Paph thaianum now in the the USA

Hi Everyone.

Well, good news. A flask of Paph thaianum that I sent to the USA passed through USDA/Customs on Friday and now is legally in the USA. :clap:

I will be sending some more to a few people I have the flasks for, so you should be seeing some around in the future.

Brett

Woohoo! Yea! Now, for the other species. When can we order stuff?

Hhahah.. Tenman you will have to wait a little. I am not a nursery, so I source some flasks from friends nurseries and from nurseries in Taiwan. I am able to get more Paph thaianum at the end of May and some other species then. I will post something closer to then to see what people want.

Still for now this is a happy thing. The only sad point in not being able to send Vietnamese species. This is a problematic aread. I have emailed F&W about it, but no response as yet. Some species do grow in China. I was told Dr. Holger Perner has seen hangianum in-situ there. So I can not see how Vietnam can have a complete hold on it.

Well, anyway, getting thaianum to the USA is a good thing and a first step.

Brett

I am about to send a second flask to make sure its all good with sending this species. I am confident I am on the right track though with sending paphs to the USA now.

Brett, I want to thank you for all of the correspondence, phone calls, time and expense that you have expended in order to help us here in the United States in order to ship paph. flask. that we can't legal obtain here. You are a true lover of paph. and a gentleman. Is there any chance you might be able at some future date to post a photo of one of the flasks? I'm interested to see how big they are in flask. Here in the U.S. in my humble opinion flasks are sold to early and the seedling are not strong enough to survive. Yet, places like Japan have hugh seedling in flask. Probable the largest I've seen in flask have come from Woodstream.

Thanks Bob.

I dont normally ship flasks other than to a few friends, but of late I have been able to get good paph flasks and when people on the forum approached me, I thought I'd do a few shipments of flasks to try and get some species into US collections. I am a big believer in conservation in collections as I see how ecosystems are being pillaged all the time. I wont get into that old chestnut again hahha.. My day job is working as an English teacher, so I dont get much time for running around after flasks except on weekends, but lucky for me Phyto and CITES open 6 days a week here.

I am in Thailand until the end of July and then move back to Australia. So while I am here, if I can get some species like thaianum to the USA, thats a little bit for conservation in my mind. Recently I was able to get the new and amazing species Bulbophyllum kubahense in flask for the first time and have sent that to some friends and am just getting one flask split so I can donate it to some botanic garden. I have friend who are currators at a few. http://www.flickr.com/photos/11834335@N03/2435764447/

I will take some pics and post them in a few minutes.. I only have a phone camera at the moment though.. My regular camera is toast.

Brett

Hi Bob

This is one of my own thaianum flasks I got from Taiwan. The Taiwanese are a-line breeding them for shape. The thaianum we get in Thailand (not commonly offered either) is of the normal form and in a whisky bottle. Sorry for the dodgy pic. My phone camera is not the best.


Brett

Thanks for the photo, my new friend. I'm sure that others on the forum will be sad to hear you will be moving to Australia shortly. I'm interested in all of the paph species we can't get here, but am not the best grower from flask. People like Pete and others are much better than I in growing from flask. Although, those seedlings look pretty darn, strong.

Bob in Albany said:

Thanks for the photo, my new friend. I'm sure that others on the forum will be sad to hear you will be moving to Australia shortly. I'm interested in all of the paph species we can't get here, but am not the best grower from flask. People like Pete and others are much better than I in growing from flask. Although, those seedlings look pretty darn, strong.

Click to expand...

one of the members here sends some of his flasks or deflasked seedlings to a grower who can grow them up for him. might be an option since you know glen decker....

I do indeed know Glen but we never really clicked. Let me tell you about an experience that I had. Someone, who owns a orchid nursery in Hawaii offered to grow out some flasks for me at a certain fee per plant, per year that they stayed there. I know them and trusted them, as they grow out thousands of flasks per year. I sent 8 or 9 flask from Orchid Inn. They arrived and they stated that they were much smaller in size then they were used to. They stayed there three years. They sent back about 18 seedlings in total many of which looked liked they just came out of the flask. Now, don't misunderstand me, they didn't rip me off. They didn't even charge me a penny other then shipping. But losing $1,000 or more for the flasks has me (and my lovely wife) more then a little leery. So far only one plant has flowered and it was mismarked. The whole thing, left a bad feeling in my mouth. I really believe, they did their best but possible just separated them and they never got the care they needed. It was disappointing to say the least. Would I try again? Possible but on a smaller scale. Would my wife let me? I don't know!

Bob in Albany said:

Would my wife let me? I don't know!

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hmmm, maybe not!

Generally I have found deflasking not difficult, but then I have ideal conditions, a wardian case at 23 celcius and 90% humidity, with very good airflow. Heat stress is a huge killer for new seedlings out of flask I find.

A friend of mine pots her seedlings and then puts them into large clear plastic boxes to keep humidity up, removing the lids periodically for fresh air. Seems to work for her.

Well, I am off to send a second flask of thaianum to my friend today as a safe check, but I am sure it will get to him fine.

Brett

Was it illegal for people in the US to import flasks of thaianum from Thailand or Taiwan prior to these shipments. I know its wasn't illegal under CITES. Was it a problem with Thailand?

Mick

s1214215 said:

Well, I am off to send a second flask of thaianum to my friend today as a safe check, but I am sure it will get to him fine.

Brett

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Just include the stickers!!!

:rollhappy:Hi Mick

As far as I know Thailand has no issues with thaianum going to any country. I have sent my own mature plants (sourced in Chiangmai) of the natural form to Australia with CITES.. I have sent flasks of the a-line form to Japan. CITES (Bangkok) inspected both and gave approval. I have the papers.

To the USA, I sent a flask of a Thai made flask of the natural form (from nursery raised parents), and the USA accepted it via Customs (USDA) and I got the ok via Fisheries and Wildlife. I can only assume if I and others involved have communications from them, that is ok. What was communicated was that as long as it is a propagated plant in flask from propagated parents" it was ok.

In a nut shell, I cant see it was ever illegal to send thaianum to the USA. Just that it was perceived to be illegal.

Mick, (are you Vietnamese-Australian or Anglo-Australian - cant tell from your nick. [just a curious thing]). Your write like a bunch of my Viet-Ozzie friends and family. GEts confusing these days given what a mixed bunch Ozzies are :clap:.

Oh yeah thanks Eric for the push.. oke: I already have and thanks for the embarassing reminder.:sob: It was a dreadful week by the way.... Thats what I get for letting my partner get involved. Now I do all the export work myself.

Brett

s1214215 said:

:rollhappy:Hi Mick

As far as I know Thailand has no issues with thaianum going to any country. I have sent my own mature plants (sourced in Chiangmai) of the natural form to Australia with CITES.. I have sent flasks of the a-line form to Japan. CITES (Bangkok) inspected both and gave approval. I have the papers.

To the USA, I sent a flask of a Thai made flask of the natural form (from nursery raised parents), and the USA accepted it via Customs (USDA) and I got the ok via Fisheries and Wildlife. I can only assume if I and others involved have communications from them, that is ok. What was communicated was that as long as it is a propagated plant in flask from propagated parents" it was ok.

In a nut shell, I cant see it was ever illegal to send thaianum to the USA. Just that it was perceived to be illegal.

Mick, (are you Vietnamese-Australian or Anglo-Australian - cant tell from your nick. [just a curious thing]). Your write like a bunch of my Viet-Ozzie friends and family. GEts confusing these days given what a mixed bunch Ozzies are :clap:.

Brett

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:ninja: anh không hiểu

anh không hiểu? I am not Vietnamese or birth or nationality. Not sure,but does your explaination mean "I dont understand?" Sorry, my skill at Vietnamese is limited to sweet nothings (learnt from my ex-), insults and directions: as are those of most of my Viet-born/Oz born-Viet friends :rollhappy:

Brett

Wow did this topic get off track...

OK.. As far as can tell. thaianum is legal to leave Thailand, and can legally enter the USA. CITES in Thailand checked my first flask, gave it the ok to leave THailand, Phytosanitary (Thai Agricultural Dept) gave the OK for all of them. Phyto in Thailand has to get a list of species from CITES for approved species to export.

F&W emailed an ok. USDA gave a verbal one. The first flask has passed USDA/Customs and now my friend has plants and certs.

Brett

s1214215 said:

Wow did this topic get off track...

OK.. As far as can tell. thaianum is legal to leave Thailand, and can legally enter the USA. CITES in Thailand checked my first flask, gave it the ok to leave THailand, Phytosanitary (Thai Agricultural Dept) gave the OK for all of them. Phyto in Thailand has to get a list of species from CITES for approved species to export.

F&W emailed an ok. USDA gave a verbal one. The first flask has passed USDA/Customs and now my friend has plants and certs.

Brett

Click to expand...

WOW! Brett, you are the 'thaianum-hero'!

Not really Chris.. I just want to see paphs in flask exportable from country to country for preservation in collections, free of political BS. Luckily there was no reason thaianum can not be exported.

Brett