Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
whitecat8

Royal Orchid Club site, not the eBay store

whitecat8
16 years ago

Has anyone ordered from Royal Orchid Club's web site - not the eBay store?They have some amazing prices - $10 for supposedly blooming-size mericlones.

Yes, plants are shipped bare root. I'm interested in Phals.

Feedback on the eBay store is 98.5% positive, if I'm interpreting it correctly - 8101 positive responses and 123 negative.

Thanks, Whitecat8

Here is a link that might be useful: Royal Orchid Club web site

Comments (40)

  • lwowk
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have actually ordered from thier ebay site not the actual web site and received some very nice plants in good condition. However, The ones I ordered were described as near blooming size about 6-9 months away from first bloom. The plants I got were far smaller so my wait will be a bit longer. I don't know about the ones described as being blooming size. Maybe they can tell you what kind of leaf span they have and if they have ever bloomed before to give you a better idea of what you will get.

  • elvinwei
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    i bought from their eBay store before
    i wouldn't say that they are bad, but like lwowk, my plants were way smaller than what they described
    the price was good, but the plants are small
    and i think that is how they afford to charge low--by selling ALOT of young plants, so they save money by keeping the plants for a shorter amount of time

  • thuvucute
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Everybody right. This seller did sell tiny plants that come with the low price. I ordered from them once and never again. And did I mention that they did very poor with packaging. Don't recommend this ebay seller.

  • tab64
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Just as the others have mentioned. I found their plants OK, but smaller than described. Their BS has still taken me a few years to bloom a Dendrobium. They remind me of local nurseries that have the import sales. Lots of small dug-up plants for under $10. Please note their shipping policy. It can take almost a month to get your plants.

  • whitecat8
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks, everyone,

    They've got a Phal that's practically keeping me up nights, so I'll risk it.

    Thanks again, WC8

  • albertan
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    If you are ordering Vandas, you may hit it lucky--but their packing is worse than any grower that I have dealt with during the past thirty years. Catts? Forget it!! I received dessicated plants with NO viable growing eyes left. When I called and complained, they didn't know what "viable eyes" are!!
    And when I stopped in by appointment, proprietor was NOT there, and only Non English speaking workers were present. Total waste of time and money!!

  • toyo2960
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I got one plant from them on ebay last year. The cattleya clone was cheap, but they said it was blooming size. HA! it was years from blooming size. It was also extremely desiccated and was shipped during the winter where there were no heat packs. Suffice to say, the plant immediately died after two weeks. I gave them a negative comment. I didn't ask for my money back, but just let it go and never bought from them again. I wouldn't personally go there.

  • sambac
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Would never buy from them again(NEVER should be in caps). Last time I bought from them - about 5 years ago I got a bunch of large Vanda's from him, they were very good.
    I just got my shipment on a BS vanda - tiny dessicated seedling - may be a couple of months out of flask. Wasn't cheap either. I have contacted the seller- let us see.

  • vandaworld
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I would NEVER buy anything from this person. I had bought an ascocenda from him and the plant was small and after 2 years, I got it to bloom but it was NOT the plant that it was supposed to be. I contacted him on ebay and I sent him the information that he had given me the wrong plant and he ignored my e-mails. I sent him pics of the plant and the tag of his still attached to the basket and he never responded.

  • chip02115
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Bought a phalaenopsis bellina (in spike) from Royal Orchid Club under 1 month ago. From payment to shipping/arrival took 2 weeks. Small (4" leaf) plant arrived flat & dessicated in a banged up box used for mailing single CD's(!!) - worst packaging ever. Phal is currently in ICU & hopefully it will survive. Will never buy from Royal Orchid again.

  • pamelaw
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    wish I had read this before-- just broke down and bought-- the prices were good but I suspect these are fresh off the boat imports- well there is always hope-- I only bought in spike -- sounds like that might be a bit of a dream too.

    I'm about to give up on ebay -- I've sold plants there too --but the last ones I've gotten are new shoots just yanked off the plants - termed awarded paph divisions. I would rather spend more and get something I don't have to nurse for 3 years before it blooms-- if it lives

  • pamelaw
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Oh -- Alberta was that you ?

  • albertan
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Sure was! And feedback? I didn't bother to leave feedback, as that is a joke with this guy. He holds you hostage--you give him, rightfully, bad feedback and you become the victim. Once burned, twice shy! Hope you have better luck--his packing is almost comical.

  • whitecat8
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well, shoot. Now I probably won't order that one plant.

    Thanks, everyone, for the valuable feedback.

    Whitecat8

  • pamelaw
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Alberta,

    Well the shipping was as much as the plants--the feedback on ebay has gotten out of hand -- the only thing you can do is leave no feedback - I used to look at the orchid growers rating system but some ebay seller threatened to sue -- so it went.

    Don't look 105 here tomorrow -- see them sweat at the PGA - I was hanging more shade cloth. Put what I could on the floor of the greenhouse -- supposed to be a cool 95 on friday -- and I just finished repotting the herd--they were doing great until this last week--so I'll get a few more dead plants in the mail --- what a deal!!

  • flower_crazed
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I ordered from the eBay store as well. I thought the eBay store and the actual Royal Orchid Club site were the same thing. I will never order from again. I got sucked into his low prices as a beginner and I paid for it. I am lucky I have been able to re-root most of the plants. I ordered some blooming sized plants as well from him in a different order and their roots were crap as well. I wondered how the plants got to the size they were. All looked extremely dehydrated. One plant I was able to get a replacement on....but it has pretty much died on me as well....I have learned my lesson with purchasing through him....never again!

  • ken5921
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I bought plants from the e-bay store. Plants smaller than advertised, Not well packed. Took two weeks and they are about 15 miles from me. One of the plants died in two days.

  • pamelaw
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I just got my plants from ebay auction -- these plants were just off the boat -- sure looked like newly imported to me -- the three phals are okay --bought them in spike -- the catt may or may not make it -- does have bloom sheath but if it goes ahead I would be very surprised. I got a free dendrob. but had to go look up name as everything is coded --would I buy again -- well questionable -- I'm off to pick up some superthrive.

  • symbie
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    If you can't see an actual plant photo - BEWARE! very seldom will I buy one sight unseen, unless I know the grower or his reputation well.

  • Ginge
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Royal Orchid Club has changed it's ID to Orchid Master . Beware ! Gin

  • sambac
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Gin, are you thinking of some one else, they are still called Royal orchid club. I did complain about the seedlings I recd instead of a BS plant, he has offered to replace it during their next shipping cycle. I did send him a picture of what I recd. It is CHEAP, but you have to wonder if those tiny ones are worth your time and $.

  • pamelaw
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Also I have had mericlones of the same plant from different vendors -- some of the cheap ones are over mericloned - to many from the same cells - and the results are not as good. The plants look good today but I have yet to see them bloom. I really agree - be careful - I bought plants in spike because I could tell the size - really the phals are lovely plants

  • lwowk
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Gin is right this guy has opened a second Ebay store under the name Orchid Master. Be Careful!

  • pamelaw
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    This is an update-- the three phals are okay still -- one of the spikes had the tip broken so it won't bloom this time. The catt is still alive but the freebie is loosing leaves even though they are still green ? It is hard to find anyone else amoung this guys postings. I would check to see when he ships and buy right before -- these plants were right off the boat -- newly imported-- and so you can expect to loose a few etc.

  • michael1911
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    In a nutshell..... Royal Orchids is huge, very commercial and does not seem to package their plants with a lot of love. Their ads look great, but I never again will buy from anyone who doesn't show the actual plant you're bidding on.

    My favorite sellers:
    shermantp in Wisconsin
    nia22d in Jersey
    bardavo-orchids in Florida

    Those are all ebay id's... These three sellers show you the plant you're bidding on and their packaging is incredible. Shermantp, especially..... unpacking one of his plants is like surgery LOL

    Orchids rock!!!
    Peace, Michael

  • pamelaw
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I also have bought from shermantp
    I'll add 925michael to the list

    but that's true -- always best to buy where they show the plant you are getting

  • rfraser529
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I had to look at shermantp in Wisconsin's listings since I am in Wisconsin and keep hoping I will find a grower closer than 4 1/2 hours away. Particularly at 3.19 a gal for gas.

    It appears that this seller is down around J & K Orchids near Neenah, still to far for me. I perused the listings and felt a need to comment on the pricing. I do realize that buying anything on eBay exposes you to significant risk of paying too much, and so it is buyer beware.

    Having said that, I have to make the observation that the listings I saw that were BIN pricing were in general between 5 and 10 dollars higher for an identical plant from OHG or Cal Orchids, even factoring in a $5.00 savings on shipping.

    The price differential was greater for the Aeranthes Grandiose listing now at 41 and counting plus 10 for shipping. I bought the exact same plant 2 "monthly specials" ago from the OHG in spike now listings. It was sort of an impulse buy I made while capitalizing on the mounted Ang. specials, so I dont have to count the shipping costs, right? If not I paid 1/2 what it is currently at with a day and a half left to bid. IMHO, my plant may be a bit nicer than the pictured plant and it is still in bloom. As far as some other listings I perused I note that the Cymbidiella rhodochila bidding is at least opening at only a dollar more than I paid for the same plant through a reliable grower. On the whole the listings did not appear to be offering anything unique to my eye compared to my usual internet haunts and certainly no price point benefit. Too bad they are not closer though, it would be fun to see the operation.

    Do not get me wrong, I am not trying to dis this particular eBay vendor, it is just that I am still nursing several Royal Orchid club disasters along and see little advantage to eBay as a plant resource when there are many reliable on line vendors available often with better pricing on established plants.

  • paul_
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well thanks to this thread, I avoided trying bill's plants. Prices were somewhat tempting but his rep sure isn't.

    Don't often find much orchidwise on eBay that catches my eye. So much of it seems to always be the same old same old. Of course that's a good thing for the wallet. : )

  • sambac
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    To be fair (Earlier in this post I had complained about the teeny seedling I recd instead of a BS vanda)- I had sent Bill the picture and they promptly replaced it with a healthy BS Vanda. So they do respond. I think there is a certain mortality rate associated with 'bare roots'. I bought some plants from Gore Orchid- not too big either, was $$ and a couple already licked the dust.
    Bottom line, if you anyone wants to try Bill's plant stick to the BS or in spike category- likely that your plant will make it!

  • mike4284m
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    File this thread under: "Wish I would have seen it 24 hours ago . . ." I guess we'll see what comes in the mail. My plant it supposed to be in spike so who knows.

  • Charm
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I've ordered several plants from him, I got what I expected to get for the price I paid. All are alive and doing well...he does make money on shipping though.....charged $6.50 and probably made $4.50 off of it. But I couldn't have gotten it any cheaper anywhere else.~Charm

  • ericapayne
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have ordered from him several times over the past five years or so. The ascoscendas that I received were absolutely gorgeous and massive with strong roots. They have bloomed for me many times and continue to grow and thrive.

    The only problem I had was with the cattleya divisions but this was not the seller's fault. I ordered them in January as I recall and they were sent bare-root as per the auction description. I live in Indiana and January is of course not the appropriate time to repot cattleya orchids. Most of them have survived even with this mistake on my part.

    I would and will continue to order from him. His vandacious plants are exceptional.

  • daga
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I got many plants form Royal Orchid Club and mine arrived in great condition, most were vandas, blooming size. Some spikes did not survive since they are very fragile. Their small plants are really tiny and I would not order those again, but the BS are nice.

  • roc_bill_asia
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    There are a lot of incorrect statements and claims about the Royalorchidclub made in this thread. A one sided story is never a good source of information to make good judgments on. Here are some facts:

    Royalorchidclub is an American corporation run by American people with farms located in South East Asia. The company had growing Facilities in Florida but suffered damages in Hurricane Katrina and could not recover. Now the company only maintains a packing house to transship its plants from place to place including retail consumers in the US market. The website has the story for those who are interested.

    I am not saying we are perfect, and I am sure we have upset customers from time to time. I find that some people have a different expectation than we are prepared to fulfill and there is nothing we can do about it. But if you are fair to us we will be fair to you. We have great Customer Service headed by Miriam, my wonderful wife. If you are not happy about something and if we are in the wrong you can bet it will be fixed.

    No, we cant control the USPS or how they handle packages, but we are probably the biggest complainers in Florida and have made great progress in working with the USPS to improve package deliveries. That being said, if you send us instructions to ship your plants into a winter storm and the package is delivered to a porch or mail box and/or is left outside over night, how can you expect us to be responsible for that and send you replacements for free? Make sure you have your plants always shipped to a safe location that is not exposed to extreme weather conditions.

    If we ship the wrong item to you we replace it easily. This does not happen very often.

    If your plant arrives damaged and you send us digital photos we replace it free of charge.

    If you can't figure out how to grow it properly and it dies we will not replace it or refund you.

    OK, on Spikes or Bids, 90% of them will survive and product flowers for you. These plants are normally flowering or blooming sized plants (aka BS or FS). Spikes and Buds are fragile and can easily blast or abort. That is not a reflection on plant quality and it is not something anyone can guarantee any more than the weather. Normally if a bud or spike aborts, the plant will spike or bud again within a few months time depending on the variety.

    Offspring Hybrid plants from the same parentage do not have the same flowers all the time. They can vary greatly between colors and sometimes shapes.
    Clone plants (meristem or mericlone) will be 99.7% alike. You can expect these plants to produce the same flowers.

    On plant sizes, we have several. Flowering, Blooming, Near Blooming, Medium, Small (Plant-S), Compots and Flasks. There is a detailed plant size chart available on all our websites and online sales channels available. No we do not sell blooming sized plants for $4.00, those are small sized plants and you should pay attention to the plant size details in the plant information provided prior to purchase. If you order a small plant we will ship a small plant.

    Yes, we do have several eBay id's. We have had them for many years and it is not secrete or conspiracy. One id is the account for RoyalOrchidClub on eBay and we sell bare root plants. the other we sell potted orchid plants from time to time which are shipped from a different location.

    No we do not have retail outlets in the US, but will be opening facilities in Florida and Hawaii in the summer of 2010. We hope to expand as the economy allows in the next few years to most of the major cities in the US.

    If you want to buy bare root plants you need to make sure you are prepared to care and manage them when they arrive. Beginners should take the time to read the information provided by the grower before you purchase to insure you can properly take care of the plants when they arrive. Most of the plants we sell are hearty and easy to take care of as long as you do it properly. Intermediate and advanced orchid lovers will know what and how to take care of the plants and have finely tuned growing space to handle plants and are rewarded with low cost plants and beautiful flowers.

    This is a business that I love and it is something I do because it brings pleasure to people. I hope that you enjoy your orchid experience both with our company and other great growers. Each grower is unique with different focus and inventory. Find what you like and enjoy!

  • jowben1
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well. against my better judgement, I "won" 2 sets of (2 for 1) Phal. seedlings a week ago from Bill.I have emailed him 6 times for a combined invice,(To save on S&H), with no response. Now according to "his" shgipping schedule, if he doesn't get paid soon, I may have to wait another month for him to ship. (This could be a blessing I guess, maybe they will be in spike by the time I get them).

  • roc_bill_asia
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Combined shipping on eBay is an automated customer initiated task. Simply go to checkout and select combined shipping on eBay, is done automatically. Check your junk mail box as well. normally when you ask for this manual service, the response is the combined invoice which eBay sends to you.

    Funny though, This message is from the 8th, the shipping cycle you are referring to closed on the 2nd.

    Also we only started Auctioning 2 for 1 packages on eBay the 12th, so trying to pay for one on the 8th seems impossible.

    Prior to that there have not been any for several months.

    Are you sure you have the correct seller?

  • meyermike_1micha
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I am curious..

    Why are there no comments from the 8101 happy customers? Are the rating systems really accurate?

    Is this really that bad?

    I was going to order from there, now, I am holding back.

    Mike

  • cdbinfl
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have ordered from Royal Orchid Club in the recent past and have been completely satisfied. I just placed another order for some compots. Please note the dates on most of these posts. The negative comments are all from 2007, everything from 2008 out have no real negative comments except for shipping schedule, which is clearly posted on the site.

    Cherie Blickenstaff

  • ntt_hou
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I actually have no complaints for the small size plants. I ordered small size orchids so I could learn how to take care of them. If I fail, at least I didn't spend too much money on them. I think too that it's rewarding to care for an orchid up to flowering size.

    Roc_bill_asia, this is not a complaint, just a couple of suggestions.

    I've ordered from you recently for some small size Vandas & Phals. The package arrived today damaged but the individual packagings inside were ok. The plants were alright except for 1 Vanda. It was rotted and all the leaves fell off. It's no big deal since you've given me a free plant and the damaged plant was from the package deal.

    I order plants online and receive packages via USPS often. This was the first time that I received a damage package. I've noticed that some vendors stamp the word "Plants" or "Live Plants" on the package. I'm wondering if you do the same would encourage USPS to be more careful with handling the packages.

    Also, is it possible for you to put a list of all the orchid names corresponded to their ID numbers? Especially for those IDs that you no longer have in stock. I'm doing new tags for the orchids with their full name so I don't make the mistake of ordering the same plant again. I ordered the package deal and couldn't find the names for V349, AC164 and the ID tag on the freebie plant that was faded; it showed 1420/B, I think. Just some thoughts, thanks.

    I agree with Bill that weather should be the first thing to consider when ordering live plants from elsewhere. I live in Houston and it tends to get quite hot here. I can imagine that the temperature inside the box could be even hotter, same as the temp. inside your car parking in the heat during the summer. With this understanding, I always try to order live plants in early Spring. After that, it's a huge gamble to order plants after mid-May here.

    What I'm trying to say is that just because we put out the money to buy a live plant, it's not always sensible to expect a perfect shipment when there are so many factors involved such as the delivery services and the weather.

  • cldarling85
    8 years ago

    I sent a check for some orchids five weeks ago. It was cashed. Have e-mailed the company twice . No reply. Charles Darling, Micanopy, Florida.Sept. 24, 2015

Sponsored
Hoppy Design & Build
Average rating: 5 out of 5 stars9 Reviews
Northern VA Award-Winning Deck ,Patio, & Landscape Design Build Firm