PDA Bans Three Plants in Pennsylvania

Harrisburg – On January 20, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture’s (PDA) Controlled Plant and Noxious Weed Committee (CPNWC) voted to ban the sale, distribution and propagation of three plant species:

• Glossy buckthorn (Frangula alnus (Synonym: Rhamnus frangula)) was listed as a Class B noxious weed. PDA will accept applications from growers for exemption of sterile cultivars of the species. This becomes effective 60 days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
• Common buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) (Class B). There was no enforcement phase-in and becomes effective 60 days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
• Ravenna grass (Tripidium ravennae) (Synonyms: Saccharum ravennae, Erianthus ravennae) was listed as a Class A noxious weed. Retail locations will be permitted to sell existing stocks until the end of September 2022 but are not permitted to restock or reorder during that period. This becomes effective 60 days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

For more information on PDA’s noxious weed program, click here.