New eBay seller: orchid_master

[caseydoll]

Thanks for getting to bottom of it Dorothy! Very good to know!

[Dorothy]

[Leisurely]

Just wanted to add that I too had a sour experience with plants from this seller. I purchased six ascocendas in Nov. 96. that were in bud. They all did have buds about 1" long that soon dried up. There were no green root tips and all of the roots were dark. In about a month the plants looked dessicated and it took at least six months to get them healthy looking again. Sometimes a bargain is not really a bargain.

[Dorothy]

It seems that the drying process can be greater on some orchids than others. The only way I will purchase a plant is potted. Shipping, itself is enough to shock and set back an orchid. I have purchased dry rooted keikis from someone else on eBay and they are growing healthy without any prolonged time of recovery. In fact I have a new spike with buds and new leaf growth on both.

[Palito]

Bare Root plants are air dried prior to shipping to allow for safe passage in the mail for periods up to 15 days

I have to ask, but what is the technical reason for driying the plants before shipping? It's not as if the plants are going to be weeks in a dark box and they will rot if the roots are not dry. regular mail is NOT that slow.

The only explanation I have is that he just buys a lot of bareroot stock and keeps them bareroot until resold on ebay, hence no repotting costs, no watering, nothing. He is just moving product. The unlucky buyers are those who get the old near dead plants that have been sitting dry in the shelf for a long time.

[flhiker]

I agree with Dorothy, I have had many of orchids shipped with spikes and buds and all arrived in perfect condition except Bills ( NEVER AGAIN)

[Djarum Black]

Just to offer some hope on the subject. I have bought from Bill before and the plants were ok. They were not great and I disliked how he shipped but I did know in advance. His packing and shipping methods are explained in detail.
The last thing I wanted to mention is that I am fairly sure he is not trying to pull a fast one by changing his name. He is still selling under the "Bill_Asia" handle as well as "OrchidMaster" In fact if you go to his store he even tells you flat out who he is.
Both handles have been registered for over 1 year. You can also still check the feedback of his other accounts. They are visible and public.
I'm not trying to take sides, but it seems like some are jumping the gun on his motives for opening an additional store. According to his info, he opened a new nursery in Florida and the "Orchid_Master" handle is set to ship from that location.
I don't see anything wrong with this, he isn't hiding anything.
Lets not bury the man for doing things he has not done.
He may ship and pack plants in a crummy way and I'd never buy from him again, but as far as I know he has never actually *LIED* or been deceitful.

On a side note, this mans son is also in the orchid nursery business and I know for a fact he's on ebay also. I bought from him once when I wasn't paying attention to the names. (dumb me) Interestingly enough his son's plants were in pretty damn good shape.
So for all we know this could be his son's side of the business over in Florida. I'm not saying it is, but lets not lynch anyone to quickly

[caseydoll]

DJ, I agree but I didn't really think anyone was saying that he is for sure trying to pull a fast one. Everyone was just trying to figure it out. As Dorothy posted and you pointed out he does state on his new store front that he is also Royal Orchid Club. I think some people may just search for orchids and just see the user name orchid master and not realize it's one in the same. I totally understand what your saying though. I'm the same as you, I didn't have a horrible experience but I wouldn't buy from him again either just because I don't really like how they are shipped.

[Becca]

Originally Posted by Djarum Black

On a side note, this mans son is also in the orchid nursery business and I know for a fact he's on ebay also. I bought from him once when I wasn't paying attention to the names. (dumb me) Interestingly enough his son's plants were in pretty damn good shape.
So for all we know this could be his son's side of the business over in Florida. I'm not saying it is, but lets not lynch anyone to quickly

DJ, I am just curious what member name bill_asia's son sells under on eBay? I wonder if I have purchased from him before

Candice, any word on your orchids yet?

[Djarum Black]

The handle he was under at the time was "Rushpo".
I have not seen his listings recently so I just looked him up. The handle is still there but he's not selling under that name anymore from the looks of it. Looks like he got into some trouble with bad feedback.
His plants were kinda nice, I always think its such a shame to see sellers go downhill.
The orchid community really is so small when you think about it, and all you have really is your reputation.