{"id":1603,"date":"2026-09-04T19:14:41","date_gmt":"2026-09-04T19:14:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.rutgers.edu\/nursery-ipm\/?page_id=1603"},"modified":"2026-09-04T19:14:41","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T19:14:41","slug":"actionable-diseases","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.rutgers.edu\/nursery-ipm\/actionable-diseases\/","title":{"rendered":"Actionable Diseases"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>Actionable Diseases of Concern for New Jersey Nurseries <\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Actionable plant diseases present pressing biological and economic threats to the commercial nursery industry, landscape ecosystems, and timber resources in New Jersey. Caused by fungi, bacteria, oomycetes, and nematodes, these pathogens can cause tissue necrosis, vascular wilt, canopy decline, and tree mortality. Many of these organisms are subject to strict regulatory quarantines or cause irreversible crop loss, and early identification, strict biosecurity, and rapid reporting are vital to protecting commercial nursery production.<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"mceTemp\"><strong>What Defines an Actionable Disease?<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>Actionable diseases are prioritized in plant pathology, triggering immediate regulatory interventions, quarantine protocols, and intensive eradication measures when they are detected. In nursery production settings, these pathogens are often characterized by their potential for rapid spread, severe economic damage, and status as state or federally regulated entities (i.e. USDA Select Agents). The discovery of an actionable pathogen within a facility can lead to mandated stop-sale orders, destruction of host blocks, or long-term soil quarantine restrictions.<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"mceTemp\"><strong>Quarantine Policies<\/strong><\/h5>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>National Regulations (USDA-APHIS):<\/strong> The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) establishes federal quarantines to prevent the interstate movement of plant material that carries actionable diseases. USDA-APHIS mandates strict compliance agreements, pre-shipment certifications, and sanitary standards for nurseries that are propagating or shipping host material out of established regulated regions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>State Regulations (NJDA):<\/strong> The New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA) Division of Plant Industry enforces state-level plant health standards, conducts routine health surveys, and oversees eradication efforts in the event that high consequence pathogens are detected in commercial production or nearby natural habitats.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h5 class=\"mceTemp\"><strong>Mandatory Reporting<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>If you suspect or confirm the presence of a regulated invasive pest (such as vascular wilt, severe interveinal leaf banding, unusual stem cankers, or unexplained root rot) in your nursery stock:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Isolate the Affected Stock:<\/strong> Stop all movement or shipping of suspected plant material immediately. Flag and isolate all affected blocks or field rows. Discontinue overhead irrigation to prevent waterborne pathogen dispersal and spread.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Collect Details:<\/strong> Note the host plant species, location, photos of symptoms\/pests, and the extent of the infection.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Implement Sanitation Measures:<\/strong> Disinfect tools, pruning shears, footwear, and equipment with approved sanitizers (70% ethanol, 10% bleach) before moving between production areas.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Notify State &amp; Federal Authorities:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>NJDA Division of Plant Industry:<\/strong> Call 609-406-6939 or email plantindustry@ag.nj.gov.<\/li>\n<li><strong>USDA-APHIS NJ State Plant Health Director:<\/strong> Call 609-259-5260.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Rutgers Cooperative Extension:\u00a0<\/strong>Contact your local county agriculture agent for field-level evaluation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h5 class=\"mceTemp\"><strong>Diagnostic Support<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Symptoms of actionable diseases often mimic abiotic stress or secondary infections, so lab verification is recommended and often necessary. For official confirmation and diagnosis, submit samples to the <\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Rutgers Plant Diagnostic Laboratory<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"40\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Website:<\/span><\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/njaes.rutgers.edu\/plant-diagnostic-lab\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Rutgers Plant Diagnostic Lab<\/span><\/a> <span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"40\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"2\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Location:<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> Ralph Geiger Center, CVI, 20 Dudley Road, New Brunswick, NJ 08901<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"40\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Contact:<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> 848-932-9140 | <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/search?q=mailto%3Aplant-clinic%40njaes.rutgers.edu\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">plant-clinic@njaes.rutgers.edu<\/span><\/a><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"40\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Submission Guidelines:\u00a0<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"40\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Double-bag live tissue samples showing early-to-intermediate symptoms<\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"40\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Avoid completely dead material<\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"40\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Keep the samples cool during transport<\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"40\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Do not add wet paper towels to avoid tissue rot<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Actionable Diseases of Concern for New Jersey Nurseries Actionable plant diseases present pressing biological and economic threats to the commercial nursery industry, landscape ecosystems, and timber resources in New Jersey. &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/sites.rutgers.edu\/nursery-ipm\/actionable-diseases\/\" class=\"\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3407,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1603","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Actionable Diseases - Nursery IPM<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, 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