Had a bad ETSY experience

[Diggumsmack2]

I purchased 100 Atlas Cedar seeds from a fellow in Bulgaria via ETSY. Well things didn't turn out as planned.

The short version is: seller did not include phyto-sanitary certificate along with the seeds. Said seeds were seized & destroyed by USDA in Chicago, the port of entry.

Instead of understanding this, instantly the seller accused me of printing out the paperwork left in the envelope by USDA officers. Gave him ample time and chances to come to a mutually fair for both of us fix. He wasn't having any of it, stating his job was to put seeds in envelope, ship them, end of story.

ETSY fully refunded me after reviewing the case.

I don't want to out anyone's name publicly as I feel that's not fair in this case. But if buying seeds on ETSY from someone in Bulgaria, think twice.

 

[Huggz13]

That stinks

 

[19Mateo83]

Sorry for your loss

 

[Bob Hunter]

You need to sIgn up on the USDA site and get the import paper work ppq-587 certificate and the green and yellow tags

 

[mwar15]

Why didn’t you but from a reputable US based seed company?

 

[penumbra]

Why didn’t you but from a reputable US based seed company?

There are a lot of places here in the states where you could have found them. If I was in the market I would have them in a week. Now that you have your money back buy some in the US.
Consider this, you learned something and it didn't cost you a cent.

 

[Diggumsmack2]

Why didn’t you but from a reputable US based seed company?

I usually buy from Sheffields, but they've been out of stock since I've been looking. I just happen to find the listing on Etsy and the price + shipping was reasonable, not a deal but reasonable.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

I usually buy from Sheffields, but they've been out of stock since I've been looking. I just happen to find the listing on Etsy and the price + shipping was reasonable, not a deal but reasonable.

Forewarned is forearmed.

A lot of people don't know this, but some states in the US also have pretty strict regulations about bringing in plant material - and California is one. They don't care what you take OUT of the state, but there are agricultural inspection stations at every major road entry into the state, at which point you are supposed to stop and declare all plant material. House plants they generally don't care about... but if you are bringing in citrus trees, grape vines, pines, etc, without the proper paperwork, you may find yourself in for an unpleasant surprise. Make sure you understand the regulations before you arrive at the state lines

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Take my opinion with a grain of salt, but I thought this was common knowledge when importing seeds and other plant material. It's the reason why Japanese bonsai have become hard to obtain in the US since the late 1990's.
To my knowledge, phytosantitation protocols can be, and should be performed by the receiving end as well: quarantine and controls.

Phytosanitation is a huge thing in the US and the only two countries more strict about it are New Zealand and Australia. They could've fined you a darn lot of money.

It's like ordering illegal drugs or nuclear warheads online, in my honest opinion.. Just because you paid for a bag of heroin or a tsar bomba, that doesn't mean it gets through border controls. Is the seller at fault or the buyer?
I mean, the seller did everything right. The buyer however, should've known the laws of the country.

Some European countries still have zero laws about import and export of plant material. So it might not be so obvious to them..

 

[Dermot]

I would have to agree with the Etsy seller on this one. Surely you should be aware of the importation laws in your area. The items were not stopped on export from his jurastiction. You wasted his time and money on shipping, taking a chance and it didn't pay off. I would not be happy if I were the Etsy seller.
Just my opinion!

 

[Pitoon]

If you want to play in the game, you have to know the rules.

 

[leatherback]

I understand you are annoyed. Nut.. it is not the sellers fault, sorry.
It is unreasonable for you to expect the seller to provide phytosanitary certificates, unless a recognized international seed trader. And even then.. It is normally expected the receiving end to take care of reception & border verification. Not the seller.

There is a reason to purchase plant within your tradingblock.

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Bummer. Years ago, I bought a tree on eBay from a seller that purportedly ships in the US. A couple weeks went by, no tree, but I got a call from the USDA asking questions about the transaction. Apparently the shipper does ship IN the US, but wasn’t shipping FROM the US. I told the USDA agent that the tree never arrived and I was filing for a refund through eBay, and there was no need to stop by the house and burn anything.

 

[rockm]

This is pretty typical for fly-by-night suppliers who don't bother with the paperwork for proper importation. Also, some of the responsibility lies with the buyer to understand customs restrictions when ordering from international sources.

 

[yevhen]

Tell me, will there be problems with the export delivery of Ficus benjamina 'Too Little' from the USA to European countries? carrier my.dniprollc

 

[AJL]

Yes probably if you havent done your homework and found out what is permitted from your NPPO in whatever EU country you intend to send them No soil would be allowed for starters.

 

[sorce]

id seeds were seized & destroyed by USDA in Chicago,

Fuckin' douchebags, the seeds must not be deadly cuz they'll let killers go free!

You shoulda told em the were Socialist Activist seeds, they woulda let you keep em!

Sorce

 

[rockm]

Tell me, will there be problems with the export delivery of Ficus benjamina 'Too Little' from the USA to European countries? carrier my.dniprollc

Yes. Country by country. You'd better know what's what before you ship trees...

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

If you are a hobby grower and want to ship a plant out of the USA into another country (my example was Nepal) you can go to the USDA station at your local international airport. Be prepared to wait an hour or two. Bring your plant in the box ready to seal up and mail. For a fee, at the time $50, they will inspect the plant, seal the package closed, issue a certificate and let you post the package right there at the airport. I imagine the fee has gone up. But each international airport has a USDA office.

 

[shinmai]

To me, seeds from Bulgaria seems akin to gas station sushi. If you step back and think about it for a bit, it will not seem like a good idea.