I have called the local quarantine facility and found out all the information. It is not very expensive really and I am surprised it is easier than I expected. In fact I wouldn't say it was that much of an inconveniance at all.
If you were like me and confused by the Department of Agriculture site just use the ICON tab to search the ICON database about importing orchids. As their a very low risk plant you can relatively easily import them even out of flask. Also call your region office and they can fill you in on the details.
The quarantine officer was surprised when I mentioned I might be importing the plants from Peru, and said they had never had any plants come in from Peru before. They are used to orchids coming in from Asia.They were also surprised when I said I would only be interested in importing one or two plants, as usually people import hundreds at a time.
You basically get charged for the paperwork, two inspections, the first being on arrival and then the next is three months later. Because the Australian Government shut down it's quarantine green house last year as our government is cutting costs like crazy at the moment, you have to find a private greenhouse that provides a quarantine service for the three months that the plants need to be kept their, and so this will also be a cost. Also as their are very few greenhouses in Brisbane/ Queensland as we already have humid weather, you can not put them in a shadehouse, it has to be a greenhouse and one that facilitates quarantine. You have to provide all the details of where the plants are quarantined to the quarantine office.Then after the three months the quarantine officers go and inspect it at the greenhouse and inspect the plant visually and are looking for signs the plant has grown new growth and thus is healthy.The officer even said sometimes if your getting them sent through the mail that the parcel goes to your home address and all you do is notify the quarantine office and bring in the parcel for inspection and then put it in the greenhouse for 3 months. It all seems pretty relaxed. But this is just off the top of my head from what I can remember so may not be 100% accurate.
Also any bare rooted plants will be treated with chemicals. Although if no pests are found if you look at the list on the Department of Agriculture site you will find their are plants that are exempt from the Methyl Bromide treatment but only if no pests or pathogens are found and will use an insecticide instead. Although like with everything this could be subject to change. At this time Phragmipedium is mentioned on this list of plants exempted from mandatory Methyl Bromide treatment.
The only reason I was thinking of going with bare rooted plants would be because they are larger and more likely to survive.
But I think if I do import anything it will be a flask of kovachii seedlings as this is much easier and cheaper. But none of the suppliers in Peru seem interested in shipping here. From what I can remember the quarantine officer said that flasks were just visually inspected on arrival, and if everything looked healthy were allowed in. But you still needed all the appropriate documentation.
The quarantine officer I spoke to said it is fine to import orchids from Peru as long as I have the Import permit, Invoice, Packing list, CITES, Photosanitary certificate and a declaration by the seller that the plants were grown in a nursery setting and not pulled out of the jungle.
The suppliers are all very friendly and nice contacts but don't give much away in terms of if they have any kovachii stock at this time etc. I am kind of thinking maybe kovachii might be one to put in the too hard basket as so far nobody seems to have any available.
I have been in contact with somebody who grows Phragmipedium kovachii here in Brisbane and they told me they do struggle but can survive in our climate. I was told to keep them moist in the coolest part of the greenhouse/shadehouse. The grower I asked also suggested not to purchase a seedling under 10cm. They keep theirs in pots sitting on a bed of sphagnum moss and have also heard of other growers who sit their pots on damp sand. They told me you can have success with kovachii here but that it just requires a little more effort.
I did have the Department of Agriculture links to all this info here but the links became inactive for some reason so I deleted them as I thought maybe they deactivated them for some reason.
Hope this helps.
) that you still have the fever. I can still contact a dealer who would probably be willing to send to your country.
