to ask about taking flora to another country?

[PleaseMrCuster]

Hi Mumsnetters
.
I hope to travel to visit my relative in South Africa next year.

I have a plant in my garden which has grown after taking a cutting from our (now deceased) fathers hydrangea.

My relative has asked me to bring a cutting, so that they too can have part of a plant that was treasured by our dad.

I readily agreed, but since then, I have learned that a permit may have to be obtained in order to do this, as it's something to do with soil?

However, it I just took a cutting (s) without including any soil, would that be allowed without a permit?

Obviously I would've preferred to take a cutting well before traveling, put it in compost, and making sure it "took", else it's chancey hoping a soil free cutting might take once I've got to my relatives home.

I've tried searching the internet, but can't find anything that specifically instructs on what/how/if.

So if anyone who's reading this has knowledge on the subject, and would be happy to advise me, that would be great.

I am NOT going to chance putting it in my suitcase, to maybe get fined and or refused entry into the country.

Tia 🙏🏻

In my experience phytosanitary certification is aimed at commercial use. No one bats an eyelid at soilless cuttings, cut flowers or seeds for private use. Don't overdo it though, I'd take max 5 cuttings. While I haven't been to SA, I've been to NZ, Aus, and several other countries that are strict on imports. NZ is the only one that takes plant pathology seriously. All the others are solely food focused. (To the detriment of CITES listed species; smuggling rare plants is very much a thing partly because border staff are not trained to identify endangered species.)

Do consider moving your thread to the gardening topic if want more people's experiences on taking cuttings abroad.

Whenever I travel to NZ wearing my hiking boots I say I've visited farm recently and they give the boots a great clean.

The system, for obvious reasons, isn’t set up for non commercial requests. If they lowered the fee (I.e subsidising the cost) it would only encourage similar requests that they aren’t set up to handle.

I travelled to NZ a few times in the 70s. At each country wecstopped to re-fuel and at arrival in NZ, the planes was sprayed inside. And yes, a sheep-dip type of mat had to bexwalked over!

My trainers were taken off me when I went to Australia! They were taken away, steam cleaned, and brought back to me!

It’s so expensive and difficult because they don’t really want random people to do it.

@saltinesandcoffeecups You must be in North America - I have heard garlic mustard's a menace over there. In the UK it's no worse than other weeds and is the food plant for some of our butterflies. Japanese knotweed and Himalyan balsam however... 😨

I am. It’s terrible here and so invasive. It choked out my garden flowers and bushes. Like I said, I tried pulling it for 3 years and finally gave up, rehomed the plants I could save and then poisoned the soil and paved over that bit.

I won the fight in a different part of the yard. I think I got that bit before the roots had a chance to establish.

Yup. Happened to me too. I’d been working at stables in Australia, and went over to NZ, when I was backpacking in my 20s. They scrubbed my boots, and gave them back to me in a clear plastic bag, with soapy water in the bottom! I had to put them back on like that, due to lack of other footwear! 🤣🤣

That is really dreadful. It really is not a problem here. I have none in my garden and would love to have some!
Trouble is, to introduce a controlling preditor for the plant in a new environment without causing a worse problem is almost impossible. I am actually sad when I see it's been mowed here because our Orange Tip butterflies (Anthocharis cardamines) depend on it.

Hiya... I have no idea of how I get the my query changed to gardening..

Any advice?
Thanks

Hi.

Gardener here.

You have two choices, well three. Or 4 in reality.

Get a certificate or don't. You are highly unlikely to get one in the first place to be honest, it is for commercial people not private citizens.

Or just take cuttings and don't declare them and risk a fine.

Or take cuttings and declare them and risk a fine.

Or find out which variety it is, and find a supplier that sells the same variety that can be shipped to that area. I know you want it from that plant, but the original breeder would have produced a number of plants from the same parents and these will have been used to propagate from ever since. So it will all be from the same original plants as your dearly beloved plant.

Thank you so much for your post.
It was practical but sensitive at the same time.
I appreciate your input 🙏🏻

Report your post and put the request in the text sent to the moderators.

We weren't able to bring any cuttings from my husband's grandma's garden into the UK which was something we regretted.

However, the first summer in our new house we found her favourite shrub growing in the corner of our own garden. And although we know it's a different plant it also feels like the same plant and reminds us of her and brings back good memories. So I suppose we accidentally did option 4.

And the fact that european earthworms are now pretty well worldwide. What happens to earthworms can happen to more damaging species.

Sorry, not wanting to pile on, but just startled at the ubiquity of our earthworms

@AlisonDonut
Get a certificate or don't. You are highly unlikely to get one in the first place to be honest, it is for commercial people not private citizens.

It's not just for commercial, it is for private as well. Lots of people want to send plant material abroad or take favourite plants with them when they move, some don't bother to find out what they need to do first, it is good that the OP has asked.

Your 4th suggestion is very sensible and hydrangeas can be bought in SA so the cost of importation could be saved if the OP finds the right variety from an SA nursery.

I am aware, I moved to France in 2021 and had to leave hundreds of varietes of plants behind. But the cost reflects that it is for companies who want to do business shipping hundreds of plants, whose business depends on it. This isn't meant for individuals, but an individual might well pay for it to ship loads of plants around the globe. Having an audit and inspection for a few cuttings would be absolutely barmy.

Under the PHEATS scheme, you'll have to pay for: an initial site visit to include training, assessment and authorisation - £313.24 per authorisation. an auditing / monitoring fee - £178.92 per audit. the issue of a certificate - £25.52 per phytosanitary certificate

Yes it is expensive I agree, I work in a field of horticulture and have always found APHA reasonable to deal with when I have had questions on a personal basis.

A friend of mine imports specialist plants from outside the EU to his nursery in the UK. He is on first name terms with the DEFRA people who regularly come to test & inspect everything, and has to have a quarantine area, totally biosecure and segregated from the rest of the nursery, where the plants have to be kept for months. They will occasionally seize & destroy an entire shipment if they find so much as a hint of an unwanted pest or disease on just one plant.

That sort of shenanigans is probably why the fees are so high.