Transportation and Inspectation

If you intend to transport a sapling of Bodhi Tree across countries, you need to deal with serious transportation and inspectation issues. Almost all countries prohibit to import any plant with soil. To minimize the risk of pest, some countries even prohibit the importing of the root of ficus trees. Therefore, legally the best way is to carry inspected cuttings across countries.

The following is some information we have collected. Please share more information with us if you know any.

• Export:
  • Taiwan Export
  • NJ USA Export
  • China Export

• Import:
  • Taiwan Import
  • China Import
  • Hong Kong Import
  • Japan Import
  • Thailand Import
  Note that if the condition of the plant changes during transportation (e.g. a cutting grows root), as the condition becomes different from the time it was inspected, there may be problems for the importing. Please consult with related authority for such cases.

• Air Transportation
  • Moisture:
    It is a good idea to use rock cotton to absorb water (example), or use root medium such as washed sand, vermiculite, or perlite. Cover the whole cutting with a plastic bag to keep the moisture, as it is very dry in high altitude. However, avoid dipping the cutting in water otherwise it may be drowned.
  • Temperature:
    Cover the cutting with styrofoam or any heat insulation material, because the cargo bay is extremely cold. If you go through all inspectation procedure, it may be a good idea to carry the cutting with you so that it won't suffer the cold and it can be exposed to less x-ray.
  • Protection:
    As your luggage may be surpressed greatly during transportation, remember to protect the cuting with something hard.
  • X-ray:
    X-ray is hazardous to plants. Ideally, if you can carry the cutting through the metal detector with you, there is no x-ray. Otherwise, the X-ray for carry-on luggage is of lower doze than that for check-in luggage. Please do not put the cutting in metal box in order to shield the x-ray, because new models of x-ray machines can automatically increase the intensity of x-ray until the content inside is clear. You may refer to the: x-ray in Narita Airport in Japan and Kodak's page.
  • Delivery:
    Not all delivery companies accept to deliver plants across countries or states. In the example of delivering from India to Taiwan, DHL can take plant delivery but FedEx cannot.
  • If you carry the plant without inspectation & declaration:
    If you got cought, the plant will be destroyed and you will be subject to tight inspectation in room everytime you enter the country in the following five years. There may even be fines associated with it. If there is pest in the plant, it can cause disaster for the country. Therefore, please be very careful.
    Rumor has it that people carry pest-free 30-centimeter saplings under newspapers and cloths then put them in check-in luggage. The reason to put them in check-in luggage is because carry-on luggage is often subject to more tight security check. However, the cargo bay is extremely cold and dry in high altitude. Therefore, special attention needs to be paid to keep the moisture and temperature.
    Note that X-ray may distinguish plants if carefully examined. Rumor also has it that Hongkong custom is more strict than Macau custom.