PLNA Develops 13 State Banned Plant Matrix

HARRISBURG - PLNA has developed a new 13-State Banned Plant Matrix to help Pennsylvania nursery, greenhouse, garden center and landscape businesses quickly identify plants that are prohibited or restricted in Pennsylvania and neighboring markets.

The bottom line: Selling plants across state lines is getting more complicated. States are increasingly regulating invasive plants—and the rules aren't the same from state to state.

Why it matters: 

A plant that can legally be grown and sold in Pennsylvania may be prohibited in another state. For growers, wholesalers, brokers and landscape companies doing business across state lines, that creates a significant compliance challenge.

One matrix. 13 states. Click here to review the matrix.

PLNA's new resource puts the information in one place.

The matrix compares state restrictions across: Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire.

Rather than searching 13 different state regulatory websites, businesses can use the matrix as a quick reference when deciding what to grow, purchase, sell or ship.

How to use it

Start with the plant—not the state.

Find the plant species in the matrix and then read across the row to see its regulatory status in each state.

This can help businesses answer practical questions such as:

• Can we ship this plant to a customer in another state?
• Can our buyer source this species from an out-of-state supplier?
• Should we continue growing this plant for markets where restrictions are coming into effect?
• Do cultivars or varieties receive different treatment from the straight species?
• Is a restriction already effective—or does it take effect at a future date?

A practical example

Suppose a Pennsylvania nursery receives an order from a customer in Massachusetts.

Before accepting the order, locate each potentially regulated species in the matrix and follow the row across to the Massachusetts column.

If the plant is listed as prohibited or restricted, check the notes and applicable effective date before shipping.

The same process works in reverse when purchasing plants from suppliers in another state.

Don't overlook cultivars

This is where compliance can get tricky.

Some states prohibit an entire species. Others provide exceptions for particular cultivars, including cultivars determined to be sterile or otherwise less invasive.

That means the answer isn't always as simple as “banned” or “not banned.”

Check the notes. They may identify cultivar exemptions, phase-in dates or other important qualifications.

Use it for planning, too

The matrix isn't just a shipping-compliance tool.

Growers and buyers can use it when developing future production and purchasing plans.

If an important market is phasing out a species, a grower may want to reduce production before the prohibition takes effect. A landscape company may want to begin specifying alternatives. A retailer may want to adjust future purchasing.

The earlier a business knows about a restriction, the easier it is to adapt.

One important caution

Use the matrix as a compliance screening tool—not as a substitute for the underlying state regulation.

State invasive-plant regulations continue to change. Definitions, cultivar exemptions, effective dates and enforcement provisions can differ substantially.

Before making a major production decision or shipping a questionable plant, businesses should confirm the requirement with the appropriate state regulatory agency.

The big picture

Plant regulation is no longer just a Pennsylvania issue.

Pennsylvania's nursery and landscape industry operates in a regional marketplace. Plants routinely cross state lines as growers purchase liners and finished material, wholesalers distribute plants and landscape contractors source material for projects.

PLNA's 13-State Banned Plant Matrix is designed to make navigating that increasingly complicated regulatory landscape easier.

The goal: Help Pennsylvania's green industry identify problems before the plants are on the truck.

PLNA will continue to monitor state invasive-plant regulations and update the matrix as requirements change.