing is trashing those plants! Yes they are being honest about it, but selling them is just wrong... They aren't cheap either. To me, if you take pride in your business and respect your customers, you don't try to cut your losses by selling those plants anyway.

[Pat'sCatt's]

Originally Posted by camille1585

This is just wrong. Yes, plants can live and bloom fine with the virus, but keeping known virused plants around will do nothing to limit the spread of those viruses.

One of the ads says that they are "cutting down on some of our collection of CymMV positive plants". For me, if you are a vendor and have CymMV positive plants, the only sort of cutting down that you should be doing is trashing those plants! Yes they are being honest about it, but selling them is just wrong... They aren't cheap either. To me, if you take pride in your business and respect your customers, you don't try to cut your losses by selling those plants anyway.

Totally agree with you on that! But did you know that you aren't allowed to send virused orchids back to most growers. I can make a little list of growers that don't offer a return policy in virused plants, and they think there is nothing wrong with selling you such orchid. And when i did return them (without a refund) they just put them up for sale again!

Of all the virused plants i bought from 5 known orchid growers, only one appoligised and gave me a refund and destroyed the plant. The rest of them got mad and stuck their head back in the sand...

[Bayard]

Waldor Orchids is being up front about the virused plants.

One may wish to breed with them, or simply acquire an historic plant. Apparently, CYMV does not mar the flowers on infected plants. Carter and Holmes maintains a collection of virused plants in a separate greenhouse for breeding purposes.

Particularly rare forms of species, like the alba form of Cattleya warscewiczii have been rescued from oblivion by self pollinating the infected plant (dry seeds do not transmit the virus).