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Moving a Saguaro out of AZ? What's the law really say?

kurtis500

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Im not planning to do this but for some reason I cant find the law or code that says you cant. Its come up occasionally and when I search I cant find any definitive law against taking a saguaro to another state. Is it still illegal to transport these from the Sonoran desert to somewhere else? I know they'll die in most places but just curious if you could take one to an indoor garden in a private home in Chicago...or something like that.
 

DILLIGAF

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I think at a minimum you need it tagged and cleared. Doubt if that would happen and they are kind of hard to hide. Lol
 

azsunfun

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i know in tucson we also have national parks around no way, you can move them around your own property, destroying its yours good bye, permits in other circumstances, out of state dought it would survive if it were allowed.
 

monkeyswrench

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Moving them from one privately owned parcel to another within the state is legal...expensive, but legal. I honestly feel you'd have to deal with agriculture laws and permitting through each state.

On a side note, you could quite possibly build a cradle/crib setup, and roll it on dollies into a race trailer, with the root ball bundled loosely with burlap and damp packing blankets...also supported by the cradle.....
 

HALLETT BOY

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There’s a guy that advertises in Havasu , he sells them , says they come with state permit . You could contact him .
 
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HNL2LHC

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What??? Why can’t you move an oppressed cactus into a better area with water where it can thrive unlike that of the desert. I tell you EVERYTHING is being held back by the government. So sad. I am going out tomorrow and give my best hug to the first saguaro that I see. :looking:
 

PlanB

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When we bought our place in Havasu 20 years ago I looked into buying a couple. The guy we talked to said they had to be permitted and cost was $1500.00 each with no "warranty". I ended up with a false Saguaro instead. Looks pretty much the same.
 

monkeyswrench

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When we bought our place in Havasu 20 years ago I looked into buying a couple. The guy we talked to said they had to be permitted and cost was $1500.00 each with no "warranty". I ended up with a false Saguaro instead. Looks pretty much the same.
Is it a different type, or an artificial?
 

WhatExit?

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Price to buy them is around $120-$140/foot

I’ve never seen them outside of southern Arizona
 

2FORCEFULL

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What??? Why can’t you move an oppressed cactus into a better area with water where it can thrive unlike that of the desert. I tell you EVERYTHING is being held back by the government. So sad. I am going out tomorrow and give my best hug to the first saguaro that I see. :looking:
you can't remove anything that is not on your property,...even if it not locked, it's called theft...that beind said, you cnot go on some ones propety at dig up a pine tree because you want it , or say you are gonna give it a better home,... now.... if you do own the proberty, and wabt to remove trees or cactus... in az, they will tag the one that you have to remove to build and they can be sold....a while back they were striping areas of the cactus and selling them, the deal was illegal , so they put numbers (titles) on those that were legally removed
 

DILLIGAF

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On a side note, you could quite possibly build a cradle/crib setup, and roll it on dollies into a race trailer, with the root ball bundled loosely with burlap and damp packing blankets...also supported by the cradle.....

Is your side job as a yote? lol
 
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DILLIGAF

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What??? Why can’t you move an oppressed cactus into a better area with water where it can thrive unlike that of the desert. I tell you EVERYTHING is being held back by the government. So sad. I am going out tomorrow and give my best hug to the first saguaro that I see. :looking:

You better wear a kevlar vest.....this isn't going to end well :)
 

PlanB

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Is it a different type, or an artificial?

This pic is about 6 years old (only pic I can find) and you can see the cactus in the middle of the pic. There is a rock wall that is about 2' high between the camera and the cactus (makes it look shorter than it is), and it has also grown a lot since this pic was taken. I would say it's at least 12' tall today.

IMG_2620.JPG
 

azsunfun

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we like our low water giants and dont want to share, just like the n eastern states wont share the water.
 

Nanu/Nanu

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You realize there's only one armpit in all of the armpits this world has to offer these things grow.
 

HNL2LHC

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This pic is about 6 years old (only pic I can find) and you can see the cactus in the middle of the pic. There is a rock wall that is about 2' high between the camera and the cactus (makes it look shorter than it is), and it has also grown a lot since this pic was taken. I would say it's at least 12' tall today.

View attachment 1030973

Wow, that is a fair amount of growth. I didn’t think that it would grow that must in 6 years
 

SPYLIFE

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There would randomly be a guy that sold them on the side of the road at Scottsdale Road just outside the 101.

Ever go up 17 around Black Canyon area I believe it is, they're all over the place. Once you get on top of the mountain where the rest stop is on the South side, not a single one the rest of the way North.
 

PlanB

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Wow, that is a fair amount of growth. I didn’t think that it would grow that must in 6 years

This was a couple of years ago. I think daily water is helping with growth. I need to try to put a tape measure on it.
DE447572-89AA-4DED-8390-BF92BEFD31CF.jpeg
 

mesquito_creek

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You can buy a volunteer starter on amazon... But there are a couple of myths like "it takes 75 years to grow an arm" which is complete folk lore. I have 2 saguaro between 20-25 years old, started from volunteers that have multiple arms. For example this was bought at Phoenix Sky harbor in the gift shop and was about the size of a lime when I planted it. I have never watered this cactus or put irrigation on it. To the contrary, watering them will rot the root ball, swell the spike flute and expose them to parasites (assuming they are in native areas of the Sonoran desert).
sag.jpg
 

boatdoc55

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You can buy a volunteer starter on amazon... But there are a couple of myths like "it takes 75 years to grow an arm" which is complete folk lore. I have 2 saguaro between 20-25 years old, started from volunteers that have multiple arms. For example this was bought at Phoenix Sky harbor in the gift shop and was about the size of a lime when I planted it. I have never watered this cactus or put irrigation on it. To the contrary, watering them will rot the root ball, swell the spike flute and expose them to parasites (assuming they are in native areas of the Sonoran desert).
View attachment 1031115
Wow, I fell for the "arm" deal, hook, line and sinker!!!!:oops:
 

mesquito_creek

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I transplanted this one when it was about 4 feet tall from the back yard to the front yard. Wrapped in carpet on a hand truck. It is about 50 years old and just got its arms about 2 years ago. You can see the wet years vs the dry in the main body as it is narrow or fat as it goes higher up. It must be 15 + feet tall.

sag2.jpg
 

2Driver

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You are going to need a bigger rake!... Each one of those arms probably weighed 1000lbs or more!

yeah, took 2 loads on a 18’ trailer, mostly due to weight. Cut the whole thing up in plugs with my sthil electric chain saw. Each piece was like trying to pick up a 75 pound greased ball of snot. I had a bigger one drop about the same time on the property and I left it there and it’s already so decomposed you can’t see it.
 
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