LAKEWOOD, Colo. — During the 2017 season, several Nursery’s & Garden Centers in Colorado received plant material which was found to be infested with Japanese Beetle grubs from an out of state nursery. The nursery that shipped the materials was in compliance with the Japanese Beetle Quarantine Rules which became effective on December 30, 2016.
To ensure that nursery stock does not enter the state with Japanese Beetles, the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) is proposing an additional change. Specifically, under 4.00. Commodities Covered, letter B would be changed to:
All plants with roots with the exception of nursery produced container grown plants imported in containers with a diameter of 12 inches 7 inches or less and the volume of the container is less than 750 252 cubic inches, except as provided in section 4.00 (c);
The CDA feels that this change would protect Colorado Nursery’s & Garden Centers from receiving stock that is infested with Japanese Beetle grubs. This change would help to limit the spread of the pest, especially outside of the nine quarantine counties in Colorado.
In addition, there is a proposed change to nursery record keeping. Nursery’s that are outside of the eleven quarantined counties and receiving stock from those counties would be required to retain records for a minimum of three years and make them available to the CDA upon request. The specific rule would read:
Any persons engaged in the business of selling nursery stock in this state shall keep records of all shipments of nursery stock imported from outside this state and from AND FROM QUARANTINED AREA WITHIN THIS STATE. These records shall be kept for a minimum of three years and shall be made available to the Department of Agriculture upon request.
To ensure you have an opportunity to provide input, we plan to hold a conference call on Tuesday, November 7th at Noon MT with Laura Pottorff and myself. This will allow you to ask questions and provide input prior to the change moving forward. If you plan to attend this call, please email me and I will send you a calendar invitation. In addition, Laura will attend the CNGA Owners & Managers Leadership Retreat to gather feedback and answer questions.
If there is input that requires changes to the proposal, you will be notified of those changes and have another opportunity to provide feedback. The CDA hopes to bring this to the Agriculture Commission in February 2018.
If you are unable to make the Owners & Mangers Leadership Retreat or the conference call, please do not hesitate to reach out with input. You can contact me at 303.758.6672 or agault@coloradonga.org .
Sincerely,
Allison Gault, CAE
Executive Director
Colorado Nursery & Greenhouse Association
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