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Two rare houseplant listings were removed from Trade Me after Facebook users saw various red flags and fought off the potential scam.
The listings, both for “white variegated monstera delicious borsigiana”, said the plants had belonged to the seller’s late mother and were being sold because the family “was not really interested in houseplants.”
Each plant had a reserve price of $ 100 and would be “shipped at the buyers’ risk. [sic]After the auctions closed Tuesday night.
However, the bids skyrocketed to more than $ 99 million after the ads were shared on a popular houseplants Facebook group Sunday morning.
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Members of the Indoor Plants NZ group quickly identified several red flags with the listings, including identical photos of the plants on Google.
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Two Trade Me listings for assorted monsters disappeared after Facebook users saw various red flags.
“Without pickups, you think if a plant is worth 4k, you could at least pick it up yourself,” wrote one person.
“This person’s ‘late’ mother must have been very lucky to own two of these,” said another.
“And they ‘didn’t know it was worth anything,’ but they sure know the full name.”
Dozens of great deals followed as users moved to put the auctions out of the reach of any serious bidder.
Both listings quickly hit $ 99 million before unexpectedly closing just after noon on Sunday.
EXCHANGE ME
This variegated philodendron minimum broke Trade Me’s record for the most expensive houseplant ever sold when it sold for $ 8,150 in August.
It is unclear whether they were removed by Trade Me or the “seller”.
Trade Me has been contacted for comment.
A police spokesman said they were aware of the listings and were evaluating the information.
But not everyone is convinced the listings were a scam, with some pointing out that generic or internet images are often used as a reference photo.
“It would be a lot of fun if it were a legitimate business with only images from the Internet as references.”
That led to suggestions that one or both plants could be the variegated monstera stolen from the Christchurch Botanical Gardens in September.
“Maybe it’s Hagley’s robbery and they’ve used Google images in hopes they won’t get caught?”
Indoor plants have blossomed in popularity recently, with rare examples selling for thousands of dollars online, while scammers have duped desperate buyers out of thousands on social media.
Variegated plants, which have an unusual pattern due to a mutation, are particularly sought after as they rarely occur in nature.
Collectors seek variety, so gardeners try to create cultivars that accentuate the natural pattern.
In January, a variegated monstera sold for almost $ 5,000 on Trade Me. In June, a fleshy hoya or ‘Hindu rope’ plant sold for $ 6,500, while in August a low sold for $ 8,150, a Trade Me record for a houseplant.
