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of legal precedents in existing federal and state laws and 

 regulations properly and fully recognizes and treats nursery crop 

 production as part of agriculture. 



Clearly, any definition of "agricultural lands" which is limited 

 solely to food and fiber production, and ignores nursery crop 

 production, is an inadequate and arbitrary one bringing into 

 question those policies which embrace such narrowly crafted 

 definitions. 



NURSERY FARMS ARE INTENSIVELY USED AND MANAGED FOR THE PRODUCTION 

 OF AGRICULTURAL CROPS 



Production nurseries comprise a diverse, dynamic segment of 

 agriculture. Unlike food, feed and fiber crop farmers, nursery 

 farms may produce hundreds or even thousands of plant varieties 

 on anywhere from a few acres to hundreds of acres or more. Yet 

 basic plant needs, such as adequate water, soil fertility, and 

 pest management, must be met as with other crops. Therefore, 

 equipment needs and production practices are analogous to most 

 agricultural crops. 



An estimated 450,000 acres are in nursery crop cultivation, both 

 in the open, and in permanent or temporary greenhouses. Nursery 

 crops include, but are not limited to ornamental and shade trees, 

 evergreen trees, flowering and evergreen shrubs, fruit trees and 

 plants, groundcovers and vines, perennial plants, potted foliage 

 and flowering plants, and annual bedding plants. Plants may be 

 grown in rows or beds in the soil much like other crops, or in 

 containers. They may be harvested as young plants (called 

 liners) and sold to other nurseries to be "grown-on," or they may 

 be sold as "finished" plants to landscape professionals, retail 

 establishments, municipalities, and government agencies. 



Most food, feed and fiber crops are annual crops as they are 

 planted and harvested in the same growing season. Nursery crops 

 may have a growing cycle of a few months (bedding plants) , one 

 growing season (some liners and fast-growing crops) , one to three 

 years (many shrubs, and smaller caliper-sizes of ornamental, 

 evergreen or shade trees) , up to seven years or more (some 

 landscape-sized shade, flowering, and evergreen trees, and 

 slow-growing varieties) . Nurseries typically schedule the 

 planting, transplanting, and harvest of plants to ensure annual 

 harvests of the desired size and quantity of each variety grown. 

 This means that growing fields may contain "blocks" of plants in 

 various stages of growth, to be harvested over a period of years. 



Throughout their various growing periods, nursery crops are 



