To those members of URG who are also members of the SA Bot.Soc.

Did you know that they have decided to stop the distribution of free
seed to overseas members as of 1st January 2005? I only found out too
late, after having sent off my selection! I am very annoyed, and I
have told them so!

The reason they give, is to reduce the chance of invasive South
African species getting established elsewhere in the world and
damaging local ecosystems, and knowing that they won't be responsible
if they do become so established. The Bot.Soc. has been distributing
seed for decades, and explorers, plant hunters and ordinary travellers
have been doing the same for centuries. It seems unlikely that
anything invasive will get out that hasn't already done so.

The nonsense of their position lies in their decision to continue
supplying seed for sale, even to overseas buyers. By some curious
botanical quirk, it would appear that free seed is somehow more
invasive than seed that has been paid for!

Seed of South African plants can also be purchased from a number of
other indigenous suppliers. If the S.A. Bot.Soc. were to halt the
distribution of all seed overseas, and vigorously lobby their
government to introduce legislation to prevent other seed suppliers
from exporting seed and other plant material, their position would be
more credible. As it is, it won't make a scrap of difference in
preventing invasive species becoming established in other parts of the
world (where they're not established already, that is). It all sounds
a bit politically correct to me.

I urge URG members who feel strongly about this, as I do, to e-mail
their views to the SA Bot.Soc. council at

I've always regarded the free seed distribution as the icing on the
membership cake. If I can't have icing, I won't be buying the cake!



--
Chris

E-mail: christopher[dot]hogg[at]virgin[dot]net