Gleni posed a question to me about shipping seeds to Australia. Has anyone here shipped seeds to Australia and what has been your experience doing that???

Also, does anyone know the new international shipping rates for a small padded envelope?? I found US rates but not international. It does seem that for international that they are now breaking it down into zones. Some zones would be a higher postage than others. I tried looking on USPS website but could not find the international rates, just the new USA rates which will be 2.60 for a small padded envelope, up from the previous 2.54.

I haven't shipped seeds to Australia but I remember that there are requirements because of daylily rust. It was not as easy to find the requirements as it used to be but after going around in a few circles, and assuming I answered all the questions in their search sequence correctly, the following are the instructions. I seem to recall from conversations with people who had problems some time ago that labeling of the seeds according to their accepted species list is key:

https://bicon.agriculture.gov....

Thanks Sue, that is pretty stringent requirements. I did send seeds to Australia once before but that is a lot to consider and then the seeds may or may not germinate if they are treated before they release them.

Gleni, I hope you read the link Sue posted.

I have. I'm busy but will post more this evening. I even mailed some to Glen last year.

Sue, you deserve an award for getting that far! The BICON system is an absolute ******* mess. I find it impossible to use. It makes our old ICON system look good! The cynic in me can't help but think it is a deliberate measure to stymie gardener's attempting to import. Only big commercial importers would bother to work their way through that tangle.

I started a thread a couple of years ago about importing seed into Australia... when I discovered the daylily auction JWWC helped decipher the import requirements then, but I never realised the seeds needed to be treated - I came to the conclusion they were simply permitted if labelled correctly. I had a happy happy summer on the auction and received many lovely seeds, including from Cindy , before a packet was finally stopped and I received a nasty letter. I think the seed dipping was such an expensive option I couldn't afford it, so a lovely bunch was destroyed and I haven't tried since. I'm thankful for the beautiful plants I now have blooming.

But I admit I don't understand the requirement for treating the seeds. How is "daylily rust" any different from the rust we already get on daylilies in Australia? Isn't it already present? Does anyone know the fungal species involved and if they are a something not already present in Australia?

I'm not sure I could find that page from scratch again It's pretty bad - if you look just at importing seeds then Hemerocallis are not on the permitted list. Somehow I managed to find the daylily rust page that does allow them, but don't remember how.

It would be the same fungus as everywhere else, Puccinia hemerocallidis. I know they were aware of its arrival in Queensland in 2002 or thereabouts. Perhaps they are concerned about bringing rust in to other areas where it isn't currently endemic, or if it is already elsewhere they don't know about it?

Aahh.. I'm relieved I haven't caused the end of life in Australia due to my selfish desire for a few pretty flowers. The ways of quarantine's madness are a mystery!!

I remember that lovely bunch that was destroyed, Della. I haven't tried since, either. I had to give up when customs asked me for a blood sample and my first born...lol.

They wanted only your first born and blood? Someone must have slipped up and felt human at work that day! I still regret those lost seeds, Steve. If only in some alternative reality they made it through!

There is some good info in this thread:

The thread "Seed into Australia?" in Daylilies forum

I sent my seeds with a letter similar to what Cindy mentions in that thread. I would imagine that the real problem could arise if one of the seeds goes moldy.

I made sure when sending the seeds both time that just prior to shipping I pulled the seeds, checked them individually and placed them in new bags. In both cases they made it through without trouble. Though, in looking at the link above it would seem there may now be a need for treatment upon importation.

Cindy, to answer your question, I filled out the customs forms and paid for postage on USPS.com and it was $6.39.

I sent an e-mail to the gov agency in Oz to see what they have to say.

The daylily rust fungicide treatment requirement has been in place for many years, it was discussed on the AHS Robin at least as far back as 2003 (just checked the list archives because I remembered some seeds to Australia had been apprehended around then and fungicide treatment was required, at a cost). It seems some shipments are getting through and some are getting stopped. Why I have no idea.

That's interesting as it was completely left out of the first e-mail I received from an inspection official. I'm wondering if there are different requirements for large imports vs. individual gardeners.

Yep, that first letter (way back when I asked) they sent was misleading. I didn't get the impression that treatment was necessary at all. But that's an example of how our quarantine system works. It doesn't. It's Russian roulette for seeds. Depending who you ask you'll get different answers and they will apply the supposed rules differently. They don't check all mail coming in so what's the point of their rules anyway? I think 'they' (holders of the collective official environmental management memories) are still sore over bringing the cane toad in and everything since then is just a performance to try and make themselves (and us) feel like they're fixing their mistakes and being vigilant.

Having dealt with Customs with fauna for quite a long time, I can tell you it can be as difficult for the enforcers to understand the regulations as it is for us.

Sometimes individuals overreact and make some surprising decisions. Unfortunately, the surprise can involve destruction. And, sometimes, you get very helpful and knowledgeable personnel. They, however, can get promoted or move elsewhere.

@JWWC That's funny James that I paid $7.l0 international and you paid 6.39. I read on the USPS website, if I read it right, that international packages will only require a declaration slip if the package is over a pound in weight. I hope that is true. It would save a lot of paper work.

Well said, Glen. You're right, yes.... It's the downfall of rules and institutions everywhere. We're all still human. Guess I'm still sore over a Lilium-grower friend's 'surprise' destruction of Lilium seeds a few weeks ago. Perfectly permitted with no-convoluted-conditions-attached-apart-from-the-usual Lilium seeds. The letter of destruction/explanation said they were '"prohibited" entry to Australia... which is completely untrue. Someone must have had a monster bad day at work!

Received this info today:

Hello James

Thank you for your enquiry about Hemerocallis seed.

In 2011 treatment with a fungicide on arrival for Day Lily Rust hosts was implemented.

Regards

Tim Edwards
Plant Import Operations | Plant Division
( 1800 900 090 | : [email protected]
Department of Agriculture and Water Resources
18 Marcus Clarke Street, Canberra ACT 2601 Australia
GPO Box 858 Canberra ACT 2601 Australia


Looks like it was luck that packs have made it through without fungicide treatment. This requirement was completely left off the previous response I received on the subject as well.

I suspect he means 2001 rather than 2011 since they were stopping shipments and requiring fungicide treatments at least as far back as 2003. 2001 would also coincide with more or less when the alarm went out about daylily rust spreading in the USA and being shipped to other countries. 2011 would be eleven years after the rust was discovered in North America so that would really be shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted.

I wonder if the chances, or not, of the packs getting through without it depends on which port of entry they arrive at? I've no idea how the mail system in Australia works. I do seem to recall that, in one or two cases where there was a problem, what may have attracted attention to the packs in the first place was that the parent plants' names that were given did not match their labeling requirements.

Well my seeds to Della got through 2 years ago so I guess mine slipped through too.

James, is the price for this seed treatment passed on to the seller of the seeds??