Legislation

§ 166. Examination and certification of nurseries and nursery stock.
1. The commissioner shall, as often as he or she deems necessary and no
less than once every two years, inspect all nurseries or places where
nursery stock is grown for sale. If upon examination it is found that
such nursery stock is apparently free from injurious insects and plant
diseases, the commissioner shall issue to the owner of the nursery stock
a certificate to the effect that the stock so examined is apparently
free from all injurious insects and plant diseases. Such certificate
shall be valid for the period of time designated by the commissioner at
the time of issuance, unless sooner revoked by the commissioner for
cause. If injurious insects or plant diseases are found therein, the
owner or person in charge thereof shall promptly take such measures to
eradicate the same as the commissioner shall prescribe, and no
certificate of freedom from disease shall be given until the
commissioner has satisfied himself or herself, by subsequent inspection,
that all such injurious insects or diseases have been eradicated.

2. Owners of nurseries or places where nursery stock is grown for sale
who do not hold unexpired and unrevoked certificates of inspection and
freedom from disease, as defined in subdivision one of this section,
shall not sell or otherwise dispose of such nursery stock.

3. Dealers in nursery stock who buy nursery stock from nursery growers
to whom certificates of inspection and freedom from disease have been
issued as provided by subdivision one of this section, may be granted by
the commissioner certificates of inspection and freedom from injurious
insects and plant diseases in respect to the stock so purchased, upon
complying with the regulations adopted by the commissioner in relation
thereto.

4. All nursery stock consigned for shipment from any point within this
state or shipped by common carrier or other means from any point within
this state, shall bear or carry on the container thereof a printed copy
of the certificate issued as provided in subdivision one of this
section. No nursery stock shall be sold or shipped under such a
certificate which has not been produced in the nursery in respect to
which such certificate was issued, unless and until such nursery stock
shall have been found by the commissioner, by examination or otherwise,
to be apparently free from injurious insects and plant diseases.

* 5. In cooperation with the department of environmental conservation,
the department shall:

a. establish standards for designation of native plants in New York in
consultation with recognized certification organizations, academics,
nursery growers, and nursery dealers;

b. develop a list of native plants that shall indicate and
differentiate native plants that are: (i) non-invasive herbaceous and
woody plant species that are indigenous to New York state and are likely
to maintain their range or successfully adapt to anticipated climate
changes in New York state and the northeastern United States; and (ii)
native, non-invasive plants found elsewhere in the United States that
are likely to shift or expand their range into New York state and the
northeastern United States in response to anticipated climate change;

c. offer seals or logos identifying native plants as grown in New York
state and marketed by nursery growers and nursery dealers registered
pursuant to this article; and

d. provide educational materials promoting awareness and understanding
of the benefits of native plants under the New York native plant
designation to horticultural producers, garden centers, consumers,
educational institutions, Cornell cooperative extension, and relevant
agricultural organizations.

* NB Effective December 19, 2026

* 6. For the purposes of this section, "native plants" shall mean:

a. non-invasive herbaceous and woody plant species that are indigenous
to New York state and are likely to maintain their range or successfully
adapt to anticipated climate changes in New York state and the
northeastern United States;

b. germinating seeds, or other plant parts, used to propagate
desirable native plants representing a wide variety of species and
genotypes of plants; and

c. native, non-invasive plants found elsewhere in the United States
that are likely to shift or expand their range into New York state and
the northeastern United States in response to anticipated climate
change.

* NB Effective December 19, 2026