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USDA awards $2.7 million for research into plant pathogens

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture has awarded group of colleges, led by Virginia Tech, a $2.7 million grant to conduct research on integrated management of zoosporic pathogens and irrigation water quality. Researchers will look for biological control methods for fighting Phythophthora, Pythium and other pathogens. Researchers will also “develop […]

APHIS delays federal order on interstate plant shipments

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The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) today has delayed the effective date of Federal Order DA-2021, which was announced May 27. It initially was scheduled to take effect on Monday, June 21, but now it officially has been pushed back to Monday, July 19. The order requires West Coast states to pre-notify […]

Missouri bans walnut products from nine states

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In an attempt to halt the devastating spread of thousand cankers disease, which afflicts black walnut trees, the state of Missouri has issued an emergency quarantine banning the importation of “walnut products” from nine Western states. According to Missouri officials, “The ban applies to nursery stock, unprocessed lumber, logs, wood chips, mulch and other products […]

South Carolina rescinds regulation that blocked trade

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Nursery growers in Oregon and California are once again free to ship their plants to South Carolina. Officials in that state have rescinded Regulation 27-78, which imposed state-based rules pertaining to Phytophthora ramorum. The Oregon Association of Nurseries (OAN) and the California Association of Nurseries and Garden Centers (CANGC) sued to overturn the regulation, on […]

Oregon, California growers sue to reopen South Carolina plant market

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Nurseries can’t afford to let disease spread. They take seriously the threat of Phytophthora ramorum, commonly known as sudden oak death – and so does the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). For several years, APHIS has had rules in effect to protect ecosystems and plant material. Nurseries in Oregon and California have […]

New plants added to P. ramorum regulated list

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Officials with the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Plant Protection and Quarantine program (PPQ) issued a federal order on Monday (Feb. 22) adding 10 species to the list of plants regulated for Phytophthora ramorum. The plants have been identified them as hosts of the pathogen, and now will be regulated in accordance with […]

APHIS considers regulating wood in shipping

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The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is considering proposed rule changes involving wood packaging material used in domestic commerce, such as crates, pallets and sticks. Nurseries commonly use pallets and sticks when shipping plant material, but such wood material unwittingly could transport unwanted and dangerous hitchhikers, such as the emerald ash borer and […]