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[Ian Morris]

I know we have some far eastern STSers here but this question is really open for everyone.
 
I have a very dear friend going back to Thailand for a teaching gig and he was wondering if he could contribute to sharing medicinal seeds.

Which seeds should I have him look for during his stay in Thailand?
 
Kratom seems an obvious choice but am I missing some great wholesale opportunity for something rare or hard to find here in the West?

-Ian

[nobody]

Kratom seeds are only found in the south and are very rare. The trees on my land have not flowered in the last 3 years, have no idea why.

If by chance your friend will be in the north of Thailand I have a big list of stuff. Up there they have nice temperate forest with a ton of rare species, my area is tropical jungle and has a completely different set of species.

The top of the list is:

Desmodium gyrans - Dancing plant (found in Udon Thani)
Limonia acidissima - Wood Apple (found in entire north)
Gymnema sylvestre - (found cultivated around Chang Mai)
Acacia catechu - (found everywhere in the north)

There are quite a few more but I will need to find my "wanted" list as I can not remember them right now. I can send a PM with the full list and Thai translation if you would like.

nobody

[delta9hippie]

Piper betle - "Betel" 

[nobody]

Piper betel is rough since it does not set seed (most don't anyway). I have tried rooting cuttings and mailing them several times without success, wish it were easier as I have tons and would like to share.

[Skautroll]

Dont bother with Kratom seeds, they got a viability span of less than 2 weeks!

Our friend Lukas123 wherever he is atm, is really good at rooting Kratom cuttings, he probably has some solid advice to share.

[nobody]

Cuttings are very easy, air layering. Just do not get caught doing it here, your stay will definitely be longer than you planned.

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[Skautroll]

Its Thailand, either you loose a good portion of your travel budget or you stay a lot longer. There is no need to bring anything with you on the plane, airmail is very reasonable and liberal in Thailand. Don't bring plants to the airport, thats an invitation to get fined, even though Thailand export staggering amounts of Kratom you still need to pay "bail" to get home.

I have traveled in that region for several years, enough to know which stories are true and not. I got one local friend who works as a lawyer in Bangkok, the advice he gives people is to use common sense, Thailand is not as dangerous as Indonesia but, don't take any unnecessary chances. Keep in mind that British tourists give a significant contribution to police salary.

[New Wisdom]

He should look for cactus nurseries and buy me some giant astrophytum, ariocarpus, and lophophora!! 

[Ian Morris]

Pretty interesting plants here guys.  I will send him with a list when we all see him off later this month.

Oddly I had not considered the draconian laws of Thailand as an obstacle.  Perhaps I can look into legitimizing any business transactions, sometimes the legal formalities go a long way in reassuring these types of transactions and keeping the police at bay. 

Thanks again guys,
-Ian

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