Hi Guys,

This is Andrew. Im one of the new guys.

Im just wondering if anybody used USDA last year (2016) to get cuttings? If so, do they need any special requirements?

Thanks guys!

USDA is no longer making cuttings available to Joe Everyday.... No money for staffing. The only way to get cuttings from them now is fraud and subterfuge.... It is explained in their fine print....

Kind of sad, isn't it?  They have no funding for staff yet, there are those making a decent side hustle on eBay selling the very same cuttings.  UCD should consider SELLING their cuttings.

@drufig Hey! You are at the checkout page? Go for it.... Been there, done that. Far be it for me or anyone else to discourage you from trying.... sharing experiences but yours may be different. The advisory / disclosure is there....

I just posted a screenshot of the checkout page

Maybe they have budget again

Under the drop down menu where the red * is.  "Indentend use for this germplasm".  Again, at the bottom in the green box:  "The accessions within the NPGS are available in small quatities for RESEARCH, BREEDING, and EDUCATION PURPOSES."

Also, on the next page, who is your carrier and billing information for your carrier will be asked.

Additionally, at the top of the screen, there is "About GRIN-Global".
"Plant germplasm is distributed to scientists, educators, producers and other bona fide research and education entities from NPGS active collection sites. The NPGS Curator and/or Research Leader will, in accordance with current NPGS policies and procedures, determine the legitimacy of a request when necessary."

"Distribution of germplasm from NPGS collections to fulfill requests from individuals seeking free germplasm strictly for home use is generally considered an inappropriate use of limited resources and conflicts with USG policy of not competing with commercial enterprises. Requestors can be asked, in an appropriate manner, to justify the use of specific NPGS germplasm instead of suitable commercially available germplasm." 

Additionally, even if you had a legitimate reason, they won't ship until October, maybe September, the earliest due to their pruning season. Your order most likely will be added to the huge que of requests. Quite frankly, if I was the curator, I'd hit ctrl+a in my email, and delete all requests prior to August 1. I mean really, how many illegitimate requests do you think they get a year? How do they possibly man that order request?

I'd love to see UC Davis start mailing cuttings again! 
Best chance would be to convince them to accept:
a "$$ Donation",
a 7"x 9" self-addressed stamped envelope, and
long sticky labels with the printed names of desired cultivars.  

I think they would only consider distribution for something that is not available with any private collector in the USA.

Checking out means nothing.  I did it shortly after they stopped shipping them.  They never said anything to me, but it's been years and no cuttings so far :)

Would be nice--they didn't tell me anything!