Nursery and greenhouse products remained Oregon’s top agricultural commodity for 2019, according to new statistics released by the Oregon Department of Agriculture. The agency estimated $955 million in nursery and greenhouse sales for the year, down from the 2018 estimate of $996 million.
“Nursery sales continue to be strong,” OAN Executive Director Jeff Stone said. “These numbers tell us sales were strong in 2019, and we’ve seen that continued strength in 2020 in spite of our share of hardships, from the pandemic to the wildfires. Oregon plants are awesome and people from all over the United States and Canada are buying products sold by our green industry to make where they live a little bit better.”
Hay took over as Oregon’s second highest seller with $674 million, with cattle and calves in third place with $625 million. Following were milk ($552 million), grass seed ($517 million) and wheat ($283 million). Christmas trees ranked 12th with $104 million. The top 20 commodities are listed in the official Oregon Agricultural Statistics brochure (English | Spanish) (PDF).
Two other major commodities, hemp (for fiber) and marijuana (for recreational use), were not ranked, though both are known to be significant players in Oregon. It is expected that USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will begin gathering data on hemp soon, following its addition as a recognized crop in the 2018 Farm Bill. The state has no data on marijuana sales or gate value.
