Many gardeners love sharing and exchanging seeds amongst fellow enthusiasts around the world. These gardeners often have an abundance of seeds in their gardens that they are willing to share with others. And by exchanging seeds, these gardeners can try something different, and grow some seeds that are difficult to find in their local areas.
Exchanging seeds often involves international shipments. Most countries have some import restrictions of seeds, and it is essential that the importers contact the plant health department of their countries to check what are allowed to be imported into their countries, and obtain the necessary import permits (eg: Small Lots of Seed Permit), certificates (eg: Phytosanitary Certificate), or some kind of specific “statements”. Failure to obtain proper authorization prior to import may result in the seizure and confiscation of seeds by the government authorities.
After researching and learning about the import regulations of seed of the United States and the country’s Small Lots of Seed Permit program, out of curiosity, I have also checked out the import regulations of seeds of other countries as well. And here is what I have found. Hopefully, some of you may find this helpful.
USA
Canada
UK Plant Import Regulations
Ireland
Australian Import Regulations
Seed import and export is fairly free within the EU (European Union), but never the less there are likely to be some restrictions on certain plants.
If you have some links or information regarding the import regulations of seeds of your country that I don’t have here, please feel free to tell me about it, so I can add in your information here and share it with everyone.
Related Posts:
Shipping Seeds to US – Small Lots of Seed Permit
Shipping Seeds to Canada
Quick Guide for Seed Swapping
Expert of indoor gardening. I’ve a few indoor plants – don’t ask me their names which are growing beautifully. However they attracted a lot of small flies or bugs too. I am not too sure if they are around because of spring time or because of my little plants. Any suggestion on what I can do? Please help…..
Hi Lena,
When a houseplant gets attacked by an insect pest, the problem can quickly spread to other plants. So first thing first, inspect your plants, especially check both sides of the leaves, for signs of pests or disease. If you find the suspect, isolate the plant. Common pest problems (eg: aphid, mosquito, scale) can mostly be solved by insect killer spray (I use Plantmate which can be bought in many flower shops). Try to identify the pests for there are different insect killers for different pests. If you can’t identity it, take a photo and show it to the people who work in the flower shop 🙂
Also, here is a good site that help identify and solve pest problems, which you may find helpful as well – http://www.gardeners.com/Pest-and-Disease-Finder/5285,default,pg.html.
Cheers!