One Man’s Fight to Trade Legally

Robert [Bob] Stoothoff of Halswell, Christchurch has been growing Asparagus plumosus [highly valued in floristry for its decorative quality] in his greenhouse and selling it through Floramax and wholesalers for at least 15 years. He knew some varieties of Asparagus fern had been placed on the ‘Unwanted Organisms‘ list (the NPPA) due to their invasive nature. Last year he discovered that Asparagus plumosus plants had been added to the list and also that cut stems of the plant could no longer be legally traded as there is a ban on the sale of any part of the plant which could serve for “the propagation breeding and multiplication” of the plant. Finding that the plant cannot be propagated from cut stems, Bob has submitted anapplication to MPI via the ‘Unwanted Organisms Permission – Application Form’ to allow him to grow Asparagus plumosus and trade in the cut stems.

Initially Bob intended making a general application rather than an individual one, but several factors made this impossible, in particular the difficulty of contacting all other commercial growers of Asparagus plumosus.

Hence Bob has recently submitted a private individual application to MPI. It seems that Asparagus plumosus has been and still is being traded in NZ. Bob could probably have continued to do so and kept his head down but that is not his nature. His investigations have convinced him that trading in the cut stems does not constitute a biosecurity risk and he has set out to make it legal.

While recognizing the invasive nature of Asparagus plumosus when growing in the wild, Bob maintains that trading in the cut stems poses no biosecurity risk  because

• There is strong evidence that Asparagus plumosus cannot be propagated from cut stems. Of particular importance is evidence from video footage of Asparagus plumosus ‘cleanup operations’ in Australia which shows the stems being discarded on the forest floor rather than removed for disposal.

• His plants are contained in a locked greenhouse and it is very unlikely that one of thse plants would be released to the environment. In any case any plant released would need to be transported to the northern part of the North Island for it to pose an environmental risk, as the climate in the south would not allow its survival.

• Other growers wanting to trade in Asparagus plumosus stems would need to adhere to any MPI protocol established for this activity.

• It is likely that the regulated production of Asparagus plumosus stems by growers adhering to MPI protocols would actually reduce the biosecurity risk posed by the plants

Bob would like to hear from any flower growers wishing to trade legally in Asparagus plumosus stems. His e-mail address is: [email protected].