March 2, 2025

USDA Extends Deadline For The 2024 Census of Horticultural Specialties

Trenton, NJ – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will continue to collect the 2024 Census of Horticultural Specialties through April 18, 2025. Conducted just once every five years, the Census of Horticultural Specialties is the only source of detailed production and sales data for U.S. floriculture, nursery, and specialty crop industries, including greenhouse food crops.

Growers are encouraged to complete their survey either online at agcounts.usda.gov or by mail as soon as possible. The online questionnaire is user-friendly, accessible on most electronic devices, and saves producers time by calculating totals and automatically skipping questions that do not apply to their operations.

NASS enumerators will also continue gathering data and ask respondents to complete and return their survey form as soon as possible. If those who have received the form are no longer involved in horticultural operations, or need assistance completing the questionnaire, they can call toll-free, 888-424-7828 so their record can be updated.

Producers who receive the 2024 Census of Horticultural Specialties are required to respond by federal law (Title 7 USC 2204(g) Public Law 105-113), as it is part of the Census of Agriculture program. That same law also requires NASS to keep all individual information confidential.

“This is a great opportunity to show the importance of New Jersey food grown under cover,” stated Bruce Eklund, USDA/NASS NJ State Statistician. “Our end-of-the-year vegetable survey, for example, only shows crops grown in the open.” Growers should have received the survey via mail and or a specific survey code to complete the survey online. If you can’t locate the survey or your code, please contact Bruce at 503.308.0404 or by email at bruce.eklund@usda.gov.

The 2024 Census of Horticultural Specialties data is scheduled to be available on December 16, 2025, at nass.usda.gov/AgCensus and in the Quick Stats database at quickstats.nass.usda.gov. For more about the 2024 Census of Horticultural Specialties, please visit nass.usda.gov/go/hort.

NASS is the federal statistical agency responsible for producing official data about U.S. agriculture and is committed to providing timely, accurate and useful statistics in service to U.S. agriculture. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.

Filed Under: Blueberry, Commercial Ag Updates, Fruit, Organic Production, Tree Fruit, Vegetable Crops, Wine Grape Tagged With: , ,
March 13, 2023

The 2022 Census of Agriculture – There’s Still Time To Be Counted!

New Jersey farmers still have time to be counted in the 2022 Census of Agriculture, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). Although the deadline for submitting the ag census has just passed, NASS will continue to accept completed census questionnaires through the spring to ensure all farmers and ranchers take advantage of the opportunity to be represented in the widely used data.

“My sincere appreciation goes to producers who have already completed the census. We want to partner with New Jersey producers to show the importance of New Jersey agriculture,” said NASS New Jersey State Statistician Bruce Eklund. “There is strength in numbers. The time to do your part is now. There is still time for farmers to respond.”

NASS will continue to follow up with producers throughout the spring with mailings, phone calls, and personal visits. Farmers and ranchers are encouraged to complete their ag census either online at agcounts.usda.gov or by mail as soon as possible.

Federal law under Title 7 USC 2204(g) Public Law 105-113 mandates that everyone who received the 2022 Census of Agriculture questionnaire complete and return it, even if they are not currently farming. The same law requires NASS to keep all submissions confidential, use the information for statistical purposes only, and publish aggregate data to prevent disclosing the identity of any individual producer or farm operation.

If you need a survey code or questionnaire, please contact the USDA, NASS Northeastern Regional Field Office, 4050 Crums Mill Rd., Suite 203, Harrisburg, PA 17112; Phone – 717-787-3904; eFax – 1-855-270-2719; or Email – nassrfoner@usda.gov.

NASS will release the results of the ag census in early 2024. To learn more about the Census of Agriculture, visit nass.usda.gov/AgCensus. On the website, producers and other data users can access frequently asked questions, past ag census data, special study information, and more. For highlights of these and the latest information, follow USDA NASS on Twitter at @usda_nass.

NASS is the federal statistical agency responsible for producing official data about U.S. agriculture and is committed to providing timely, accurate, and useful statistics in service to U.S. agriculture. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , ,
June 20, 2022

Sign Up By June 30 to Receive the 2022 Census of Agriculture

Sign up to be counted, agcensus counts

Agricultural producers who did not receive the 2017 Census of Agriculture and do not receive other USDA surveys or censuses have until June 30 to sign up to receive the 2022 Census of Agriculture. USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will mail ag census survey codes for responding securely online to every known U.S. producer this November. Hard copy questionnaires will follow in December.

The ag census, conducted for over 180 years, remains the only source of comprehensive and impartial agricultural data for every state and county in the nation. It includes every operation – large or small, urban or rural – from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products are produced and sold, or would normally be produced and sold, in the ag census year.

“The Census of Agriculture is a complete count of U.S. farms and ranches and the people who operate them,” said Bruce Eklund, state statistician of the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), New Jersey Field Office. “Every response is important. The Census of Agriculture is only taken once every five years and documents the value of America’s rural and urban farmers and ranchers. When it comes to Agriculture, people seek information about the local level. Help us document the importance of agriculture in your area.”

On the NASS webpage, producers can also access frequently asked questions, explore past and current ag census data, access tools to help spread the word about the upcoming ag census, learn about ag census special studies, and more.

NASS builds its distribution list for every Census of Agriculture between and during ag census through the official sign-up webpage and multiple National Agricultural Classification Surveys. To learn more about the 2022 Census of Agriculture, visit their website or call the NASS New Jersey Field Office at 503-308-0404.

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NASS is the federal statistical agency responsible for producing official data about U.S. agriculture and is committed to providing timely, accurate and useful statistics in service to U.S. agriculture. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Field, Forage & Livestock, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Nursery Tagged With: , ,
April 1, 2022

In-Person Private Applicator Exam Scheduled

Rutgers Office of Continuing Professional Education has announced an in-person session of the Private Applicator exam, exclusively for our farmers and growers, to be hosted on Wednesday, April 6 at the Burlington County office of Rutgers Cooperative Extension at 2 Academy Drive, Westampton, NJ 08060.

Each session (10:00 am and 12:30 pm) can accommodate up to 30 people, so if the demand is there, 2 sessions will be held that day. Only private applicator exams will be offered for this in-person testing event.

All examinees must be preregistered by the end of the day Monday, April 4 (details below), no walk-ins are allowed and no refunds will be given. If you register for April 6 and do not come to take the exam you will have to re-register and pay again.

All examinees must be registered ahead of time in PACER. Growers should register for an online exam, pay the $50 fee online, and then contact Jill Sullivan by phone at 848-932-7443 or by email by the end of the day on Monday, April 4 to say they want to take the exam in-person. Jill will provide registered growers with the time of the exam and location. This will also allow Jill time to create the exam answer sheets for Wednesday, April 6 and create a registration list.

For those who need help registering in PACER, there will be a second date announced for later in April, again at the Burlington County RCE office. Jill has created a registration document that you can print out, complete, and fax to Jill at 732-932-1187 or complete the information requested in the MSWord document and then email the completed form to Jill at pacer@njaes.rutgers.edu and she will register the grower and then call for the sensitive information (SSN and credit card information). The registration form is currently available through your local RCE office.

Thanks to Melissa Bravo, RCE of Salem County, for inquiring for an in-person test opportunity for our growers, to OCPE for accommodating this request and offering this opportunity for our growers, and to Burlington County RCE for hosting these exams.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Field, Forage & Livestock, Fruit, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , , ,
March 9, 2022

Grower Alert: Don’t Let Spotted Lanternfly Impact Spring Shipping

The following is an alert and reminder from NJDA and NJNLA

The spring shipping season is upon us, and Spotted Lanternfly (SLF) should be one of your top concerns. You are probably well aware of the shipping disruptions that could occur if any life stage of Spotted Lanternfly is found on outbound deliveries from NJ growers.

No doubt many of you heeded the NJ Dept. of Agriculture’s recommendations last fall and implemented control measures to prevent the spread of neighboring infestations into your nursery or greenhouse facility. To the extent that those efforts might have come up short, you would be well advised to begin scouting and removing any egg masses (and adult carcasses) from your crops – especially as items are being loaded for shipment. Otherwise, you run the risk of contaminated shipments being fully rejected by the vigorous inspections that are planned at out-of-state retail and landscape destinations this season.

Even though you may disagree with these measures, be advised that it remains within the discretion of any state to impose crippling load-by-load phytosanitary requirements on future deliveries.

Load-rejections that occurred last fall underscore the seriousness of the Spotted Lanternfly situation and the far-reaching impact it might have on your business and the NJ industry at large.

Additionally, Spotted Lanternfly training permits are required for each company driver who delivers your plants out-of-state. This training is relatively simple and available online by clicking HERE.

Should you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to NJNLA (609-291-7070) or the NJ Department of Agriculture Plant Diagnostic Lab (609-406-6939).

Joseph Zoltowski, NJDA; Ed Overdevest and Lori Jenssen, NJNLA

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Nursery, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , ,
February 19, 2022

NJDA and NJDEP to Address Pesticide License Recertification Issues

NJDA Secretary Fisher recently shared a memo regarding a number of private pesticide licensees who have not received their current licenses from the NJDEP Pesticide Bureau. Following is most of the text of that memo.

Through a recent meeting between NJDA and the NJDEP Pesticide Bureau staff, we have identified two primary areas that may need your particular attention to ensure your license remains active:

1.) Not receiving nor submitting their invoices via the postal service through the mail. In this case, licensees can get their invoices online through the NJDEP pesticide website by submitting their invoices to NJDEP for processing when received, even if there is a $0.00 (zero) dollar value.

2.) Lack of credits through either Core or PP2, or a combination of both. There is a 5-year time period for all licensees to get enough credits for their license. Courses are available online for licensees to get credits. Once the coursework is completed online, it should take approximately two weeks for the unit to process the information to post on their website. Directions below explain how to locate and pay for invoices (which must be submitted back to the unit for processing, even if it is a $0.00 [zero] dollar invoice).

Licensees can check on the number of credits they have acquired by going to the NJDEP pesticide webpage and following the directions posted there.

Below are the directions necessary to look up invoice numbers and then use said numbers to pay for a license online. Once again, we remind you paying your invoice online is a faster way to receive your license. All invoices, even if it’s $0.00 (zero) dollars need to be processed, otherwise your license will not be issued.

Please follow the NJDEP directions below:

Directions to locate an invoice number

  • Go to www.pcpnj.org
  • Scroll to the bottom of the page. Under heading About Us click on “Pesticides”
  • Scroll to the bottom of the page and “Click here to view Links.”
  • Under the heading Online Payments and Reports Click on the link labelled “Invoice Numbers for Unpaid License Invoices”
  • Enter License number (make sure to capitalize any letters at the end or your license number) and other items
  • Click Submit

Directions to pay for license online

  1. Go to www.pcpnj.org
  2. Scroll to the bottom of the page. Under heading About Us click on “Pesticides”
  3. Scroll to the bottom of the page and “Click here to view Links.”
  4. Under the heading Online Payments and Reports, click on the link labelled “Pay For Your License Online”
  5. Enter Invoice number (found on paper invoice, or previously located using our website using directions above)
  6. Enter License number (make sure to capitalize any letters at the end or your license number)
  7. Click Submit and follow prompts from there

Sincerely,

Douglas H. Fisher

Filed Under: Blueberry, Commercial Ag Updates, Cranberry, Field, Forage & Livestock, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Nursery, Strawberry, Tree Fruit, Turf, Vegetable Crops, Wine Grape Tagged With: , ,