its one of the few black orchids in existence a man made hybrid. i was thinking of picking one up at the orchid expo in jan at Como park zoo and conservatory

my question is... is it hard to grow?

No, it is not hard to grow to grow at all! Go for it! Mine is ready to open this week, so if you buy it now it should be in spike and ready to drop the leaves.

It is easy to grow if you understand the growth cycle. They grow, they mature, they flower and go dormant. They should be repotted every year.
They like a lot of water and fertilizer.

It is the dormancy period that people have trouble with. Depending upon the climate we try to grow them in, they drop their leaves in early to late fall. As they go dormant you MUST cut back on water and with hold food. Once they produce new growth the following spring and the growth gets a few inches tall, that is when normal watering can resume.
They do NOT grow into large specimen plants, roots from previous years die back causing the mix to go sour. This sour mix would harm future roots.
They are generally WARM growing orchids. They thrive in 80-90 degree days with 68-75 degree night's.

Alex, I am guessing you didn't pick up that super expensive plant you were talking about a couple of years ago. But I see you still have 'Witchcraft' on your mind, which is pretty awesome!!
I think, if the price is right and you follow Bill's advice, you will be fine!

ok thanks