How to Take Ti Leaves to the Mainland From Hawai’i: 3 Easy Steps

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If you’ve clicked on this post, chances are you’re curious about whether you can bring home ti leaves to the mainland from Hawai’i. During my last visit, I took a lei making class in Maui with Native Hawaiians to learn a bit more about their history and culture on the islands and their connection to the flora and fauna…which led to learning about ti leaves and their role in making leis! It was an incredibly insightful and powerful experience, and we had so many leftover leaves that they let us take the extra home with us.

The only hiccup – our home wasn’t on the islands. So…could we take ti leaves to the mainland?

If you are Hawaiian or familiar with Hawaiian culture, than you may already know about ti leaves, but if not, this paragraph is for you. In the shortest of shorts, the ti plant is a diverse plant that Hawaiians and other Polynesians and Micronesians (and other cultures in the South Pacific) use for a variety of uses. From its roots to its leaves, the ti plant was used for clothing, sandals, roof thatching, and medicine.

It’s also been used for cultural activities and ceremonies, which brings us over to its use in leis. If you’re looking to bring ti leaves to the mainland, here are some things to keep in mind!

Agricultural Restrictions

The main reason there is any question whether you can take ti leaves to the mainland is because there are a lot of agricultural restrictions for travelers coming from Hawai’i – and going to! These restrictions prohibit/restricts the movement of many agricultural products from Hawaii into the U.S. mainland, Alaska, and Guam such as fresh fruits, vegetables, and certain plants and flowers.

Ti leaves are, well, part of a plant. Maybe Hawaiians or people from Hawai’i may want to bring ti leaves to the mainland for family, friends, or themselves because it is part of their culture and heritage. Other people, like lil ol’ me, may want to bring them because they want to continue practicing the lei making they learned while on vacation.

So…since it is a plant, can you take ti leaves on the plane? Well, it depends, but I’ll give you some hope. You CAN bring ti leaves to the mainland IF the leaves are washed and cleaned. I can’t speak for other countries, but as long as the ti leaves are free of dirt, bugs, or potential invasive diseases, you can bring them to the US mainland!

How to Take Ti Leaves to the Mainland

That said, your ti leaves WILL still get inspected at the airport. Here’s what to expect.

• Again, before you show up to the airport, be sure that your your ti leaves are FULLY cleaned. Wash them and I’d recommend going as far as deboning them. If you can, freezing them beforehand can help make sure that any and everything that might be hiding in the leaves die.

After you have your cleaned and packaged ti leaves, you can finish packing everything else for the rest of your trip. But once you get to the airport your process of taking ti leaves to the mainland might change a bit.

If you put your ti leaves in your checked bag:

• Once you arrive at the airport, you go through an agricultural inspection before you even check into your flight. There is a large conveyor belt that will scan your checked baggage for all of the agricultural items that might be limited. I’d recommend packing your ti leaves somewhere that the inspectors can access them easily so they don’t have to dig through all your dirty laundry. Also go ahead and give them a heads up so they know what they’re looking for.

If you bring your ti leaves as a carry-on:

• Once you have your checked bags (if any) scanned and checked in, you will then go through the normal TSA line. TSA does not at all care about your leaves. Once you get closer to the gates, there will be another agricultural inspection – this time for your carry on items. As long as your leaves are clean and free of pests, you will be about to take your ti leaves to the mainland!

Do Leis Count?

On a similar note, well, what about leis? Whether you have a ti lei or a flower lei, in general the materials when making them are expected to have already been cleaned and free of pests.

Like…would you really be wearing a lei that had bugs on it?

Also, just in the culture of making leis that require good intentions and respect for the person it would be given to…you just wouldn’t be given a lei that was not made with cleaned materials.

So in short – yes you can bring leis to the mainland, and generally you won’t even have to get them inspected. But just in case you would just go through the same steps you would as bringing ti leaves to the mainland.

Conclusion

Alrighty then, a super short and sweet post! Hopefully that answered most, if not all, your questions about bringing ti leaves to the mainland USA! If you have any other questions or want to share your experience, let me know in the comments below!

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