Cayeux has many beautiful iris that are not available in this country. In fact, US nurseries mainly get Cayeux's less striking iris. In order to buy Cayuex iris directly and have them shipped to the United States, Cayeux requires that I get a USDA importation permit—this in addition to paying for the phytosanitary certificates that Cayeux provides. When I have ordered plants from abroad before, the phytosanitary certificate provided on that end has been sufficient. I went to the USDA website, but everything there appears to concern businesses that want to import plant materials. Has anyone gone through the process of obtaining a USDA permit? If so, what did you do? Has anyone here in the states purchased iris from Cayeux?

I have. You need to obtain an import permit and Cayeux will take care of the phytosanitary certificate. They required an email of the permit so they can print it out and get it to where it needs to go for shipping. Here is the website where you can apply for the import permit. It's really easy to do. I printed it and mailed it in, but I think you can do it online directly as well. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aph...

Liz is right, It's not hard to do, and the permit is free and lasts for 3 years.

My records show around 50 varieties commercially available in N.A., all 1987 or earlier as the historic cutoff is 30 years since introduction.
I'd suggest watching the HIPS rhizome sale for rare ones as some not found here have been shipped to HIPS members directly from Richard Cayeux over the past couple of years. That should come in July, watch historiciris.org for announcement. Members get to purchase 2 days before public can/$10 for emembership.
[Edited to correct website to historiciris.org]

OOOPS, ooops, ooops . . . Although I talked on the phone with the Custom office that handles importing plants and scoured the United States Department of Agriculture's www.aphis.usda.gov website on importing plants, yesterday I found that the info was apparently Incorrect. USDA's plant info phone numbers, which are listed on their website, were either disconnect or put me in a continuous loop. On the fifth try, I finally found a phone number (301-851-2046, no extension) that worked on applying for a permit to import plants (no dirt is allowed). SIMONE was extremely helpful and answered my zillion questions. EVERY plant shipment requires the permit. The process: first apply to get a Level 2 "eAuthentication Account," which allows you to fill out the PPQ Form 587 (importing plants) online. The process entails sophisticated questions, e.g. what was your paternal grandfather's occupation, what was the first international town/city you visited, etc. After you get the Level 2 clearance, you can then electronically fill-in and submit the PPQ 587 form. It takes up to 30 BUSINESS days for it to be processed. The form is straight forward. I noted that I was importing 12 rhizomes. I will continue this forum when I find out about the permit. There are a set of instructions on what to do next after one finds out if the permit was approved. SORRY about the wrong info before!

That is what I recall, from many years ago. You can have a dozen plants imported & skip the APHIS Inspection process. The Phytosanitary Permit, you Paid for, to the sender, is already the proof that the plants were -already Inspected- & determined to be healthy, & basically free of disease &/or pests..
But, a note of Caution; If there is any potting soil , or dirt on the roots & your parcel of a dozen rhizomes is opened for "general inspection" by Dept. of Agriculture, they can destroy it, right then & there if the rhizome & roots aren't washed clean & completely free of any soils/dirt or potting mix !

There ought to be a list of plants named, in with the parcel of up to limit of a dozen plants. Each individual plant should be clearly marked, with the use of an attached label, to identify it...
They aren't actually interested in what cultivar it is ( but you are.) For example, if the parcel contents are all "historic Iris", then " Iris germanica hybrid " ought to be adequate, ( the genus & species names,) noted 12 times,on the paper list of contents, within said parcel..

This exception is mainly for the "home gardener" & not really meant for "Commercial Business" & therefore the exception limit, was set at a dozen plants. Thus, not requiring the Import Permit.

Lets say Cayeux is willing to ship the dozen Iris & get them inspected, for a Phytosanitary Certificate, but then that may not be the issue.
If the French Authorities require issuing an Import Permit, by the purchaser (being, you) the Importer, then they may refuse to allow Export, when filing the Phytosanitary Paper work.
I'm fairly certain, the Permit to Export, should be recognized as just as valid as the Permit, to Import, according to U.S. law. So, it really depends on how they interpret our law & exception, with their rules & regulations.
Like I mentioned, the dozen plants exception, was intended for the "home gardener" & not really Commercial growers, or vendors. Although, in the past, I have not only paid for Phytosanitary paper , but also CITES Permit, for Endangered species,,- without -Import paper, under the "dozen plants" exception rule. Since the authorities already knew, what the parcel contained, they didn't bother to open it up & inspect it & allowed it to pass.

I read and reread various pages on the USDA website about importing bulbs, seeds, rhizomes, etc. with no dirt attached. Much of the info was contradictory from one page to another. So many nonworking phone numbers. It would be great if there was a page written in "people friendly" language that detailed the whole process for home gardeners. User friendly for non-commercial persons.

Importing rhizomes to the United States: Now for the rest of the story . . . On Monday I applied online for a free permit to ship rhizomes from France to the States. And much to my surprise, my permit was approved in an email this morning. 3 days. So this is the deal: I needed to print out special green and yellow labels, which I will mail to Cayeux to affix to the outside of the package. These labels indicate shipment to the Nogales Plant Inspection Station (I live in Arizona). After the rhizomes (NO dirt attached) are inspected, the package will be sent on to me. But I will, also, have to send Cayeux a label with my address and prepaid postage attached or use another carrier. The label to my home will be included inside the box with the rhizomes to Nogales. I will follow up with a post later this summer after the rhizomes arrival. Help: About how much does a rhizome weigh?

I think the weight varies from rhizome to rhizome since they are not all uniform.

You would need to know, not only the dimensions of the box, but also the entire weight of the box, plus contents, as we no longer have "Postage Due" stamps, any more... But, now I am curious, since you are getting it inspected any way, why limit yourself to just 12 rhizomes?
Because, I thought Euro Postal rates are fairly high, especially when compared to ours...which you now have to add, also.

Fortunately, it isn't being sent from the U.K. as Postal Rates for shipping from there used to be extremely costly! Too bad you can't have them sent them by Priority, as it may be triple digit temperatures in Arizona & plants can actually get baked- even cacti ! ( unless, of course, the carrier uses A/C.)
Try calling the Inspection Station in Nogales, Arizona, to find out what they suggest. They may offer better solutions or give advice as to how to best handle the situation before transaction..
I would have those labels you send to France, Tracked. & maybe Registered..just to help avoid loss & or delays...
I do recall, some people, would get confused, over the labels system stickers, & accidentally mix them up, between what was to be affixed to parcel & included inside, but maybe it is much easier & less confusing, now days.

Greetings! This is an update on my ordering iris rhizomes from iris-cayeux. I have been corresponding with Veronique, [email protected]. Veronique's English is great and she was very precise in conveying the info that I requested. I sent her my order a couple of days ago. Today she confirmed that the items were available, the cost of the rhizomes + shipping ($30 for 15), the weight of the rhizomes + box. The weight is important so that I can include US postage to cover the cost for shipping the rhizomes from the Nogales' Plant Inspection Plant to my home in Arizona. This postage and the label to my home need to be included in the box being shipped from France. /// Along with this US postage and US mailing label, I am also sending my credit card info, the US Plant License, and the official green-and-yellow labels to go on the outside of the box being sent from France to the Nogales Plant Inspection Station. /// This was in Veronique's email: "If you provide us the import permit, we will have no problem to obtain the health certificate from the French authorities. The plants will be soilless, they will be washed and treated with a phytosanitary product." /// I strongly advise that one gets this official license which is free, even if one is ordering 12 or less rhizomes. It's too chancy otherwise. You definitely need the official French phytosanitary certification so you then need the US permit to get it anyway. /// The rhizomes will be shipped shortly before our planting time. /// Here are some photos of the rhizomes I have ordered. All are by RICHARD Cayeux, who is a third generation hybridizer (not to be confused with his grandfather, father, and uncle). Moderate costs, which when converted, range from $9 - $18/each.

Nice choices, Mary! The price of irises is generally lower in here in Europe than in the US, especially for new introductions. (Not that that stops me from buying from US vendors!) It's great to see more international buyers - let's hope that the hassle of importing from overseas is simplified so that we can exchange even more!

I wonder if it's that easy for California residents?

Iciris, it's the same everywhere across the US. Federal regs, license, 13 other Federal Plant Inspection Stations. Let me know if you need help . . . I learned a lot in the process and it's all free, including the license. I'm curious about the time it takes for a box to travel from France to my home. I plan to buy US priority postage to get the package from the Nogales Plant Inspection Station to Scottsdale, AZ. Iris-Cayeux seems to know the exact exporting process to satisfy US inspectors.