eBay and customs/laws/hassles/cost

[lucky1]

Some very nice palms for American purchasers...many eBay sellers won't even ship to Canada.
Probably for good reason.

This butia/jubaea cross is interesting, and with Butia as the mother plant, should grow faster than Jubaea typically does.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Butia-X-Jubaea- ... 35b649059c

oh, I wish...

Forgot to link to this general palm tree for sale page on eBay:
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=liv ... m270.l1311
Fabulous stuff there!
We Canadians will have to find a seller that ships bareroot, and has such a good record that maybe no phyto is necessary????.
oh, and order during summer months when mail-freeze won't happen.

Dreaming again, I know!

Barb

[hardyjim]

To expensive,unless you drive da s**t across man!


I don't want to tell you everything that got through or not but

I did order a variegated C.Mitis from somewhere far away.
The guy claimed he put the necessary paper work in but....
the box arrived empty with a note to accompany that emptiness.

It basically said-your plant is never coming but heres the box
which is clearly less contaminated!

My lost order may have looked like this....





we will never know.

[lucky1]

Oh, God, Jim that's awful!

That variegated C.mitis is/would have been (sorry) so lovely...obviously highly desirable.

We just need to find the dumpsters where all the confiscated stuff goes at the border.
I'd dumpster-dive for sure (for confiscated plants) if I lived near a border.

Maybe we should apply to become border guards ourselves.
But then I'd have to buy a truck

Drive across is obviously the ONLY way then.

Barb

[Okanagan desert-palms]

Jim that`s crappy that the customs Nazi did that. Barb I have to make friends with somebody down in Oroville Wa. The drive across the border would be only an hour and a bit. I could pay them a little for holding onto the palms and yuccas for a day and then pick them up. To bring them back I would declare milk, cheese, beer and house plants. I wonder how many times I could do this before they become wise?


John

[lucky1]

Probably (almost) once if they read this

But how do you find that someone down there? Knock on doors? Eeeeuuuuwwww!

Are we SURE they'd allow "houseplants" through? Even 6 footers?

Otherwise, we'd be dumpster diving for our own plants...

Nothing like hatching a scheme...on the internet.

Barb

[Cameron_z6a_N.S.]

I have had a fair amount of experience with the "Border Police"

Driving INTO the US, they once took a clementine from me, after saying "Is that citrus??"

Coming back into Canada, they will especially get you on your way back from vacation. If you have any wooden carvings, etc, these are a favourite target; they'll likely be burned for fear of insects... Nothing like seeing fellow travellers' children cry as their souvenirs are taken away from them!

Barb, from what I know, nothing (live or once living?) is thrown away before being either burned or frozen. I'm not sure if either one of those would be good for plants . Canada does have a clause right now which allows you to cross back into the country with up to 50 "house plants". It's easier for those of you who live closer to the border.

As far as phytosanitary certificates for Ebay plants, it likely wouldn't be worth it unless you're ordering a fairly large quantity. As well, most sellers do not provide them. I've ordered from nurseries in the US before (who provide phyto certificates), and have found it to be worthwhile when ordering in large quantities. That's why I'll be ordering from four or five others this year. If it was a 2 hour drive to the border instead of a ~6 hour one, I would likely get plants shipped to a border town and then drive over

[Stevea07]

Anyone thought of obtaining a U.S. P.O. Box and then bringing your 'houseplant' back to Canada?

[canadianplant]

Im pretty sure you can just have them delivered to a PO on the side of the US border. For instance, there is a place called rydans just on the other side of the border, and people get all sorts of things delivered there. My grandma also comes across the border with FISH. I have never heard her mention getting a PSC, but I do believe that you dont need one if you are getting mail.

I think one of us should definitely get a hold of someone to figure this out. I do know that no matter what your shipment is going to get checked at the border, especially parcels. Again, I know people who have gotten fish, and I can only assume some plants as well (honestly, you go down there to spend 1000$ on fish at a pond shop, your gonna get some pond plants!). THe big thing is soil. They need to be bareroot due to soil pathogens and invasive soil insects and the like.

[lucky1]

Anyone thought of obtaining a U.S. P.O. Box and then bringing your 'houseplant' back to Canada?

Thanks Steve...but the size(s) I'm contemplating wouldn't fit in a box...or a locker

Seriously though, it'd be nice to get a handle on this once and for all.
But since I'm 300 miles from the border, a dry run isn't practical...first gotta figure out where at the border "it" could be housed when arriving from a nursery I haven't found yet (other than JungleMusic's fabulous bigger stuff in California)

Wonder if our "houseplants" could just be dropped off at a US broker's office.
Pay him a few sheckles to hold onto them while we drive down and bring our "houseplants" back across in our car.

I don't see what the problem is re soil pathogens...it's not like Canada has a palm tree "industry" growing all over the Prairies.
And I doubt a Palmetto Weevil (which apparently is still killing CDIPs in southern CA) would survive in the soil during its first Winnipeg winter.

Canada does have a clause right now which allows you to cross back into the country with up to 50 "house plants". It's easier for those of you who live closer to the border.

That's the best thing I've heard in ages, Cameron!!!!

Due to the "variability" of border cops' knowledge, can you provide a Canada Food Inspection Agency (presume that's who it is) link so we could print the clause and take it with us? to show the cops at the border? All it takes is one uninformed uniform and talking until we're blue in the face won't work.

50 houseplants? Be still my heart

...maybe we should get to know a "drug lord"...

need to be bareroot due to soil pathogens and invasive soil insects and the like.

OK...who was it? Scotty? I think he drove across the border with potted "houseplants" (palms)...not bareroot, last year?
Or was it Paul?

Barb

[lucky1]

Here's CFIA's list of houseplants...exempt and non-exempt.
No palms on the list.

http://www.inspection.gc.ca/plants/plan ... 4620215710

So...?

[lucky1]

List does NOT include UNSTAFFED crossings

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Ca ... _crossings