209.02.1-II. Rules on Vegetable and Small Fruit Plants.
AR ADC 209.02.1-IIArkansas Administrative Code
Ark. Admin. Code 209.02.1-II
209.02.1-II. Rules on Vegetable and Small Fruit Plants.
A. Rules on the Sale of Vegetable Garden Plants including Sweet Potato and Strawberry Plants. Any person selling, offering for sale, or transplanting for sale any vegetable garden plants including sweet potato and strawberry plants for planting purposes within or into the State of Arkansas shall meet the following requirements. Vegetable plants grown in soil-less media are exempt from these Rules.
a. Arkansas Producers. Permit Numbers will be assigned to Arkansas producers upon receipt of Plant Board application forms and the required inspection fees. Even though a Permit Number has been assigned, no sales shall be made until a producer's plants have been inspected and found reasonably free of insects, diseases and noxious weeds. The Plant Board shall cancel a Permit Number anytime the producer's plants are found infested with insects, plant diseases and noxious weeds which may be disseminated with the plants, as declared in Section 1.
Producers who wish to have their own rubber stamps, printed labels, special tags or stakes made with their Permit Number included thereon shall file applications early enough to allow time for this. The Plant Board does not supply labels or tags of any kind for plants.
If early application, before inspections have been made, should be necessary to allow time for the preparation of rubber stamps, printed labels, special tags or printed stakes with the Arkansas Permit Number included thereon, the application shall be accompanied by a statement from a Plant Regulatory Official of the state involved certifying that the producer's plants will be kept under periodic inspection during the shipping season and that certificates of inspection will be filed with the Plant Board as inspections are made. The statement shall also certify that anytime a producer's plants do not pass inspection the State Plant Board shall be notified so the Arkansas Permit Number can be canceled.
By special permission of the Director, plants may be brought into Arkansas without Permit Numbers, to be inspected by Plant Board inspectors at a specified destination point on arrival, and Permit Numbers issued if plants are found to be reasonably free of diseases, insects and noxious weeds.
For fees or charges by the Plant Board, See Section IV, Fees.
Special Rules for the Production of Non-Certified Strawberry Plants.
1. Filing Application. Application on forms furnished by the Plant Board may be made by either the grower or by shipper contracting for grower's plants, and must be made at least 10 days before inspection is desired and must be accompanied by necessary fees. To help insure against the red stele disease, no application will be accepted on a field known to have been exposed to red stele, for example, by drainage from a known-infested field, or if the mother-plants have come from a known-infested field. If possible, applications should be made by September 1. If application is made by the contractor, a copy of the contract must accompany the application. Also verification must be made as to variety, source, quantity and quality of plants used to plant fields to be inspected.
e. Fall inspection will be made as nearly as possible between September 1 and October 31. Inspectors will dig and examine not less than 100 plants per acre, taking plants from not less than 15 places per acre, well distributed. (a) Fields will be condemned if more than 3% of plants show root-knot nematodes, or if more than 3% of new plants show crown borer signs, or if more than 10% of old and new plants combined show crown borer signs. (b) Fields will be condemned if more than 3% of the plants are affected with either summer dwarf, yellows, or bud rot, except that fields containing not more than 10% of any of these, if rouged down to the 3% tolerance and reinspected, will be passed. (c) Fields generally or severely infested with leaf spot or scorch will be condemned. (d) Fields containing noxious weeds, such as wild garlic or nut grass, which might be spread in the bundles of plants, will be condemned. On fields which pass fall inspection, strawberry plant certificates will be issued, dated to expire February 15, under which plants from said fields may be sold up to that time. This applies to fields set with inspected plants only.
f. Red Stele Inspection. If fall-inspected and-passed fields are not dug by February 15, another inspection must be made before they are sold, and if the plants are then found free of disease, a new certificate will be issued which will be valid for the remainder of the shipping season, expiring June 30. Inspectors will dig and examine not less than 100 plants per acre, taking plants from a number of places well-distributed. The location of places of digging plants shall be at the discretion of the inspector. He will make every effort to dig plants in area where red stele is likely to be most evident. Plants will be examined by slicing several roots on each plant so that the stele of the root is exposed. Should even 1 plant show red stele, this will disqualify the entire field (suspected plants will be sent to the University of Arkansas, Plant Pathology Department for confirmation).
3. Certificates. (1) Strawberry plant certificates, both those expiring February 15 and those expiring June 30, will be issued only to the growers of the plants, for use on their own plants that are inspected and approved. (2) Nursery Certificates (or dealer's certificates), instead of strawberry plant certificates, will be issued to growers or contractors who deal in bought strawberry plants, in addition to their own plants, or who grow other nursery stock in addition to strawberry plants. A complete record of all sales must be kept by the applicant and shall be made available to the Plant Board upon request.
Note: For Rules governing the production of certified, that is, Foundation, Registered, Certified Blue Tag, or Certified Green Tag strawberry plants, contact the Plant Board office.
For fees charged, see Section IV, Fees.
1. Filing Application. Growers desiring to produce certified seed sweet potatoes must file application on forms furnished by the Plant Board, along with the necessary fees, by June 15 of each year. Applications for the certification of sweet potato plants must be filed at least 30 days prior to the bedding of the seed, along with the necessary fees.
Application forms will be furnished for this purpose. Applicants must agree to get prior approval of bedding sites, bed only Arkansas certified seed, and sell only Arkansas certified plants.
2. Inspections. Fields for the production of certified seed shall be inspected twice during the growing season by Plant Board inspectors to determine freedom from diseases, insects and noxious weeds. To qualify, fields must be in a reasonably good state of cultivation and free enough from weeds and grass so that a complete observation of the sweet potatoes can be made at each inspection. Also, fields must be apparently free of disease, insects and noxious weeds as declared in Section 1 that might be disseminated with the seed.
At least one or more inspections of plant beds shall be made during the selling season, and to qualify plants must be reasonably free of diseases, insects, and noxious weeds as declared in Section 1, that may be disseminated with the plants.
At least one storage or bin inspection shall be made on seed potatoes for certification. Potatoes shall be so stored that they are accessible for a complete inspection, and no chance of contamination by other potatoes. If potatoes are found to be free of disease and insects and have qualified in other respects they are eligible for certifications.
3. Grade Standards. Seed sweet potatoes which are sold as certified shall meet the following standards. They must be smooth, free from dirt, breaks, cracks, serious crooks, bruises, decay, decayed spots, disease sign, and insect damage or signs. They must be from one inch to three and one-half inches in diameter, and at least three inches and not over nine inches long, and not over 5% may be round, or oval shaped, unless the buyer specifies “field run” in which case any potatoes over one-half inch in diameter may be included. They must be packed in new containers.
For fees charged, see Section IV, Fees.
Credits
Amended Jan. 2, 2010; Dec. 30, 2010; May 1, 2011; Feb. 1, 2012.
Current with amendments received through February 15, 2024. Some sections may be more current, see credit for details.
Ark. Admin. Code 209.02.1-II, AR ADC 209.02.1-II
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