I just got an email back:

"The beetles are unfortunately unavoidable with most wild collected Sabal
seeds, and before they hatch they cannot be sorted out, but don't worry,
they won't attack any other fully developed seeds of this or another
species, they can only lay its eggs in unripe seeds still on the plant. I
hope we have included enough seeds to make up for the damage."

True?

I think that delivery is a bit odd, to put it mildly, and you'd think they could fumigate those seeds to ensure there are no insects and pests with the seeds. As for the mold, it doesn't always pose a problem with bulbs and rhizomes and may be strictly a cosmetic problem and not an indicator of the seeds possibly rotting once planted. I guess you could wash those in a mild bleach solution , which is supposed to help with mold problems! I do think I'd be upset with spending so much money and getting surprises like that, and if that's one company I've considered ordering from, I'll rethink that idea!

Did you post on here that you were thinking of going thru them?
You really should have. I would told you about them.
MANY MANY MANY bad experieinces with RPS from many people.
Go to this web site. WHat this site does is it has THOUSANDS & THOUSANDS of nursery, greenhouse, seeds, etc. places and it is a place to post your finding.
http://davesgarden.com/gwd/

Go look up Rarepalmseeds.com. They have a HORRIBLE rating and many bad write ups.

Next time go to Ortanique, http://www.ortanique.com/
I recieved some free seeds from him of Filibusta and of the 10 seeds, 2 were popped in the mail they were so fresh. The other 8 all popped later. Also, I just recieved 10 Phoenix Dacy seeds from a guy that got them from Ortaniqu and after one week of being under soil, one is popped.

I've never been dissatisfied with the seeds or service I received from rarepalmseeds.com.

You know I went to Daves Garden and there were 8 Positives 3 Neutrals and 5 Negatives. I sure didn't find "MANY MANY MANY bad experieinces with RPS from many people."

"Go look up Rarepalmseeds.com. They have a HORRIBLE rating and many bad write ups."

I certainly would call their rating "HORRIBLE"!

Well
I would just talk to them and tell them that you feel the seeds are not worth trying to germinate , and you do not want to let that critter lose to get in all your other plants , and just explain to them that you want :
a : a refund
b: more seeds

Most growers will work with you especially on a large purchase like that.. Just give them a chance they
might suprise you ! : )

You know I went to Daves Garden and there were 8 Positives 3 Neutrals and 5 Negatives. I sure didn't find "MANY MANY MANY bad experieinces with RPS from many people."

"Go look up Rarepalmseeds.com. They have a HORRIBLE rating and many bad write ups."

I certainly would call their rating "HORRIBLE"!

Maybe instead of just reading the 8-3-5, you should have read the write ups for the "positives" & "Neutral"
First positive: "Total sprouted - 32 out of 80 or 40%. Am still hoping for more."

First Neutral:"Thank you for your order dated 02-07-2006",
"Second message to Rare Palm Seeds at the end of July:",
"Last message from me 06-Aug", "
They should learn to communicate with the customer not leave them hanging wondering if they have just kissed goodbye to their money. I am not giving a negative because I think that what Tobias is doing is very good but the problem is one of communication........Please, Rare Palm Seeds take note and listen to your customers without whom you do not have a business"
Just for clarification, this order was STILL not filled over 2 MONTHS after this guys order was taken.

Second Positive: Bangalow Palms : "4 germinated out of 14
Arenga Engleri : 4 germinated out of 12
Roystonea Regia : 3 germinated out of 16
Roystonea Borinquena : none out of 18
Euterpe Edulis : none out of 15
Musa Sikkimensis banana : 2 out of 14"' "One thing I have to say is that just minutes after I placed my order in their site, I emailed them asking if I could add another seed pack in my order. They replied that I could and I replied right back asking to add a phoenix rupicola. But my addition never arrived."

Neutral: "Downside was that it took about 2 months to receive my seeds."
OVERCHARGED ME. I ordered $100 worth of palm seeds and my CC was chgd $174.96 !!! I was expecting MAYBE $25 for phyto and MAYBE $15 for shipping global priority. I haven't got my seeds yet, but i'm terrified to think all that money.....down the drain.....If ....IF I get decent germination I might change my rating to Neutral. I will NEVER give out my CC number ever again! "

YYYYYEEEEEEAAAAA, sounds like they are a real good company. Not to mention the guy that started this thread. Yea, he had a real POSITIVE experience.
Neutral: "

Here is my only experience with RPS.

My wife purchased some seeds (Christmas gift for me)and they were seized and destroyed by customs because they came without certificates. She emailed Tobby several times (beginning on 12/18) without any response so we thought we could kiss our money good-bye, but then a replacement came in the mail (12/26)with all the seeds ordered.

We checked the email everyday for a response (through 12/25) and none came in, but I just checked and my wife got a response from Tobby apologizing for the delay.

Congrats on your delivery. I just question the results of your seeds you got. Please respond in a month or so and let us know what teh germination rate was.
Keep in mind, "Ortanique" does not need any paper work because they are in the U.S. I have gotten 100% germination rate and a few even popped in the mail they were so fresh. Plus he puts MANY, not a couple, but MANY extras.

The truth about seeds is oftentimes beetles or other boring insects will hatch larvae inside seeds as a means of food when they are young. It sounds disgusting, but if that beetle is still alive, then the seeds not bored into are probably good.

I purchase between 10,000 and 25,000 seeds per year from various sources, and RPS is one of them. Palm seeds are highly variable, and sometimes certain vendors are better sources than others. I have had some bad seed a few times, but this is expected, as the seed market is a tough game to play. Many seeds are just tough to germinate or have odd germination method requirements. I wouldn't rule out any of the major vendors for good seed.

NOt to seem too much like Big Brother, but if I were YOU, I would take the seed packet with the live beetle to your local USDA office and have it inspected by a certified entomologist to be certain that this company is not shipping dangerous and invasive insects around the country.

If you germinate enough seeds you will experience these hitchhikers.
Most bore their way into the seed at an early stage and mature before emerging.
I've had batches with good germination with maybe 10% infested,( If the radicle waves back at you---toss it :-)

I know that seeds normally get infected but that does not give someone the right to sell infected seed worldwide.

The local seed shop near where I live checks their seeds for infection and also treats them all to make sure the diseases don't continue on certain species.

Now, if my local seed shop does it within the country, why shouldn't a large company that ships all over the world do it?

I would expect this from a local grower but at least they would replace the damaged seeds. Don't forget about the mold on the seeds.

I treat all my seeds when I get them to make sure nothing like this happens.

Is bleach the best way to kill something like this or should I use a certain kind of pesticide?

I just checked the seeds I got from "Ortanique" and after ONE WEEK of being in germination pots, I have many Phoenix Sylves., many Phoenix Dacys, and many Copernicia Albas and my Triangle Palms have swollen eyes so they will pop any day now.
Again, after one week of germinating.

I would think once the larvae has bored into the seed topical insecticide would be ineffective.
Harvesting the seed before it has fallen on the ground can prevent these kind of problems ( depending on genus and location this may not be practical )
Bleach, fungicide and insecticide treatments can help, but they can also affect the viability of the seeds. So it is always a fine line between preventative treatments and rendering the seed sterile.

I have had "duds" and insect problems from a variety of sources, it's all in the luck of the draw :-)

If you do not feel comfortable with them , then let them know you would like replacements or a refund.

Thaipalmseeds is another good source of fresh palm seeds.

When you order from them, your getting seeds right from where the palms are growing. The dwarf Areca catechu seeds I ordered from them started germinating in about a week.

Golden Lotus in Thailand is also another good source.
goldenlt@loxinfo.co.th

Here is a link that might be useful: thaipalmseeds.com

It seems really strange to me that none of you are worried about possibly spreading bad pests through contaminated seed. Maybe its because you live in a cilder climate and think its not a worry?

I sort of get the feeling we can never "so to speak "get the horse back into the barn" now after so many years of intentional and accidental transportation of various animals, insects, pests, and even plants all around the world, and having any new palm pest somewhere possibly where they could be a major problem should be a major concern, but considering how poorly we're still doing regarding preventing unwelcome species of plants and animals from migrating to other parts of the world, I'm not sure that problem can ever be controlled!! Speaking of beetles though, I've heard of how bad Japanese Beetles can be in a garden ,and it seems they only just arrived in ln my garden in the past few years, though I'm stuck with them from now on most likely, and I'd still curse the person who first brought "infected" plants in that had them many years ago. That of course is only the tip of the iceberg , where unwelcome imports are concerned, but meanwhile I still like to see new exotic, non-native species comming in, since they provide so much beauty in some cases and added interest to our gardens.

Every effort should be made by seed distributors to inspect for potential problems.
Seeds obtained from overses carry a phytosanitary requirement and usually a customs inpection.
I don't like getting bugs with my seeds, but it can happen. my responsibility as a grower is to destroy infected material.
I believe seed boring beatles are specialized to to the point they would be low risk if accidently released?
Maybe someone more familiar with entomology would comment?

Seed boring beetles are common in Florida, and oftentimes you must pick up seed fresh when it drops or the insects will get to it in a matter of days. I don't know the scientific names, but I have seen larger beetles, like the one in the picture, and smaller ones that like, of course, smaller seeds.

Many countries will issue phytos, but in the end it is not their problem if a disease or bug comes up. It is the country of import that has to deal with the consequences of not picking it up.

I was also left this message:

"Just float in water, any with bugs should float."

...and they couldn't do this before shipping?

I don't think its true as I would think that uninfected seeds can float and infected seeds can also sink. They are the same mass with or without the bettle since it looks like nothing leaves the seed until the bettle emerges.

Most of the time, if a seed floats, it's no good. Did they also say they would send you new seeds to replace the floaters???? I bet I know what the answer is.

Well I gotta say I have ordered from a bunch of seed dealers and I've gotten some beetles from various companies. It's actually quite hard to find em if you don't know they're in the seed. Just toss em, cause if you have more than one they are likely to multiply and infect the rest of your seeds. I made the mistake by not doing that and lost half the seeds I ordered. You have to inspect each one closely, check to make sure they are hard and look for tiny holes. I actually think one very tiny beetle helped in germinating my chamaerops humilis var.cerifera seeds, as the hole helped water into the seed. As for the rotten ones, that's just bad business in my opinion. I would personally check every seed I sell. But large companies can't do that I suppose. 2 thumbs up for Ortanique. I've had great success from them and they always throw in complimentary seeds.

My apologies to post in an old theme, but I wanted to share my bad experience with this "sellers" :

Muchas gracias por haber realizado su pedido el día 06-09-2007 a las 11:55 horas.
Identificación de la orden: 1146-96-31960

MORE THAN A YEAR has passed since I paid my order to rarepalm seeds, they ignored almost all the emails I sent them to ask for my seeds and only received this answer 7 months ago:

Hello,

we are very sorry to hear the seeds have not arrived. We shipped them last year at the beginning of October. We will try to track the shipment  the seeds were shipped as a registered letter  but this will take a bit of time. We will keep you informed. As soon as we have a reply from the postal Services we will ship a replacement or give you a refund.

Sorry for the inconvenience,

S. Möller

Then, nothing has happened and I've written again many times to them asking my refund, now that I know their reputation, I won't accept their bad seeds.

So if you don't have a problem about waiting months, being ignored or losing your money, then take the risk to buy them.