"Last year, fires raged through the Big Sur area of California fueled in great part from the enormous number of large trees killed by a disease that came in on foreign plants. I helped fight these fires and continue to work with community to save valuable trees from the Sudden Oak Death pathogen. I support the regulation the USDA is considering as a step in the right direction to help prevent the introduction of harmful invasive species, which have gone unchecked for too long."
Kerri Frangioso,
Research Biologist,
University of California,
Davis and Volunteer Fire Fighter in Big Sur
Public Concern About Invasive Tree Killing Insects and Diseases Remains Strong
About Us
Plant Smart works with industry and consumers to encourage careful planting that prevents the spread invasive foreign pests and diseases. We support actions by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to strengthen plant import regulations that will better protect nursery businesses and America’s trees.
Plantsmart.org is owned by The Nature Conservancy as part of its efforts to support the actions of the Continental Dialogue on Non-Native Forest Insects and Diseases.
The Continental Dialogue on Non-Native Forest Insects and Diseases is a group of organizations and individuals that cultivates and catalyzes collaborative action among diverse interests to abate the threat to North American forests from non-native insects and diseases.
The mission of The Nature Conservancy is to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive.
Plantsmart.org follows the website of The Nature Conservancy and the organization’s terms of use and legal disclosures.
For more information on Plant Smart, please contact Sarah Volkman at svolkman (AT) tnc (DOT) org.
Trees, plants and shrubs imported into the United States can have harmful hitchhikers, such as beetles buried in the wood of a sapling, or tiny mites on the leaves of a flowering plant. Find out more about the pests that kill trees in our parks and neighborhoods, choke farmland, and devastate forests.
"The nursery industry faces huge costs both to control the pests and in loss of sales and other interruptions," says Jerry Lee of the nationwide Monrovia Nursery. We can stand together against the threat these invasive foreign pests pose to nature and the economy. Learn how you can help and join Plant Smart in support of stronger regulations to protect your trees.