My girlfriend and I are heading to Italy for a couple weeks this summer.  She's got beaches and good food on her mind, I'm thinking about figs...

Does anyone have any experience bringing back cuttings?  I'm thinking there is likely a legal process to do so.  Thought that would be pretty cool to bring back some cuttings.  Would definitley share with the group once they were big enough.

Any ideas?

Your girlfriend is a wise woman.

But, you can have both!

Avoid my relatives.....

Your customs declaration form will specifically ask whether you are in possession of agricultural goods.

@chome360, make sure you wear a jacket with inside chest pockets on your way to US ;) 

Useing my invisible ink option here.
No one including the feds should be able to see this post .   ; )

My friend brought few pieces of scionwood back in his suit pocket perhaps he was lucky though.

You could always just try mailing them back home, I don't know how much intl postage is though, sounds like a blast though

Martin, they don't pocket search you at US customs. All they do is sniff your sweaty socks... they must have a foot fetish or something...

This is not Nazzi Germany nor FuKKin USSR... boy i'm so glad they both Tumbled down like there's no tomorrow.

oh, someone in past, suggested to build a doll house with cuttings and send here as a souvenir ... I thought that was smart. 

i think i read you are allowed certain number of plant material if you have import permit... check out the custom page. 

Bake a cake and put the cuttings inside.  It will have to be a very big cake.

Better yet build a raft and float across the Atlantic.

ok... let's not encourage him too much. i don't want to read about cavity search after he returns. lol

THAT would be a vacation to remember!
Sneak them into your girlfriend's purse...
She'll take the heat for you!

hmm , you may have to explain yourself to the agriculture agent at the airport and miss your connecting flight.
I received daffodils once in a package from my parents in Germany. My little mini daffies smile at me every spring, with a sweet buttery hello from my parents up above.

Hi
We were in Italy last summer and I have never seen so many fig trees in my life. We traveled up the Amalfi coast and they were everywhere.
You will love every second. I decided not to  bring back any cuttings.
Enjoy

There is no legal means to bring back fig cuttings from Italy.  As of May 2013, importing fig cuttings from most countries is "prohibited".  With an import permit, fig cuttings may be imported from about a dozen countries but those don't include Italy, France, Portugal, Turkey, Spain, etc.

If you decide to smuggle some cuttings, just make sure that there aren't any holes in the cuttings from beetles.

Is it worth going to prison for, especially in a foreign country?  I keep re-playing episodes of "Locked Up Abroad" in my mind...Not pretty.

Nate

Wow! Thank you for all the insight and suggestions everyone. I travel to Asia for work often so I'm fairly familiar with the customs process, but have never inquired about bringing back plants. I thought maybe there would a particular process with guidelines that, although strict, could be followed.

HarveyC, sounds like you've looked into this and I am just out of luck.

Thanks for the info everyone!

Yes, I had planned to apply for an import permit last summer.  Before going that far, I decided to inquire as to what conditions would be required with the permit to see if I wanted to even bother.  I got transferred to the lady that would have made that determination and she cut to the chase and asked me where I was planning to import from and then gave me the bad news and emailed me the May 2013 federal order.  I posted them in a thread at the time.

On the bright side, Canada is fairly easy to import from. Eh? :)

Did anyone think about"  bringing/importing " buds and not cuttings  and making bud grafts- it can save a lot of luggage . how long can the buds survive with proper handling?
they are spreading marijuanna seeds by mail these days all over the place

Hi chome360,
Officially you can't.
At plane boarding, the guy tells you to leave all food behind - including salad - They are afraid of crude paste cheese / too strong or wild for you they say - , and if they find food, they destroy it.
Don't even think of bringing back a cheese without notify them!
As to fig cuttings, it is your choice :) . If you meet a pit-bull at the airport controls, that could turn into big fun -reading the story later :) ...
 Don't you try humor on them - really don't try - just "yes" / "no" and no smile - , or they'll really bite you !
One guy making humor almost got jailed - Listen carefully to their questions - you might be surprised by some ... Just stick to "yes" and "no" .

Let's see: Italy, you, girlfriend, beaches, food and figs. That sounds like a recipe for bringing back a little family.

"Don't you try humor on them - really don't try - just "yes" / "no" and no smile - , or they'll really bite you ! 
One guy making humor almost got jailed - Listen carefully to their questions - you might be surprised by some ... Just stick to "yes" and "no" . "

this reminded me of my sister's story... with my, nowadays, 8 foot tall apple tree, she had put it in her luggage  (14" including the root grafting). While passing through the customs in US they asked her if she had anything that's fresh , veggies, fruit and plants... She replies, "yes, I have an Apple tree in my suitcase" they all lough at her comment and let her go through... she was confused when she told me the story... But I didn't complain.
So, being honest , sometimes works the best.

Not importing, but I brought a live loquat tree from SF in my hand bag. I also had some special chinese vegetable seeds. I was ready to tell the people who could confiscate the tree that it was chinese medicine for my stomache'. Ouch.. would not try bringing from Italy... eat all the figs you can eat, but the risks are too high, have fun.. the vineyards of Italy are amazing...should visit some.

Not to be Debbie downer but it’s also important to remember the spirit of conservation. I know we all want to bring new varieties home but as a community of enthusiast we should really be part of the solution not the problem. Though small, the chance bringing something like the chestnut blight home exist. If you are going to do it please inspect carefully, and wash in bleach solutions. 

http://www.fws.gov/home/feature/2012/pdfs/costofinvasivesfactsheet.pdf