I got conned into buying fake "rare" succulents online

Bought 3 "variegated moon cacti" from a shady Etsy seller for $45 total. They arrived as plain green cuttings that died within a week. Has anyone else gotten burned by fake plant listings?

4 comments

4 Comments

umaprice1mo ago

$45 for THREE moon cacti and they died in a WEEK? That is WILD, I can't believe people actually pull this stuff. @pat_hall87 you're probably right, someone's definitely out there selling "glow in the dark" ones next claiming they work with blacklight. The shady Etsy game is getting worse every year I swear.

daniel5111mo ago

Variegated moon cacti aren't really a thing, moon cacti are already grafted mutants that don't grow variegated. The seller probably just slapped some random dye on regular cuttings.

pat_hall871mo ago

Bet they sell "glow in the dark" ones too.

the_derek1mo ago

Not to step on toes but I've actually seen a few legit variegated moon cacti from Japan where they selectively breed the scions for pink and yellow patches. It's super rare and expensive though so 99% of what you see online is definitely just painted or dyed cuttings from China lol. The market is flooded with fakes so I get why you'd call it out but the genetics do exist if you know where to look.