A Big Win for Horticulture Crops: Inside the 2026 Farm Bill

What It Means for Texas Nursery & Landscape Members

The House Agriculture Committee has released the 2026 Farm Bill, and for Texas green industry businesses, this is the strongest proposal we have seen in years. This bill aims to make meaningful structural improvements for nursery producers, which has a direct downstream impact on the entire green industry, from growers to landscape contractors to retail garden centers.

In addition to strengthening risk management tools, the 2026 Farm Bill includes significant grant and research investments that directly support Texas specialty crop producers. Federal research dollars, block grants, and extension-supported programs funded through the Farm Bill help drive innovation, pest management solutions, workforce training, and consumer education. For many in our industry, these grants are the foundation for long-term competitiveness and market growth.

It has been nearly a decade since Congress passed a full Farm Bill. Since then, our industry has operated under short-term extensions while facing historic freezes, hurricanes, prolonged drought, labor shortages, supply chain disruption, and rising input costs. Our industry needs stability, not temporary patches.

This proposal delivers meaningful progress in the areas that matter most to the green industry:

• 🌾 Stronger specialty crop insurance tools
• 🌳 Improved disaster relief for tree and perennial producers
• 🧯 A permanent specialty crop emergency framework
• 🌱 Expanded irrigation efficiency and conservation cost-share programs
• 🔬 Major investments in automation and labor-saving research
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In short, this bill strengthens risk management, improves disaster response, supports water efficiency, and invests in the long-term competitiveness of specialty crop producers.

Below are the provisions most relevant to Texas nursery and landscape businesses.

Crop Insurance Improvements for Specialty Crops

The Most Important Long-Term Stability Tool

• Establishes a Specialty Crop Advisory Committee
• Directs development of new policies for crops lacking coverage

Why this matters for Texas:

Specialty crop producers have historically had fewer crop insurance options than row crops.

For nurseries and perennial growers, insurance gaps mean:

• Greater financial exposure to freezes and drought
• Difficulty securing operating capital
• Higher lending risk
• Less business stability

Improving specialty crop insurance tools strengthens:
✔ Risk management
✔ Access to credit
✔ Lender confidence
✔ Long-term investment in nursery operations
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For many members, crop insurance is not just a safety net, it is what allows the business to operate.

🌳 Tree Assistance Program (TAP) – Stronger & Faster Relief

Critical for Perennial Producers

​The bill significantly strengthens the Tree Assistance Program (TAP).

Key Improvements:

• Expands eligibility to include biennial tree producers
• Includes plant pests in the definition of “natural disaster”
• Requires USDA to act on applications within 120 days
• Allows upfront payments to begin replanting immediately
• Provides flexibility to replant different varieties, densities, or locations

Why this matters for Texas nurseries:

Texas producers routinely face:

• Freeze events
• Hurricanes and flooding
• Severe drought
• Invasive pest outbreaks

Trees and shrubs are long-term capital investments. When inventory is lost, recovery can take years.
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Including pest losses and allowing upfront payments makes TAP far more usable in real-world disaster recovery — particularly after major freeze events like we’ve experienced in recent years.

Specialty Crop Emergency Assistance Framework

Ending the “Ad Hoc” Approach

For the first time, USDA would be required to establish a standing framework for specialty crop disaster assistance.
This framework:

• Provides direct assistance for economic crises or market disruptions
• Calculates payments based on prior-year specialty crop sales
• Recognizes higher input costs and unique business structures

Why this matters:

Historically, specialty crops have depended on slow, uncertain, ad hoc disaster bills.

This creates predictability when:

• Weather devastates production
• Input costs spike
• Market demand collapses

For Texas nurseries and landscape supply chains, certainty matters.

🌱 Conservation & Water Tools

Supporting Irrigation Efficiency & Long-Term Water Resilience

Water remains one of the defining policy challenges in Texas. While the Farm Bill is federal, it provides tools that directly support water efficiency.

Conservation Programs (EQIP & CSP)

• Expands eligibility for precision agriculture technologies
• Incorporates irrigation efficiency and water conservation practices
• Updates watershed and flood programs

Why this matters for TNLA members:

Federal conservation dollars help:

• Improve irrigation efficiency
• Offset capital costs for conservation upgrades
• Support water-smart landscape practices
• Strengthen watershed resilience

As Texas continues to debate long-term water supply strategies, these federal tools complement state-level efforts and reduce costs for producers implementing conservation practices.

🔬Research, Grants & Innovation Investments

Driving Competitiveness & Market Growth
The Farm Bill invests heavily in specialty crop research and grant programs that directly benefit Texas nursery producers.
Key Programs:
• Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI)
• Specialty Crop Block Grants
• Extension-supported pest management and disease response
• Mechanization and automation research funding
• Market development and consumer education initiatives

​Why this matters:

Farm Bill research dollars help:
• Develop freeze-resistant and drought-tolerant varieties
• Improve pest and disease response
• Advance automation and labor-saving technologies
• Fund university partnerships and extension outreach
• Support marketing initiatives that promote specialty crops
In Texas, these dollars often flow through universities, extension services, and industry partnerships — directly impacting nursery production practices and market demand.

🌿 Horticulture & Specialty Crop Programs

Strengthening Producer Voice

The Horticulture Title improves specialty crop programs and strengthens producer engagement.

• Requires Specialty Crop Block Grant administrators to consult with producers
• Maintains Local Agriculture Market Program funding
• Continues support for organic production programs
• Includes regulatory reform language aimed at improving transparency

Why this matters:

Specialty Crop Block Grants in Texas often fund:

• Pest management programs
• Research partnerships
• Market development initiatives

Ensuring producer consultation strengthens how those dollars are prioritized at the state level.

📌 Bottom Line for TNLA Members

This Farm Bill draft represents:
✔ Stronger specialty crop insurance tools
✔ More effective disaster relief for nursery and perennial producers
✔ A permanent specialty crop emergency assistance framework
✔ Expanded irrigation and water efficiency tools
✔ Significant research and automation investments
✔ Robust specialty crop grant funding that supports innovation, extension, and market development
✔ Stronger specialty crop representation in federal programs

Beyond risk management improvements, the grant and research dollars in this bill are critically important to Texas specialty crop producers. Programs like the Specialty Crop Research Initiative and Specialty Crop Block Grants fund university partnerships, pest and disease research, water-use efficiency studies, automation development, and market expansion efforts.

In Texas, these dollars often flow through Texas A&M AgriLife, extension services, and industry collaborations — directly impacting nursery production practices, pest management strategies, workforce training, and consumer education initiatives that grow demand for specialty crops.

For the green industry, this is one of the most specialty-crop-forward Farm Bill proposals in recent history. It recognizes that specialty crops require tailored risk management tools, long-term research investment, and dedicated grant programs to remain competitive.

Passing a full Farm Bill this year is essential to provide the stability, innovation funding, and predictability that Texas nursery and landscape businesses depend on to grow, adapt, and compete in an increasingly challenging environment.