Field Note #001: Should You Declare It or Not? I Found a Third Option Nobody Talks About

Field Note #001:

Have you ever stood in a shop somewhere abroad, holding a packet of seeds, and you're not sure if you're allowed to bring them back, wondering: do I declare these, or not? Me being a flower farmer and florist, growing my own flowers and foliage, I think about this all the time.

That question set me on a research process this year — and it ended with a permit, two envelopes, a friendly conversation with postal workers in Belgium, and a phone call from a USDA office in Nogales. Here's exactly how it went.

How It Started:

It's 2026, and the whole thing began with an Instagram scroll. I kept seeing European floral workshops pop up, and at the same time, I'd been browsing seed catalogs — first from the US, and from a few companies in Europe, mostly based in the UK.

There was just one problem: most UK seed companies don't ship outside the UK. But after more digging, I found Florea, a seed company based in Sweden, that ships to several countries in Europe, including Belgium.

Around the same time, I finally decided to attend Camp Flourish 2026, a workshop put on by Fleuropean, held at Chateau de Wodemont, just outside Liège, Belgium. I first looked into the event at the beginning of January and had my deposit paid by 1/20, with the event itself running June 23–29.

Looking back, it was the best long-term creative return I've found on any investment like this. It wasn't just educational — it felt transformative. Immersing myself in that environment, surrounded by floral work at a whole different level, along with cultural outings, pushed my creative expression somewhere I could not have gotten at home.

The Order:

Once I'd committed to the trip, I emailed the host, Emily, in mid-February to ask if I could have seeds shipped to her house ahead of time. She said yes and sent over her address.

I placed my order with Florea on 2/23 — 17 seed packets in total — and they arrived at Emily's house within just a couple of days. She held onto them for me, and when I arrived for Camp Flourish, she presented me my seed envelopes.

The Part Nobody Tells You About: Getting Them Home:

Here's the thing that surprised me most: you cannot just put seeds in your luggage and declare them at customs — even if you're using a USDA import permit. They have to be mailed — not carried.

So about three weeks before I left for Belgium, I started the process of applying for a USDA import permit — specifically a PPQ 587 permit, which falls under USDA's Small Lots of Seed program. This program covers small personal quantities: up to 50 seed packets (or 50 seeds / 10g), each properly labeled.

I applied through the USDA APHIS eFile portal (logging in through Login.gov, linked to USDA eAuthentication) on 6/10. The application itself was not that difficult, and it's free. There's a dropdown list where you select each seed type by botanical name and country of origin, then enter the quantity. https://efile.aphis.usda.gov/s/https://efile.aphis.usda.gov/s/

I hit submit, and 15 minutes later, I had a permit valid for three years. In a separate email, USDA issues green-and-yellow shipping labels tied to several different USDA inspection stations. I chose the one in Nogales, AZ, since I live in Tucson.

The Two-Envelope Process:

This is the part that takes a little planning. Getting seeds through USDA inspection is a two-envelope, two-mailing process:

Inner envelope — an unsealed, self-addressed, prepaid envelope. I used a USPS Padded Flat Rate Envelope with $14 postage. My address at the top as the to address, and the Nogales USDA station listed as the from address. Inside: the seed packets, a copy of my permit, and a copy of the seed invoice.

Outer envelope — this is the one that actually got mailed from Belgium, with the unsealed USPS envelope tucked inside it. I taped the green-and-yellow USDA shipping label to the outside (with Emily's address as the from address).

My seed packets didn't have the country of origin printed on them, which is required. So before mailing, I legibly hand-wrote "Country of Origin: Sweden" on the back of each packet.

Emily took me to a bpost location in Vise, Belgium, and I mailed the whole package on 6/27. The postal workers were genuinely delightful — cracking jokes the entire time, which made an oddly bureaucratic errand hilarious.

The Wait — and the Call From Nogales:

On June 30th, I flew home and waited.

On 7/21, I got both an email and a voicemail from a Plant Health Safeguarding Specialist with APHIS/PPQ Field Operations: my seeds had been inspected and were ready for pickup at the Nogales station. If I didn't pick them up by end of day, they'd mail them out the next day.

I didn't respond back, so they went in the mail from Nogales on 7/22, and I had my seeds back in my own mailbox by 7/25 — inside the same prepaid envelope I'd sent all the way from Belgium.

What It Actually Cost:

For anyone wondering what this process runs, here's the real breakdown, in US dollars:

- Seeds (Florea order): $140.75

- Postage from Belgium: $38.20

- USPS Padded Flat Rate return envelope: $14.00

Honestly, going through the process felt like part of the fun of getting the seeds in the first place.

What I'd Like to Try Next Time:

On a future trip, I want to try applying for the permit while I'm already abroad — in case I stumble across seeds I didn't plan for. The plan: bring both envelopes with me, making sure my USPS envelope is prepaid in the US before leaving, and just print the green-and-yellow labels at a hotel business center abroad.

What To Do Before You Go:

Remember: for seeds only, not plants.

Before going abroad:

1. Find a seed company in that country that ships domestically, and order ahead — a week or two before you arrive is plenty.

2. Have it shipped to where you're staying (and give your host or hotel a heads-up).

3. Apply for a USDA PPQ 587 permit through the APHIS eFile portal — it only takes minutes.

4. Prepare your two envelopes, mail from abroad, and let USDA inspect and forward your seeds home.

No more wondering at customs whether you should declare it or not.

— Mary