Rare orchids, how to find out?
 

I've been wondering if there is such a thing as a rare orchid list? On trawling my way through eBay I find 'rare' orchids for auction etc., I don't believe most of them are truly rare but how do you know? - apart from the less than five figure sums asked for them. Is it an 'insiders' orchid circle of people who know what's out there or can the common man find out what is out there too?

is what "RARE" means on ebay is one "RARE"LY buys them..

in fact it might be so "RARE" on ebay even the person selling it hasnt seen it

botanist are now searching ebay for "RARE" orchids bec they aren't many left in the wild

what is RARE to one might be OVER done to another
:)

If you see something on Ebay that says "rare", just Google it. If a bunch of people are selling it, it is not rare. I have seen some of the most common plants listed on Ebay as being rare.

That being said, sometimes a plant that is a non-mericlone may still be rare even if there are mericlones of it.

Yes, the definition of "rare" is quite wide in eBay terms which is why I always have Googled something. Are there enough truly rare orchids, whether they be hybrids or species, out there for "serious" collectors? There must be a way other than Google to find out.

I don't know of a rare orchid list, although as far as species go you could look up endangered orchids. You could also go take a look at Troy Meyers Conservatory online as he grows a lot of rare ones from donated seed.

That's interesting, thank you. If I were ever in the position to pay huge sums of money I probably wouldn't as I doubt they would hold their value. Or would they?

Not too many people get rich in orchids. Personally, I wouldn't invest a lot in anything unless I was an expert on whatever that was thing was.

I like mutual funds myself:twocents:

"Rare" can mean rare in the trade or "rare" in the wild.

There are certainly quite a few orchids that are rare in both the trade and the wild.

Some are rare in the trade for various reasons. One of them being the level of difficulty of growing them. Another one is because there is such scant amount of information about the orchids that people who end up with them are absolutely clueless about how to grow them correctly and end up killing them.

There is obviously the thrill of finding and owning a rare orchid, but it could possibly also mean you're on your own to figure them out. Just something to think about. ;)

LOL very true! I'm not remotely tempted at the moment but one day I just might! :D

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

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.

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.

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.

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.