Miami Agriculture Guide: Miami-Dade Farms, Gardens and Farm Offices

Anyone planning to host a farmers' market in the City of Miami must apply for a city Farmers' Market Permit, and the rules for farmers' markets are in section 62-622 of the City Code (City of Miami).

The city lists two more eligibility conditions: the parcel of land must be a minimum of 5,000 square feet, and the property can not have any code enforcement violation or liens on it. The fee for the permit is $500, reduced to $250 for a nonprofit organization or one that accepts EBT/SNAP benefits, and the application must be submitted at least 30 days before the start of the market. The application and an Indemnification/Hold Harmless Affidavit must be signed and notarized. After Zoning reviews the application, the applicant sends notification letters to the abutting properties and the surrounding neighborhood homeowner associations. A business tax receipt is required when admission is charged or sales are conducted, and a tent larger than 10x10 needs a separate fire safety permit. If a permit is not approved, the city says the applicant will be notified by email within 30 days. The Zoning contact for the permit is 305-416-1495 (City of Miami Farmers' Market Permit).

Trees are the other city touchpoint. The City of Miami Resilience and Public Works department supports urban forestry initiatives to expand the canopy, its Tree Maintenance team maintains trees in the public right-of-way, and the department takes requests for a tree in the city right of way; its phone is (305) 416-1200 (City of Miami Resilience and Public Works). Farm zoning, farm buildings and the county farm economy are covered on the Miami-Dade County agriculture page, summarized in the sections below.

Digital Towns has no deeper guides filed under the Miami agriculture section yet. Plant questions are covered in the Miami native plants section, which has coastal hammock, mangrove and pine rockland guides.

Last verified: October 15, 2026, on the Miami-Dade County website, the City of Miami website and the UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade County website.

Miami-Dade County ranks first in the U.S. in production of ornamental plants and second in Florida in overall farm production value, according to the county agriculture page (Miami-Dade County).

The county describes its agricultural industry as one of the most diverse in the country, with a tropical climate that provides a year-round growing season and the ability to produce an extremely wide range of crops. Miami-Dade is one of very few areas in the United States with winter production of fruits and vegetables and with production of certain ornamental plants and tropical crops. About 89 percent of the county's agricultural products are shipped out of the region to markets in the northeast and central U.S. and Canada, and the county's agricultural area is designated by the USDA as having soils of unique importance (Miami-Dade County).

The county also says a farmer's land, in addition to producing crops, acts as open space that allows for water recharge areas and wildlife habitat, providing a benefit to all residing in Miami-Dade County. Its agriculture page links resources on ornamental production, tropical fruit production, vegetable production and pesticide applicator training, along with Farm Credit and farmworker employment training (Miami-Dade Agriculture).

Two offices handle most Miami-Dade farm and garden questions: the county Agricultural Manager at 10710 SW 211 Street, Suite 109, phone 305-971-5091 (Miami-Dade County), and UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade County at 18710 SW 288th Street in Homestead, phone (305) 248-3311 (UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade).

UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade County is open Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., takes email at [email protected], and describes itself as the liaison between research conducted by scientists at the University of Florida and other universities and the local community. Its program list includes the Master Gardener Program, Commercial Urban Horticulture, Home Gardens and Landscapes, and Florida Yards and Neighborhoods (UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade).

The county also has a 13-member Agricultural Practices Advisory Board that generally meets on the first Wednesday of each month at 9 a.m. at the John D. Campbell Agricultural Auditorium, 18710 SW 288 Street in Homestead (Miami-Dade County), the same street address the Extension office lists (UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade).

The county agriculture page sits under Miami-Dade Regulatory and Economic Resources, whose director, Lourdes M. Gomez, is listed at the Stephen P. Clark Center, 111 NW 1st Street, 11th Floor, Miami, FL 33128, phone 305-375-2877. The Agricultural Manager is listed separately at 10710 SW 211 Street, Suite 109, Miami, FL 33189 (Miami-Dade Regulatory and Economic Resources).

Miami-Dade's AU Agricultural Use Zoning District allows agricultural uses and single family residences, typically with a minimum five-acre lot (Miami-Dade County), and the countywide fertilizer rules exempt bona fide farm operations and vegetable and community gardens from the summer ban (Miami-Dade fertilizer rules).

A non-residential farm building in Miami-Dade is currently reviewed through a Zoning Improvement Permit application, and the county Homeowner and Small Business Permitting Assistance Team answers questions at 786-315-2388. The county allows rural event venues in agriculturally zoned areas for special functions such as weddings, receptions, corporate meetings or similar gatherings, with a Certificate of Use to operate as a rural event venue. The agriculture page also links applications for a nursery certificate and an aquaculture certificate (Miami-Dade Agriculture).

The Miami-Dade fertilizer ordinance, adopted in April 2021, says no fertilizer containing nitrogen or phosphorus may be applied in Miami-Dade County from May 15 through October 31, and it provides exemptions for vegetable and community gardens, athletic fields, bona fide farm operations and certain golf courses and parks. The county says the ban covers the summer rainy season, when nutrients are more likely to be carried in water flowing off the urban landscape. Separately, fertilizer is never allowed in fertilizer-free zones within 20 feet of the top of the bank of any water body, stormwater drain, Biscayne Bay or wetlands, and application is limited to no more than four pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet per calendar year (Miami-Dade County).

The 2026 Miami-Dade County Biscayne Bay Report Card release lists the use of lawn fertilizers during the rainy season among the everyday sources contributing to pollution in the bay, along with stormwater runoff and leaky or poorly maintained septic tanks, and asks residents to avoid fertilizer use from May 15 through October 31 (Miami-Dade County). Violations related to the fertilizer ordinance are reported to the DERM complaint desk at 305-372-6955, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (Miami-Dade DERM). The ban runs through October 31, so it is still in force in mid October 2026.

In October 2026, UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade County posted two items on the two-spot cotton leafhopper, on October 7 and October 13, 2026 (UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade).

The October 7 post is titled Regulatory Status and Compliance Agreement for Two-spot Cotton Leafhopper (Amrasca biguttula), and the October 13 post is Management Considerations for the Two-spot Cotton Leafhopper in Hibiscus in Florida. The office also posted Starfruit Spotlight on October 12, 2026 (UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade).

As directed by the Board of County Commissioners, Miami-Dade County and the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences conducted a comprehensive study, released in October 2023, that assessed economic trends in Miami-Dade agriculture and set out to determine the amount of land needed to maintain an economically viable agricultural industry, including projected agricultural land needs for 2030, 2040 and 2050. The county agriculture page lists 305-375-2835 for questions about the study (Miami-Dade County). The Miami-Dade County Fair and Exposition lists its 2027 run as March 18 to April 11, 2027, except March 29 to 30 and April 5 to 6, at 10901 Coral Way, Miami 33165 (Miami-Dade County Fair).