I knew what you meant. I just like to play with Canadians / Canadiens*. I grew up on the North side of de Troit / la Estrecha / the Straights.
My two cents (coppers / pence) on global warming:
Hiram Walker (recently learned he was a Yanqui) built a huge distillery on the south bank of de Troit. During the winter the Purple Gang and others during the night drove loads of his whiskey across the frozen de Troit. Hopefully all of the way. (Prohibition in USA)
When I was a child, the US Coast Guard (together with Marines are part of the Navy) went up and down de Troit with icebreakers to keep it open for shipping. Now it never freezes and doesn't have any real waves. There is no shipping despite the building of the Saint Lawrence / Sainte Laurence Seaway*, connecting Europe to Chicago. Everything comes from China.
Every few years someone would find an antique car loaded with Hiram Walker product at the bottom of de Troit.
* Canadian / Canadien law requires both languages.
Seed confiscation at Customs??
just to report back.... my latest trade with Canada - went off without a hitch.
we both got our seeds in about the same time ... possibly two weeks.
I know this thread has been old and closed, but I just got some seeds the other day from Canada. I'll have to wait tell Spring to plant them though.
Happy New Year,
Dean
Dean... that's great to hear. I'm at 50/50
the first one confiscated, the second made it.
Hey tcs1366,
Yes, I was surprised myself. It was a guy from another forum who had promised me seeds as a gift. I just had to wait till the plant flowered. I actually can't tell you what kind of seeds they are now [I forgotten it's been so long] because I would have to go downstairs and read the label.
Anyways, all the best I hope it's not to cold in your neck of the woods. I must say I haven't been paying attention to National Weather.
Regards,
Dean
Not every package gets checked. I have a fun customs story that illustrates this. I packed up xmas packages to send to my daghter's family in Germany one year. One thing that her husband really wanted was a tobacco product that he could not buy over there. Perfect xmas idea! I bought it for him and wrapped it. I filled out the customs form in it's entirety. I stated exactly what was in each package. Xmas day I got a thankyou phone call and everyone was happy with their gifts. Son-in-law said I oviously loved him more than his own parents. They are not willing to commit a felony for him. I had no idea it was against the law to mail tobacco over there. So there it was on the customs form for everyone to read and it went thru anyway. I would not do it again. Maybe it was beginners luck lol. If you are unlucky enough to have your package checked then you lose. I do not know if getting caught once puts a red flag on your outgoing or incoming mail, but I probably would not take a chance. No sense sending something that is just going to get confiscated.
I wondered when I first joined Dave's how everyone was trading internationally. Plant material is regulated between countries and even between states. I can't even buy a citrus tree (from a commercial supplier) here in Texas! :( But having worked with plants (USDA) the potential for serious harm is very real and really deserves some consideration. Yes, it is inconvenient, but I can deal with some inconvenience in order to do my part to protect the native ecology, including our food sources and other economically important crops (I grew up among acre upon acre of cotton crops). Also, having done molecular work on some important crop plants, I know that there are alot of serious ramifications for letting some of these genetically modified plants out of the lab. And it does happen - the government and private industry isn't smart enough to avoid all the mishaps that could possibly occur. Aside from GMOs, plant parasites and diseases can easily get out of control, especially in an environment that is not equipped (think evolution - protection mechanisms do not develop overnight) to handle them. And then there are the invasive species that come in and slowly choke out the native flora with consequences for the ecology of a region. Don't want to get all 'Doomsday' on yall, but global warming is another result of 'convenience living'. Maybe we have to sometimes give up a little something to pay it forward to future generations.
Just heard that one of my packages got stuck for some time at Homeland Security. Mind you, not USDA but Homeland Security. It must have been ticking, or something......
Please don't come down too hard on Customs. My daughter works for Homeland Security and they have a very serious job trying to protect us from people and things trying to get into this country. Most people do not appreciate the job they do and they get a lot of abuse for "inconveniencing" travellers.
Agriculture and Customs fall under Homeland Security now.
Thank you bobyrd, I too have a family member who works for Homeland Security. There is a show on ABC about the things that Homeland Security does. It's a vast range, including copyrights, (edited) coming from outside the country - like fake handbags and golf clubs, etc.
This message was edited Jan 6, 2009 11:11 AM
Yes, my daughter is actually a Federal Law Inforcement officer and she works in Customs and Immigration. The training for this job is intense and they work long hours. She rarely puts in less than a 10 hour day.
Been there, working with passengers. Depending on the port, the overtime is really good and so are the benefits. Did she train in Brunswick, GA? With the recession nowaday, job security means alot.
Yes, she did and she does love her job, especially working in immigration. She has a real knack for it. She has been working now for a little over three years and has been trained and cross trained to do almost every job at her port. The salary and benefits are very good but like I said they put in a lot of hours.
We could use more folks down on the South border for sure. I'll bet they do put in alot of time.
Yeppers, we could sure use more folks along the southern border!!! Am impressed with that ABC show on Homeland Security...it is pretty much right up to par with what we do and are faced with. One on hand I'd prefer the public not see some of the stuff like contraband compartments - there's always going to be someone who'll get ideas. Then on the other hand...the traveling public that's been in line for hours knows why the wait is so long at times!
As overtime goes...it's good for the pocketbook...but for the brethren working the land borders who are on their feet for 16 hours a day...that what we call blood money. Those long hours can do a real number on the body. After several years of that life your feet ache all the time, your hips hurts and you overcompensate for the weight (the gear is heavy), your knees and joints start to give out and if you happen to be at a port near where Mexico burns their trash...the stench and smoke will give you one heck of a headache and sore throat!
I remember one time the smoke was so bad - it hardened my soft contacts lenses within a couple of hours!!! Makes you wonder indeed!!!
This message was edited Jan 6, 2009 8:11 PM
Yes, my daughter is small, 120 lbs and after a 10 or 12 hour day her back hurts from carrying around the gear. The stories she tells are amazing. Some people understand the wait in customs and the checking that has to go on in immigration, but the surprising thing is the people who are rude to her and the people from other countries who feel entitled to come into our country whether they have the proper papers or not. Customs and immigration in other countries are much stricter than the U.S.
My brother retired from Customs a couple of years ago and he started out on the border patrol.
Wow schickenlady, I have to say that is very interesting, and I love your little countdown to spring!
Tuink, was it your package for the piggy swap?! Oh no! We'd all be missing all those wonderful seeds! : O
when mine got taken it was bulbs, from canada to us and back seeds are usually ok if its a gift in plain envelope, now if its a company they usually do the paper work and its ok
I just dont do overseas anymore loss to much money and most of the stuff does not grow in canada
No worries, meredith. It wasn't that one! It arrived safe and sound. Both of them!
Oh good! : ) I hadn't heard from you in a while, hope you had a happy New Year. : )
Oh, I did! Just had a little accident which has made me quite immobile for a while. Sittin behind a computer is very uncomfortable at the moment! But I'm lurking....
HI Tuink. OMG! Are you OK?
Hi Tuink,
I hope you are feeling better :-))
I have had a couple of your packages delayed at Canadian customs, but they simply open them and check for invasive species and then forward it on. I have never had a package confiscated, but I am careful with trades not to request potentially invasive species or send them to the US/EU, both the US and Canada have invasive species lists so its not too difficult. Take care and get well soon! KD
Hi KD,
Yes I'm feeling a lot better!
Thanks!
I was wondering about you too! How are you healing up? All set for all your gardening yet?
I dont know if, at this point, the entire thread gets read.... but initially -- when i started this thread, it was because Morning Glories were confiscated. They originated in Canada and were snagged in Chicago.
I am just leary about getting seeds from CA now ... though i know it's not on their [Canadian] end, it's the US.
But i have gotten seeds from a gal near Ontario [i think] France, Spain and Africa .... maybe that one time, someone was having a bad day.....
Tuink -- glad to hear you are doing better.
Nope, but will be soon!
I have solved the problem in regards to me. I send out seeds in tiny plastic baggies taped inside two 3X5 index cards, put in a bubble wrap mailer & if they are going overseas, I put "Buttons" on the customs ticket. So far, so good.
the morning glories are actually a weed in most states so they do not want them coming in lol but sell them at the local garden center and home depot I just dont get that
I think someone at the post office wanted your seeds lol
I just got mine from the states and sent other items to the sender no problem
Just don't mark it flower seeds. Mark it anything else but that & you should be all right.
I once sent passion vine cuttings for here to Canada.
They were so long I had to twine them up and put them in a shirt box.
I marked the declaration paper as a "blouse"--and it got there OK.
Before that--I send some smaller cuttings in a smaller box and I marked them as gloves and a scarf--and plastered "Happy Birthday" stickers all over my package. NO problem!
Sometimes it pays to "cheat" a bit!
Gita
I find it is easier to not mark it at all to just put it in an envelope and send it regular mail and it get there pretty quick
yes, i send it like a birthday card and don't fill out the declaration.
I do fill out the declaration and I fib every time. I always send my seeds in a bubble wrapped mailer. I'm not bragging or anything but I treasure swapping flower seeds. Yes, I did send some tiny cuttings along with some seeds to a treasured friend in the UK, marked it buttons & she got it just fine. When she sent seeds to me, she labelled it "needlework" and I got it from her with no problems. Also when I am sending seeds, I make sure the seeds are nowhere near where the stamps or postmark are so they don't get squashed. I love this seed sending 101. LOL
yes it is amazing to get seeds you want for the price of postage lol some are very pricy e and will get more expensive since the sales are up 20 per cent from last year
Don't forget that Customs and the laws they are trying to enforce are there for our protection!
I googled: "is it illegal to send seeds overseas" and the link took me to a forum where the participants said that mixed seeds were illegal, also seeds without the botanical name were illegal. I think that Customs is looking for marijuana, also insects (if the seeds are not cleaned & have a little soil around them), and so I am going to continue sending clean seeds and label them buttons. LOL.
I always label the seeds and put them in clear zip baggies what I dont do is mark it on the outside of the envelope and I always put in a little not saying here are the seeds I promise enjoy dear or sweety and it always works what doesnt is trying to get bulbs or roots into canada from the outside it is a no no and they just send them back lol so I dont bother anymore with those
I also label my seeds with the botanic name. Just call them something else on the outside of the envelope.