Bringing seeds into the UK from the USA
Pete >-M->
Oh Knowledgeable Ones,
A dear friend wants to send me seeds in the post from the mighty
US of A. Is that illegal? Anyone know of a web resource about such
things? Also what about bringing me seeds in her luggage this year?
Imprisoning offence? Punishable by starvation in The Tower?
All hints/tips welcome from those who actually know and aren't just
making it up as they go along.......
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pete Marrow
e_mail: P.Ma...@bgs.ac.uk
work: http://www.gsrg.nmh.ac.uk/
play: http://www.gorp.com/gorp/activity/scottish_ff_faq.htm
Martin Tom Brown
In article <p.marrow.4...@bgs.ac.uk>
p.ma...@bgs.ac.uk "Pete >-M->" writes:
> A dear friend wants to send me seeds in the post from the mighty
> US of A. Is that illegal? Anyone know of a web resource about such
> things? Also what about bringing me seeds in her luggage this year?
> Imprisoning offence? Punishable by starvation in The Tower?
It depends... Anything listed in CITES you need permission for.
Otherwise you are allowed a few packets of commercial seed when
travelling. There are some countries which are *very* sensitive
about import/export of native species like Mexico & Australia.
It is complicated since there are seeds and plants legally available
in the EEC which would be highly illegal in the USA. I can't think
of any plants apart from hemp for which the converse applies.
But there may be some...
> All hints/tips welcome from those who actually know and aren't just
> making it up as they go along.......
You could always send off for the official phytosanitary colouring book
and CITES regulations if appropriate. It make good bedtime readinZZZzzzz
Regards,
--
Martin Brown <mar...@nezumi.demon.co.uk> __ CIS: 71651,470
Scientific Software Consultancy /^,,)__/
Michael J Hopkins
On Tue, 27 Jan 1998 14:50:37, p.ma...@bgs.ac.uk (Pete >-M->) wrote:
Pete
>Oh Knowledgeable Ones,
>A dear friend wants to send me seeds in the post from the mighty
>US of A. Is that illegal?
nasty people will send cannabis seeds to America so it is illegal to
import seeds.
>Anyone know of a web resource about such
>things? Also what about bringing me seeds in her luggage this year?
>Imprisoning offence? Punishable by starvation in The Tower?
were marked on the packaging as such - no problems (although how he
expects me to grow sub tropical veggies in Nottingham is beyond me!)
>All hints/tips welcome from those who actually know and aren't just
>making it up as they go along.......
Have a nice day......
Mike Hopkins
Nottingham
(Robin Hood says Hi!)
Joe Ehrlich
Pete >-M-> wrote:
>
> Oh Knowledgeable Ones,
>
> A dear friend wants to send me seeds in the post from the mighty
> things? Also what about bringing me seeds in her luggage this year?
> Imprisoning offence? Punishable by starvation in The Tower?
I have noticed that (in general) seed prices are much higher in the UK
than they are here in the U.S.(if prices in seed advertisements on the
web in British Pounds are any indication). Also, I noticed a thread
questioning whether Thompson & Morgan's prices were worth it. From my
persepctive, their prices are quite in line with other major seed
companies here. For example, T & M charges US$2.99 for Hollyhock
"Peaches & Dreams" or about 2 pounds sterling. Most seed packets are
never much above US$1.75, or slightly more than a pound. I regularly pay
as little as US$.39 per packet for common vegetable seeds.
I would guess that the higher prices are due to the "what the market
will bear" rather than any real reason. Noting the origins on seed
packets, much of the stuff that I get originates in Holland, Japan,
Germany, UK, anyway etc., with the rest coming from the U.S., so what
difference would it make anyway?
If you have a friend in the U.S., I would say try it! I send seeds to
friends in Switzerland every year, and if I had gardener friends in the
UK, I would send them stuff too.
If you have a relative
David Poole
>No, it is not illegal. The US lawmakers are frightened that lots of
>nasty people will send cannabis seeds to America so it is illegal to
>import seeds.
That said, I sent a small sample of home-harvested seeds Hedychium
spicatum to California a couple of months ago. If I can remember
correctly, the contents were listed on the outside of the envelope and
they arrived OK. So, I suppose it is possible to send stuff the other
way - provided it is legal of course.
David Poole
Martin Tom Brown
In article <34CFD3...@well.com> sta...@well.com "Joe Ehrlich" writes:
> Pete >-M-> wrote:
> > A dear friend wants to send me seeds in the post from the mighty
> > US of A.
> I have noticed that (in general) seed prices are much higher in the UK
> than they are here in the U.S.(if prices in seed advertisements on the
> web in British Pounds are any indication). Also, I noticed a thread
> questioning whether Thompson & Morgan's prices were worth it. From my
> persepctive, their prices are quite in line with other major seed
> companies here. For example, T & M charges US$2.99 for Hollyhock
> "Peaches & Dreams" or about 2 pounds sterling. Most seed packets are
> never much above US$1.75, or slightly more than a pound. I regularly pay
> as little as US$.39 per packet for common vegetable seeds.
It's not really all that different in the UK.
T&M are just about the most expensive way of buying common seeds.
Their quality is good though, so it can be worth it for seeds
which are known to be touchy if not absolutely fresh.
Chilterns in particular have a wider range and better value
and various other seedsmen do much lower priced seeds too.
I've generally done very well with Chiltern seeds too.
> I would guess that the higher prices are due to the "what the market
> will bear" rather than any real reason. Noting the origins on seed
Also worth noting that specialist plants and seed merchants may
be cheaper than the big guys and have a better range of species.