Frequently asked Questions

FAQ

1. What are the shipping costs within South Africa?  (The costs will be automatically calculated on checkout)
   1. Courier door to door up to 5kg = R200
   2. Courier door to door - 5kg to 10kg = R350
   3. Courier door to door - 10kg to 15kg = R470
   4. Courier door to door - >15kg = R650
   5. A collect from nursery option is available for plants, seedlings and bulbs only. 

2. What courier do you use for South African orders?
   1. We make use of the Door-to-Door service of the Courier Guy. They can easily be visited on https://www.thecourierguy.co.za/

3. How can I track my South African shipping order?
   1. You can easily track your Courier Guy order online by clicking on Track Order.

4. My country does not appear on checkout what do I do?
   1. Please use the Contact us form or WhatsApp us on +27 (0) 81 711 0250 and we will gladly assist.

5. I am at checkout, what do I do now?

   1. You have the option to continue with checkout and proceed to our secure payment options from our payment solutions Payfast, & Paystack or use the Contact us form if you are experiencing a problem, we will gladly assist.

    

6. I can’t checkout what do I do?
   1. Orders are a minimum of R450 including shipping., please add to your order to checkout.
   2. If you are still stuck please use the Contact us form or WhatsApp us on +27 (0) 81 711 0250 and we will gladly assist.

7. I see this error when trying to checkout ‘’There are no payment gateways available for this order’’.
   1. Orders are a minimum of R450 including shipping., please add to your order to checkout.
   2. If you are are still stuck please use the Contact us form or WhatsApp us on +27 (0) 81 711 0250 and we will gladly assist.

8. I do not see a payment option that suits me, what do I do?
   1. Please use the Contact us form or whatsapp us on +27 (0) 81 711 0250 and we will gladly assist.

9. What options do my country have for shipping, a country other than South Africa?
   1. Each country has different shipping methods depending on your country’s restrictions and laws. Below are examples of shipping methods used. 
   2. All prices are in R = South African Rand (ZAR). All prices quoted are subject to change.
      1. The Royal Mail (R150)
      2. Royal Mail (R150) + phytosanitary certificate (R1200) 
      3. DHL Express Courier Door-to-door (R700)
      4. DHL Express Courier (R800) + phytosanitary certificate (R1200)
      5. DHL Express Courier (R700) + requires a small seed lot import permit from customer (Only applicable to USA and Canada)

10. What are the costs of shipping to my country? Outside of South Africa
    1. See 9 for shipping costs. 
       1. Shipping costs and shipping types such as DHL express, Royal (Global) Mail, EMS, will automatically be calculated depending on weight upon checkout and according to your shipping country.

11. What is a Phytosanitary certificate?
    1. This is a certificate issued by the South African Department of Agriculture, Forest and Fisheries (DAFF), This certificate certifies that plants, seed or bulbs are free from any pest, diseases etc. This is a requirement for many countries. This is a MANDATORY requirement for all EU member countries.

12. What is a small seed lot import permit? (Only applicable to USA)
    1. Lots of seed may be imported without a phytosanitary certificate if a Small Seed Lot Permit is applied for and issued by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) under The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services. 
       1. All details regarding the permit can be found here Small seed lot import permit information

13. I just paid for my seed order, when will it be shipped?
    1. Seeds are harvested in June and sent out from July of the same year. 

    2. You will be sent a tracking number via email or an email notification that your parcel has been sent (Not applicable to Royal (Global) Mail).

        

14. When will my plant, seedling and bulb order be sent? (Only applicable to orders within South Africa)
    1. Plants and bulbs are only shipped on Mondays after placement of your order. A parcel tracking number will be emailed to you once sent.
    2. Cut-off time for orders are 12pm midday on Saturday for orders to be sent the following Monday, otherwise orders will be sent the following week.

15. What is Royal/Global Mail:

    1. The PostNet Global Mail service is an efficient and reliable alternative for sending your international mail. Your mail leaves South Africa via a courier service and is injected directly into an international postal distribution centre for final delivery.
    2. NOTE: This is a postal service and there are no tracking numbers or insurance facilities available for these parcels.  
    3. Utopia Clivias cannot be held liable for parcels sent with Royal/Global Mail.                                                                           

     

16. What is EMS?
    1. EMS is an international postal Express Mail Service. The Universal Postal Union created the EMS Cooperative to develop express delivery worldwide. 
    2. The EMS Cooperative promotes cooperation between member postal organizations to allow them to provide a high-quality global EMS delivery service. 
    3. These parcels are issued with a tracking number. 

    4. You can easily track your EMS seed order online by clicking on Track Here

        

17. What is DHL Express courier?

    1. DHL express with the use air freight, is a express courier service for international seed order customers. You can easily track your DHL Express seed order online by clicking on Track Here

        

18. I have not received confirmation of my order ?

    1. Please check your spam or junk folders on your email for confirmations as these emails sometime land in these folders.

     

19. I have not received shipping confirmation for my order
    1. Please check your spam or junk folders on your email for confirmations as these emails sometime land in these folders.