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As in the title. I'd love to try growing these little guys, they're pretty hard to find stateside. Please let me know what you'd be looking for if you have any, I'd like to buy a few.

Really hard to get lophs in the US, or atleast sold here, it literary took me years to get a Williamsii
Plant.. Goodluck Hun I'd love to see you get seeds From someone, darn I'd like some myself! Lol

Why would you look only in the US if you have already concluded it is not or hard to obtain? Self-sown seedlings have just hit the market since last year, at least in Europe. I could buy a few at the ELK, the biggest succulent fair in Belgium in September 2013. First time I saw the plant. I did not buy it, only ordered some seeds of seeds harvested form own (originally imported) mother plants. Of seed suppliers I only know of some Czech seed suppliers supplying Lophophora alberto-vojtechii seeds (see my 'Updated seed lists' thread on this forum for links to their websites). Those seeds are not that expensive now anymore and easy to order and pay via paypal, and seeds can be with you within a week from Europe. If they send in a padded envelope, there should not be any customs problems. I have send many envelopes to the US myself, and have yet to have experience a problem sending seeds to the US.

My only reason for looking in the US was that I thought I might run into issues with import from EU vendors and didn't want to waste the money trying. I can give it a shot though if it's relatively lax. It's funny this species too is regulated, it would probably take a bucket of matured plants to abuse because of their size

I kno isn't it crazy! Don't they kno we are just crazy cacti people, that we could careless about the drug factor about the plant!!!

KittieKAT wrote:I kno isn't it crazy! Don't they kno we are just crazy cacti people, that we could careless about the drug factor about the plant!!!

The funny thing is you can get high on toilet blocks but they dont stop you buying those. Stupid laws.

Hahaha toilet blocks! I kno this world is so screwed, i mean it's a plant to begin with, God and mother nature made it, i don't get it.

adetheproducer wrote:
The funny thing is you can get high on toilet blocks

Do go on...

HP22B wrote:My only reason for looking in the US was that I thought I might run into issues with import from EU vendors and didn't want to waste the money trying. I can give it a shot though if it's relatively lax. It's funny this species too is regulated, it would probably take a bucket of matured plants to abuse because of their size

If you order seed you can do it pretty easily as long as you don't live in California. California is the one and only state that made the entire genus Lophophora illegal to own. Everywhere else they only care about L. williamsii.

The trouble importing the plants or seeds doesn't come from the drug connection, it is because all cacti are on CITES. Plants on CITES have a lot of regulations that make them hard to import if you don't know what you are doing. Plants not on CITES just require you to have an import permit (free and easy to get) and for the person at the other end to provide a phytosanitary certificate.

Seeds are even easier as you can import a small number of them without a permit and larger amounts just require another even easier to get permit.

Now where it gets a little confusing. CITES has 3 levels of protection (called appendices). Appendix I are the most heavily protected species and the hardest to get the permits for. Any part of the plant living or dead requires a CITES permit. Appendix II plants require a CITES permit for the plants themselves, but seeds do not require a permit. Don't worry about Appendix III, you will rarely encounter it and the rules are more lax.

In your case Lophophora is an Appendix II plant. So if you want seeds go ahead and contact European seed sellers. If you are really desperate for a plant and can find a seller that will provide CITES documentation, you can import it but you should contact the USDA to determine exactly what needs to be done. If you do it as a business you have to obtain a $70 permit, but I'm unclear on the regulations for a regular person wanting to import one or a few plants.

Saxicola wrote:In your case Lophophora is an Appendix II plant. So if you want seeds go ahead and contact European seed sellers.

I can recommend http://www.kaktusyhk.cz/index.php/2014-15" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. They accept paypal.
They offer many forms of Lophophora alberto-vojtechii this year. The cheapest one is mistakenly hidden in the Gymnocalycium section, 10 seeds for 58 Czech currency thingies. That's about 2,5 dollars, I think. The ones located in the Lophophora section are a bit pricier.

Saxicola wrote:

HP22B wrote:My only reason for looking in the US was that I thought I might run into issues with import from EU vendors and didn't want to waste the money trying. I can give it a shot though if it's relatively lax. It's funny this species too is regulated, it would probably take a bucket of matured plants to abuse because of their size

If you order seed you can do it pretty easily as long as you don't live in California. California is the one and only state that made the entire genus Lophophora illegal to own. Everywhere else they only care about L. williamsii.

The trouble importing the plants or seeds doesn't come from the drug connection, it is because all cacti are on CITES. Plants on CITES have a lot of regulations that make them hard to import if you don't know what you are doing. Plants not on CITES just require you to have an import permit (free and easy to get) and for the person at the other end to provide a phytosanitary certificate.

Seeds are even easier as you can import a small number of them without a permit and larger amounts just require another even easier to get permit.

Now where it gets a little confusing. CITES has 3 levels of protection (called appendices). Appendix I are the most heavily protected species and the hardest to get the permits for. Any part of the plant living or dead requires a CITES permit. Appendix II plants require a CITES permit for the plants themselves, but seeds do not require a permit. Don't worry about Appendix III, you will rarely encounter it and the rules are more lax.

In your case Lophophora is an Appendix II plant. So if you want seeds go ahead and contact European seed sellers. If you are really desperate for a plant and can find a seller that will provide CITES documentation, you can import it but you should contact the USDA to determine exactly what needs to be done. If you do it as a business you have to obtain a $70 permit, but I'm unclear on the regulations for a regular person wanting to import one or a few plants.

Awesome post, thanks for the information. Very interesting.

Also thanks for the recommendation, I'll definitely look into that vendor as well.

I think it is only L. williamsii that has a significantly high level of alkaloids, so chewing the other species like L. alberto-vojtechii would not get you high and just probably make you nauseous.

Malej Jarda sells L. alberto-vojtechii seeds, but they are a bit expensive and Aiko's source looks cheaper:-

http://www.gerardo.cz/en/199-lophophora" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

HP22B wrote:As in the title. I'd love to try growing these little guys, they're pretty hard to find stateside. Please let me know what you'd be looking for if you have any, I'd like to buy a few.

Then ask CactusJordi in CA!.

What What WHAT! ....DaveW!! We aren't trying to eat the lophs just grow them!!!
But i actually heard the loph. Decipiens has a higher level then the Williamsii but that's what knuckle heads have told me lol!
I personally don't kno!!

I went with one of the vendors above and the seeds arrived earlier this week. I already have my first sprout germinated as of today!