OrchidsAmore

[WaterWitchin]

Originally Posted by estación seca

I think there is a chance the Catasetum leaves were already dropping when they packaged it up. The pseudobulb looks completely mature.

Nope. Leaves and stems of leaves were all just fine and green and fresh on arrival, other than all being snapped off at the base.

---------- Post added at 08:51 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:47 AM ----------

Originally Posted by DirtyCoconuts

...

It’s one thing to have issues, another to get defensive and then another to make that bad situation a bad practice. Done

Which was three-fourths of my heartburn. As a former small business owner, attempting to help and have conversation, and being patted on the head and told to get over it. Just very poor customer service... and from the owner no less. You're right... Done.

[SouthPark]

The catasetum does look like it has quite long leaves. So wouldn't be surprised if the floppy leaves do get busted up during shipping. But all leaves falling off is a bit rough for sure.

The nice thing about the catasetums is at least they're tough. It will survive no problem at all.

The MCV media is a bit of a shocker ----- as in dressed up with the appearance of fresh media. Sort of like how some home-sellers just spray on a coat of paint to hide the nastyness underneath.

I just repot all incoming orchids ----- as soon as they arrive, and on the look-out for anything in the media like snails etc.

[katsucats]

Update. I put in two orders over the last several months of what I perceive to be rare-ish Catasetums. Out of the 6 plants I bought, 4 Catasetums, I tested 5 of them (the last one, Ctsm. incurvum, is barely out of hibernation and doesn't have enough leaf matter to test). 3 of them have ORSV: Ctsm. gnomus 'Jumbo', Ctsm. fimbriatum, and Rodriguezia venusta. The Cyc. chlorochilon seems clean for now, but I'm going to repeat test in a few weeks.

I've emailed the vendor so we'll see if there's a resolution. But I see that @WaterWitchin also has a Ctsm. fimbriatum, so I would suggest you proceed with caution. 3/5 tested indicates a systemic problem in the operation, in my opinion, whether Jerry's own or his source. The leaves of the plants in question were excessively wavy (in a way that none of my other 20 Ctsm are), and the gnomus in particular has very suspicious chlorotic striping along the veins.

Interestingly, this is the second fimbriatum that I've bought that had ORSV. The first was from Rare Earth. Judging by some of the other plants in the catalog, I'm guessing that Orchids Amore has a Taiwanese source. I wonder if they have the same source.

[Leafmite]

That is too bad. Have you tried Sunset Valley Orchids for your Catasetums? I have no idea if they test their orchids but as I have a bunch of their Cattleya seedlings, I hope that they do. I hope you will have good fortune in finding healthy specimens of these orchids.

[katsucats]

I buy most of my Catasetums from SVO, but I've been branching out lately since Fred only offers a couple species per year. Rare Earth has biennial sales that sells out, even if you schedule the email to send exactly when he accepts them. Then, aside from a spare selection here and there, the only possibility is to import from Brazil or Taiwan. Or pay through the nose with questionable vendors on Ebay.

That's when I found Orchids Amore, which actually has a nice selection of Catasetum species, if only they were healthy...

I don't think SVO tests their orchids for viruses (the website says they don't). However, since they breed most of their plants in-house and don't allow visitors without appointment, I haven't gotten any viruses from them.

[WaterWitchin]

Well, ugh. That sure isn't news I wanna wake up to. More coffee....

[Itazura]

I was going to try to take a gamble with OrchidsAmore and order the myrmecatavola Frances Fox despite all the reviews, since it was a tougher cattleya-type orchid that could probably withstand some poor packaging and even some minor rot, but I couldn't get beyond a Paypal error message. Probably yet another sign to avoid them, but I was excited that at least one vendor had some of these orchids in stock. Has anyone came across any more reputable sellers that have the Frances Fox?

[katsucats]

Originally Posted by Itazura

I was going to try to take a gamble with OrchidsAmore and order the myrmecatavola Frances Fox despite all the reviews, since it was a tougher cattleya-type orchid that could probably withstand some poor packaging and even some minor rot, but I couldn't get beyond a Paypal error message. Probably yet another sign to avoid them, but I was excited that at least one vendor had some of these orchids in stock. Has anyone came across any more reputable sellers that have the Frances Fox?

I see it on Ebay, but unfortunately I see in my notes that that seller also has a virus problem. Marlow's used to have it. POM Orchids (from Taiwan) used to have it, and they have a pooled order at the end of June. You'll have to email them for a price list if you're interested in importing.

That doesn't leave many options. If you care about viruses, I would avoid Orchids Amore and orchidspecies333 on Ebay, especially since the Frances Fox would probably be a mericlone. But that's just me.

I'm starting to see a pattern here. I've had horrible luck with Floridian vendors.

If you want to order from Orchids Amore still, you're going to have to email Jerry. Their website shopping cart has had an encryption error for months. If you order through the Paypal option, it would store it in the site, and then you could email Jerry for him to send you a Paypal request. But again, that would be a huge risk unless you have Adgia tests on hand in my opinion.

[Itazura]

Originally Posted by katsucats

I see it on Ebay, but unfortunately I see in my notes that that seller also has a virus problem. Marlow's used to have it. POM Orchids (from Taiwan) used to have it, and they have a pooled order at the end of June. You'll have to email them for a price list if you're interested in importing.

That doesn't leave many options. If you care about viruses, I would avoid Orchids Amore and orchidspecies333 on Ebay, especially since the Frances Fox would probably be a mericlone. But that's just me.

I'm starting to see a pattern here. I've had horrible luck with Floridian vendors.

If you want to order from Orchids Amore still, you're going to have to email Jerry. Their website shopping cart has had an encryption error for months. If you order through the Paypal option, it would store it in the site, and then you could email Jerry for him to send you a Paypal request. But again, that would be a huge risk unless you have Adgia tests on hand in my opinion.

Well, I actually just received an email from Jerry with an alternate payment source from Square, and decided to take the risk and finish the order. Obviously I'm going to have to keep the orchid in strict, careful quarantine in case the virus stories are true, and I'm expecting at least a slight possibility of shipping damage based on other customer's orders, but I'm really hoping for a salvageable orchid that'll last at least a few years.

On a related note, I haven't had much luck with plant orders this year. I ordered a brassavola nodosa from a greenhouse that I had regularly done business with for other houseplants for years, and received only a small, rootless division despite the picture in the listing showing a full, healthy plant. With some care it finally put out a new growth and some roots.

[katsucats]

I wish you luck!