I used to be a nursery owner here in Florida. The ag rules are very strict. I had a 'general inspection' stamp that I had to use to stamp my boxes. I had a separate stamp that said I was cleared for the federal Imported Red Fireant Quarantine. But I did not have nematode certification, so, regardless of the fact that I was licensed, inspected and had stamps on the boxes, it was still illegal for me to mail some plants to some states. Those states were Hawaii, California, Texas, Louisiana, and Arizona. I could mail a few epiphytes (orchids, bromeliads) that had been grown in baskets off the ground, and unrooted bareroot cuttings of some (but not all) plants to certain states. But overall, I simply was unable to conduct any mailing to those 5 states. I had to put it out front that anyone living there should not order plants from me.
It is usually the sender who is the one who is held responsible for these infractions. The receiver is usually not, it the plant was, like a gift from a friend or something (many people use this to justify trading, which, if done over state lines, is largely actually illegal). But sometimes the receiver can also be blamed. All states have what is called 'reciprocity'. This means that if you have a nursery license in your state of residence, you do not have to pay the fee to have a license in the states you are sending to, as long as you meet all their legal requirements. Otherwise, every seller would have to hold a separate nursery license in every state they send to.
But with reciprocity comes a way to keep track of that. SO every state ag dept has an 'official list' of every single licensed inspected nursery in every single state, and you are listed by a letter as to the type of nursery you have and the types of inspections you have. A, B, C etc. Depending on which letter you have by your name determines what you can and cannot send, and to where. So they know what stamps you should put on your boxes.
So it is improbable that most people on ETSY and eBay are actually licensed inspected nurseries. Most are just people selling their extra plants or cuttings to make extra cash. Buying from them can be risky, in the respect that if they are caught shipping something, the plant can and will be confiscated and usually destroyed. If it happened to be a $300 cutting of a variegated Monstera, you are just out of luck, no plant no refund. But those folks who ARE licensed and inspected still may not have the right documents to send stuff into Florida. Which is what may have happened to your Nebraska place. They may have known they were not up to snuff to send plants here and that may be why they did not put their stamp on the box. Any nursery who will not label their boxes appropriately is not reputable IMHO.
Few people know that the penalties for illegal mailing of plant material over state lines can be as serious as a 3rd degree felony in some states. And fines for plants considered noxious weeds can be in the thousands of dollars.
