Changes in Production Practices by Green Industry Growers from 2009 to 2019

As a result of the latest economic recession (2007 to 2009), the U.S. green industry suffered significant economic losses, leading to major industry structural changes. To be competitive and effectively manage risk, nursery and greenhouse operators need reliable and up-to-date information. However, the availability of such data from federal government sources has become limited. This report summarizes the state of the industry, focusing on trends in production-related characteristics from the 2009, 2014, and 2019 survey years. As firm size increased, the percent of annual sales attributed to large plant species (e.g., deciduous trees) increased, while herbaceous (e.g., perennials) and specialty (e.g., Christmas tree) plants made up a larger percentage of annual sales for small- and medium-sized firms. The majority of respondents (73.3%) indicated a proportion of their sales came from container-grown plants. The most frequently used integrated pest management (IPM) practice was removal of infested plants (81%), followed by cultivation/hand weeding. As firm size increased, participation in IPM strategies increased. Interestingly, statistical differences between small- and medium-sized firms were infrequent, indicating similar levels of use; however, most of the IPM strategies used were more frequently employed by large-sized firms when compared to small- or medium-sized firms. Index words: Container-grown, greenhouse, integrated pest management (IPM), nursery, ornamental plants.