I got a call from a USDA officer a couple of days ago.  He inquired about some fig cuttings that I had gotten on eBay this winter.  He said that the cuttings had come from outside the country and were prohibited.  He was required to seize and destroy them.  I had successfully rooted the cuttings and set them out in the ground.  The plants were dug up, put in a plastic bag and he took them to be destroyed.

The officer was a nice enough guy and was just doing his job, but he still took my plants.  Apparently the seller did not have the proper PPQ permits to ship plant material into the USA, and neither did I.

I knew that shipping plants with soil could be a problem.  Maybe even bare root plants.  But apparently even shipping cuttings is a big no-no.

I just thought that you guys should know.



Dale

Danielsville, GA, Zone 8a/7b

Dale, thanks for the heads up.

You are required to have an import permit through APHIS and the cuttings must be sent with a phytosanitary certificate and then you must keep them in quarantine for a period of time specified on your import permit (2 years, I believe).  Cuttings from Canada are not required to undergo a quarantine period but all other foreign origins do.

If you don't mind, who was the seller? Just to make sure we know not to purchase from him...

So I should tell my wife to NOT bring me cuttings from the South of France when she comes home?

The seller was goldenpera_com .  The cuttings were shipped from Turkey.



Dale

James, she could.  It's called smuggling.


Dale

I live 4 miles from Alabama where I have a cousin which used to receive citrus plants for me from California which could not be shipped into the state of Florida. You want to make someone mad this is the way. I no longer do it having escaped fines and imprisonment barely. The USDA can get hot, and will be aware of what is received by you when you think they don't know.

I thought I read on here somewhere that bringing cuttings back was legal b/c the customs form doesn't ask anything about "sticks", only plants, fruits, vegetables, etc.  Since a cutting is basically just a stick, I don't see a problem but then again, that strictly MY opinion and in no way am I suggesting it should be done.  Maybe she could take the cuttings to the airport and then if they don't allow her to bring them with her, well at least she tried.

Tamar: Still want cuttings from Blightey? Looks like that PM was correct. Shame - would have loved to oblige any requests.

Jake aren't you the one who tried to tell people how to smuggle cuttings in from Italy?

No smuggling here, but I believe you (The_celt) claimed you had had a permit to do so!  I see you are somewhat back after leaving in a huff, guess the other forum did not take off.

Re Jules' post - Can't this issue of the legality of 'sticks' be settled once & for all by writing the USDA directly and asking the simple question: if no roots, soil, fruit or foliage, is it still prohibited, also bearing in mind Alan's post re being a relatively disease-free genus and the virtual impossibility of introducing a new contagion/pathogen/pest etc? My guess is that they might come back with the reply: what about initials?

I got all the proper paperwork from the Canadian government to import bare root plants from France last fall, the problem was a couple of the trees were over the 10 mm diametre, I was really upset because they seized and destroyed said plants, when I looked into it from their reason why it was because of a long horned beetle that bores into trees and destroys them.  Once I saw that I was no longer upset and the person I bought trees from was surprised but resent the trees that were seized, the trees in question were 11-12 mm diametre but the beetles could still have laid eggs in them and then we could have had them released all over Canada then into the states, I highly doubt they had the eggs in there but even still I am happy that I went through the proper paper work, I could not have received them from the seller without it in the first place so while Canada is strict, they explain why and for good reason and luckily I don't have to have a quarantine on the trees received thankfully, I don't know what they would have done if I didn't have the paper work.

The USDA officer was a nice guy, but I would not want to make him mad.  He said that it was my responsibility to see that all of their requirements were met.  He did say that I was not in danger of having charges brought against me.

Jules, what I had were "sticks".  The term is "plant material" when you fill out the customs form.  The "sticks" were just mailed to me in an envelope from Turkey.  Five months later I got a call from a USDA officer.

When I told him that I did not think that there was a problem with bringing in cuttings from outside the US because I had ordered daffodil bulbs from Holland before.  You should have seen him wheel around.  It took me five minutes to calm him down and assure him that all of the phytosanitary certificates were included years ago when I got the bulbs.  I kept my mouth shut from that point on.

I think about all of the fruits and vegetables from all over the world in my local super market and wonder about a hand full of "sticks" that I got in the mail.

Who knows, I may have drones and satellites watching my place from now on.


Dale

Georgia

Back in February I had a member here from Hungary harassing me to send him Pomegranate cuttings and he would send me fig cuttings in exchange.......he just would not take no for an answer.  This is why I said no to him and kept saying no..he finally got the idea I was not going to budge and gave up.  

WillC,

I got into a short exchange with I suspect the same guy on the GardenWeb Fruits&Orchard forum

A few months back the guy from China had some really interesting figs, I really would have liked to try some of them, chickened out, wisened up, or something like that, I don't need the hassle, how is the investigating officer to know which one is which, or maybe they take all your trees.

It ain't worth it!!,  Just saying!

Good point, Danny.  If they don't know which is which, I'd be afraid that take all 'em.  

Dale,
I just re read your thread and I guess the question is: How did they know you had done that?  I am just curious about this, I would give them whatever they asked for and would not question or fight about it because I knew it was wrong.  Just curious how the right of seizure without process applies.  Really question my sanity in asking this in a public forum but I was curious.

According to my PM, they can and do seize your entire inventory if the offending items can't be ID'd. And as for how they know - maybe they monitor this forum? Prism? NSA?

Loquat1,

It has been settled many times, but too many people just don't get it.

You have to have an Post-Entry Quarantine Permit from USDA APHIS for all fig plant material, period. All shipments must be accompanied by a Phytosanitary Certificate from the country of origin, period. The post-entry quarantine period is 2 years, but for reasons I won't go into, it usually take 2-1/2 to 3 years in quarantine, in reality. All shipments of fig cuttings from Europe, and probably other locations, as well, must be no larger in diameter than 10 mm, no exceptions until some USDA requirements are met, and that will probably not be any time soon.

I have been there, done that. I had a shipment destroyed this year because there was no Phytosanitary Certificate. Shipper said it had one, but it did not. So, Bye-Bye cuttings, period.

yes, invest money in taking people's fig tree away while there are kids shooting each other in inner cities. our tax money in action.. urgh.. 

BULL! GWB and the Reps put NSA together and for good reason.

Wow Danny, what an insightful (and inciteful) question. It is often the case that a citizen is required to assert his rights. However, once asserted, one runs the risk of getting an attitude adjustment. Any driver out there ever get stopped and asked to follow a pen tip with his eyes. How many say, "Officer, I respectfully decline to do that"?  And what do you think would happen if you did? A lot of it is in the approach the officer takes, too. They don't often ask for permission, so the question never comes up and most of us are cowed by all the trappings of authority, too. they have badges and guns, after all.