Orchid Shipping/Importing Laws

[katrina]

Originally Posted by emmajs243

Now what I didn't think about in all of this, the plants from ecuagenera I saw at my show, can I expect those are all recent imports or are they plants that have been with ecuagenera for a while?? I'm guessing from your comment those are recent imports which was REALLY helpful to put plant condition in perspective! If the plants were cheaper, I probably would have tried out a few other plants I had been looking for but ugh....for the price, some had black Rot, some so infested with scale that no viable eyes were left, like not ALL were...practically on their way out but out of 10 Catts I really wanted to buy, I only took 1 of them and yeah, she is still in rough shape. So that is partially my fear with pre-ordering or importing. I don't even get to see that the ones I choose at least salvageable.

So thank you VERY much for those who likened it to the plants at the show! Very, very relatable! The show was eye opening however....there were tons of people buying plants just covered in scale or that weren't even green anymore but entirely yellow for high prices. I don't know if they just didn't know and will probably end up on this board looking for help or if they were confident In their abilities you know? But it did make me realize that my plants are In amazing condition in comparison and how tough orchids really can be.

In order to get through inspection, the plants must be free of disease and insect. It would be highly unlikely that any orchid would have black rot but,rather, what you're seeing is a result of the extreme stress, mechanical damage during the prep and/or shipping and packing and/or treatments that are done in order to get through inspection. I'm also nearly 100% confident there would be no active scale on any recent imports...again the whole inspection process would prevent those plants from coming in so the vendors are going to make sure their plants don't get confiscated and destroyed.

Recent imports are almost always very rough looking. And if the vendor came into the US for more than one show and the plants have been bare-root for a couple of weeks while here...they can be even more stressed and ugly.

As already mentioned, it can take anywhere from one to two years (sometimes even longer!) to get them turned around. Depending on the type of orchid...you can also expect to see a pretty high percentage of losses. When I grew masdies...I would see well over 50% losses in recent imports. I consider myself a pretty good grower of catts and it can still be a crap shoot w/those for me. The hardier the species, the better chance I've had but it seems the ones that I've been most interested in are those that tend to be fussier in their demands. What's a person to do though?! If you want it and it can't be found in the US...well, just gotta take the chance, right?

So, yea, they can look really rough but I'm sure there was no active scale. The black was due to injuries, stress and dehydration, or possibly a chemical treatment that was done before import. All that bare root time (if they still have roots!), no water and time spent in boxes and wrapped in paper w/no light...it's not a good time for the plants. Oh, and if the vendor is doing more than one show in the US...it's longer and now you can add in being packed/unpacked and repacked/etc into the mix of all of that stress. It's one big stress-fest for any plant and the results are not pretty but w/proper care, a little extra babying, and a lot of patience...many will do just fine over the long haul.

Side note...personally...w/new plants...both imports and "local"...I almost always un-pot and do a short, bare-root soak in mild soapy water and then use a soft toothbrush to clean them off before potting up. I've never had a recent import bring in pests. I have had it happen w/US grown plants. As a general rule though...it's just something I do even if I don't see anything. It the plant is from a vendor that I REALLY trust, and I know the medium is in good shape, and the plant has plenty of room to grow in the existing pot...I've been known to not do anything w/those plants right away. But more often than not...it's my soak and scrub routine.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by Fairorchids

Emma,

If you can hold the import costs to $500, you are lucky. There are minimum fees for:
Air line (or FEDEX) freight
Freight Forwarder
Customs Broker (usually different from the freight forwarder)
Courier service from air port to plant inspection station
Shipment from inspection station to buyer

And, unless your shipment weighs at least 100 kg (220 lbs), air freight per kg is VERY high.

Also, you can't simply import. For security reasons, there is a vetting process before any carrier will accept your shipments.

Kim,

You must be thinking of large, commercial (business-to-business) transactions.

As a hobby importer, the "norm" is express mail, and with the importer's labels on the package, they are delivered straight to the APHIS inspection station, who, in turn, Express Mail the package to you when they are done. No freight forwarders, brokers, or couriers necessary.

I imported about 500 "Chinese" cymbidiums a month that way for a couple of years. No problems.

[emmajs243]

Oh Ray...Chinese Cyms....there are a "few"....using that term VERY loosely, that have stolen my heart they look so amazing!! Thank you for sharing Ray, I too hadn't found any insanely crazy fees so I thought about the same. Many even cover most of the import fees.

Katrina, LOVE your tip about the soapy water and a toothbrush! That is a GREAT idea because I agree, even if you don't see it, definitely does NOT mean it isn't there!!

On the subject of ecuagenera, Katrina, I do NOT know where the plants came from OR where they had been....that was a very good point too. It was a very small show so maybe they brought the leftovers from other shows and they had collected stuff through the process? Man, I don't know. I do know that I met a new friend there who also looked their plants over carefully and saw all the same stuff as me and was pretty shocked too. We talked about it after the show ended how disappointed we were with many of the plants. He isn't SUPER experienced but has been growing for 7 years I believe...maybe longer. And has had hundreds of plants throughout those years. So, even if I don't trust me to properly identify, I definitely trust him.

I definitely did wonder however if they just sent whatever due to how small of a show it was and maybe In fact it was leftovers! They looked awful. I would like to see their plants at a large scale show though to see if the quality is greatly improved however!

Roberta, I think you know what my plans are!!

Fairorchids, thank you for your advice and experiences! I'll someday need to look into the vetting process. I know permits are required but was not aware of that.

And finally! Hakimin!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!! I totally missed your post the last time I checked this board and just had the WONDERUL opportunity to read through your explanation of the entire process and what a is required and needs to be taken into consideration! SO helpful! I am sure that took some time to write and I want you to know, I am SO VERY grateful and appreciative of your reply!

I had viewed Subrosa's link and it taught me a LOT but still just had some things I wasn't positive on and your response clarified EVERYTHING! I also hadn't even thought about the need to check "state" laws too! Just a wonderful explanation of the importing laws! I have the feeling you are quite experienced in this area!!!!

[Roberta]

For what it is worth, I have found that in general, epiphytes are more forgiving of the bare-rooting process than the more terrestrial types (for instance, Sobralias hate it and these have a fairly low rate of revival though I have had a couple of successes that were well worth it) Of the epiphytes, those with pseudobulbs and/or tough or succulent leaves (not surprisingly) survive better than the small, thin leaved species.

Now, I have bought plenty of these (because they are so neat and unusual and I am a sucker for both...) and have had enough success to come back for more. However, you very likely will find that your success rate is a lot higher with established plants such as you will get from Andy's Orchids (he has already taken them through the transition and composted the ones that were beyond saving), so even if they cost more it may well still be more cost-effective, especially early in your orchid-growing career. (I have no financial interest in either Ecuagenera or Andy's Orchids other than having spent lots of money at both )