That listing shared appears to to be very problematic to me. First of all, it doesn't make sense. 'Orizaba' of 4-5" size are typically going for $300-400. And, that is completely ignoring the fact that the same plant in Japan is going for triple that price. The one claimed to be 7" went unsold for $125 Buy It Now. Sorry, I don't think so. In fact, I will bet No Way. Folks would be falling over themselves to snap that up for a fraction of the usual price. A seller who claims to offer Phytosanitary Certificates (implying international market place savvy), but not only doesn't know the difference between a 'Lime Streak' and an 'Orizaba', but apparently doesn't know the market prices of these plants in Asian markets is not a seller I'd be trusting for honest information.
I won't sell on Ebay any more, because over the years that venue has become more and more seller unfriendly. The last straw for me was the latest change whereby when something sells, the buyer no longer pays the seller directly. Typically, when I had a sale, the buyer would have my funds in my Paypal account the same day. The last item I sold, the buyer paid immediately as usual, but I didn't see my money until a week later. A friend recently told me about a transaction where he's waiting on his money for 17 days and counting... The new system where buyers pay Ebay, and then Ebay "processes" your money for a week or more before transferring it into your bank account (another couple of days! But why? Paypal transfers money into your own bank account in 1 day - why does it take Ebay days to accomplish the same???). Yet, you are expected to ship your item out immediately because the buyer already paid - even though you won't see your money until several days to a week later if you're lucky... That was it for me - no more Ebay. Good riddance.
But I will share that the last 'Orizaba' I sold on Ebay, I did a 7 day auction with a starting bid of $299, and Buy It Now of $399 (5" plant), and it went immediately as it was snapped up for the Buy It Now. I also sold a 7" plant to a buyer for $600 in the last year. So, what is wrong with this picture? One is for sale for $125 of 7" size, and it goes unsold? Yeah, right. By the way, is that supposed to be an 'Orizaba' in the photo? Because, no, it's not. That is a 'Lime Streak', which are a dime a dozen these days. Back when they were the cool Truncata cultivar to buy, I acquired 10 of them. Let me mention that one that is beautifully and evenly variegated and then reverts to a non-variegated plant, it's not really very cool any more. That's happened to me on one, and another is doing the same thing. I'm not saying it will happen, but that it can happen, apparently. 'Orizaba will not do that. Not only is the variegation (and color - 'Orizaba' is BLUE, not GREEN) very stark and distinctive, it is 100% stable, unlike 'Lime Streak' where there appears to be a 20% chance your plant will end up non-variegated. By the way, $125 would be a fair price (perhaps even on the low side) for a 7" 'Lime Streak'. $125 for an 'Orizaba' is wishful thinking. In my opinion, that seller is at best ignorant, or a cheat - offering up something that is not what he says it is. There's that old saying - when it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.... Buyer beware!
The "PicClick Insights" given on that page? Bogus information "Best Price - Avg: $75.00, Low: $25.00, High: $125.00."
- BS LISTING.png (209.19 KiB) Viewed 3748 times
I think I'll start with some "cheaper" models first. I did acquire a Bovicornuta Variegated. Now that thing is cool....and it BITES!! OUCH! I Just hope I have the skills to keep it alive! And this Texas heat is frying everything right now. Thanks again for the post, it was quite an education for me.