What Kind of Plant Restrictions Are There for Shipping Into Hawaii?

Plant imports are strictly regulated in Hawaii.

Bringing any living thing into Hawaii, whether an animal, a plant or a microorganism, is strictly regulated to ensure that the local fauna and flora are not threatened. All importation of living things to Hawaii goes through the State's Department of Agriculture (DOA). The DOA’s Plant Quarantine Branch maintains a list of which species are approved, restricted and prohibited. They have separate lists for animals, plants and microorganisms. Import permits can be issued for organisms on the approved or restricted lists.

Grass and Beyond

Fruits require special handling, depending one where they originate.

All plants are inspected coming into Hawaii to make sure they’re free of insects and diseases. Plants cannot be brought into the state with their roots in any growth medium containing soil. Grasses, which include sugar cane and bamboo as well as turf, need to have a permit and go through a quarantine period. Seeds and dried products of bamboo and grass are not included in the list.

Pineapple

Pineapple is one of the cash crops Hawaii is protecting

Pineapples and other bromeliads require permits, a certificate of origin or treatment and in, some cases, require quarantine. The basic quarantine period for pineapples and other bromeliad species being brought in for propagation is one year. Bromeliads other than pineapples coming from Central and South America are quarantined for a year. Quarantine is only two months for plants grown for a year or more in a commercial nursery in a foreign country other than a Central or South American country or in a non-certified nursery on the U.S. mainland.

Flowers

A permit and a certificate of origin are required to import orchid plants. In some cases, plants have to be quarantined. Imports of seeds and tissue cultures are unrestricted. Other flowers that require certificates of origin or treatment, depending on where they are from, include the aster, dahlia, chrysanthemum and gladiolus. Seeds and cut-flowers are not included in the restrictions.

Coffee, Coconut and Palm

Coffee and coconut have been protected for almost 125 years.

Quarantining coffee goes back to 1888, when King David Kalakaua banned new coffee plants from the islands. Today coffee plants, plant parts and used coffee bags all need permits and certificates of treatment. Plants and seeds for propagation also have to go through quarantine.

Coconut plants, seed-nuts and green parts are prohibited. Coconuts have to be husked and punctured if they’re being brought in to be consumed. Other members of the palm family are not allowed from the mainland U.S. Plants from foreign countries are required to have a certificate of origin.

Root Crops

The edible roots of turnip, rutabaga, radish (daikon) and horseradish require certificates of origin or certificates of treatment depending upon where they are grown. Taro plants and dasheen from the Solomon Islands require both an import permit and a period of quarantine.

References

• Importing Live Organisms to Hawaii
• Hawaii Dept. of Agriculture: pineapple quarantine order
• Plant Guidelines for Importation to Hawaii

Resources

• Hawaii's Plant Quarantine Service—Past, Present, and Future