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quite the novel "Drosophyllum" this person is selling seeds of ......

  • Thread starter DragonsEye
  • Start date
Must be a fancy new cultivar. Seems like a good buy.
 
So - the question is: are these seeds actually from Drosophyllum? It seems unlikely that they are of Drosera derbyensis, as the picture shows. A good price if they are of something desirable but I doubt that they are. Maybe it is just a photo mixup? Makes you wonder how this person got a 93% approval rating. Isn't Ebay fun?
 
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I just cannot believe people would blindly pay for those? Probably just capensis :banana2:
 
So - the question is: are these seeds actually from Drosophyllum? It seems unlikely that they are of Drosera derbyensis, as the picture shows. A good price if they are of something desirable but I doubt that they are. Maybe it is just a photo mixup? Makes you wonder how this person got a 93% approval rating. Isn't Ebay fun?

Those were my very thoughts, Mark.... on all counts.
 
Ebay really doesn't seem to have the reputation of being a shady place to buy that it deserves. I don't doubt that the vast majority of sellers there are legit but with so little oversight and so much abuse the buyer really does need to beware. After reading the reviews of this seller I see that the gimmick seems to be that they get you a packet of something with reasonable speed. But the complaints are from those who have actually planted their seeds and discovered that they are from who knows what weedy plants. The management of Ebay could stamp this sort of fraud out very easily but that would involve cutting into profits, I suppose.
 
I think that eBay is responsive to complaints - but only if you've purchased an item from the seller and are able to convince the eBay rep that you know what you're talking about when you receive the wrong plant species. The problem is that these listings are usually so cheap that people don't bother. I've seen multiple seed scamming accounts banned, though the seller tends to just create a new one (often using a family member's name.)

I've built up a list of red flags over time, having viewed many fake seed listings over the past couple years.

Red flags to watch out for on eBay:
- Suspicious keywords such as bonsai, exotic (I'd add "rare" but some legitimate sellers use that)
- Seller lists orchid seeds, especially of the genus Ophrys. These are always fake as far as I'm aware, and real ones are impossible to germinate outside of tissue culture anyway.
- Seller lists any other seeds that appear to have an altered picture. Common ones include rainbow/black roses, black/blue strawberries, blue sundews, or neon-colored Nepenthes. Rainbow eucalyptus however is actually real.
- Picture does not match the item description
- Seller is located in China. Never buy seeds from China.
- Item location does not match the seller's location. They do this to get around people filtering search results to only show items in the US (or Europe as it would be.) It is also a violation of eBay's policies to misrepresent the location of an item and can get accounts banned.
- Price is suspiciously cheap or comes in a suspiciously large quantity for the species. I think you'll be hard pressed to find a pack of any legitimate CP seeds on eBay for less than $5.
 
I bought some of those seeds.
I was really disappointed that my weed didn't look anything like the plant I was supposed to get.:-D
 

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  • #10
You people are just jealous of my fast growing bonsai nepenthes for aquarius star sign. :woot:

Wait. Now that I read that again, even I'm jealous, but where is the nepenthes? 50 pcs of flesh eating plant from China. :rolleyes:
 
  • #11
I totally agree with you. I have also built up a similar list of sellers not buy from on eBay. But there are some very got reputable sellers to from also! The best one I've found so far is located in Canada. "Little Green Monster" ..... they are very good service, speed, prices and the seeds are legit. EBay does have a very good return policy on anything you buy on there. You will always get your money back if not from seller...from Ebay. China does not have a good rating at all! Lol. I know... that was my very first purchase way back when I started this. [emoji23] Was very disappointed! Got celosia and grass seeds for sundew and nepenthes seeds. And some seed I have no idea some kind of succulent seed for a venus fly trap. Wth! [emoji23] But just a few dollars lost. I didn't bother with the whole refund thing like you stated in your post....it just wasn't worth the hassle for a few bucks.

I wouldn't be afraid to buy from eBay. You just have to shop around guys and listen to this smart person has said about the key words to look for.

You have done a great job explaining to people what to look for!

Props to you!

Peace Love & Carnivorous Plants
[emoji111][emoji177][emoji887][emoji271]
I think that eBay is responsive to complaints - but only if you've purchased an item from the seller and are able to convince the eBay rep that you know what you're talking about when you receive the wrong plant species. The problem is that these listings are usually so cheap that people don't bother. I've seen multiple seed scamming accounts banned, though the seller tends to just create a new one (often using a family member's name.)

I've built up a list of red flags over time, having viewed many fake seed listings over the past couple years.

Red flags to watch out for on eBay:
- Suspicious keywords such as bonsai, exotic (I'd add "rare" but some legitimate sellers use that)
- Seller lists orchid seeds, especially of the genus Ophrys. These are always fake as far as I'm aware, and real ones are impossible to germinate outside of tissue culture anyway.
- Seller lists any other seeds that appear to have an altered picture. Common ones include rainbow/black roses, black/blue strawberries, blue sundews, or neon-colored Nepenthes. Rainbow eucalyptus however is actually real.
- Picture does not match the item description
- Seller is located in China. Never buy seeds from China.
- Item location does not match the seller's location. They do this to get around people filtering search results to only show items in the US (or Europe as it would be.) It is also a violation of eBay's policies to misrepresent the location of an item and can get accounts banned.
- Price is suspiciously cheap or comes in a suspiciously large quantity for the species. I think you'll be hard pressed to find a pack of any legitimate CP seeds on eBay for less than $5.

Sent from my SM-S727VL using Tapatalk
 
  • #12
I've gotten that one too one time. I have since blocked and booted that seller from the list. They were from China.
I bought some of those seeds.
I was really disappointed that my weed didn't look anything like the plant I was supposed to get.:-D

Sent from my SM-S727VL using Tapatalk
 
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