Can I pick protected wild flowers or plants?
No: picking protected wild-flora species is banned. Under GEO 57/2007 on protected natural areas and the conservation of wild flora and fauna, any form of harvesting, picking, cutting, uprooting or destruction of specimens of protected plant species in their natural environment is banned — including picking their flowers and fruits. Protected flowers include snowdrops, the lady's-slipper orchid, the Piatra Craiului carnation, the Romanian peony, the thermal water lily and others. Harvesting these species from the natural habitat is punished with fines of thousands of lei and even imprisonment of 3 months to 1 year. Cultivated plants bought commercially (e.g. potted snowdrops, florist's flowers) are, of course, allowed. In short: don't pick protected wild flowers from nature — admire them on the spot.
📋 The rules
- Harvesting/picking protected plant species is banned
- Applies to flowers, fruits, cutting, uprooting
- Protected species: snowdrops, lady's-slipper, Romanian peony etc.
- Sanctions: big fines and even imprisonment (3 months–1 year)
- Cultivated/commercial plants: allowed
🔓 Exceptions
- Cultivated or commercially bought plants: allowed
- Authorised scientific research/harvesting: a special regime
- Unprotected species, picked responsibly outside protected areas: tolerated
⚠️ Penalties & fines
Harvesting or picking protected plant species from their natural environment is heavily sanctioned: fines that can reach thousands of lei (e.g. 5,000–10,000 lei for individuals, under environmental law) and, for more serious acts, imprisonment of 3 months to 1 year, under GEO 57/2007. For example, people have been fined for breaking protected snowdrops in a national park. In protected natural areas, the rules are even stricter. To stay compliant: don't break or uproot protected wild flowers (snowdrops, orchids, wild peonies etc.); admire and photograph them on the spot; if you want such flowers, buy them cultivated, commercially; and in national parks and protected areas, observe the zone's regulation, which can ban picking any plants.
📎 Official sources
- GEO 57/2007 on protected natural areas and conservation of flora and fauna →
- GEO 195/2005 on environmental protection →
- Ministry of Environment, Waters and Forests →
❓ Frequently asked
Can I pick snowdrops in nature?
No. Snowdrops are a protected species, and picking them from the natural environment is banned by GEO 57/2007. Harvesting wild snowdrops is punished with fines of thousands of lei and even imprisonment of 3 months to 1 year. If you want snowdrops, buy them cultivated, commercially or potted.
Which wild flowers are protected?
Protected flora species include snowdrops, the lady's-slipper orchid, the Piatra Craiului carnation, the Romanian peony, the thermal water lily and many others. For all these species, harvesting, picking, cutting or uprooting from the natural habitat is banned and sanctioned under the law.
What fine do I risk picking protected flowers?
Harvesting protected species from nature is fined up to thousands of lei, for example 5,000–10,000 lei for individuals, and for more serious acts, imprisonment of 3 months to 1 year, under GEO 57/2007. People have already been fined for breaking snowdrops in a national park.
Can I buy protected flowers?
Cultivated and commercially bought plants are allowed. The ban concerns harvesting protected species from their natural environment, not plants lawfully grown and sold in florists or nurseries. So you can have snowdrops, orchids or peonies at home, as long as they come from cultivation, not the wild habitat.
Can I pick flowers in national parks?
As a rule no. In national parks and protected natural areas, the rules are even stricter, and the zone's regulation can ban picking any plants, not just protected ones. The safest is to pick nothing in these areas, only admire and photograph the flora, respecting nature.
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