Kentucky's Alert! Boxwood Blight Quarantine Office of the State Entomologist
WHAT WE ASK FOR YOU TO DO
At the request of the production nurseries of Tennessee, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture has implemented a boxwood blight quarantine (effective February 4, 2018). This WILL impact any KY nurseries that ship boxwoods to TN.
There are several steps that KY nurseries will need to take before they can resume shipments to TN. First, they will need to become enrolled in a boxwood blight cleanliness program which will be administered through the State Entomologist's Office. This program is aimed at prevention of the disease and is based upon 6 key steps: exclusion, water management, sanitation, inspection, training and recordkeeping. The next step is that each load of boxwoods going to TN will require a state phytosanitary certificate which is also issued by the State Entomologist's Office. Currently there is no charge for these certificates.
This quarantine applies to all boxwoods (container, B&B, liners, plugs etc). KY nurseries that ship boxwoods to TN should contact Joe Collins for more information. It is important to not wait until the last minute to finalize all the details. The boxwood blight cleanliness program will require a site visit by an inspector prior to enrolling in the program and state phytosanitary certificates may require several days to generate.