The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service has released its new 2014 Census of Horticultural Specialties, which was the first taken since 2009. The massive, 583-page document contains national as well as state-by-state data for various industry sectors as well as individual plant genera.
Topline figures show that U.S. growers sold $13.8 billion in horticultural specialty crops in 2014, up from $11.7 billion in 2009 and $10.6 billion in 1998.
The numbers placed Oregon as the number three state in the country for sales of horticultural specialty crops, with $932 million, behind California ($2.9 billion) and Florida ($1.8 billion), but well ahead of Michigan ($645 million), Texas ($594 million), North Carolina ($571 million), Ohio ($392 million), Arizona ($388 million), Washington ($366 million) and New Jersey ($355 million).
Within the broad category of horticultural specialty crops, nursery stock was Oregon’s strongest sector with $484 million in sales, good for third in the nation behind California and Florida. Other areas of strength included Christmas trees ($126 million, 1st); annual bedding and garden plants ($80 million, 11th); propagative horticultural materials, bareroot and unfinished plants ($71 million, 4th); vegetable seeds ($25 million, 2nd) and “other” ($32 million).
Oregon growers were tops in the nation in coniferous evergreens ($129 million), deciduous shade trees ($114 million) and deciduous flowering trees ($50 million).
