You will need this licence if you intend to harvest restricted plants or plant parts for propagation or cultivation purposes. Specifically, a growing licence allows you to harvest:
- plant parts for the purpose of growing plants
- whole plants only where they are to be used as stock plants
- whole plants where there is a need to introduce the plant into cultivation for commercial purposes
- whole plants to replenish the genetic variation of a plant already in cultivation.
You must also have the necessary knowledge, facilities and resources to propagate the plants. A protected plant growing licence can only be granted if the proposed harvest activity is sustainable.
Restricted plants include protected plants that are critically endangered, endangered, vulnerable or near threatened plants, as well as plants listed as special least concern.
You must comply with the 'Code of practice for the harvest and use of protected plants under an authority'. The Code specifies how the harvesting is to be carried out and how protected plant harvest records and protected plant harvest labels are to be kept. Whole plants taken under a protected plant growing licence cannot be sold or given away.
