Sudden Wilting, Dehydration & Black Spots Dendrobium

[estación seca]

First, I buy from commercial vendors because they almost never send out bad plants. They have much better control of their greenhouses than do most hobbyists selling online. They pay staff to give proper care, rather than trying to do it when the hobbyist gets home from work. Their plants are far less likely to arrive with unknown virus infections. (There are certainly responsible hobbyist growers who send out good plants, but there are a lot of bad plants displayed here on Orchid Board bought from hobbyist growers.)

I buy seedlings (or seedling sized mericlones) for several reasons:
They're much less expensive.
It may be the only way to get a plant I'm interested in.
If sold by the person who grew them, they arrive far healthier than a cutting, bare-root plant or something that hasn't been repotted in a few years.
Most seedlings you buy will flower in 1-3 years, so it isn't that long.
Seedlings produced by reputable growers will almost never have virus infection.
I like to watch them grow as much as I like to look at flowers.
If it's a hybrid, I like the fact I will get a flower that has never been seen before, even if it winds up not being a show-quality flower.

Downsides:
They need watering much more often.
When attacked by critters there's much less to eat before they're gone.