Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) is a state agency that you should be very familiar with if you operate a green industry business in Pennsylvania.

Learn More About PDA - Bureau of Plant Industry

Nursery Dealers License

Anyone selling or transporting plants in Pennsylvania must apply for and receive a license under Pennsylvania's Plant Pest Act.

Under the Plant Pest Act, nursery stock is defined as: All trees, shrubs, brambles, woody vines, woody florist stock, herbaceous perennials, vegetable plants, bedding and other annual herbaceous plants, their roots, cuttings, grafts, scions, buds, fruit pits, seeds and their parts for propagation, except bulbs, field crop seeds, vegetable seeds, flower seeds, regardless of where the material may have been grown or is growing.

Persons engaged primarily as growers of nursery stock are considered nurseries. This definition includes many Pennsylvania greenhouse operations, in addition to traditional nurseries.

Persons that are engaged in buying and selling nursery stock, but are not primarily growers, are considered nursery dealers. It is within this diverse group of nursery dealers that most of the confusion over certification requirements has arisen.

Nursery dealers include landscape contractors, chain stores, garden centers, plant distributors, mail order firms, collectors, conservation districts conducting plant sales and any other individual who receives plants for the purposes of reselling or reshipping.

By applying for certification, a nursery dealer verifies that they will buy and sell only plants that have been inspected and certified. A certificate of inspection must always accompany all wholesale lots or out-of-state shipments.

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Certified Pesticide Applicators & Registered Technicians

If in your business you or your employees intend to apply pesticides, you must be licensed by the Department of Agriculture.

Private Pesticide Applicator: An applicator intends to purchase and/or apply restricted use pesticides for the purpose of producing an agricultural commodity on land which is owned or rented by that person or their employer.

Certified Commercial/Public Pesticide Technician: To be eligible for certification, a person must pass two written examinations (core and a minimum of one category) and be employed by a pesticide application business. Currently there are 26 categories of commercial and public applicators.

Registered Pesticide Technician: Persons can be register with the Department of Agriculture as a Registered Pesticide Technician. Technicians are not transferable between businesses.

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Penn State Extension Frequently Asked Questions

Penn State Extension Pesticide Credit Opportunities