People’s attitudes vary.   Some don’t mind cheating at quarantine as can be seen on TV shows.   Some are particular to obey the law which is put there for the nation’s benefit, although it could be misguided.   Chaos eventuates if you have a lot of people making up their own rules.   Very few people get exact correct information but repeat what someone else says as gospel.

My experience with quarantine was mainly 15-20 years ago so could be slightly different now.   I never imported live salvia myself but  some kind nurseries have done it for me.  Big wholesalers used to  make a couple of trips a year to look at nurseries overseas who may have something they fancy growing themselves.   Then they import the plant.  It is also a good excuse for a ‘business’ trip for some.     They go overseas with some of the documentation ready and then fill in the details of the plants later.  Salvia were regarded as low risk plants and it wasn’t so expensive to import them.

Many a nurseryman has nearly choked the plumbing in a hotel near the airport getting all the soil off plants before putting them in their luggage to declare at their home quarantine.  This is the quickest way to get live material in.    When they get to Australia they give them to quarantine who dunk them in something nasty and release them next day or so to nurseries who have quarantine facilities.  Quite a few plants don’t survive the dunking.   Unfortunately most nurserymen don’t have exact knowledge of what salvias are in Australia and I saw many plants imported and going through quarantine which were already here anyway!

A lot of the time officials give you a statement to put you off and I think that is what happens about importing seed.   The rule for importing seed is basically that it should be in Australia already.   New Zealand has been doing it that way quite a few years longer than Australia.   It seems the most ridiculous system.   Anyway when they were going to set up this system in Australia interested parties, including me,   were given the opportunity to send in lists of salvias ‘already’ here.   Some people listed all sorts of species which were dubiously here but if it went on the list you can now import that seed.   Otherwise you have to fill out revolting forms to prove that the plant won’t be a weed problem.

Some seed sellers, or maybe most,  won’t sell overseas because of the hassle of permission and documentation.  What I have done is include the list of permitted seed with an order and they include it in the package so that if it is intercepted they can see it is okay.   It is best to get the list off the AQIS website where it is more compact.

Table 1 for a list of species that are permitted entry.

Note: Any species not listed in these tables are prohibited entry into Australia by legislation and require assessment.

Table 1: List of Permitted Species.These species may be imported subject to the conditions C7100, C7179, C7180.