CNLA - Growing & Creating Our Future - 1922-2022

Growing & Creating Our Future

OUR MISSION

CNLA, with the Provincial Associations, will develop programs, undertake initiatives and form alliances in order to achieve sustainable prosperity for members and stakeholders.

OUR VISION

A prosperous, professional and ethical industry that is recognized, valued and utilized by the public, as a result of the environmental, economic and life-style benefits provided by our members' products and services.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rita Weerdenburg began working for Braun Nursery in 1976, immediately following her graduation from Humber College’s Landscape Technology Program. She spent several years in the nursery sector, including as a partner of Independent Horticultural Supplies, a re-wholesale nursery business located in Oakville. In 1983, Rita started her own trade newsletter, Horticulture Review. The business was purchased by Landscape Ontario in 1989, at which time Rita took on the position of publisher and editorial director for both Horticulture Review as the provincial magazine, and Landscape Trades as Canada’s national magazine.

In 2003, she joined the staff at CNLA to take on the newly created position of Growers’ Manager, until her retirement in May 2019.

Hello Everyone,

As challenging as times are, we experience good fortune. Many Canadians are starting to understand how ornamental horticulture contributes to the health and happiness experienced in their daily lives. The power of plants is beginning to show. Plants are here to help. You are here to do more of what you love. Grow!

Back in the days when cultivating woody plants in horticulture, never mind perennials, was focused mainly on the production of orchard plants, it was impossible for our forebears to predict the wonders of the world that awaited us in the science, technology, business and art of Ornamental Horticulture. Their vision of association, focusing on government and industry cooperation set the stage for growth.

On this 100th anniversary of our industry associations and horticulture in Canada, we are celebrating growth. Growth of association, growth of horticulture, growth of relationships, growth of business, growth of country, growth of land stewardship, growth in knowledge, growth of plants.

Nous reconnaissons nos origines l’Ontario et le Québec, les deux provinces fondatrices de l’Association des Pépiniéristes de l’Est du Canada ECNA, devenu le CAN, le CNTA puis maintenant le CNLA/ACPP.

We also celebrate, applaud and thank our provincial associations and national members who, as partners, created the good fortune we all now enjoy. CNLA is comprised of a trifactor of sectors, Garden Centres Canada, Landscape Canada, and Growers Canada. We manage the Canadian Ornamental Plant Foundation, Green Cities Foundation, Communities in Bloom and the Canadian Nursery Certification Institute. We are partners in the Canadian Ornamental Horticulture Association, International Association of Horticultural Producers, International Garden Centre Association and the European Landscape Contractors Association. We are growing.

We thank our founders and all the volunteers who have followed in their footsteps for forging friendships and professional relationships with Government, with partners in horticulture nationally and internationally, with suppliers, and most importantly within our member companies. We are who we are because of you!

People in our cities are connecting with plants! Canadians are understanding the need for nature-based ecosystems to be within walking distance of where they live. Urban forestry, urban agriculture, and sustainable green spaces are terms that are now understood. Through plants, we will be doing our part to help mitigate the effects of our changing climate. This is all cause for celebration!

As a trade association we are excited that what we love to do contributes to the well-being of Canadians. Today our association is being asked to go beyond trade and participate in the task of mitigating the effects of climate change while helping Canadians learn how to protect our air, water and soil through the power of plants.

The health of mind, body and soul that ornamental horticulture brings to society is unparalleled by any other profession. Throughout the year, whether in private or public gardens, Canadians are treated to the breathtaking nature of our landscapes, the fragrance of freshly mowed lawns, the uplifting rustle of aspens, the rhythmic sway of miscanthus, the singing of songbirds, the buzzing of honeybees, the soothing flow of water, the aromatic flavours of a Cox’s Orange Pippen apple, the fragrance of lilacs, the explosive colour of impatiens, the blazing red of fall, the joy of poinsettia, the freshness of the air, hugs and picnics in the shade of Ash trees and on and on.

On behalf of the members of CNLA/ACPP, thank you for your participation and dedication in elevating ornamental horticulture to new heights. Thank you for the Legacy you have given your fellow Canadians.

Canadians can count on the ornamental horticulture family to help them reconnect with nature through plants during this ‘Year of the Garden’ and well beyond.

On our 100th anniversary may you find laughter in memories, happiness in friendship, prosperity in business and enthusiasm for the future.

Bonne chance a tous!

Anthony O'Neill, CNLA President

Message from the Minister

Congratulations to the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association as you celebrate 100 years of bringing beauty, sustainability and prosperity to our nation! This special 100th anniversary publication portrays the vision, determination and innovation it took to build an industry that drives our economy with over $2 billion in sales from the farm and over $700 million in exports. And what better time to celebrate than the 2022 Year of the Garden, as Canadians come together to celebrate our nation’s rich heritage of gardening and to grow a sustainable future.

Canada’s nursery and landscape sector has overcome many challenges over th e past century, but perhaps none greater than the last two years. Despite labour shortages, supply chain disruptions, high input costs and extreme weather, you continued to provide positive impacts on our planet and in the lives of Canadians.

As the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association looks to the century ahead, you can count on continued support from the Government of Canada. To ensure you have a sustainable labour supply for the future, I am working with my colleagues and Canada’s agriculture and agri-food industries to develop a long-term national labour strategy for the sector, including the horticulture industry. The Government is also continuing to support your industry with strategic investments. Recently, we announced over $1.3 million under the AgriMarketing program to help your industry grow and diversify your markets in Canada and around the world.

Once again, congratulations on reaching this amazing milestone. Thank you to the thousands of locally owned nurseries and landscape companies who are working hard to grow greener and more vibrant communities across this great country.

Here’s to another century of success!

The Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, PC, MP Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food

Digitally signed by Vukicevic, Mirna Date: 2022.07.04 11:14:27 -04'00'

SECTION 1

Eastern Canadian Nurserymen’s Association (ECNA)

the early years From ECNA to CAN 1922 to 1948

THE

HISTORY

OF THE CANADIAN NURSERY LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION and the development of the ornamental horticulture sector is closely tied to our history as a nation. Barely half a century since Confederation, with one province yet to join, there is very little resemblance to the Canada of 1922 to the still young but modern and progressive Canada we know and take great pride in today. The same can be said of the industry and its national trade association. The celebration of a 100-year anniversary provides an exceptional opportunity to reflect on the history of the successive organizations that were so vital in guiding the industry through the proverbial thick and thin to its current level of recognition and prosperity.

Focused primarily on the production of fruit trees and shrubs, the nursery grower sector of the early 1900s bore little resemblance to the nursery industry of today, but the issues faced by the sector were strikingly familiar. Reflecting on the early years of the nursery industry, Spencer McConnell, President of McConnell Nursery Company noted that “it was felt that there was a definite need for an association of nurserymen. Tariffs and other items were receiving a great deal of attention by governments around that time, and also there were other activities affecting nurserymen and there was nobody to speak for the industry at either the Federal or Provincial level.”

Sheridan Nurseries sales station on Dundas Street in the early 1930s.

The first formal meeting of nurserymen was called by Major John Connon in August 1922 to consider some legislation proposed by the Canada Department of Agriculture and to suggest the formation of an association. At a follow-up meeting held in December, Canada’s first nursery association, to be known as the Eastern Canadian Nurserymen’s Association (ECNA), was formed. The first budget of $267.04 was approved and annual membership dues were $10 per year. At the time of its formation, the Eastern Canadian Nurserymen’s Association joined the Canadian Horticultural Council (CHC) which had also been founded in the summer of 1922.

With business holdings ranging from fruit tree production to food processing, Senator E.D. Smith played a considerable role in the launch of ECNA and was the first president of that association. CHK Baillie, an employee of the Winona Nursery Company (owned by Senator Smith) was the first secretary. After a short time, the position of secretary was taken on by CHC’s Leslie Burrows, a position he held until 1948. It was widely acknowledged by the members of the Eastern Canada Nurserymen’s Association that Mr. Les Burrows and later his

successor, Bob Burns, contributed enormously to the success of the organization over the years.

In recalling those in attendance at those first two meetings, Spencer McConnell also supplied his impressions of his colleagues: l Major John Connon, Connon Nurseries Ltd, and a perfect gentleman at all times l Senator E.D. Smith, President of E.D. Smith & Sons Ltd., loved and respected by everyone l Spencer McConnell, only a short time in business and developing a green thumb l Fred W. Wellington, head of Stone & Wellington Nursery Co, and Canada’s oldest nursery l Edward B. Luke, Luke Bros. Co. Ltd, Montreal, and a friend of everyone l Stewart Davidson, Manager of Fonthill Nursery, Fonthill, and considered to be the authority on fruit trees in Canada

MADE IN CANADA

The Dropmore Scarlet honeysuckle was created by Frank Skinner.

M.I. Hogg of Toronto, and specializing in perennials l J.H. Thompson, of Stone & Wellington Nursery Co. l Leslie F. Burrows, Secretary of the Canadian Horticultural Council and later secretary of the Eastern Canada Nurserymen’s Association, and for many years the guiding hand in Canadian horticultural matters

l CHK Baillie, at the time the Secretary Treasurer of Winona Nursery Co. Ltd.

1 The CNLA expresses their sincere thanks to the Royal Botanical Gardens for providing access to their extensive collection of archival materials that is held and maintained by the RBG library. Their collection of trade magazines, newsletter and minutes were instrumental in piecing together the history of both the Eastern Canada Nurserymen’s Association and the Canadian Association of Nurserymen.

PHOTO COURTESY OF NETPS PLANT FINDER

1947 Children's Gardening Class at Royal Botanical Gardens.

council was formally incorporated with assistance from the Minister of Agriculture and the National Fruit Commissioner. Their primary objective would be “to advance all matters tending towards the improvement of the Horticultural and Allied Industries in Canada, including plant origination and registration, production, grading, packaging, transportation and marketing.”

To carry out this task it was provided that the council should be composed of elected representatives of the various industry organizations including growers, shippers, wholesalers, nurserymen, florists, packagers, and processors.

A history of the Eastern Canadian Nurserymen’s Association would not be complete without a mention of the Canadian Horticultural Council. The beginnings of the CHC can be traced back to 1896 and the formation of the Dominion Fruit Conference which was established to set grading standards for apples. The Dominion Department of Agriculture consulted with this group regularly through annual or biannual conferences, but as the meeting organizers, protocol determined that the agenda was set by the government. In June of 1922, an industry

A specific reference in the CHC’s 50th anniversary book noted that “Senator E.D. Smith of Winona, Ontario assured the conference that the nurserymen of Ontario would wish to be members of such an organization and would cooperate in every way to promote the interests of the primary producer, without whom none of the allied industries could exist.”

to CNLA, celebrating 100 years of landscaping!

At Thornbusch Landscaping, we are proud of the trust our clients place in us to enhance their properties.

A very early documentation that does exist and is maintained at the Royal Botanical Gardens it is the Annual Summaries of the Companies Act for the years 1930 to 1932, which was apparently necessary to clean up some outstanding legal documentation. The correspondence to the federal government was managed by E.B. Luke of Luke Brothers Nurserymen Limited of Montreal and Mr. Frank Burrows of the Canadian Horticultural Council. The cost of filing was six dollars per year. The directors of ECNA for the years of 1930-32 were listed as: L.L. Smith of Winona, ON; R. Endean of Richmond Hill, ON; H.B. Dunington-Grubb of Toronto, ON; S.W. McConnell of Port Burwell, ON; and K. McDonald of Ottawa, ON.

By the mid-1940s, it was agreed by the members of ECNA that it was time for change. President Spencer McConnell was quoted as complaining that he had

www.thornbuschlandscaping.com

PHOTO COURTESY OF ROYAL BOTANICAL GARDENS ARCHIVES

FIRST NORTH AMERICAN COMPANY TO ACHIEVE ‘LANDSCAPE INDUSTRY ACCREDITED COMPANY’ DESIGNATION

not heard a new joke in 25 years, the budget balance was a rather precarious four cents, and membership growth had stagnated at 22 members.

Some years earlier, there had been an attempt to form an equivalent Western Canada Nurserymen’s Association, an initiative of Saskatchewan’s T.A. Torgeson and BC’s H.J. Eddie.

Due to lack of numbers and the challenges of distance, that organization found it necessary to cease operations. In 1946, ECNA’s proposal to this group to form a national nursery association was eagerly accepted and in 1948, the vision of a national association was realized through the formation of the Canadian Association of Nurserymen (CAN).

Congratulations on the centennial Canadian Nursery Landscape Association! We wanted to express our gratitude and appreciation over the years as you realize this huge milestone!

Thank you for being an essential part of the Horticulture Industry and fostering growth and development over the last 100 years. CNLA’s contribution to the industry and our members is greatly appreciated. With an association like you, it’s easier for provincial associations to achieve our goals. Together, we celebrate and take pride in your accomplishments and commitment to excellence. BCLNA looks forward to our continued partnership and many years of success and innovation to come.

www.bclna.com

Nurserymen of Ontario would wish to be members of such an organization and would cooperate in every way to promote the interests of the primary producer, without whom none of the allied industries could exist. Senator E.D. Smith of Winona, Ontario

SECTION 1

Canadian Association of Nurserymen (CAN)

the first national association Canadian Association of Nurserymen 1948 to 1964

caption

AFTER THE FORMATION OF A NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, the management of issues of concern to the nursery sector continued to be capably managed by secretary-treasurer J.R. Bob Burns of the Canadian Horticultural Council. In an interview with Gwen Stupple for the 50th anniversary issue of Canadian Nurseryman magazine (1973), Mr. Burns noted that in 1948, the issues had not changed much since the association was first formed in 1922, and the same was true at the time of the interview.

The major issues of the day included plant protection, industry promotion, fair trade practices, ornamental horticultural standards, invasive pest threats, and the always present need for adequate funding to finance the association’s activities. “Many services were undertaken by inspired officers and directors without rendering expense accounts.” Many notable names of dedicated directors and committee chairs, including Al Luke, Carl Luck, Leno Mori, Frank Fidler, JV Stensson, Fred Stensson, Ted Shuttleworth, Len Cullen and more, were credited by Mr. Burns for their commitment to the advancement of the association.

The Canadian Association of Nurserymen (CAN) was a direct member-based association, and although most membership

from allied industry members was encouraged, nursery growers continued to make up most of the membership.

In 1953, the BC growers formed a nursery organization, the Lower Mainland Division of Canadian Association of Nurserymen. Following a 1955 visit to BC by then Canadian president JV Stensson and Executive Secretary Bob Burns, the BC association changed their name to the BC Division of Canadian Association of Nurserymen and an agreement was reached on a split of the membership dues between the provincial and national group.

Thanks in large part to Canada’s post-war economic boom, landscape companies and production nurseries of all shapes and sizes were springing up across Canada. It was felt that the CAN’s national mandate was not adequately meeting the needs of smaller companies, and it was only a matter of time before the need to organize at the regional level was realized.

The Manitoba Nurserymen’s Association and the Saskatchewan Nurserymen’s Association were formed in 1957. In 1958, the Ontario Nurserymen’s Association was formed and the following year saw the formation of both the BC Nurserymen’s Association and the Professional Landscapers Association

of BC. Also occurring in 1959 was the formation of the Prairie Nurserymen’s Association with the intent of being an umbrella group to the three prairie provinces, but due to the overlap of responsibilities this association was disbanded just a few years later. In 1960, the Ontario Landscape Contractors Association was formed.

These various associations did not operate in isolation, however, and over the years the provincial association presidents were invited to attend the annual meetings of the Canadian Association of Nurserymen. In 1959, CAN offered to pay 50 per cent of rail travel costs of the provincial association presidents to attend the annual meeting held at Vineland, Ontario, and again in 1960 for the annual meeting at the King Edward Hotel in Toronto, ON.

Eventually, the need to unify all groups into a single association was identified. A letter, sent to the Canadian Nursery Trades Association by David Hunter of BC some years later, provides insightful detail on the challenges faced by the industry leaders who were determined to bring about a more effective and inclusive national trade association.

In 1960, a meeting between CAN and ONA, held in London, Ontario was convened by CAN president Ted Shuttleworth of Little Tree Farms. David Hunter was on hand to represent the BC nursery growers. Although a solution could not be found at that time, the conversation was started. The behind-thescenes work over the next four years would be instrumental in shaping the future of the national association.

A series of committees and studies followed the London meeting. The first committee was chaired by Elmer Banting of Brookdale Kingsway Nurseries and resulted in a recommendation for an association whereby all existing regional associations would be members of a national association and nominal dues would be paid to support their work at the federal level. The recommendations of this Banting Report were not passed at the 1961/62 conventions.

Two years later, after much study and discussion by a second planning committee, under the guidance of David Hunter of BC, somewhat modified recommendations were brought forth once again to suggest that a national association structure could bring together all the regional associations to form an effective and inclusive national association. While this second attempt was ultimately successful, this accomplishment was not without controversy.

No doubt the high regard of the convention participants for the Planning Committee, which included David Hunter (BC); Len Cullen (ON), John McDonald (AB), and Keith Laver (ON), was in large part responsible for the ultimate approval of the motion.

Finally, in 1964, CAN president Len Cullen announced the formation of the Canadian Nursery Trades Association (CNTA). The following are the opening remarks of his editorial, “A sign of our times and what it means to you,” which appeared in the January 1964 issue of The Nurseryman: “Something happened at the beginning of the year that I want to tell you about. On January 1st , 1964, nurserymen, and those in allied trades, from coast to coast in Canada set their hand and seal to a new document that will go down in the history of our industry as a time of great achievement. For the first time, we have agreed among ourselves, which is always a step in the direction of success, and in effect have pledged our support one for the other.

There are certain things in our industry which we have not been able to accomplish in the past due to the loose knots that have tied us together. These knots have had the annoying habit of slipping and leaving the old CAN in a rather weak position. With the coming of integration of our trade associations we have a knot tied strong and firm.”

For the first time, we have agreed among ourselves, which is always a step in the direction of success, and in effect have pledged our support one for the other. Len Cullen, President CAN

SECTION 2

Canadian Nursery Trades Association (CNTA)

Canadian Nursery Trades Association 1964 to 1998

ALTHOUGH THE ACTUAL INCORPORATION documents for the newly formed Canadian Nursery Trades Association (CNTA) were not signed until 1968, the list of accomplishments in these early years clearly point to a high level of industry support and engagement. Allowing for participation of both large and small companies across Canada, the more inclusive structure of this federation set the stage for the introduction of numerous initiatives intended to advance the prosperity of the ornamental horticulture sector.

Most provinces and regions were members of the newly formed CNTA. The Atlantic provinces were quick to form their own association and the Atlantic Provinces Nursery Trade Association joined the CNTA in 1965. Following the name change from Canadian Association of Nurserymen to Canadian Nursery Trades Association, several of the provincial associations followed suit with name changes, with ONA becoming the Ontario Nursery Trades Association (ONTA) and SNA becoming Saskatchewan Nursery Trades Association (SNTA). Several years prior, the BC nurserymen and landscape associations united into the Horticultural Trades Association of BC and later renamed as the BC Nursery Trades Association. Although many of the provincial associations included the allied trades among their membership in those early years, this was not the case across Canada. Most notable was Ontario, where the Ontario Landscape Contractors Association and the Ontario Grounds Maintenance and Landscaping Association were not originally a part of the association represented by the CNTA.

Two very significant changes were introduced almost immediately to herald the

dawn of the CNTA. The first was the hiring of a full-time executive secretary outside of the Canadian Horticultural Council. Mrs. Betty Nielsen held the position from 1964 to 1969. Through her adept stickhandling of many contentious issues, Betty proved herself to be a very capable manager, even though her initial knowledge of both horticulture and the industry was, by her own admission, non-existent.

The second change was the CNTA’s venture into the business of magazine publishing, a move spearheaded by CNTA’s 1965 president, Mr. Carl Luck of Ste. Therese, Quebec. At that time, CNTA entered into an agreement with the Ontario Nursery Trades Association, whose publication had progressed over the years from a mimeographed newsletter to a monthly magazine, The Nurseryman, in 1964. Through the agreement between ONTA and CNTA, the magazine would be a shared publication. ONTA would continue to be responsible for its production but would feature regular updates from the national association. The financial responsibility was split between the two associations.

The first issue of the renamed Canadian Nurseryman was published in January of 1965. Over the years, the trade magazines were integral to the Association’s ability to communicate with their membership across Canada. There was, of course, a magazine committee to oversee editorial

MADE IN CANADA

The beautiful Adelaide Hoodless rose was introduced to the industry in the 1970s, developed for its hardiness to the Canadian climate.

PHOTO COURTESY WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

MADE IN CANADA

The flowering crabapple offers showy blossoms and colourful fruit and has proven to be quite adaptable to different climates, even adding hardiness to apple trees.

content, with notable names such as Len Cullen and JV Stensson serving as chair. Due in large part to the dedication of these volunteers, and especially editor Art Drysdale, a Centennial Anniversary Yearbook was published in 1967. Distinctively bound in burlap, the Burlap Book as it came to be known, provides a unique overview of the early years of the industry and the Association. Its publication was a significant accomplishment for a very young organization.

At the urging of executive secretary Betty Nielsen, in 1968 the association began preparations to celebrate their 50th anniversary in 1973. Some years earlier, the idea for a Centennial rose to celebrate Canada’s centennial was born, and a rose developed by BC breeder Mr. Blakeney was selected. Under the guidance of JV Stensson of Sheridan Nurseries, this promotional program, to be known as Project 73 and then later renamed to Gardens Canada, was expanded to include several other made-in-Canada selections, including flowering crab apple and linden.

The end of the first half decade as a trade association was also the unofficial beginning of a new direction and organizational structure for the organization. After several years’ worth of behind-the-scenes committee work, chaired by John Phillipo and later David Hunter of BC, an initiative dubbed Task Force 2000 was introduced to the industry. Its objective was to increase visibility in Ottawa, to be strengthened by a new image for CNTA, including a new name and a full-time executive director to be based in Ottawa. Dues would be

MADE IN CANADA

The linden tree was part of a mid-70s promotional program initially developed to produce Canadian selections of roses and flowering trees.

increased to $100 per member, to be paid directly to the national association. The legal name of CNTA would not change, but the new operating name would be Landscape Canada/Paysage Canada. Bryan Sutton, the former Executive Secretary of the BC Nursery Trades Association was hired as the new Executive Director, effective August 1972. Once

Vice President Keith Laver and President John Phillipo (standing) oversee the signing of the CNTA’s incorporation application by Junior Vice President John Vincelli. Looking on is solicitor M. Cadsby.

SPOTLIGHT ON CNTA

The theme of the July/August 1992 issue of Landscape Trades was a Spotlight on CNTA. The many articles in this 25-page overview included a comprehensive look at the many issues on the desk of Executive Director Chris Andrews, their impacts on the sector and possible solutions. Of particular interest, past presidents of CNTA from across Canada were invited to share their memories and opinions of the Association’s past, present and future. The collective insights of Stan Kochanoff (NS), Walter Cramerstetter (QC), Ted Shuttleworth (ON), Jake Driedger (MB), Harry Van Duyvenyk (SK), Henry Heuver (AB) and John Phillipo (BC) were compiled into a cross-country perspective under the banner of CNTA Reflections.

For more information on the development and changes of the Canadian National Trades Association, look for the following articles:

Whither Goest the C.N.T.A. by Brian Sutton, Landscape Canada, September 1974

Wither Hast Gone the C.N.T.A. by Brian Sutton, Landscape Canada, June 1979

Another View, Guest editorial by Dennis Souder, Executive Director, LO and CNTA, Landscape Trades October 1979.

again, CNTA would have an office co-located with the Canadian Horticultural Council in Ottawa.

The mid to late 1970s was a time of considerable dissension within the national association, with clearly divided opinions on an association structure that would best meet the needs of the industry across Canada. A request by CNTA for a dues increase of $10/member, first supported, was later defeated, severely limiting the association’s financial resources. The need for streamlining office operations was addressed at several meetings, with a notable outcome being the transfer of magazine operations to Executive Director Bryan Sutton. The debate on the pros and cons of the Ottawa-based office were ongoing.

By the end of 1977, it was clear that the CNTA could no longer maintain their office in Ottawa. The cap on their income, together with the escalating costs of publishing a bilingual trade magazine had taken a financial toll. Bryan Sutton’s contract was terminated at the February 1978 meeting in Quebec, although it would not come into effect until June 1979. The decision to close the Ottawa office was made in June of 1978. Later that year, the Quebec association also made the decision to withdraw from the national association for financial reasons. Even the offer of reduced fees was not sufficient incentive for a reversal of that decision. Finally, June 1979 saw the publication of the last issue of Landscape Canada/Paysage Canada.

While this sequence of events can be encapsulated in a single paragraph, that summary does not capture the many years of meetings and controversy which preceded the closing of the Ottawa office. A guest editorial by Bryan Sutton in the September 1974 issue of Landscape Canada/Paysage Canada entitled Whither Goest the C.N.T.A. ultimately proved to be a portend of things to come. A follow-up editorial five years later, Wither Hast Gone the C.N.T.A. outlines in some detail the sequence of events leading up to the closure of the Ottawa office, and the predicted impacts of a greatly reduced national association. And finally, Another View, a response by Dennis Souder, the first Landscape Ontario-CNTA shared executive director,

A modern new logo for the CNTA was presented to the association members in the April 1966 issue of Canadian Nurseryman. “It is a design with something to say, a visual expression of the mottos which has long appeared on CNTA stationery – Representing the Industry from Coast to Coast.”

provides an outsider’s view on the decision made by the CNTA board to close the Ottawa office. His prediction: "There is no doubt that a strong and viable CNTA will serve this industry well in the years to come."

Upon the closing of the Ottawa office, a request for proposals by CNTA to the provincial associations resulted in a single response from Landscape Ontario. The office was officially moved to Palstan Road in Mississauga, and Dennis Souder, Executive Director of Landscape Ontario, became the parttime ED of CNTA. A point-by-point overview of the CNTA’s reorganization, published in the April 1979 issue of Landscape Canada/Paysage Canada, stipulates CNTA will operate as a federation of associations.

Despite the turmoil during that time, the Association was able to move forward with a number of important issues. Spearheaded by Don Ziraldo of Ontario and John Mathies of BC, in 1973 the need for a separate commodity group within the CNTA structure to deal with very specific needs of the grower industry was identified. The formation of the Nursery Growers’ Group was approved in 1975 and it was not long before other sectors followed their lead. The motion made by Mark Cullen in 1978 to start a retail garden centre commodity group was approved by the Board in 1980. In 1981, Casey Van Maris led the charge on forming a landscape contractor’s group and Bill Campbell took the lead in exploring a national sod growers’ group. The formation of these two new

commodity groups was approved the following year. Due to lack of participation from that sector, the National Sod Group was discontinued in 1988.

SITES

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Studying the fine print: Standing, (l-r) Claude Daccord, Harry Van Duyvendyk, John Massot. Seated are J.V. Stensson and solicitor M. Cadsby.

While it is likely that many saw the CNTA’s new administrative structure as less than ideal, progress continued in many areas, with the maintenance of good industrygovernment relations always being a top priority. Bob Cheesmam became the next LO-CNTA shared Executive Director and to cap off the year, president Marc Thiebaud announced the drafting of a new constitution which would be unveiled the following year.

Of particular importance in 1986 was the reintroduction of talks between CNLA and Paysage Quebec, to bring that association back to the national table. The charge was led by President Stan Kochanoff (NS). The CNTA committed to fund at least some of the necessary translation costs and pointed out that membership at the national level would give Quebec better access to programs such as Canadian Nursery Marketing Council and organizations such as American Association of Nurserymen and NAPPO. Perhaps too much time had already passed and certainly by 1986 Paysage Quebec was comfortably established as a provincial association and owners of a profitable trade show. The official reasons are not recorded but the offer from CNTA was ultimately rejected by Paysage Quebec.

By 1987, the increased workload made it obvious that the sharing of an executive director was no longer a sustainable option and a motion to find additional staff was approved, although the original minutes do not specify a job description.

Also introduced in 1987 was a proposal to extend the group insurance plan, already in place as a Landscape Ontario membership benefit, to all provinces across Canada. Spearheaded by Gord Shuttleworth, the proposal first required validation from the board to allow him to act on behalf of both provincial and national associations. Although the revenues generated by the group insurance program would eventually become the association’s most important source of non-dues revenue, this feat was not without its challenges.1

The hiring of Chris Andrews as CNTA’s first full-time executive director in almost 10 years was announced by President Henry Heuver in May of 1988. Chris’ first agenda item was to get to know the members across Canada and to familiarize himself with the ever-increasing number of issues impacting the ornamental sector, including tariffs, Plant Breeders’ Rights, plant pest regulations, minor use registration and many more.

1 See also CNLA Affinity Programs article on page 49.

The high regard of the convention delegates for the Planning Committee, which included David Hunter (BC); Len Cullen (ON), John McDonald (AB), and Keith Laver (ON), was in large part responsible for the ultimate approval of the motion which led to the formation of the Canadian Nursery Trades Association.

It was inevitable that the hiring of a full-time executive director would be the catalyst for even more change. As always, the annual budget (at that time $70,000) was insufficient. Even more restrictive was lack of support staff and so $15,000 was set aside for the hiring of a part-time Administrative Assistant. To deal with the pressing matter of improving government relations, members were encouraged to make voluntary contributions to CANPAC, a newly formed political action committee.

Coinciding with an announcement from Agriculture Canada in 1990 that they would continue to decrease their spending on ornamental research at Morden Station, was the passing of federal government legislation that would allow for the formation of industry levy or check-off programs. A committee was formed to further investigate the feasibility for the ornamental horticulture industry and, in January of 1994, the CNTA announced they would pursue a program

for the sector. Despite a huge push by the Association and their provincial association partners, by 1997 the CNTA found it necessary to shelve any further development plans due to hugely burdensome bureaucratic obstacles imposed by the federal government.

Recognizing that continued growth would require increased financial resources, in 1997 the board approved the formation of a marketing manager’s position. Victor Santacruz was hired to fill that position the following year.

And, although there was considerable advance discussion at the Board level, their 1998 decision to change their name from Canadian Nursery Trades Association to Canadian Nursery Landscape Association, to better reflect their membership, was announced with relatively little fanfare.

SECTION 1

Canadian National Landscape Association (CNLA)

1998 to PRESENT

Today, CNLA represents a thriving green industry through the landscape, nursery and retail sectors.

PHOTO COURTESY COMMUNITIES IN BLOOM

board) of directors to a governing board. Considering the long-standing tradition of dedication to the industry and association by a succession of dedicated volunteers, this shift was not initially an easy one to make.

The analogy of the snowball growing in size and momentum as it rolls down the snow-covered mountain would be appropriate to describe the forward movement of the CNLA, as the board considered new approaches to ongoing issues and embraced new initiatives in response to changing market conditions. The hiring of additional support staff allowed for capable management of the ever-growing membership benefit programs and, more importantly, core staff were now assigned to provide organizational assistance to the increasing number of committees and commodity groups.

It would be impossible to chronicle all of the CNLA’s many achievements, large and small, within the limitations of this Anniversary publication. The following highlights just some of the successes of the CNLA under the guidance of their many committees and commodity groups. Accomplishments of particular note are further highlighted elsewhere in this publication.

HUMAN RESOURCES

Attracting, retaining, and training employees has always been a top priority for the landscape construction and maintenance sectors, making the Human Resources file one of the most important managed by the CNLA. As a direct result of their ongoing support of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resources Council, (CAHRC), CNLA was able to secure government funding from the Human Resources and Social Development Council for the writing of training materials and the occupational analysis required for the sector’s application to be a part of the national Red Seal apprenticeship program. This designation was achieved in 2009, only two years after the original application was made, making landscape horticulture the 50th skilled trade to achieve Red Seal status.

Attracting and retaining employees to the landscape industry remains a priority for CNLA; continuing to support training & certification of the landscape trades.

CANADIAN LANDSCAPE STANDARD

The need to promote better training and professionalism in the industry and especially on behalf of the landscape sector were the drivers behind important programs such as the certification program1 and the development of the Canadian Landscape Standards. In partnership with the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects and based on a provincial standard previously developed by the BCLNA and BC Society of Landscape Architects (BCSLA), the mammoth task to develop an updated and truly national standard was undertaken in 2012. With participation from landscape construction and landscape architect professionals from across Canada, the first edition of the Canadian Landscape Standards was released in 2016. Remarkably, and again an indicator of the increased federal government recognition of the landscape industry, the new CLS was included by the National Research Council of Canada in their National Master Specifications.

ROSE BREEDING PARTNERSHIP WITH

VINELAND

The inevitable closure of the ornamental breeding program at Morden Research station was preceded by consultations between breeder Dr. Campbell Davidson and representatives of both CNLA and COPF in 2008, to determine if industry could take a role in taking over the hardy rose breeding program. Following a visit to Morden the following year by industry representatives to evaluate the remaining rose genetics, CNLA responded to Agriculture and AgriFood Canada's (AAFC) call for proposals with the suggestion that industry should be provided access to these genetics at no cost. At the same time, the newly revived Vineland Research and Innovation Centre expressed an interest in an arrangement with CNLA that would see them take over the breeding program.

CNLA also requested that all royalties currently being paid on AAFC genetics should be diverted back to industry as a means of helping to fund future breeding programs. Upon AAFC’s agreement to this request, a special Heritage Fund was established, with the intent that monies would support new plant development in Canada. Heritage Fund monies have supported several successive funding applications to AAFC’s science branch. In 2023, Vineland will release Yukon Sun, the fourth rose introduced through their 49th Parallel series.1

MADE IN CANADA

The 49th Parellel series of roses are low-maintenance with black spot resistance and winter hardiness across Canada.

GOVERNMENT FUNDING

Over time, the CNLA’s increased administrative resources made it possible for the Association to apply for funding available through various federal government agencies, thereby increasing their capacity to provide even more benefits and services to their members. Funding from AAFC’s AgriMarketing program aided in helping the nursery sector to investigate new markets and the industry at large benefited from industry-specific promotional opportunities. The AAFC’s Private Sector Research Management Program provided funding to the nursery sector became more aware of private and public risk management opportunities. Project funding from the Human Resources Sector Council made it possible to develop occupational skills analysis studies required for the support of industry-specific educational and training programs. Funding for Labour Market Information (LMI) was also obtained directly from ESDC via CAHRC over the years.

See also, Canadian genetics live on, Landscape Trades, May 2011

GROWER ISSUES

Many issues such as tariffs on product being shipped to the US, Product of Origin labelling, the need for an orderly plant registration system and plant breeder’s rights, were successfully resolved with assistance from CHC staff, but only after many years of work by industry volunteers. When pest issues such as Japanese beetle, sudden oak death and emerald ash borer made it obvious that industry volunteers alone would not be able to deal with the ever-increasing list of invasive pests, a Grower’s Manager staff position was created, made possible through a joint CNLA-BCLNA funding application.

By continuing the tradition of working cooperatively with Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and other government agencies, initiatives such as the Clean Plants certification program became a reality. A similar level of cooperation with AAFC’s Programs Branch made it possible for nursery growers to access an increased number of business risk management programs.

In 2017, the Grower’s Group released the ninth edition of the Canadian Nursery Stock Standards. First published in 1967, the Standard has since become an integral part of municipal planting specifications across Canada and is one of the most referred to and downloaded CNLA publications.

GOVERNMENT RELATIONS

First identified by the founding members of Eastern Canadian Nurserymen’s Association (ECNA), the need to be better recognized by all governments and especially at the federal level, continued to be a top priority for all successor associations. The organization of meetings with agencies such as Agriculture and AgriFood Canada, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Statistics Canada and the Pest Management Regulatory Agency were important annual events.

Eventually it became necessary to better differentiate the unique needs of the ornamental sector separately from the edibles sector of horticulture. In 2007, CNLA together with Flowers Canada Growers and the Fédération interdisciplinaire de l’horticulture ornementale du Québec (FIHOQ and later renamed as Quebec Vert) quit their membership in CHC and instead combined their resources to form the Canadian Ornamental Horticultural Alliance (COHA). The two-fold mandate of this new organization was to further government relations on issues specific to the ornamental sector and to support industry research and innovation for the sector. COHA would champion those issues of importance to all three partner associations, however, those issues of relevance only to CNLA members would remain the responsibility of the Government Relations committee.

Alone or under the COHA umbrella, meetings with government agencies and “Day on the Hill” events became a regular part of the Association’s annual agenda. An especially important indicator of the increased recognition of the landscape sector by the federal government was their eligibility to participate in the 2009 Conservative government’s Home Renovation Tax Credit. Not originally part of the HRTC program, CNLA was able to successfully advocate for the addition of landscaping and perennial plants as part of the hugely popular tax credit program.

The inclusion of CNLA into the Federal Industry Real Property Advisory Council in 2019, and then their successful advocacy to include urban and suburban tree planting initiatives as part of the Liberal government’s 2 Billion Tree Planting Program were two more important wins realized by the Association.

MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS

Characteristic of many non-profit organizations, the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association found it necessary to find sources of non-dues revenue to support their many objectives. As the usual candidates such as magazine publishing and trade show production were not available to them because of their commitments to their provincial association partners, the CNLA board found it necessary to look further afield for possible income sources.

Numerous discount programs on products and services that included fuel, equipment, insurance, office supplies and credit card transaction fees not only helped members to save money, but also helped the association to grow its membership base considerably. The more lucrative programs included John Deere equipment, Caterpillar equipment, General Motors trucks and insurance programs12, including group health and dental, as well as liability coverage.

CNLA HAS MADE THEIR MARK INTERNATIONALLY through their many contributions to the leading organizations that represent the landscape, retail, and grower sectors at the international level.

The International Garden Centre Association (IGCA) is committed to the worldwide improvement of the retail garden centre industry, conducting multi-day tours in a different country each year, providing the sector with unlimited opportunities for the sharing and exchange of ideas. Through CNLA, Canada joined IGCA in 1991 and then in 1995 hosted the annual Congress in the Toronto area. The attendance of over 300 delegates set a record for IGCA which still stands today. Since then, Canada

hosted two more Congress events, in the Vancouver area in 2008 and then again in the Niagara area in 2017, in celebration of Canada’s sesquicentennial.

From 2001 to 2003, Gloria Beck (Parkland Garden Centre, AB) achieved two firsts – the first female and the first North American to serve as President of IGCA. CNLA took on the role as IGCA secretariat from 2006 to 2019, helping to restructure the worthwhile but financially struggling organization. With experiences gained as Congress hosts and with assistance from Gloria Beck, Nico Van der Pauw and John Zaplatynsky, Congress events were improved and the organization regained financial security. John Zaplatynski served as the Second President from Canada from 2015 to

A visit to Cullen Gardens and Miniature Village was a highlight of the CNTA’s 1995 IGCA Congress.

Delegation

IGCA UK 2019 Canadian

European

Landscape Contractors Association Delegation in May, 2022 during the Presidium and Tours throughout the Netherlands

2017, and in 2021 Robin Godfrey was voted to serve on the IGCA Board of Directors. Canada continues to have strong influence with this organization.

The International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) is an organization dedicated to promoting nursery producers around the world, with a vision to stimulate demand and to be a leader in promoting best industry practices. Through his participation as Canada’s representative to AIPH, Growers’ Canada chair Owen Vanstone (Vanstone Nurseries, MB) brought that organization’s newly introduced Grower of the Year program to Canada. The coveted Gold Rose award was presented to BC’s Bylands Nurseries in 2011 and then in 2012 and 2013 by Sheridan Nurseries Ltd. Awards in other categories have gone to Winkelmolen Nurseries (ON), Dutchmaster Nurseries (ON) and Van Belle Nurseries (BC).

Vic Krahn (Lakeshore Tree Farms (SK)) served on the AIPH board of directors for many years as the chair of the Novelty Protection Committee and as president from 2012 to 2015, when he played a leading role in

the restructuring of that organization’s administration. During his tenure, AIPH developed legal contracts for all international horticultural expositions.

Bill Hardy (BC) a member of AIPH since 2010 and chair of the Green City Committee since 2018, assisted in the revision of the Green City Guidelines and the inaugural 2022 World Green City Awards. Bill Stensson (ON) served as a board member from 2015 to 2018.

The CNLA became an associate member of the European Landscape Contractors Association in 2008. Representatives of the Landscape Contractors Commodity group regularly attend the ELCA Presidium and Committee of Firms annual tours, with the last tour before COVID being to Krakow in 2019. As the CNLA Landscape Canada chair, Bruce Hunter was the first to engage with ELCA at their 2008 meeting in the UK. Since then, Christene LeVatte represented Canada at annual meetings from 2012 to 2015 and was elected to be the Canadian representative to ELCA in 2019. She notes that the CNLA participation at the international level is an investment in the future of the industry. “With climate change being a critical global issue on the political world stage, and with the landscape horticulture industry bringing key nature-based solutions to the table, our global alignment on message and position is critical.”

National Awards of landscape excellence

WITH A MANDATE THAT IS FOCUSED ON IMPROVING the aesthetic appeal of residential, commercial and public properties, it would be difficult to find a product or service better suited to an awards program than landscape design, construction, and maintenance. And, with their own mandate of improving the business environment of their members, providing a recognized and valued landscape awards’ program as a membership benefit has become a natural fit for each of the CNLA’s nine provincial association members.

Beginning in 2004, the CNLA set themselves the task of enhancing the prestige of the provincial awards’ programs through the creation of a national program. Under the guidance of chair Rene Thiebaud, an Awards Committee was formed and this small but dedicated group together with CNLA staff proceeded to establish a criteria and judging process for what would become the National Awards of Landscape Excellence.

this box is white behind so the screened leaves will show correctly

The National Awards of Excellence was established to enhance the provincial awards programs, recognizing the best in landscape design, maintenance and construction, exemplified here by 2021 winner Donohoe Living Landscapes.

Four categories were initially established: residential and commercial landscape maintenance, and residential and commercial landscape construction. By combining and distilling the standards already developed by the provincial associations, arriving at a set of criteria for a national program was a relatively simple matter, recalls former CNLA member services manager Joe Salemi. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the judging process, which in its earlier years was, in Joe’s words, “a massive undertaking.”

“Technology had not really caught up to us, and the provinces were judging based on hard copy materials, so it was necessary for us to follow their lead,” explained Joe. Each of the nine provinces were able to submit three candidate projects for each of the four categories. The construction category also required the submission of landscape drawings. There were five judges located across Canada. One does not have to do the math to understand the scope of the undertaking in the early years of NALE.

CNLA’s search for sponsorship dollars to help offset the costs resulted in bringing on John Deere and Caterpillar as the two presenting sponsors. These sponsorships also provided

the funding that would allow CNLA to offer free airfare and hotel accommodations for two representatives of each of the winners to attend the awards’ gala – an incentive that greatly enhanced NALE’s popularity and prestige.

The first NALE awards program was hosted in Quebec City by L’Association des paysagistes professionnels du Québec (APPQ) in conjunction with their winter meetings at the invitation of APPQ member Jack Lavoie. After the huge success of that inaugural gala, the organization of future NALE awards events was turned over to the provinces. Held in conjunction with the CNLA annual summer meetings, the organization of memorable galas has become a point of pride for the provincial associations.

Over the years, the NALE program evolved and expanded to include a landscape design category. Retail garden centre and nursery grower categories have also been included, with candidates nominated by the hosting provincial association. CNLA has also used the awards’ gala as the ideal venue to present other awards, such as the Past President’s Award and the Green for Life Award.

2018 National Awards of Excellence winner CSL.

THROUGH THE YEARS

Caterpillar

What started out as a 25 acre piece of farmland has been transformed into the client’s personal family retreat. This project’s design requirement at all times was to mirror the beauty and magnitude of the escarpment that can be appreciated from every perspective of this property. After the design stage was completed, the construction started with the creation of the two two-acre sized ponds that were divided by a European canal-style bridge. The excavated material from the ponds was used to establish the base for the kilometerlong Autumn Blaze Maple lined driveway that meanders through the property.

The formal linear landscape compliments the modern residence from all areas of the home. From the coloured concrete slab walkways that connect to the India flagstone patios of the front door entrances to the entertainment areas off the family and kitchen rooms of the house, design elements of the house are mirrored in the outdoor living space of the landscape. Throughout the landscape, the stone that has been installed on the bridge, knee walls, pillars and outdoor cooking entertainment areas has been complimented with the same stone used throughout the residence.

landscape comes alive beautifully in the evening with the aid of a variety of landscape lighting that is hidden throughout the gardens and stone garden features.

Award of Excellence for Residential Landscape

Construction Winner: Edengrove Landscapes, Ontario for “Escarpment View” www.edengrove.ca

Artisan de Paysages exemplifies tranquility with this award winner.

International Landscaping was a National Awards of Excellence winner in 2007 for landscape maintenance.

Congratulations to the CNLA for their 100 years of leadership and excellence in our ever-growing industry.

GOLMN.COM

Matthews, of

Canadian landscape & fruit crop breeding 100 years in retrospect

BY WILBERT G. RONALD

this is a photo of Connons, not Vineland. I've corrected the caption to remove any reference to Vineland.

CANADIAN PLANT BREEDERS have a high reputation for developing both agronomic and horticultural crops. From the pioneer work of Charles Saunders in developing suitable wheat for northern short season production, to the early work of Isabel Preston with lilacs and lilies, Canadian cultivated varieties (cultivars) have had a wide impact in aiding agricultural development and improving the quality of life especially in Canadian regions with a dry and an unusually short growing

MADE IN CANADA

The Parkland series of roses was developed by Henry Marshall.

PHOTO COURTESY JC BAKKER & SONS LTD

Research plays an important role in developing varieties in plant material suitable for the many hardiness zones in Canada.

Dominion Experimental Farm ornamental hedge plots in the late 1920s, Morden, MB.

PHOTO COURTESY AGRICULTURE CANADA

season. We must remember that the large geography of Canada makes for many hardiness zones and that some zones such as southern Ontario and coastal British Columbia actually have a very favourable climate. In these areas, nurseries and gardeners often used adapted fruit and landscape plants from Europe and the northern United States. In colder zones such as northern Ontario, Quebec, the prairie provinces and other northern territories, plant material from the somewhat limited native plant species and from suitable accessions from similar foreign cold zones such as northeast Asia provided the genetic material used to develop what our main nursery crops are today. Fortunately, the United States has some northern cold climate zones which have also provided plants of value to Canada. Examples would include native trees such as white ash (Wisconsin) and sugar maple (Minnesota) and fruit and other plants which came out of breeding programs in Wisconsin, Minnesota, North and South Dakotas and Iowa.

The strength of Canadian plant development in fruit and landscape plants may be due to several reasons. Immigrants from Europe and Great Britain sought to develop plants that would replace what they had

known in former favourable climates and countries. Canada’s short growing season and cold winter climate resulted in the failure of many imported plants. It was as though the ongoing challenge to find plants that can handle the difficult Canadian growing conditions made the work grow and thrive rather than diminish or fail. Plant breeders have developed an indomitable spirit and patience. Such factors in the past 100 years have produced a group of improved plants that have enabled the nursery industry to grow and develop to where it is today.

MADE IN CANADA

Lilacs hardy for the Canadian climate were developed by Isabel Preston.

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS

The response to Canada’s plant needs have come from various areas. The federal government set up its Experimental Farms program soon after the Confederation of 1867 was negotiated and the numbers of these farms increased as provinces were formed and the territory of Canada expanded. These farms would later come to be more research oriented rather than the demonstration aspect which had been a first priority. The fruit breeding work at Kentville, NS, Vineland, ON, Summerland and Agassiz, BC, have kept these major fruit growing locations supplied with relevant genetic stock. The Vineland “V” peaches and Summerland sweet cherries of Dr. Lapins became well known as favourites in Canada and abroad.

Two programs in landscape plant breeding at Ottawa’s Central Experimental Farm and Manitoba’s Morden Experimental Farm, as they were then named, dominated the Federal programs while working with cooperators from many other Federal stations.

Breeding at Ottawa by Dr. Svejda (roses, weigelia) resulted in the early Canadian Explorer roses and the “Dance” series of Weigelia, some of which are still grown today. Morden’s work with a wide range of introduced and native plants resulted in many perennials and woody plants that are grown in the nursery industry today. The Morden work of Henry Marshall in crossing native prairie Heuchera, Monarda and rose species with more tender but showy southern genetics led to dramatic advances in these two perennial genera and in the development of the “Parkland” series of roses. The work by Bill Cumming and Wilbert Ronald led to over 20 woody plant introductions in late lilacs, flowering crabapples, trees, perennials and fruit. Garden chrysanthemum and interspecific lilies were developed that are still important today. Many of these plants are still grown today and have been used in other breeding programs in the US and Canada.

Federal institutions, and their related tree nurseries, developed by the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA), an agency that developed out of the depression and drought of the 1930s, have had an effect in developing

MADE IN CANADA

The "Dance" series of weigelia was created at Morden Experiment Farm in Manitoba.

improved shelterbelt stocks and landscape plants in the prairie region. For example, although Les Kerr was an administrator at the PFRA Sutherland Tree Nursery, his training in horticulture and his close to 10 years work at the Morden Experimental Farm provided him with a vision of what could be accomplished. His work with the sour cherries, later to be released as the University of Saskatchewan cherries, have given a wonderful addition to prairie fruit. His work over 50 years ago with flowering crabapples still has an impact today, and his ‘Royalty’ and ‘Pink Spires’ are still grown in Canadian and US nurseries. Similarly, his work with ‘Sutherland’ caragana and the ‘Sutherland Golden’ and ‘Goldenlocks’ elder are still current landscape plants. Similar work at the PFRA Indian Head Tree Nursery was most important in poplar breeding and their developed ‘Walker’, ‘Assiniboine’ and ‘Sundancer’ cultivars are still widely used in shelterbelt plantings. John Walker’s work as an administrator at Indian Head left him time to breed weeping caragana which resulted in the Walker weeping caragana, which has played a major role as a reliable small tree “standard”. His ‘Coronation Triumph’ potentilla released in 1955 is still grown today and started a revolution in potentilla breeding.

Occasionally, the Federal Forestry research sector has interfaced with horticulture particularly in the insects and diseases that affect so-called urban forestry trees. Tree breeders have worked to have suitable seed strains known as “provenances” to grow in designated areas. An example of seed strains is the ‘Black Hills’ white spruce which is a widely grown seed strain. Apart from this, very few forestry cultivars have entered the nursery sector or endured as vegetatively propagated material in either the forestry or nursery landscape industry.

PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT

BREEDING

Provincial governments took some role in plant development in the early years with Vineland, ON and Brooks, AB being examples of provincial research institutions. With the development of Horticultural Departments the agricultural universities soon became more important as the provincial focus of research. There was a time in the postwar period from 1950-1980 when many universities had various small plant breeding projects. Today these plant breeding projects are often related to shorter term studies such as specific diseases, insect resistance and rootstocks etc. The University of Manitoba breeding experiments with potentilla led to the ‘Pink Beauty' and ‘Mango Tango’ introductions which have returned close to $400,000 of royalty income to the University. The introduction of cherries and haskap from the University of Saskatchewan have been important to the prairie market. The native fruit program at the University of Saskatchewan has developed interest in tissue culture and the native

Saskatoon berry. The discovery of the interspecific ‘Ming’ cherry hybrid in the University of Saskatchewan program has given Canadians another good small flowering tree in the two-four zone region. The recent work at the Memorial University of Newfoundland with Salix candida ‘Iceberg Alley’ and other plants is another recent program for Canada. The role of universities in germplasm retention and plant evaluation includes the development of the University of Guelph Arboretum and the University of Saskatchewan Paterson Gardens.

PRIVATE INDIVIDUAL AND NURSERY ROLES IN PLANT IMPROVEMENT

Private nurseries have a rich heritage of plant development and production going back to such noteworthy introductions as the discovery of the McIntosh apple in Ontario, to the pioneer work of Dr. Frank Skinner from about 1915-1967 in north central Manitoba. Many similar nurserymen and

MADE IN CANADA

Sheridan Nurseries' Ivory Silk tree lilac, developed over 50 years ago, continues to be popular.

PHOTO COURTESY SHERIDAN NURSERIES

women with an eye for superior seedlings and plant variations made and named selections which have often endured as unique introductions. Frank Skinner developed and introduced over 50 significant plants in addition to a worldwide exchange of plant materials with American, European and Asian plant sources. He introduced many hardy seed strains of Asiatic species and brought native plants into cultivation and use. His introduction of the Columnar Swedish aspen gave the colder regions of Canada an adapted, rapid growing columnar tree which has been a staple plant for prairie sales. He certainly would be considered the Dean of plant breeders in Canada. To support his family, Skinner, like so many plant breeders, developed a nursery to sell his new items and make them known continent wide. Skinner’s early flowering 'American' lilac hybrids are known around the world. His ‘Dropmore’ linden (T. americana X T. cordata) leads all lindens in production in two-four zones in prairie Canada. Skinner’s greatest influence may have been his encouragement of plant breeding by other individuals in government and private nurseries. His example stimulated a generation and younger horticulturists, including his son Hugh who continues some of the Skinner breeding.

Numerous other Canadians associated with nurseries have developed plants which are grown today.

l Tony Huber’s work at W. H. Peron in Quebec with golden foliaged spireas including ‘Goldflame’, ‘Goldmound’ and 'Limemound’ were first displayed at Expo 67 in Montreal and have proven to be sensational nursery production items since 1970 and are still produced today.

MADE IN CANADA

'Goldmound' spirea from W.H. Peron began production in the 1970s and are widely used in landscape design.

PHOTO COURTESY MILLER NURSERY

l Sheridan Nurseries’ boxwood and 'Ivory Silk' tree lilac, developed over 50 years ago, have left a wide imprint on North American nursery production.

l Boughen Nurseries Valley River has brought such important plants as ‘Skybound’ cedar and a number of shrubs and fruit trees to the nursery industry.

l Bert Porter’s sterile white-flowered ‘Spring Snow’ is still the leader in sterile flowering crabapples and one of its progeny ‘Starlite’ from Jeffries Nurseries is a rising star with its tiny, tenaciously bound fruit.

l Robert Simonet’s work in Edmonton put double-flowered petunias back into commercial availability during and after World War II when supplies from Japan were unavailable.

l Percy Wright’s ‘Thunderchild’ followed by Rick Durand’s ‘Gladiator’ have led all other purple foliage flowering crabapple varieties in North American production.

l Mr. Eddie’s dogwood ‘Eddie White Wonder’ is still a favourite in BC.

l The development of columnar flowering crabapples, first started by Dr. David Lane of Agriculture Canada in Summerland, BC, is world class and has been followed up with breeding at Jeffries Nurseries, resulting in ‘Green Wall’ spire and ‘Midnite’ spire, which are entering Canadian and US production.

The above are but a few of the examples of Canadian breeding work.

COPF ROYALTIES, CANADIAN PLANT BREEDERS' RIGHTS AND THE CHANGING MARKET

The formation of the Canadian Ornamental Plant Foundation (1965) and legislation of Canadian Plant Breeders' Rights (1990) are important milestones in Canadian plant breeding for the nursery industry. The goal of the Canadian Ornamental Plant Foundation (COPF) was to voluntarily collect some royalty funds to flow to plant breeders in the absence of Patent or Plant Breeders' Rights (PBR). This group promoted Canadian-bred plants and served to put limited royalties in the hands

of breeders. Finally, the arrival of PBR in Canada in 1990 afforded legal protection to the developers of plants. Canada’s small market has limited the value of PBR in light of the cost of application and continuing annual cost payments. However, important and unique plants are well worth protection costs. The use of trademarks also became important as a protection afforded by a unique trademarked name.

THE FUTURE IN NURSERY CROP PLANT

BREEDING

Plant diseases and pests are always changing so the need for breeding and testing is always present. New pests such as Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), Bronze Leaf Disease (BLD) in aspens and numerous diseases and insect pests continue to evolve and emerge. It will involve the best effort of a new generation of plant breeders to keep abreast of these ever-changing problems.

Canadian horticultural plant breeding needs major new programs using modern genetic procedures. For example, we still face losses of birch to Bronze Birch Borer, while borer resistance in many other agronomic crops have been developed by modern genetic procedures. It is evident we have fallen behind in the use of new plant breeding procedures such as CRISPR genetic editing.

As international shipping and transportation movement increases within Canada, it is likely that more diseases and pests will become troublesome in the years ahead. The arrival of EAB in North America is a likely product of untreated wood shipping materials from Asia. The recent discovery in Edmonton of an emerging Long Horned beetle from an arriving pallet from Asia shows how dangerous shipping can be in spreading pests.

The power of brands to narrow genetics and to promote plants that are often only tested in a superficial manner should always be a concern of the industry. Some of the present brand offerings may lack adaptation to the colder zones as they are based on southern USA breeding and European genetics. Woody plants are not adapted to continent wide use as seen in annual flowers.

Plant breeders need to keep abreast of these ever-changing numerous diseases and insect pests presenting new dangers and problems.

SECTION 2

Industry Programs and Promotion

consumer PROMOTION

A STRONG WORKING RELATIONSHIP with the American Association of Nurserymen made it possible for the Canadian Nursery Trades Association to participate in several consumer marketing programs introduced by AAN intended to increase the sales of landscape and nursery products.

The Green Survival Program, launched in the 1970s, was envisioned to capitalize on the new and growing environmental movement. Having already identified themselves as the “true” green industry, the catchy “Green Survival... It depends on you” slogan was intended to give everyone an active opportunity to protect the environment.

Connecting plants & people

Initiatives such as this were made possible through the Nursery Marketing Council (NMC) and several years later, the Canadian Nursery Marketing Council (CNMC). Funding was made possible through a voluntary levy system: nursery growers would charge a voluntary levy of 0.25 percent on the sale of plants and would then match any received funds with a further 0.25 percent. The funding was used for the development of advertising programs and costs associated with media buys, such as newspaper ads and radio commercials.

As is often the case with volunteer levy programs, the initial wave of enthusiasm gradually waned, as companies perceived that too many non-participating companies also received the benefits.

For many years afterwards, CNLA was not engaged in any generic promotional programs at the request of the provincial associations. With differing ideas of how to best accomplish consumer marketing programs, this was an area the provinces wished to explore on their own, without competition from the national association.

Growing

Vision

To inspire all communities to enhance the quality of life and our environment through people and plants in order to create community pride.

About us

Once again, new opportunities presented themselves from south of the border. Designed to promote the benefits of plants to the consumer, the Project Evergreen Foundation was established to promote the benefits of plants and landscaping to the public. It was a message that resonated with CNLA and the Association considered options to piggyback on this program. However, as the US message was specifically designed to counteract the anti-pesticide lobby, this potential partnership was eventually abandoned.

For the past 27 years, Communities in Bloom has helped participating communities develop civic pride, mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change, enhance green spaces, strengthen neighbourhoods, and increase investment opportunities and tourism.

It is a comprehensive proven approach to community development and its positive benefits are felt immediately!

Places Together

Green Cities mandate is to connect plants and people for a greener, healthier urban climate.

The Green Survival Program connected the public to the green industry.

Using the same principle of reaching the consumer via a third-party foundation, in 2017 the CNLA board formally approved the formation of the Green Cities Foundation (GCF). With a mandate to connect plants and people for a greener, healthier urban climate, the Foundation connected with partners and volunteers to identify projects across Canada where they would be able to work together to renew failed green spaces across Canada. Charitable status for the GCF was achieved in 2019. Hamilton, Ontario was the location of the original project. Later projects in Newfoundland, British Columbia and Saskatchewan were carried out.

Another opportunity to be more involved in promotional programming presented itself in 2019 with the CNLA’s acquisition of the very popular Communities in Bloom program. Established in 1995 by Raymond Carrier, CiB’s mandate is “to inspire all communities to enhance the quality of life and our environment through people and plants.” Once again, CNLA adopted the Foundation strategy to administer and manage the new CiB. With some administrative changes and updated branding, CNLA will maintain the overall program structure that municipalities and the public know and understand, but with an enhanced focus on providing practical solutions through the development of green infrastructure to help adapt to, and mitigate, the impacts of climate change.

CiB

Join Communities in Bloom

CiB participation provides practical solutions to help mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change. The program is designed to encourage continuous improvement in all aspects of your community.

Together

Who are we?

Established with the guidance of Britain in Bloom, Tidy Towns of Ireland, and Villes et Villages Fleuris de France, Communities in Bloom held its first edition in 1995 and 29 participating municipalities were honoured at the first awards ceremony on Parliament Hill.

The program now includes hundreds of communities across Canada and an international challenge which has engaged communities from the United States, Euro pe and Asia over the past three decades.

What do we do?

CiB is a volunteer and partnership driven charitable organization. A multi-tiered competitive evaluation process engages the entire municipality while placing an emphasis on continuous improvement.

The program helps the community to focus on:

• Developing green infrastructure to help adapt to, and mitigate, the impacts of climate change

• Connecting more people to nature which contributes to creating healthier communities

• Strengthening and conserving natural, built, and cultural heritage

Six criteria are judged : Community Appearance, Environmental Action, Landscape, Heritage Conservation, Tree Management, and Plant and Floral Displays

What’s in it for the community?

Participating communities unanimously agree! Growth in civic pride, a positive sense of community, and tangible improvements generated by their efforts are immediately felt.

Communities in Bloom is an holistic community program where everyone wins. It is a citizen-led, community economic development program, with a return on investment that is measurable, predictable and accountable.

United to build forward.

In 2020, Communities in Bloom united with the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association (CNLA) a national not-for-profit federation of provincial horticultural trade associations representing over 4,000 members with landscape, garden centre, and nursery businesses.

This strategic alliance will help municipalities educate the public on the value of protecting our environment, while also showcasing their achievements and fostering civic pride throughout Canada and around the world.

Discover more at communitiesinbloom.ca

Communities in Bloom's mandate is to inspire all communities to enhance the quality of life and our environment through people and plants.

Project Evergreen is committed to revitalizing parks and public green spaces for healthy communities.

CelebratING

Canada’s Year of the Garden 2022

In the spirit of celebrating the Canadian ornamental horticulture sector’s centennial of getting organized across Canada, marked by CNLA 100th Anniversary, the Canadian Garden Council proclaimed 2022 as the “Year of the Garden”.

It is an important year for the public to be inspired, entertained, and informed by Canada’s Garden-Family – the thousands of plant growers, product manufacturers, retailers, landscape service providers, horticulture societies, garden clubs, and public gardens from across the nation.

“We encouraged everyone in the Garden-Family, from horticulture professionals to horticulture societies and public gardens, to embrace 2022 as an opportunity to share our passion and knowledge to help more Canadians enjoy the benefits of gardens and gardening”, says Michel Gauthier, Executive Director of the Canadian Garden Council. “We want people to ‘Live the Garden Life’ and think about gardens indoors, on their balconies, in their yards, in schools, at work and in their communities. We want them to appreciate gardens while cooking on their barbecues, traveling, relaxing or exploring.”

The Year of Garden 2022 commemorates Canada’s rich garden heritage, celebrates today’s vibrant garden culture and creates legacies for a sustainable future.”

“Canada a garden nation? A nation of gardeners? You bet,” says Alexander Reford, President of the Canadian Garden Council and Director of Reford Gardens – Jardins de Métis.

“Gardening is a shared passion from coast to coast to coast. Plants nourish our health and happiness. Our world needs more gardens and gardeners, and Canadians are leading the charge to plant to make a better planet. The Year of

the Garden 2022 is a national celebration of what we are and where we are going — nurturing a nation of gardeners.”

A World First – Thanks to the Support of the Garden-Family

The Year of the Garden 2022 is grateful to its Founding Partners and Sponsors and members of the Garden-Family for their support and guidance during the development, and throughout the year! Canada is the first country to celebrate a Year of the Garden.

House of Commons Motion

“Gardens and gardening contribute to the development of our country, our cities and the lives of people in terms of health, quality of life, reconciliation, inclusion and environmental challenges. The Year of the Garden will engage gardeners, families, students, and tourists with our garden culture and history, and the importance of public and private gardens and our urban landscapes.

Move that the House recognize 2022 as the Year of the Garden as it marks the centennial of Canada’s ornamental horticulture sector on the occasion of the 100th Anniversary of the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association.”

Motion of MP Yves Perron, passed with unanimous consent in the House of Commons, on March 23, 2022

Year of the Garden 2022 PROCLAMATION

W hereas 2022 marks the centennial of Canada’s ornamental horticulture sector on the occasion of the 100th Anniversary of the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association;

W hereas the Canadian Garden Council is committed to celebrating the contribution of gardens and gardening to the development of our country, our cities and the lives of Canadians in terms of health, quality of life, reconciliation, inclusion and environmental challenges;

W hereas gardens and gardening have greatly help us face the challenges of the COVID pandemic and make it possible to view the recovery with optimism;

W hereas Canadians across the country will be invited to commemorate Canada’s garden heritage, celebrate today’s vibrant garden culture and create legacies for a sustainable future;

W hereas the Year of the Garden 2022 will engage Canadians with: our garden culture and history; the importance of public and private gardens and our urban landscapes; the health, well-being impact of gardens; as well as the important contribution of horticulture professionals to our garden culture, our quality of life and the economy of Canada;

W hereas the Year of the Garden 2022 will be an opportunity for new and seasoned garden and gardening enthusiasts, families, schools, and tourists alike, to go out into their own garden, visit a public garden, and urban park or garden centre, participate in a garden activity or even a festival to stimulate and increase their garden and gardening passion.

therefore , the Canadian Garden Council, endorsed by its nine Founding Partners, hereby proclaims 2022 as Canada’s Year of the Garden and that going forward the Saturday before Father’s Day (June 18, 2022) be Canada’s National Garden Day as a legacy of the Year of the Garden 2022.

P ro CL a IM ed on the 22 day of March 2021. Alexander Reford, President, Canadian Garden Council Year of the Garden 2022 Founding Partners

Co-Chairs:

Gloria Beck – Garden Centre

• owner of the Parkland Nurseries and Garden Centre, Alberta

• first woman President of the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association,

• first Canadian and first women to Chair the International Garden Centre Association

Christian Brunet – Québec Vert

• Owner of Hydralis - Québec

• Past President of Québec Vert

• Board member of Canadian Ornamental Horticulture Alliance

Directors

Carol Craig – Canadian Society of Landscape Architects

• Landscape Architect - Kinnik Kinnick Studio

• Board member of CSLA

a nthony o ’ n eill – Canadian Nursery Landscape Association (CNLA)

• President CNLA

• O’Neill Landscape

Cheryl a ntoski – Municipalities

• Councillor – Brantford

• Member of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities

d orothy d obbie – Garden Media

• Founder and CEO of Pegasus Publications Inc.

Brad h n eil

– Sponsors

• Vice President Sales Canada & Export at Premier Tech

Julia Grenier – Schools

• Executive Director - AgrÉcoles

Ex-Officio

a lexander r eford

• President, Canadian Garden Council

• Director of Reford Gardens –Jardins de Métis

Bill h ardy

• 1st Vice-President at CNLA

• Owner of Grow & Gather, British Columbia

Red Charm Peony: Veseys.com

group insurance PROGRAMS

FROM THE PERSPECTIVE of both the CNLA and its membership, the CNLA’s group insurance program was and continues to be one of the most important member benefits offered by the Association. It offered very small business owners the opportunity to attract and retain employees by making available all-important health and dental benefit packages to their own families and their employees, at a time when similar benefit packages were usually available only to very large companies. The CNLA, and therefore their membership at large, were the recipients of an important source of non-dues revenue, paid through an affinity fee, which in turn funded an ever-growing slate of Association initiatives.

The concept of a group insurance program designed to meet the needs of the landscape trades was first introduced by Landscape Ontario in the 1970s. Several years later, it was suggested by former LO president and then current CNTA president Gord Shuttleworth to make the program a national one. Mike Thomas of The Investment Guild was retained as the agent of record and assigned the task of marketing the program to the provincial associations and their members, under the guidance of the newly formed CNTA Insurance Committee, with Karl Stensson serving as the first chair.

The CNLA insurance program offers smaller business the affordability to offer health benefits for family and employees.

One of the committee’s first challenges was to convince the insurance companies that they should offer a more flexible rate structure for different sizes of companies as well as types of insurance offered. The CNTA group plan was the first to achieve group insurance for a company as small as one person. They were also the first group to achieve flexible benefits such as adding or subtracting dental coverage from the health portion. The development of a whole new rating system for medium and large size members was another first for group plans.

Although sales were initially very slow, positive word-of-mouth advertising and increased marketing efforts ultimately paid off. In the mid-1990s, the Committee made the move to also offer property and casualty insurance to the program. Again, the added benefit to member companies was the ability to access a product that had become an increasingly necessary part of doing business.

Due to changes and consolidations within the insurance industry, and with the intent of keeping the CNLA program as competitive as possible, over the years there was considerable movement

between insurers. To avoid confusion, the Insurance Committee introduced the Hort Protect branding program, to provide ongoing consistency when new insurers were brought into the program.

The design and flexibility of the CNLA’s insurance plan caught the eye of other associations, and today coverage is also extended to members of Canadian Horticultural Council, Flowers Canada Growers, International Society of Arboriculture, Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers and the Structural Pest Management Association of Ontario.

The Hort Protect plan was the first to achieve group insurance for a company as small as one person, along with offering flexible benefits, adding or subtracting elements of the plan.

Past Presidents

To celebrate the CNLA’s 100th anniversary is to celebrate the vision and passion of the many hundreds of dedicated volunteers who have contributed their expertise to furthering a solid business environment on behalf of the ornamental horticulture sector.

While it would not be possible to list them all, the publication of a centennial yearbook does provide us with the opportunity to acknowledge those that have served as president. Our tribute to these leaders of the industry is an acknowledgement of all volunteers who have served the industry and the Association over the past 100 years.

ERNEST D’ISRAELI SMITH

WINONA, ON

PRESIDENT,

ECNA 1923-24

E.D. Smith (later Senator Smith) started the Helderleigh Nurseries (also known as ED Smith Nurseries) in Winona in 1882 and very rapidly developed it into a large operation with a nationwide sales force. Nursery operations were in the Annapolis Valley, the Brighton and Trenton districts of Ontario and the Niagara region. Although the nursery specialized in fruit tree production, it was one of the first nurseries to grow roses on a commercial scale and the display garden of more than 600 varieties was at the time the best in North America. In 1903, a surplus of fruit inspired Mr. Smith to undertake the manufacture of strawberry jam. Real estate development curtailed the operation of the nursery in 1947. E.D. Smith was a respected member of the Canadian Horticultural Council, representing the nursery sector. He was elected to the House of Commons in 1900 and was appointed to the Senate in 1913, serving until 1946.

Source: Canadian Nurseryman Centennial Yearbook

E.B. LUKE MONTREAL, QC

PRESIDENT,

ECNA 1925 - 1945

There are regrettably few details available about Mr. E.B. Luke or his company, Luke Brothers Ltd. of Montreal, despite his 20 years of service to Canada’s first nursery trade association. He resigned his position due to poor health. In a 1964 article written by his successor Spencer McConnel, Mr. Luke was described as dynamic and a friend of everyone. The company did advertise extensively in early trade magazines and CHC publications, with a message of “Trees and Plants for Every Part of Canada. Fresh, dug-to-order, direct from our nursery with thirty years of experience,” and going on to claim a good supply of fruit trees, berry bushes and a wide range of ornamental plants.

GROWING WITH THE CNLA FOR OVER 55 YEARS!

SPENCER McCONNELL

PORT BURWELL, ON

PRESIDENT, CAN 1946 – 1949

A founding member of the Eastern Canada Nurseryman’s Association, the first recognized organization of nursery professionals and then later the first president of the Canadian Association of Nurserymen, officially formed in 1948, Spencer McConnell was a dedicated pioneer of the nursery industry. Mr. McConnell was introduced to horticulture when he began working for his father’s fruit tree growing operation in 1912. Working in partnership with his father, the McConnell Nursery Company would eventually become one of the largest mail order nurseries in North America. Mr. McConnell was also a director of the Canadian Horticultural Council for 25 years. In 1964, his dedication to the horticultural sector was recognized by two prestigious awards, the Trillium Award from the Ontario Nursery Trades Association and the Merit Award from the Canadian Horticultural Council.

J.A. AITKEN BRANTFORD, ON PRESIDENT, CAN 1950-1951

T.A. TORGESON ESTEVAN, SK

PRESIDENT, CAN 1953

Theodore (Torge) Andrew Torgeson was born in Minnesota and came to Canada to visit Prairie Nurseries as a representative of a North Dakota land company in 1911. T.A. Torgeson received a degree in law, but he never practiced as a lawyer. In 1912 he joined Prairie Nurseries and bought the company a few years later. Located in Estevan, SK, the nursery company grew to 700 acres and company salesmen covered a territory that extended across the prairies and into northern Ontario. The Great Depression had a huge impact on the industry, but through his determination and perseverance, the company was largely able to maintain their inventory assets. During their years in business, Prairie Nurseries introduced many new varieties of hardy trees, including Northwest poplar, Laurel Leaf willow and several rugosa rose varieties. Mr. Torgeson was also a nursery sector representative to the Canadian Horticultural Council.

COURTESTY CSLA-AAPC

J.V. STENSSON OAKVILLE, ON PRESIDENT, CAN 1954-1955

Jesse Vilhelm (J.V.) Stensson was born in England and came to Canada with his family in 1913 when his father Herman Stensson was hired by Howard Dunington-Grubb, the founder of Sheridan Nurseries.

He studied architecture at the University of Toronto and the Harvard University School of Design and became nursery manager upon his father’s passing in 1938, a position he held until 1964. When Howard Dunington-Grubb passed away in 1964, J.V. served as Sheridan President until his death in 1972.

He was a founding member of the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects and served two separate terms as CSLA president. J.V. Stensson’s contributions to landscape architecture were significant and included Harry Oakes Garden Theatre in Niagara Falls, Gage Park in Hamilton, McMaster University Entrance Gardens and University Avenue, Toronto. J.V. was passionate about the development and promotion of new plants to the industry, and he was also active on the board of the Canadian Ornamental Plant Foundation, serving for two years as COPF president. It was through his initiative that CNTA introduced Project ’73, a promotional program for the introduction of new plants to celebrate the Association’s 50th anniversary.

PHOTO COURTESTY CSLA-AACP.CA

A.B. LUKE MONTREAL, QC PRESIDENT, CAN 1956-1957

W.B. WELLINGTON FONTHILL, ON PRESIDENT, CAN 1958-59

Bill Wellington was the last president and managing director of Fonthill Nurseries, and the third generation of Wellingtons involved directly in the nursery company, formerly known as Wellington and Stone. At its peak, the nursery owned or rented more than 1,000 acres of land and provided employment for up to 250 residents of the area as well as sales agents across Ontario and the Maritime provinces. The history of Fonthill Nurseries dates back to 1837. Ownership

PHOTO

was transferred several times and at its peak, it was one of the largest nursery operations in Canada. Despite many valiant efforts by Bill Wellington to deal with challenges such as competition from product arriving from the Netherlands, the company was closed in 1968.

TED SHUTTLEWORTH

LONDON, ON PRESIDENT, CAN 1959-60

Ted and Gladys Shuttleworth started their business in the 1940s, with fruit tree production eventually expanding to include ornamentals. Little Tree Farm was Canada’s first year-round garden centre, opening their doors to the public in 1954. To the amazement of their industry peers, LTF also featured a full range of gardening products, tropical plants and even a gift shop. This was the beginning of many firsts for the company and Ted and Gladys generously shared their expertise as hosts of many industry tours. LTF was also widely recognized as the first to introduce container growing in Ontario, using discarded food containers such as juice cans, from the nearby hospitals. Ted Shuttleworth was part of a team to work with Agriculture Canada to re-open the border to imports from Europe after it was closed to stop the spread of potato nematode. He also hosted several important industry meetings which eventually led to the formation of the Canadian Nursery Trades Association.

JOHN McDONALD

LACOMBE, AB

PRESIDENT, CAN 1960-1961

John McDonald was the president of Lacombe Nurseries, which was purchased by his father JNB McDonald as Mitchell Nurseries in 1913 and then renamed. Starting with 20 acres and expanding to 160 acres, at the time it was the largest nursery in western Canada, growing trees, fruit trees, evergreens and perennials. Annuals production was introduced in the 1950s. Product was sold wholesale and via a large mail order division as well, with product shipped by rail. The nursery, which was eventually taken over by John’s son-in-law Don Hay, ceased operations on its 100th anniversary. Besides serving as president of the Canadian Association of Nurserymen, Don was also active on the board of the Alberta Nursery Trades Association, the local Lions Club and the United Church.

W.H. PERRON MONTREAL, QC

PRESIDENT, CAN 1961-1962

Wilfrid-Henri Perron studied horticulture at McDonald College and through a scholarship was able to pursue further studies in France at the Saint-Mande School of Horticulture. He founded W.H. Perron in 1928, a Montreal-based mail order company specializing in the sale of seeds, bulbs and garden accessories. The company was bought by a group of employees in 1987. They acquired Dominion Seed House in 1992 and, one year later, the W.H. Perron brand and garden centres were sold to White Rose Nurseries. In 1994, the name NORSECO was adopted and the company was expanded to become one of the largest distributors of seeds, flowers and flower seedlings, and horticultural products in Canada. The name of WH Perron was trademarked for the French mail order division. In addition to serving as president of the Canadian Association of Nurserymen, Mr. Perron was also an active member of several organizations including the Chamber of Commerce and the Quebec Institute of Agronomists.

J. HENRY EDDIE VANCOUVER, BC PRESIDENT, CNTA 1962-1963

J. Henry Eddie moved from Scotland to the Lower Mainland of BC with his family as a baby in 1910. His father was a respected nurseryman who started the Eddie Nursery Company in 1919. Henry joined the family business in 1943 and the business was renamed to H.M. Eddie and Sons when he took over the business 10 years later. J. Henry Eddie introduced the Miss Canada rose, which was chosen as the 1967 Canadian Centennial Rose. He was a founding member and the first president of the BC Nurserymen’s Association. He was also responsible for bringing the nurserymen’s group together with the landscape group to form the Horticultural Trades Association of BC. Although Henry Eddie dissolved the business upon his retirement in 1974, he continued to play an active role in the industry and, in 1988, together with John Mathies of Cannor Nurseries created the H.M. Eddie Plant Foundation at UBC.

LEN CULLEN TORONTO, ON

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1963-1964

One of the most recognized names in Canadian horticulture, Len Cullen began his career in the industry working for John Weall, the owner of a small landscape company and a professor of horticulture at the Ontario Agricultural College at UofG. In the early 1950s Len opened the first of what

was to become a chain of five garden centres in Ontario. His passion for gardening also saw the formation of other related ventures, the most notable being the hugely popular Cullen Gardens and Miniature Village. An avid supporter of the provincial and national trade associations, Len used his business acumen and especially his skills of diplomacy to bring together the various associations across the country under the umbrella of the Canadian Nursery Trades Association. The conclusion of his inspirational message to the membership, as the founding president of the CNTA was an indication of his vision and perception: “We are making a new start. Hop aboard. We are gathering steam; the CNTA is on the move.”

CARL LUCK STE. THERESE, QC

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1964 TO 1965

Carl was born, raised and educated in Montreal. He joined his father in the nursery business at an early age. He is the father of three children, two girls and a boy, Bob, who is following in the family tradition. The business moved to Ste. Therese in 1947. Of the 118 acres, 55 are under cultivation. Carl has always been very dedicated to the industry. He has served as a president of the Quebec association, the Canadian Nursery Trades Association, the Montreal Gardeners’ and Florists’ Club and a variety of community service clubs. Carl Luck’s number one goal was to see the ornamental horticultural industry be recognized on a national level and he led the first endeavour by the national association to investigate the possibility of a national promotions fund.

(Source: November 1966 issue of Canadian Nurseryman)

DAVID HUNTER SURREY, BC

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1966-67

David Hunter’s early career in horticulture, helping out in the family business starting at age 16, was interrupted for four years as a wireless mechanic for the RCAF. After the war, David attended UBC, receiving his BSA degree in 1949 and he then went on to receive an MS degree in ornamental horticulture at Oregon State College. While attending university, he also operated a garden maintenance business which over the next few years expanded to eventually become one of the largest landscape garden companies in Canada. Two retail garden shops followed, and in 1960 the business was

reorganized as David Hunter Garden Shops Ltd. David was active in association work throughout his career, serving as a director for both the provincial and national associations, including a founding member and past president of the BCNTA. As a director of the Canadian Association of Nurserymen, he also chaired the planning committee which eventually led to the formation of the Canadian Nursery Trades Association, a few years later serving as the President.

LENO MORI

NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE, ON PRESIDENT, CNTA 1967-68

The nursery growing business by Leno Mori in 1952 started when he planted out a few hundred ornamental plants as a supplement to the family farm’s fruit tree operation, which eventually expanded to become the largest wholesale nursery in Canada. The nursery consisted of many smaller parcels of land in the Niagara area and was eventually expanded to include a 90-acre farm in Harrow, ON and then 500 acres in upstate New York. Mori Nurseries specialized in the production of both ornamental trees, fruit trees, and shrubs to supply the orchard sector across Canada and the US. The business was formally closed in 2015 upon Leno’s official retirement, however he continued to stay active in the industry for many years. Leno Mori was very active in plant health and other regulatory issues on behalf of the nursery sector. The time of his presidency from 1967-68 covered two important historical events, namely Canada’s Centennial and then the formal signing of the CNTA’s incorporation in 1968.

JOHN PHILIIPPO BURNABY, BC PRESIDENT, CNTA 1968-69

Born in the Netherlands, John Philippo emigrated to Canada in 1948 at the age of 19. He met and married Trudy Koop, also of a Dutch background, and joined Trudy’s father in his small landscape business in 1953. Holland Landscapers was

operated from the family home for many years, but as the business grew, it was eventually moved to a new Burnaby location in 1969. From there, the business prospered, becoming one of the preeminent landscape contracting firms in BC. The firm’s portfolio includes among others the landscaping of Simon Fraser University, Robson Square Courthouse, Vancouver Airport and many sites at Expo 86. Over the years, John served on the boards of both the BCNTA and the CNTA, eventually serving as the president of both the provincial and national associations.

KEITH LAVER

COOKSVILLE, ON

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1969-70

Keith Laver worked for both the Canadian and Ontario governments prior to starting Pinehaven Nurseries in 1950 together with his wife June. Pinehaven was one of Ontario’s first garden centres to sell a complete line of nursery stock, but Mr. Laver’s real legacy was as a hybridizer of miniature roses, ultimately registering 105 new varieties with the Canadian Rose Society. Eventually the Lavers sold Pinehaven Nurseries and started Springwood Roses in 1985 so that he could devote more time to his first passion of rose breeding. Keith served as president of the Ontario Nursery

Trades Association, the Canadian Nursery Trades Association and as chair of the Canadian Ornamental Plant Association, as well as numerous other horticultural societies. He was also a long-standing member of the board of trustees of the University of Guelph.

JACK VINCELLI

MONTREAL, QC PRESIDENT, CNTA 1970-71

The history of the Vincelli Garden Centre dates to 1909, when Saverio Vincelli came to Montreal from Italy and started a landscaping business. He brought over his son, Jack, in 1922. The boy was left without a father at age 11 when Saverio was killed in a car accident. Jack took over the business as a teenager, providing landscaping services for clients and eventually building Jack Vincelli Nursery and Garden Centre in the west end of Montreal in 1952. Jack was eventually joined by his own sons and later his grandsons joined the business as well. From the mid-60s to the 1980s, it was one of the largest landscape firms in Eastern Canada. The garden centre was permanently closed in June 2021. Jack Vincelli served as president of the CNTA from 1970 to 1971.

HARRY VAN DUYVENDYK SASKATOON,

SK

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1971-72

Harry Van Duyvendyk and his wife Audrey immigrated to Canada from the Netherlands in 1950. In 1953 they purchased Stewart Nursery in Sutherland, SK. They renamed the 80-acre nursery and garden centre to Dutch Grower Garden Centre. In 1975, a further 80 acres was acquired south of Saskatoon to expand the tree nursery. Further expansion occurred in 1981 with the garden centre opening a new five-acre facility on the original property.

Over the years, all of the Van Duyvendyk’s six children have been actively involved in the business. In 2005, son Tim and his wife Karen opened a new retail location in Regina. The Saskatoon location is operated by son Rick, his wife Kim and their two daughters. In addition to his service to the CNTA, Harry was also an active member of the Saskatchewan Nursery Trades Association. He is a former member of the International Plant Propagators Society and the American Association of Nurserymen.

FRANK FITZELLE

PORT BURWELL, ON

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1973-1974

Frank Fitzelle was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1932. He worked in the seed business in his late teens, and spent two years working for Simpsons-Sears before joining the McConnell Nursery Company in 1956. Mr. Fitzelle was the vice president of McConnell’s at the time he took on the position of president of CNTA in 1973. He also served as the chair of several committees and participated on the national board of directors before taking on the role of president.

MEL McEWEN WEST ST. PAUL, MN

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1975-76

Mel McEwen, a native of Manitoba, started his landscape company with his brother, W.O. McEwen, in the early 1960s. McEwen Bros. was incorporated in 1963 and the business grew to be one of the largest landscape companies in the area. Landscape projects of note included the Winnipeg Library, the Winnipeg Mint and North East Regional Park, as well as other large projects in Thunder Bay and Calgary.

Mel was president of a related business, Prairie Seed and Sod Farms, which was eventually expanded to include a branch office in Calgary. Always active in the trade association, Mel served on the CNTA for many years before taking on the position of president in 1975.

GLENN PEISTER KITCHENER, ON PRESIDENT, CNTA 1977-78

Glenn Peister wasted no time in starting his own landscape construction business after graduating in 1950 from the University of Guelph. The company, McLean Peister Limited, expanded quickly to become one of the largest landscape and commercial site development companies, operating in both Ontario and Quebec. The firm also included a nursery growing operation, specializing in large caliper tree production and 500 acres of sod production. Glenn also has a long history of service to the sector through his active participation in provincial and national trade associations. Besides many years of service on the CNTA board, he was the first president of both the Ontario Landscape Contractors Association and Landscape Ontario. He assisted in establishing the landscape technology program offered by Humber College and was made an honorary life member of the Ontario Diploma in Horticulture Association for his work in that field.

STEVE LASTIWKA ANDREW, AB

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1978-79

Steve Lastiwka had many accomplishments in his career and as a dedicated volunteer to both the provincial and national trade associations, however, he is best remembered as a driving force behind the national Green Survival promotional program. His passion for the Green Survival program resulted in increased recognition of this program throughout the country and especially in Alberta with the City of Edmonton being named as the first Green Survival city in Canada. Mr. Lastiwka was the owner of Steve’s Landscape Service. He was very involved with the Landscape Alberta Nursery Trades Association in various capacities and spent many years as a Director of the Canadian Nursery Trades Association before becoming president.

WADE HARTWELL CALGARY, AB

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1979-1980

Wade Hartwell started in the industry with his father in 1964 operating a small retail garden centre and landscaping company in Calgary. When Wade took over the business a few years later, he discontinued the landscape contracting to focus instead on building a retail and wholesale business. Two more locations were added in 1971 and 1973, and a few years later, Golden Acres Garden Centres expanded considerably to include giftware and a complete line of Christmas décor. Eventually one more store was added in Calgary, followed soon afterwards by expansion into Edmonton. Wade’s service to the industry associations began in the early 1970s and he served as the president for the Alberta association in 1972 and 1973. He was particularly active in the American Nursery Trades Association (ANTA) and represented the Canadian industry on a number of issues.

MARC THIEBAUD BROOKLIN, ON

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1980 TO 1983

In 1957, Marc Thiebaud joined his father Rene in the landscape company he had started shortly after emigrating from Switzerland in 1953. Later, Marc’s two brothers, John and Rene also joined the company. In 1993, the company was divided among the three brothers to form the OGS Landscape Group, with Marc taking on the role of president of OGS Grounds Maintenance Specialists. Marc was one of the original board members of the newly formed Landscape Ontario in 1973 and held the position of president in 1975. He was instrumental in establishing a commodity group structure for the newly unified provincial association. The following year he became the Ontario representative to the CNTA and assumed the role as president from 1980-83. Marc was instrumental in the restructuring of the CNTA as well as the name change from Landscape/Paysage Canada

to Landscape Canada. Marc has received an Honorary Life Membership award from both Landscape Ontario and the CNLA for his many contributions to the provincial and national associations.

RON HUNTER SURREY, BC

PRESIDENT,

CNTA, 1983-1984

Ron Hunter spent his early career working in the family business started by his father, David Hunter. Post school work experience included a stint at a landscape company in Ontario before returning to BC to work full time for David Hunter Landscape Nursery. Eventually taking over the business, Ron phased out the landscape business to focus on the garden centres. Ron joined the BCLNA board in 1974 and served as the BC rep to the CNTA board. He was the AAN governor for BC in 1980 and 1984. He was CNTA’s rep to the Canadian Horticultural Council (CHC) in 1985 and was awarded the BCLNA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013. During his time on the CNTA board, the focus was on relationship building, both with the provincial associations as well as Agriculture Canada and other federal agencies. At that time, the CNTA office was moved to Landscape Ontario. Specific projects included a revision to the nursery stock standards and the “Fall is for Planting” marketing campaign.

STAN KOCHANOFF FALMOUTH, NS

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1985-86

Born in Niagara Falls, ON, Stan Kochanoff is a graduate of the NPC School of Horticulture, Cornell University and the Technical University of NS (Now Dalhousie University). His first job was as a sales rep with Yoder-Atkin in Leamington, ON, and then with Yoder Brothers in Barberton, Ohio. In 1970, he moved to Falmouth, Nova Scotia and took the position as production manager for Avon Valley Greenhouses Ltd. In 1974, Stan founded Maritime Nurseries Ltd. with his former partner Leno Mori. He also co-founded a consulting company called Horticultural and Recreational Consultants Ltd. He is now in his 47th year of business presiding over Maritime Landscape Services Ltd. and Environova Planning Group Inc. In addition to his time on the CNTA board, Stan was chair of the COPF (1989-91), as well as president of Landscape Atlantic and Landscape Nova Scotia. He is a

member of the American Society of Consulting Arborists and a former member of the Canadian Institute of Planners.

HENRY HEUVER CALGARY AB

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1987-88

Henry Heuver immigrated to Canada from The Netherlands in 1963 with his brother Tony and together they started Foothills Landscaping in 1967. In 1969 the business was expanded to also include a nursery division. The company grew steadily and was soon recognized as a leading landscape construction company in the Calgary area. The nursery expanded over the years to its current 530 acres, specializing in the supply of large caliper trees. Henry has supported numerous organizations including LANTA and was president in 1977. He was the chair of the LANTA Research Committee which led to the formation of the Alberta Horticulture Research Foundation. He was the Canadian representative to the North American Plant Protection Organization for 19 years and was responsible for enhancing industry-government relations between CNTA and CFIA. He was also a strong supporter of Olds College and a long-standing member of their fundraising committee.

KARL E. STENSSON

OAKVILLE, ON

PRESIDENT, CNTA 1989-90

Karl was born in Oakville, ON and graduated with a degree in Landscape Architecture from the University of Guelph. He is a third generation Stensson at Sheridan Nurseries and became President and CEO in 2011. Karl served on the CNTA Board from 1978 to 2001 and was intensely involved in the reorganization and move of the CNTA office to Mississauga. In 1985 he was first chair of the Insurance Committee which is now a major revenue source for the national association. He continues to serve on the committee. In Ontario, Karl was president of Landscape Ontario in 1979 and received numerous awards including the Frank Ewald, the Trillium,

Honorary Life Member and most recently the Legacy Award. He received the CNLA President’s Award in 2010 and in 2015 was bestowed the Alumnus of Honour at his alma mater. Karl retired from Sheridan in 2018 but continues to stay involved in various association initiatives, including the Insurance Committee and the 100th Anniversary Committee.

GERRY HUTCHINSON ALDERGROVE, BC PRESIDENT, CNTA 1991-1992

A graduate of the Niagara Parks School of Horticulture, Gerry Hutchinson worked for several BC companies, including Dennison Landscaping, Holland Nursery and Reid Collins, before starting Hutchinson Nursery Sales in 1986. That was the year that Vancouver hosted the World’s Fair and sales for nursery stock to supply Expo 86 were very strong. Hutchinson Nursery Sales also had a plant maintenance contract for the fair. Located in Aldergrove, BC, the 20-acre nursery is both a grower and re-wholesaler of nursery stock. Due to serious injuries resulting from an automobile accident, the company is now run by his son Brad. Gerry joined the CNTA Board of Directors in 1988 as the BC representative. During his past presidency, he chaired the CNLA Standards for Nursery Stock Committee, organizing two editions and was very involved as CNLA representative on the National Horticultural Council (NHC) in Ottawa, with a mandate to review federal business risk management programs.

GORD SHUTTLEWORTH LONDON, ON PRESIDENT, CNTA, 1993-1994

Gord Shuttleworth has spent his entire life and career in the ornamental horticulture sector. His parents Ted and Gladys Shuttleworth expanded their business to open Little Tree Farm Garden Centre in 1954. The business based in London, Ontario was eventually acquired by Gord and his brother Dave. In 1968, Gord also started his own growing operation in nearby Delaware, focusing mostly on container production. In 2013, Gord was awarded an Honorary Life Membership by Landscape Ontario. As president of CNTA, he was part of a team to promote an improved association structure for the CNTA, which allowed the Association to better serve the various commodity groups. He was also instrumental in expanding the group insurance program

PHOTO COURTESY FOOTHILLS

to all regions of Canada. Also an important priority for Gord was to initiate new policies and procedures designed to bring a new level of professionalism to the national Association.

GLORIA BECK

RED DEER, AB

PRESIDENT, CNTA,1995-1996

Gloria started her career in the industry in the late 1970s, working with her father Earl and brother Dwayne in what was then a multifaceted operation. Gloria and Dwayne purchased the business in 1982 and split the company in 2000, with Gloria taking over the retail operation and turning it into a year-round operation. By expanding the product line to include hard goods, giftware, furniture and more, the business grew rapidly. Gloria began her association involvement at LANTA in the 1980s, first as chair of the Central Chapter and the Retailer’s Commodity Group, and then eventually as the Alberta representative to the CNLA. She was chair of Garden Centres Canada for many years and, in 1995, became the first woman to serve as president of CNLA. She was also the first North American and first woman to hold the position of president of the International Garden Centre Association from 2001 to 2003. In recognition of her contributions to the College and the Foundation, in 2004, Gloria received an honorary degree from Olds College.

JOHN ZAPLATYNSKY

BURNABY, BC

PRESIDENT, CNLA 1997 – 1999

John joined the horticulture industry in 1984 when together with his partners he acquired a retail garden centre in Burnaby, BC from its founder, Bill VanderZalm. It was part of the Art Knapp Plantland chain, a group of 11 independently owned garden centres. Over the next eight years, six more locations were acquired. John and his partners left the group to establish the GardenWorks brand, eventually owning ten locations. John served on the board of the BCLNA for 10 years, including as President from 1990-1992. During that time, he joined the CNLA board as the BC representative and was a member from 1993 to 2007, including a term as President from 1997–1999. He also served on the board of the International Garden Centre Association from 2007–2019. During his term, the CNLA board transitioned from being a “busy” board to a “governing” board, with committees

becoming more active in addressing many issues, including the development of training and certification programs for all commodity groups.

BRUCE MCTAVISH WHITE ROCK, BC

PRESIDENT, CNLA 1999-2001

Bruce McTavish completed degrees in biology, agriculture and business at the University of BC and Simon Fraser University. He became involved in horticulture when he was hired as the Manager of Land Reclamation and Native Plants at Reid Collins Nurseries in Aldergrove, BC. Bruce joined the Board of Directors of the BC Landscape and Nursery Association, became the BC representative on the CNLA board and eventually President of the CNLA. Bruce also represented the nursery industry on the North American Plant Protection Organization and took over from Henry Heuver as the Canadian chair of NAPPO. Bruce, his two sons Matthew and Justin and staff currently run a busy consulting business providing Western Canadian clients expertise in soils, agriculture, environment, and urban forestry.

VIC KRAHN

SASKATOON, SK PRESIDENT, CNLA 2001 TO 2003

Vic Krahn and his brothers purchased Saskatoon-based Lakeshore Tree Farms Ltd. from their parents in 1974, which they co-operated for 29 years. In 2006, Vic purchased the business together with his wife Lee and son Aaron. Today, the company consists of a wholesale tree growing operation and retail garden centre. Vic’s involvement on the board of the SNLA brought him to the CNLA board in 1988. He has chaired numerous committees, including revisions to the Nursery Stock Standards, the Marketing Committee, Government Relations and the Research Committee. He was a driving force behind the formation of the Canadian Ornamental Horticultural Alliance, which also includes Flowers Canada Growers and Quebec Vert and served as COHA’s chair for many years. On the international stage, Vic served as the first non-European president of the International Ornamental Horticultural Producers Association (AIPH) and in that role was instrumental in the restructuring of that organization. He was also instrumental in the CNLA’s acquisition of COPF and continues his role as chair.

PHOTO COURTESY LANDSCAPE ONTARIO

HAROLD DEENEN TORONTO, ON PRESIDENT, CNLA 2003-2005

Harold Deenen is the president and CEO of Hank Deenen Landscaping Ltd., a grounds maintenance and landscape construction company started by his father in 1954. The company has since grown to become an industry leader by emphasizing safety, training, education, and respect for environmental concerns. He has supported both the provincial and national associations in many positions and has served as president of both Landscape Ontario (1982) and the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association (20032005). Harold has devoted many hours and his expertise to upgrading the industry’s development of and access to a qualified workforce. He has served for many years as the chair of the Human Resources Committee and as the CNLA’s representative on CAHRC (Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council). He is the recipient of the Frank Ewald Junior Landscape Award, Honorary Life Membership in Landscape Ontario and the CNLA’s Past President’s Award. He continues to serve the industry as Treasurer of Green Cities Foundation.

PAUL OLSEN SCHOMBERG, ON

PRESIDENT, CNLA 2005-2007

Paul Olsen began his career in the horticultural sector working in the landscape construction sector but personal circumstances and an opportunity to start his own nursery business led to the formation of Treeland Wholesale Nursery in 1977. In 1983, Treeland merged with Brookdale Kingsway Nurseries and the company was renamed to Brookdale Treeland Nurseries. The company expanded to include operations in Quebec and BC, but the 1993 recession saw them returning to their core operations in Ontario. Since then, BTN has become one of the largest suppliers to the mass merchandiser retail sector while also maintaining their presence as a supplier to the landscape trades. Paul was a staunch supporter of both the provincial and national

associations and served as president of Landscape Ontario from 1996 to 1997 and the CNLA from 2005 to 2007. He was an exceptionally skilled negotiator and used his expertise to secure compensation funding for those nurseries in BC that were impacted by the CFIA’s Sudden Oak Death quarantine measures.

MICHAEL MURRAY PORTUGAL COVE, NL

PRESIDENT, CNLA 2007 – 2009

Michael Murray is the founder (1980) of the multi-faceted Murray’s Landscape Services Ltd., which includes landscape construction, landscape maintenance, a growing greenhouse operation and retail garden centre. Located in Portugal Cove, NL, Murray’s became the first company to be in compliance with AAFC/CFIA potato cyst nematode production protocols, allowing them to export plant material out of the province. The founding president of Landscape Newfoundland & Labrador, Michael is also a past president of the Canadian Ornamental Horticulture Alliance (COHA). During his 24 years on the Board, he has served as chair of many CNLA Committees including Environment, Human Resources, and Government Relations. He has contributed his expertise to the industry certification program, the Canadian Agriculture Human Resources Committee (CAHRC) and gained a seat on the Federal Industry Real Property Advisory Committee (FIRPAC). He has helped lead industry engagements with the federal government on many issues such as the current “Two Billion Trees Project.”

CARY VAN ZANTEN SURREY, BC

PRESIDENT CNLA 2009-2011

Cary van Zanten started in the family business Pan American Nursery Products Inc. in 1972. Over the years he took on positions including National/International Sales Manager and then President from 1989 to 2013. Pan American is a top wholesale supplier of retail ready plants including vines, shrubs, small fruits, and perennials, but their primary focus is the rose market. With locations in Surrey, BC, Millgrove, ON. and Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON, Pan Am supplies customers in both Canada and the U.S.A. Cary began his association involvement at the National Horticultural Credit Association, serving as the treasurer and then president from 1992 to 1996.

From there he went on to the BCLNA Board, serving as the treasurer and the provincial growers’ chair from 1996 to 2002. His term on the CNLA board of directors began in 2003 as the Growers’ Canada chair and from there he took on the positions of treasurer, president and past president.

BILL STENSSON

GEORGETOWN, ON PRESIDENT, CNLA 2011-2012

Bill Stensson earned a degree in computer sciences at the University of Waterloo before joining Sheridan Nurseries full time in 1974. In 1978 he was appointed assistant manager of nursery operations and eventually became manager of operations and vice president of nursery operations. He became president of Sheridan Nurseries in 1986 and in 2009 was appointed chairman

and CEO. Bill was active on many industry committees and boards. He served as chair of Growers’ Canada for several years before being appointed as a member of the CNLA Executive Committee. He moved through the various board positions and was president of the national association from 2011 to 2012.

CHRISTENE LEVATTE SYDNEY, NS PRESIDENT, CNLA 2013-2015

Christene Stenhouse LeVatte is co-owner of Highland Landscapes for Lifestyle, a family-owned landscape design/ build firm and turf production farm located in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. She received her degree in Business Administration from Cape Breton University and is a certified landscape designer. Dedicated to promoting professionalism in the landscape sector,

The world’s champion for the power of plants

Centenary congratulations to CNLA from International Association of Horticultural Producers

PHOTO COURTESY

LANDSCAPE

ONTARIO

Christene was a driving force behind the production of the Canadian Landscape Standard, a cooperative project of the CNLA and the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects (CSLA). It was her vision that the CLS should be on the desk of every landscape professional in the country. She was also instrumental in having landscape standards added to the federal government’s Master Specifications documents. As well as serving for many years on the Executive Committee of CNLA, including two years as president, Christene was also the CNLA Government Relations Committee Co-chair.

RENE D. THIEBAUD OSHAWA, ON

PRESIDENT, CNLA 2015-2016

Rene started full-time work for Oshawa Garden Service in 1975, joining his father Rene and his brothers Marc and John in the family business that was started by his father in 1953 after immigrating from Switzerland. The full-service company included landscape design/build and maintenance, garden centres, wholesale garden supplies and snow removal. Later renamed OGS Landscape Services, in 1993 the company was divided between the Thiebaud brothers and became the OGS Landscape Group. Rene retained the landscape design/build division which he now operates with the assistance of his sons Richard and Andre. The OGS Landscape Group has been involved with provincial and national associations for over 50 years. Rene served as Landscape Ontario treasurer in the early 1990s and was instrumental in the formation of the Durham Chapter. In 2002 he began his involvement with the CNLA as Landscape Canada chair and then the Insurance Committee chair. From there, he held several positions on the Executive Board, including president from 2015-16. Rene is chaired the CNLA 100th Anniversary Committee.

BRUCE HUNTER SURREY,

BC

PRESIDENT, CNLA 2017-2019

After his formal studies in Bio Sciences at Simon Fraser University and Agricultural Management at BC Institute of Technology, Bruce began his career as a landscape construction supervisor for Heritage Landscapes and Holland Landscapers from 1976 to 1985. In 1986 he started his own company, Hunter Landscape Design, eventually transitioning from the very

competitive commercial sector to residential design/build services. He joined the BCLNA in 1990, inspired by a presentation by Ruth Olde of Blasig Landscapes. He has been an avid contributor to the Landscape Certification Program, taking on the position of chair first for the BCLNA (1995-2001) and then the CNLA’s National Certification Chair (1996-2001). From there he went on to serve as the chair of Landscape Canada and the CNLA’s Executive Committee in 2010. As a result of the issues that arose during his presidency, Governance became an active committee.

PHIL PAXTON CALGARY, AB

PRESIDENT, CNLA 2019-2021

Phil Paxton is the president of Calgary-based Alpha Better Group Ltd, a company he started upon immigrating to Canada from the UK in 1979. Despite the difficult economic climate, the company quickly became one of Calgary’s largest and most-recognized landscape construction companies. Today, Alpha Better is one of a group of five related entities, including a wholesale tree nursery, design/ build residential landscaping, commercial landscaping, and a maintenance company. Phil’s brother Barry joined the firm as a partner in 1986 and his three sons have since joined the company as well. Phil was president of CNLA during the uncertain times of COVID-19. In-person meetings were not possible, adding to the challenge of dealing with issues such as undocumented labour and the federal government’s Two Billion Trees promise. Passionate about improving the image of the industry and “bringing CNLA into the public engagement game,” Phil played a key role in the launch of the Green Cities Foundation and in bringing the Communities in Bloom Foundation under the CNLA umbrella.

ANTHONY O’NEILL SPANIARD’S BAY, NL

PRESIDENT, CNLA, 2021 TO 2023

Born and raised in Newfoundland and Labrador, Anthony received a degree in Agriculture from the University of Guelph through his studies at Memorial University of Newfoundland, Nova Scotia Agricultural College, and University of British Columbia. He gained valuable international work experience through a two-year exchange program, allowing him to work in France, Greece, and Israel. Upon his return to Canada, he took a tree management position at White Rose Nurseries in Ontario. In 1990, Anthony returned to NL, and together with his brother and parents started O’Neill’s Gardenland, which consisted of a greenhouse production facility, a landscape design and construction division and a retail garden centre. After joining LNL, Anthony participated as the CNLA representative to the Board in 2007. He chaired Garden Centres Canada until 2017 when he was elected to the CNLA Executive Committee.

PAST PRESIDENTS AWARDS RECIPIENTS

Past President’s Awards are presented to CNLA members that have demonstrated exemplary service to the Association and the industry, as determined by the CNLA Executive Committee. Many but not all of the following recipients of the CNLA President’s Awards have served as a president of the CNTA and CNLA.

GLORIA BECK

PARKLAND NURSERIES AND GARDEN CENTRE Red Deer, AB

HAROLD DEENEN

HANK DEENEN LANDSCAPING Toronto, ON HENRY HEUVER

FOOTHILLS LANDSCAPING LTD. Calgary, AB

VIC KRAHN

LAKESHORE TREE FARMS Saskatoon, SK

MICHAEL MURRAY

MURRAY’S HORTICULTURAL SERVICES Portugal Cove, NL

SANDY ROBERTON

EARTHCRAFT LANDSCAPE LTD. Bedford, NS KARL STENSSON

SHERIDAN NURSERIES LTD. Georgetown, ON MARC THIEBAUD OGS LANDSCAPE GROUP Brooklin, ON CASEY VAN MARIS PARKLANE NURSERIES Gormely, ON JOHN ZAPLATYNSKY GARDENWORKS Burnaby, BC

CASEY VAN MARIS Casey van Maris immigrated to Canada from the Netherlands in 1956 and two years later, started his own landscape company, Parklane Landscapes. A garden centre was added to the business in 1967 and a large caliper tree growing operation was added in 1975. After a visit to the Netherlands in the early 1980s, Casey was inspired to construct a series of award-winning display gardens with the goals of showcasing the quality of their workmanship and to inspire the public on the value of well-designed landscapes. Casey was tireless in his devotion to the industry through his provincial association involvement and was the driving force to the unification efforts that brought together the various sector associations to form Landscape Ontario in 1973. He was the first vice president of Landscape Ontario and took on the role as president the following year. Upon his passing in 1997, a scholarship was created under his name to be awarded to secondary school students entering an accredited postsecondary ornamental horticulture program.

SANDY ROBERTON

Born and raised in the UK, Sandy Roberton’s early years were spent in the agricultural sector. Realizing agriculture was not for him, in 1957 he joined the Highland regiment in the British army. After being demobilized in 1966, he returned to the agricultural sector. In 1980 he moved to Saudi Arabia, where he found employment in the landscape sector and he knew he had found his true calling. He moved to Nova Scotia in 1984 and started Earthcraft Landscaping. Sandy soon came to recognize that the lack of training opportunities for the trade was a serious issue for both the industry and the consumer. His search for solutions became his passion. Over the years, Sandy led or participated on numerous committees and initiatives, including curriculum development work for the NS Department of Agriculture and Landscape Nova Scotia. He became chair and chief champion of the CNLA’s Certification Committee in 1995. He was instrumental in organizing the first two certification tests in BC and then Nova Scotia. Due to illness, Sandy retired from his many volunteer duties in 2004.

Executive Directors

EXECUTIVE Directors

THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE provided valuable assistance to the members of the CNLA and its predecessor organizations in the position of executive secretary and later executive director.

CHARLES BAILLIE

1923-1924

The first secretary-treasurer of the Eastern Canada Nurserymen’s Association, Charles Baillie was an employee of the Association’s first president, Senator ED Smith. Mr. Baillie was the General Manager of The Welland Nursery Company of Winona, ON.

LESLIE FRANKLIN BURROWS

1924-1948

Trade expert and Canadian industry leader Leslie Franklin Burrows promoted the concept of seasonal-specific tariffs on imports and was influential in numerous organizations and on government boards. In 1922, when the Minister of Agriculture suggested a national organization, Burrows, assistant to the fruit commissioner, was nominated as secretary. The organization, which came to be known as the Canadian Horticultural Council, did not yet exist and had no money, but within a couple of years it had a booming membership and oversaw plant registration for all of Canada. Burrows served as secretary of the CHC and concurrently served as secretary of the Canadian Fruit Wholesalers’ Association.

(excerpted from: The Packer’s “A Century of Produce,” published in 1993)

JR BOB BURNS 1948-1963

Bob Burns joined the staff of the Canadian Horticultural Council shortly after the end of the Second World War and soon afterwards was requested to take on the role of executive secretary of the Eastern Canadian Nurserymen’s Association (ECNA) which became the Canadian Association of Nurserymen (CAN) shortly thereafter. Bob Burns provided a thorough accounting of the many issues he dealt with on behalf of the nursery sector in an interview with editor Gwen Stupple, which appeared in the March 1973 issue of Canadian Nurseryman. Mr. Burns resigned his position as executive secretary of CAN in 1963 but stayed on with the CHC until 1967, at which time he joined the Canadian Department of Agriculture as head of the Markets Outlook Section of the Marketing and Trade Division.

JOHN KING 1962 TO 1964

In August of 1962, John King, a graduate of the University of Montreal with a B.S.A. Degree in Ornamental Horticulture, was added to the staff of CHC as an assistant secretary. Mr. King had served with the Plant Protection Branch, Canada Department of Agriculture, was bilingual and more recently had become sales manager of the Green Thumb Nursery Company. He was able to take on the duties of National Secretary for a number of associated organizations, including the Beekeepers Council, the Allied Florists and Growers, the Canadian Association of Nurserymen, the Canadian Mushroom Growers’ Association and the Canadian Potato Chip Association.

(source: Canadian Horticultural Council, 50th Anniversary Yearbook)

BETTY NIELSEN CNTA EXECUTIVE SECRETARY

1964-1969

Betty Nielsen was a graduate of Queen’s University and during the Second World War was a naval officer, engaged in personnel administration. She did public relations work for the Royal Ontario Museum and after one year joined the Community Programmes Branch at its inception. While in their head office, she initiated and was the first editor of their publication, Community Courier. Later, she served as a CPB field representative and was also active in the Ontario Recreation Association as secretary of the Sixth Annual Conference. She became the ORA’s first executive secretary.

Betty was also the first executive secretary of the newly formed Canadian Nursery Trades Association. At that time the office of the Association was moved to 3140 Littlejohn Lane, Cooksville (Mississauga) Ontario. (source: Canadian Nurserymen, January 1965)

LLOYD MURRAY

1969 TO 1973

Lloyd Murray spent his early years on a farm near Woodstock, Ontario. His work career started at Christie’s in Toronto as an account manager and from there he went into sales at Office Equipment. His next move was to Wilson Laboratories and it was there that he developed an interest in the nursery trades. In 1967 Lloyd took on the position of advertising manager for Canadian Nurseryman and shortly afterwards took on the position of Executive Secretary of Ontario Nursery Trades Association. Lloyd Murray also served for many years as the Managing Director of the Canadian Ornamental Plant Foundation.

BRYAN SUTTON EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CNTA, 1973 TO 1979

Born and raised on an Alberta farm, where he spent the depression years, Bryan Sutton completed his education at Alberta College in Edmonton. He spent some time working at Steele Briggs Seed Co. and spent five years from 1940 to 1945 as an air navigator for the Royal Canadian Air Force, including two years overseas on active duty. He married in 1943 and together with his wife and two children moved to BC in 1947.

He began his career in the ornamental horticulture sector in 1953 as an employee of Lloyd Smith of the Garden Shop. He became a partner of the business, which was sold to David Hunter Garden Shops in 1960. At that time, he took on the position of Secretary-Treasurer of the BC Nursery Trades Association. Bryan’s hiring as the CNTA’s first full-time executive director was a direct result of a two-year restructuring initiative known as Task Force 2000, with a primary objective of increasing the Association’s visibility in Ottawa. The position required that Bryan move to Ottawa, and CNTA rented office space from the Canadian Horticultural Council, an organization with established ties to many government agencies, and especially Agriculture Canada.

DENNIS SOUDER 1979-1980

Dennis Souder was hired as the Executive Director of Landscape Ontario in 1978 but did not take on the role as parttime ED of CNTA until mid 1979, after the national association closed their offices in Ottawa and terminated the contract of their full-time ED, Bryan Sutton. A graduate of McMaster University, Dennis gained association experience working for organizations that included the Photo Marketing Association, the Brampton Board of Trade and the Canadian Association of Movers. In a strongly worded editorial that appeared in the October 1979 issue of Landscape Trades, Dennis rebuked those members that were critical of the shared arrangement between CNTA and Landscape Ontario, noting that “It was the only lifeline being thrown to an organization just scuttled by the virtual destruction of its financial base.” He went on to predict that “there is no doubt that a strong viable CNTA will serve this industry well in the years to come.” Perhaps Dennis had access to a crystal ball.

BOB CHEESMAM

1980 TO 1988

Bob Cheeseman was appointed as the Executive Director of Landscape Ontario in late 1980 at the age of 22. His previous work experience was at the Toronto Star, in the area of promotions and public relations. According to the agreement between LO and the CNTA, Bob would also hold the position as part-time Executive Director of CNTA. Although CNTA resources were limited at that time, Bob worked with the CNTA’s board to maintain good public relations with appropriate Ottawa agencies. Besides his executive director duties, for several years Bob was also responsible to oversee the magazine and trade show operations.

Chris Andrews CNLA Executive Director,

1988 to 2006

IN MAY OF 1988, AFTER NINE YEARS of operating without a full-time Executive Director, Henry Heuver, president of the Canadian Nursery Trades As sociation announced the hiring of Chris Andrews to take on that role. The announcement that appeared in Trades magazine noted that: “In announcing the appointment, Mr. Heuver cited Chris’ strong interpersonal skills and his hands-on management abilities as being exactly what the Association needed to promote its activities to government and industry members alike.”

Prior to assuming his position as CNTA’s executive director, Chris spent several years in the human resources industry, commonly referred to as the head hunting industry. Starting as an employee of Parallex Management, he eventually became a partner and then full owner of the company, which specialized primarily in the printing and packaging industry. His business, along with many others suffered when that industry was seriously impacted by new technologies and new trade agreements between Canada and the US, Chris found himself looking for new opportunities.

Chris still remembers the details of the advertisement from an Association that was looking for an Executive Director. “They wanted someone with general manager experience, but who also possessed typing and filing skills,” he recalled.

The interpersonal skills that helped Chris to build a successful company served him particularly well, especially during his first few years on the job. Although establishing and maintaining good government relations has always been a top priority for the national association, the years without a full-time executive director did have an impact. “Politicians and especially government bureaucrats either did not know who we were or wanted to know what had become of the CNTA,” Chris said.

Operating with a limited budget dictated that CNTA would continue to be co-located with Landscape Ontario for financial reasons. Consequently, an important part of Chris’ job in those early years was to convince both Ottawa bureaucrats and industry members from across Canada that CNTA could be just as effective from their Mississauga office,

With 55 years in Canada, Wacker Neuson has been part of the dramatic growth and development of the landscape industry. It all started with the original “Wacker Packer” and now includes a full range of construction equipment, including rammers, vibratory plates, rollers, light towers, generators, pumps, heaters, skid steer and compact track loaders, excavators, site dumpers, wheel loaders, telehandlers and our new line of utility track loaders. We truly have all it takes to bring landscaping projects to life. As a proud member of the CNLA, we congratulate the association on its Centennial Celebration and look forward to another 100 years of growth!

as opposed to renting office space in Ottawa. Keeping in mind that communication technologies of the late 1980s were in their infancy, this was at times a difficult undertaking, with the industry being a much tougher sell than the government.

It was not long before several additional staff were hired on to provide Chris with much-needed administrative assistance allowing him to stay focused on Association objectives. Directed by a new Insurance Committee, work had already started to bring group insurance benefits to the sector as an affinity program, which would ultimately offer financial reimbursements to the Association in exchange for an aggressive marketing program. “Our challenge at the outset was to convince the insurance companies that in our sector, the definition of a small business was one that had only one or two employees, and not the insurance industry standard of 10 employees.”

During his 18-year tenure as CNTA/CNLA Executive Director, Chris was involved in overseeing numerous projects and initiatives. The details of these are documented elsewhere in this publication, however the following stand out in his mind as important milestones in the ever-evolving history of the

national association and its contribution to the growth and progress of the sector:

l Convinced AAFC to fund a trade show booth, that allowed the Association to promote their many membership benefits across the country. The AAFC’s stipulation was CNLA’s presence at one US industry trade show per year.

l Development of a harmonized agreement with USDA to control the spread of Japanese beetle.

l An amendment to the Marketing Order of Canada for the first time in 30 years included a requirement for US material coming into Canada to also provide Country of Origin labelling.

l Worked with the AAFC and USDA to prevent closure of the border due to rose wilt, which was eventually proven to not be a regulatable disease of roses.

l Worked with CFIA to identify 11 varieties of Japanese barberry which would be allowed to be propagated and sold in Canada, after barberry sales were first banned in 1966 by the Canadian government.

l Obtained Canadian membership in IGCA in 1992. Hosted the IGCA in Ontario in 1994, setting an attendance record of over 300 that still stands today.

HAPPY 100th ANNIVERSARY TO THE

CANADIAN NURSERY LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION

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Victor Santacruz CNLA Executive Director, 2006 to PRESENT

VICTOR SANTACRUZ JOINED

THE STAFF of the Canadian Nursery Trades Association in March of 1998 to take on the newly created position of marketing manager. His job description was very simple: It would be his responsibility to generate non-dues revenue for the financially struggling Association. He would be paid a salary for a period of six months at which time he would be expected to not only generate income to pay for his own salary, but also to provide funding for much-needed Association initiatives.

Upon graduating from Seneca College, Victor obtained his Bachelor’s degree in business administration and management, with a minor in marketing from Northwood University (Michigan State).

Following a position with Maple Leaf Foods Victor was intrigued by an advertisement for a marketing manager posted by an association that had something to do with trees and landscaping.

“Anyone familiar with the LO and CNTA facilities at that time would understand my initial apprehension,” recalls Victor. “It was March and I remember a lot of mud. And the CNTA office could only be found by first trespassing through a myriad of corridors and what appeared to be other people’s offices.” Nonetheless, he liked what Chris Andrews, Executive Director at the time had to say about the Association, the membership and the opportunities, and the rest, as the saying goes, is history.

Realizing that it would take some time to develop and introduce revenue-generating initiatives, Victor started to make an immediate impact on the Association’s finances by cutting costs. The membership directory, phone bills and other administrative costs were the first on his hit list.

Drawing from his previous work and studies, Victor quickly identified affinity programs, targeting the automotive and specifically the small truck sector as a potential non-dues

revenue generator. Pursuing the North American big three of GM, Chrysler, and Ford, and based largely on his Masters’ thesis, he was able to negotiate a marketing model with GM trucks. While there have been upgrades to the program over the years, the GM program remains as one of CNLA’s most popular benefits, currently generating $300,000 annually in non-dues revenue to the Association. Other financially successful initiatives soon followed, and further administrative staff was hired.

In 2002, the CNLA Board upgraded Victor’s position to Operations Manager, signalling a shift towards an even more aggressive approach to the business side of association management. This new position allowed for the hiring of a complement of core staff that would be responsible for the introduction of even more membership programs and even more importantly, would provide essential support services to committees, commodity groups and various projects. When Chris Andrews announced his retirement in 2006, the decision to promote Victor to that position was an easy one for the Board to make but Victor admits he was initially

reluctant. “I liked the position of Operations Manager and was not sure I wanted to take on this very different level of responsibility,” says Victor. The Board was adamant however, and while applications from other candidates were considered, they were not to be deterred in pursuing Victor as their first choice.

Victor’s own celebration of almost 25 years at CNLA brings an opportunity for some retrospection. “So many seemingly unrelated initiatives that the association has undertaken over the years eventually end up intersecting in the most amazing ways, always bringing more opportunity to the Association and eventually the industry. That brings with it the incentive to always keep an open mind to all members’ ideas, as one can only speculate on how and where they will take the industry in future years.”

At the time of this publication, the CNLA office included 16 full-time staff and contractors, including a Deputy Director and two part-time contractors.

Rebecca Doutre Deputy Executive Director 2019 to PRESENT

REBECCA DOUTRE joined the staff of CNLA in 2006, after obtaining a degree in Sociology and Fine Arts from Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo. Her first position was as a membership coordinator for the three Atlantic province associations, helping them to grow their membership and become financially sustainable. Like working for any small business, she was soon assisting in many other areas of association management, including organizing trade shows for the Atlantic and Prairie provincial associations. She was also the staff liaison to many committees, including Government Relations, Membership Services, Communications, and Garden Centres Canada. In 2017, Rebecca was tasked with the responsibility of organizing the International Garden Centre Association tour and congress, held in the Toronto and Niagara areas.

Beginning in 2019, when CNLA began to expand their public promotions profile through the start-up of the Green Cities Foundation and their acquisition of Communities in Bloom, it became necessary for the Association to expand their administrative capacity through the creation of a Deputy Executive Director position. With her years of experience in virtually all areas of CNLA management, she was the board’s natural choice to fill this position. She also serves as the Executive Director for both the Green Cities Foundation and Communities in Bloom.

Other organizations also managed by the CNLA include the Canadian Nursery Certification Institute (CNCI) founded in 2005, and the Canadian Ornamental Plant Foundation (COPF) managed by CNLA since 2018.

SECTION 4

Evolution of the Ornamental Horticulture Sector

INTRODUCTION

THE GROWTH OF THE ORNAMENTAL SECTOR over the past 100 years has been largely in keeping with the overall growth and prosperity of Canada’s economy and society.

Over the shorter term, the pace of change can sometimes seem slow and cumbersome, but a look back over a century of growth provides valuable insights into the many factors that have contributed to the prosperity of the industry. This chapter will look at the many circumstances and influences that have over the years shaped the ornamental sector into the vibrant, flourishing and, above all, relevant industry that we know today.

Through the power of modern video conferencing, we were able to assemble industry professionals from across Canada into a single virtual meeting room to contribute their memories and know-how. Dividing the industry into its three main commodity groups of landscape/grounds maintenance, wholesale nursery grower and retail garden centre, we called upon leaders in their respective fields to contribute their expertise and recollections to compile this historic overview. Those contributions make up the greater part of each chapter. When necessary, we called on others to fill in the blanks as each chapter was developed.

Occasionally, we have attributed direct quotes to the speaker but in general, the intent of the exercise was to realize a general and aggregated compendium of information. A list of contributors can be found at the end of each chapter.

Throughout this Anniversary book, the reader will find references to the CNTA’s Centennial Yearbook, also known as the Burlap Book, published in 1967. As the many contributors to that earlier publication have provided a thorough digest of the very early history of the industry, this chapter will focus primarily on the years following the Second World War.

RETAILgarden centreSECTOR

IN 2021, AS THE WORLD STRUGGLED to cope with the impacts of COVID-19, businesses were forced to embrace change and flexibility to keep their doors open. The word and concept of the day was “pivot.” It could well be argued, however, that the ability to pivot – reassessing and quickly reacting to new realities – has for the past 100 years been a cornerstone of the ongoing growth and success of the retail garden centre trade.

With few exceptions, the concept of the retail garden centre as we know it today, made up of physical bricks and mortar stores specializing in the sale of ornamental plants and gardening accessories, did not materialize until some years after the

Second World War. Retail trade of plants was nonetheless an important sales opportunity for the nursery grower sector since at least the early 1900s. The late Mr. Warren Oliver, a senior horticulturist at Agriculture Canada, provides some fascinating history of the earliest days of the industry in Canada, dating back to the late 1800s and early 1900s. Referencing the state of the industry directly following

It was not until the 1960s and 1970s that attractive stand-alone garden centres started to become common place across Canada. Seen here is Greenland Garden Centre, Sherwood Park, AB.

GROWTH OF THE GARDEN CENTRE

WW1, in his article which appeared in the Burlap Book, Mr. Oliver makes mention that “small, family-operated nurseries appeared to cater to the local retail trade for the beautification of new homes.”

By and large the bulk of retail sales in the early 1900s was through door-to-door or by mail order sales. There were also sales at public markets such as the St. Lawrence Market in Toronto. Some limited retail sales were realized at early “garden centres,” which consisted mainly of small outlets operated by commercial growers. Original demand for fruit trees and shrubs was gradually replaced by demand for bare root hedging plants such as privet and Cotoneaster, and eventually for other ornamental varieties.

Expansion of the retail sector immediately following the Second World War was gradual. The recollections of earlier garden centre owners were very similar – retail sales were largely conducted as a side business by wholesale growers in small separate, or lean-to barns or at roadside stands. As only bare root product was available, retail sales were exclusively seasonal. Retail-only garden centres not owned by or related to wholesale nursery growers tell of unloading nursery stock from CN box cars onto trucks, with the nearest siding often being many miles away from home. Marketing was almost non-existent, and advertising was limited to local newspaper ads.

Consumer demand for ornamental plants increased steadily in direct relation to the increase in urban and especially suburban living. Consumers were anxious to improve their enjoyment of their homes through nice lawns and gardens. Beginning in the late 1960s, and especially in the 1970s and 1980s, the ornamental horticulture sector sought to not only meet but foster this growing demand through the building of

large and modern garden centres. Plants and related gardening products such as fertilizers, chemicals, and gardening tools were the mainstay of the retail garden centre’s annual sales. Deciduous shrubs were shipped to garden centres as bare root plants. Some were sold throughout the spring as bare root, with a portion potted by the retailer for summer and fall sales. Evergreens were field potted by the nursery grower, with sturdy papier mache pots being the preferred container. Larger evergreens and trees were dug and sold as balled and burlapped stock.

Inventory care and management was a huge responsibility for the retail garden centre and especially those that were located a distance from the primary nursery growing centres of Niagara, Toronto, and BC’s Fraser Valley. Retail garden centres took shipments of large amounts of inventory in early spring and sold from that inventory throughout the season, from early spring to late fall. Ordering smaller drop shipments throughout the season was always an option if the retailer was willing to absorb increased freight costs. The challenge was to have enough inventory to generate good sales throughout the season while having as little inventory as possible by late fall that needed to be overwintered. The introduction of container growing by the nursery industry was a huge boon to the retail garden centre sector. By the 1980s, most growers were producing at least some of their inventory in containers as they continued to experiment and expand their operations to meet the growing demand. Finally, all products could be available year-round to the retailer and ultimately the consumer. At the same time that container growing was becoming the preferred production method, the world was also shifting to just-in-time delivery. Early delivery of large orders was still necessary to meet the demand of the spring season, but retailers could now rely on timely

The expansion of garden centres reflected ever-growing consumer demand. The small garden shop built by Cornhill Nurseries (NB) in the early 1980s soon became a full-service location offering a wide diversity of products and related services.

and reasonably economical delivery of smaller shipments throughout the year. Finally, retailers were able to realize improved cash flow, and delivery of fresh-from-the-grower inventory, especially of popular seasonally flowering products.

Fuelled by the baby boomer generation, from the 1980s to the early 2000s, across North America, gardening was often touted as being the leading leisure activity. Numerous gardening magazines and articles in home and lifestyle magazines and influencers such as Martha Stewart fuelled the ever-increasing interest in gardening. The quickly increasing popularity in gardening coincided with membership growth in the national and provincial associations as the strength of the retail commodity group was seen. Retailers realized the importance of cooperative marketing and numerous ideas were created under the association umbrellas.

Retail garden centres responded by greatly increasing their inventory selection. The idea of selling giftware, clothing, Christmas decorations and outdoor furniture alongside trees, shrubs, fertilizers and shovels was certainly not new but viewed by many with some skepticism. Taking a cue from early adopters, this new retailing philosophy quickly became the new normal. Many earlier innovative retailing concepts were adapted from a handful of progressive garden centres south of the border. Later, as the CNTA assumed membership in the International Garden Centre Association, garden centre owners and managers were

able to bring back a wealth of display, merchandising and marketing ideas from innovative garden centres featured as part of the IGCA tours around the world.

Beginning in the 1990s, there was a new player in the retail marketplace, generically referred to as box stores or mass merchandisers. With their larger no-frills warehouse style of retailing, the box stores and their lower prices were irresistible to the average consumer and the havoc and upheaval created by them, especially in early days, was felt by retailers of all commodities. It was only a matter of time before the mass merchandiser would start selling not just tools and fertilizers, but ornamental plants as well. Practically overnight, the retail garden centre sector became two distinct types of retailers – the mass merchandiser, or box store, and the independent.

The foray by the mass merchandiser into the retail garden centre sector was the cause of a great deal of angst in those earlier years. Many independent garden centres demanded that nursery growers make a choice – sell to them or to us, but you

Garden centres such as Sheridan Nurseries (at left) or Canadale Nurseries (below) are able to survive and thrive in a retail environment that now includes stiff competition from the mass merchandiser by differentiating themselves in the marketplace through selection and knowledgeable service.

Little Tree Farm Garden Centre circa 1952.

ROLLING WITH CHANGE

Grow-to-retail became important for Newfoundland retailers such as O’Neill’s Gardenland as CFIA’s Japanese beetle movement regulations limit the in-coming supply of nursery stock from other parts of Canada.

can’t sell to both was their message. Despite the upheaval in the retail marketplace, the independents soon realized certain advantages as well, largely realized due to the huge marketing budgets of the mass merchandisers. When large chains such as Loblaws started advertising fertilizers, for example, the independents also reaped the benefits of a more educated consumer through increased sales.

Regardless of their position towards the grower sector, retailers responded quickly by taking stock of their situation and determining their best survival strategies. While they had started to pay attention to the concepts of merchandising and marketing, the need to better understand and employ successful marketing tactics became essential. The focus was on differentiation – standing out in the minds of the consumer and offering a value proposition that was not necessarily all about price.

The infiltration of the mass merchandiser into the retail garden centre marketplace resulted in the formation of several buying groups. Cooperative groups such as the Garden Gallery Group, Sheridan’s Preferred Partners program, Garden Centre Group Co-op and Nurseryland were originally established to help members realize better purchasing prices through the power of bulk buying. Suddenly, the smaller independents had access to a larger selection of inventory and better prices. Through their bulk buying power, the buying groups were also able to develop their own private label branding and packaging, helping them to leverage their products and services against those of the mass merchandiser.

The buying group concept was soon expanded to include enhanced advertising and marketing programs as well, again made possible through the power of the group. In a matter of a few short years, nearly all independent garden centres across Canada were a member of one of the buying groups. Without exception, the owners and managers of the independents confirm that the largest advantage to be realized through their membership was the power of networking. United against one common “enemy,” the independents were more than willing to share ideas and success stories for the benefit of all.

A particular downside to the predominance of the buying groups in the retail garden centre sector was the loss of connection between the independents and their trade associations, both at the provincial and national levels. At one time the smaller garden centres looked to their trade associations for assistance in developing generic sales and promotional materials that could be used by many. Their provincial associations also helped with training and human resource management. These services and more became available to the independents through their buying groups, resulting in a disconnect from the associations.

The overall composition of the average independent garden centre, where sales were driven as much by hardware and giftware, rather than living horticultural products also presented a challenge as garden centres looked to access the resources of organizations such as the Retail Council of Canada, rather than their horticultural trade associations. In time, the provincial associations and CNLA sought to re-establish this important association-industry connection

through specific garden centre training, staff certification, awards programs and more.

As the sector prepares to celebrate the 100th anniversary of their trade association in 2022 along with their colleagues in the nursery growing and landscape sectors, they are also witnessing some shrinkage, in terms of both overall sales and numbers of actively operating independent garden centres. If further proof was needed that the popularity of home gardening was fuelled by the baby boomer generation, the aging of that generation was also partly responsible for a general gardening decline. The once avid gardeners moved to townhomes, condominiums and vacation properties. Due in large part to hugely escalating home prices, subsequent generations opted for vastly different lifestyles that did not include gardening to the same scale as enjoyed by their parents.

The new generation of gardener, made up primarily of the millennium generation, has vastly different priorities than their parents. Their focus is mainly on growing food as they embrace the concept of sustainability, and house plants as a symbol of an increasing respect for environmental issues. This group has done their homework and knows what they are shopping for. These attitudes have been reinforced by the impact of COVID-19. Forced to stay at home, home has become the centre of everyone’s universe, and a sudden return to the pleasures of gardening has seen garden centres and growers across Canada suddenly scrambling to keep up to the demand. This unexpected turn of events continues to unfold as the CNLA prepares to celebrate their 100th anniversary. Only time will tell if consumers can be persuaded to continue this trend.

As Canada’s continued growth and prosperity continues to be focused on our urban centres, circumstances also converged to cause a significant decline in the number of actively operating independent garden centres across Canada. Once located on the outskirts of towns and cities to take advantage of more affordable land prices, increasingly garden centres find themselves surrounded by growing urban areas. And, as prices of homes and real estate escalate at an unprecedented rate, garden centre owners find themselves being offered huge sums for their relatively large parcels of land. Succession planning, challenging in the best of circumstances, became increasingly difficult. Where a garden centre owner might once have opted to start over again, the industry demographics make it inevitable that many owners would instead choose to sell and retire. This brings us to the end of the 2022 spring season. Even a passage of 10 years will reveal many more changes again as the industry continues to adapt to the ever-evolving realities

of retail garden centre management and ownership. We can only begin to speculate on what the industry will look like 25, 50 and 100 years from now. Given their tradition of adaptability together with the sophistication of the modern garden centre owner, they can feel confident that the sector will continue to be a strong one.

CREDITS

Our sincere thanks to the following for freely sharing their time and their many recollections on the evolution of the sector for the preparation of this important chapter of the CNLA Anniversary book.

MEETING FACILITATORS

Karl Stensson (ON) Rod McDonald (SK)

PARTICIPANTS AND OTHER CONTRIBUTORS

Anthony O’Neill (NL) Carla Hrycyna (MB)

Frans Peters (ON) Gloria Beck (AB)

Joan Johnson (ON) Lee Krahn (SK)

Nicole Bent (MB) Pauline Intven-Cassier (ON)

Perry Grobe (ON) Rob Vanderkruk (ON) Robin Godfrey (NS)

IT IS GENERALLY ACKNOWLEDGED that Canada’s WW2 post-war boom was the catalyst for the nursery grower industry as we know it today. Greatly enriched by an influx of immigrants from around the world, but primarily Europe and the UK, especially within the nursery sector, the impact of their influence cannot be overstated. A look through the “about us” section of nursery catalogues and more recently, websites, reveals that an overwhelming majority of nurseries operating in Canada today trace their roots back to countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Czechoslovakia, the UK and more. In these home countries,

horticulture, landscaping and gardening were already long-established and valued career options, offering both educational and on-the-job learning opportunities. This imported expertise was a key factor in the rapid growth of the ornamental nursery sector in Canada.

Beginning in the 1950s and through to the 1970s, the nursery sector relied heavily on imports from Europe, and mostly the Netherlands, for their lining-out stock. As a relatively new industry, especially in comparison to their European counterparts, nursery growers found it necessary to rely on Dutch

Canada's nursery grower industry flourished with the expertise of European and UK immigrants looking for a new start.

growers to supply them with the lining-out stock required to meet the ever-increasing demands of the marketplace. Annual spring shipments arriving from the Netherlands and Belgium were routine.

It was inevitable that as the nursery sector across North America matured, growers became more and more self-sufficient, producing virtually all their own requirements. The need for self-sufficiency within the marketplace was further reinforced by the ever-increasing phytosanitary restrictions put in place by both the Canadian and US governments to stop the spread of invasive pests. In the early 1960s, potato cyst nematode was found in North America, believed to have been introduced in soils of product arriving from Europe. Almost overnight, Agriculture Canada and USDA prohibited the import of product with soils arriving from offshore destinations.

This sudden interruption of important lining-out product resulted in inventory shortages and financial hardships for many nursery growers. Thanks to good cooperation between a nursery sector committee, the Canadian and Dutch governments, and Dutch exporters, root washing protocols were quickly developed and implemented.

Root washing was a reasonable solution to an immediate problem, but the extra costs

Although the focus of this chapter will be to chronicle the growth and evolution of Canada’s nursery grower industry immediately following the post the Second World War boom, data available from the Dominion Bureau of Statistics provides interesting insights into the very earliest days of nursery stock production.

The first published statistical data on the fruit production sector dates to 1919 and includes data on the production of fruit trees and shrubs to support the orchard industry. Beginning in 1926, the Annual Statistics of Fruit and Floriculture was updated to also include data on the production of ornamental plants. In 1926, total sales of nursery fruit stock was $368,000. Outdoor rose sales were 99,635 units, for total sales of $34,492 and a unit price of 0.35 cents. Other outdoor trees and shrubs were 905,868 units, for total sales of $86,130 and an average price of 0.10 cents.

In 1936, the annual report was updated again and renamed to the Annual Statistics of Fruit, Nursery Stock and Floriculture and the summary report noted the need to secure more complete and detailed information regarding the extent of floriculture and ornamental nursery stock production. Categories were expanded to include statistical data on roses, shrubs, evergreen and deciduous trees, ornamental climbers and herbaceous perennials. Total sales for all six categories was $418,568.

Using 1952 as the approximate start of the post the Second World War boom era, the number of categories that year had expanded to eight and total sales for the year were $1,582,027. Although it is necessary to consider the changing value of the dollar, and that data collection and reporting methodologies have changed over the years, the last available StatsCan report (2020) is nonetheless a good indicator of the growth of the sector over the years. The report’s introduction noted that “despite a slow start to the season, sales and resales of nursery products grew 6.9 percent, to $727 million.”

and especially the loss of plant viability resulting from the washing process, intensified the need for less reliance on European product. As perennials were more tolerant of the root washing process, their import to the North American marketplace declined less rapidly than that of shrubs and trees. Eventually however, Canadian growers came to rely almost exclusively on domestic and US producers for their lining out requirements.

The tremendous diversity and complexity of their inventory selection and production cycles has long been a hallmark of the nursery sector. Over time, growers developed their own areas of specialty, made possible by factors such as climate and soil conditions of the nursery, and specialized interests of nursery growers themselves. Even in the 1950s and 1960s, growers published catalogues listing dozens, and eventually hundreds, of varieties of nursery products that had production cycles ranging from a few months to up to 10 years or more to produce caliper trees.

Operating in a marketplace that was simply too small and geographically sprawling to make specialization profitable, companies needed to carry more complete lines of nursery stock than they were able to self-produce. Instead, growers turned to each other to fill production and inventory gaps. This sale and resale of nursery product meant that growers

were at the same time each other’s competitors as well as customers, resulting in a level of cooperation among company owners and managers that is unique to the nursery industry and continues to this day.

The advent of container growing has been the single most important game changer to not only the nursery sector, but also for their colleagues in the retail garden centre and landscape construction sectors. The first forays into growing plants in pots can be traced back to the 1950s and 1960s, as intrepid growers sought to improve their profitability by decreasing their reliance on the spring harvesting of nursery stock. Initial attempts at growing plants in pots were severely limited by lack of adequate growing supplies and especially lack of expertise. Early recollections from growers across Canada tell of the use of food containers, such as juice tins collected from local hospitals, as the first container plant pots. Of course, these pots needed to be cleaned and have drainage holes punched into the bottom.

By the 1970s, many growers across North America were actively engaged in converting their nursery production to include container production. The cost of this conversion was considerable, as container production yards required precise grading, drainage, surface treatment and a reliable supply of high-quality water.

Growers developed areas of specialty, based on climate, soil conditions and specialized interests of nursery growers themselves.

INVASIVE PESTS – AND A SOLUTION

Over the years, nursery growers have found it necessary to deal with many regulated disease and insect issues, especially as Canada’s increasingly prosperous economy resulted in dramatically more imports and a corresponding increase in invasive pests.

The arrival of Phytophthora ramorum to the North American west coast resulted in a whole new level of devastation to the nursery grower sector of BC. Commonly known as Sudden Oak Death or SOD, P. ramorum was first detected in California in the mid-1990s and eventually spread north to Oregon, Washington and finally BC. Many species of ornamental plants including rhododendron and camellia were a host plant of P. ramorum but the real threat was to the valuable west coast forest sector. To contain the spread, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency implemented and enforced strict quarantine protocols resulting in the destruction of millions of dollars of nursery inventory and the necessity for costly site remediation and sanitation. Ultimately, under the leadership of then president Paul Olsen of Brookdale Treeland Nurseries, CNLA was able to negotiate a compensation package on behalf of affected growers.

The introduction to North America shortly afterwards of the emerald ash borer (EAB) first detected in Canada in 2002, will be recorded as one of the most impactful events in the recent history of the nursery sector. As the EAB began its relentless spread across the US and Canada, literally millions of ash trees were destroyed, first to the CFIA’s valiant but ultimately unsuccessful eradication efforts and then eventually by the beetle itself. Municipalities were ultimately responsible to remove millions of dead trees. As demand for this hugely popular street tree declined, nursery producers across Canada found themselves with many thousands of trees in various stages of production with no place to call home other than the burn pile. Growers across Canada sustained a serious financial hit with no recourse to financial compensation. Only a few years later, however, as municipalities across North America began their replant programs, growers found themselves enjoying a marketplace with a very strong demand for caliper trees.

Over time, both the CFIA and the industry explored the growing trend to using a systemsbased approach as a longer term and more practical solution to ensure the on-going and necessary movement of plants across the continent. The Canadian Nursery Certification Program (CNCP) developed by CFIA, allowed exporting nurseries to ship nursery product to the US with self-issued phytosanitary certificates. Domestically, the BC nursery sector embraced a Sudden Oak Death certification program designed to provide assurance to their clients across Canada of the SOD-free status of nursery product. Eventually, transitioning to the more encompassing Domestic Phytosanitary Certification Program (DPCP), this CNLA-managed program provided certification status for general nursery production. DPCP modules developed as necessary to control the spread of specific pests such as boxwood blight and later, box tree moth. The CNLA’s program was later renamed to Clean Plants and is still widely adopted by BC growers, as well as growers in AB and ON.

PHOTO COURTESY ONTARIO MINISTRY OF NATURAL

1 GALLON METAL POT

The early 1960s offered a metal pot for plants.

2 GALLON TAR PAPER POT

A tar paper was waterproof, inexpensive and would break down after a year in the soil, allowing plant roots to be well established.

2 GALLON PLASTIC POT

Plastic pots provide a good growing container for plants and have facilitated production and shipping of plant material.

1 GALLON PLASTIC POT

Plastic pots can also be recycled and their use contributed to the growth of the green industry.

Aided by research and suppliers eager to tap into this new production technique, many improvements were introduced to facilitate the production of quality nursery stock in containers. Recycled food containers were soon replaced by plastic pots. Growing media underwent a radical change, as ingredients such as vermiculite, perlite, peat moss, coco fibre, composted bark and more were introduced. Great advancements in irrigation technologies were also devised to meet the demands of container production. Fertilizers were added to the media to enhance growth, and the development of controlled-release fertilizer (CRF) allowed for greater environmental stewardship while providing critical nutrients to the crop at the right time.

Eventually, pot-in-pot production was developed as a novel way to ensure container-grown sensitive trees and specimen plants could be produced across wider geographies and overwintered safely. Several infrastructure advancements also contributed to the reduction of climatic impacts. The expanded use of cold frames or polyhouses, to ensure protection from freezing temperatures became increasingly important to growers in colder climates. Double layers of plastic and the addition of minimal heating allowed growers to overwinter temperature sensitive plant varieties. Refrigerated barn storage accommodated fall digging and winter grading, helping to spread out the seasonal workload. Whether in the field or container yards, over the years many improvements were made to irrigation practices. Availability of a good water supply had always been a first consideration for growers purchasing or renting production acreage. With

access to a mostly abundant supply of water for irrigation purposes, overhead watering technology was the nursery growers’ most affordable and preferred watering method for many years. Very little thought, if any, was given to the amount of water used or the impacts to the environment of the quality of the run-off water. As resources decreased while cost to access water increased, growers gradually adopted a range of approaches to economize on water use. The recapture of water to collection ponds became an important component of a grower’s irrigation system.

Eventually, the impacts of agricultural and horticultural production became the incentive for environmental agencies to regulate the quantity and quality of run-off water, motivating growers to employ more sustainable practices. Many converted to the use of drip irrigation although the shift was a gradual one due to cost considerations. Low volume drip and tape irrigation, including pressure-compensating technologies, advanced pump technologies, moisture sensors, and computer-controlled irrigation systems in container production ensure adequate and uniform application of water to crops. Cyclic irrigation, managed in combination with weather/ transpiration modelling and detailed understanding of crop needs, significantly decreases the amount of irrigation required. The aggregated result of many production improvements ranging from the relatively low-tech concept of crop groupings to ensure more efficient irrigation, to improvements in fertilizer formulations have all contributed to more environmentally sustainable production practices. Some mention must also be made of the impact of the environmental movement on

PHOTOS COURTESY JIM WOTHERSPOON

grower production and inventories due to changing consumer demands. The tree species which for many years made up the bulk of grower inventories, such as Norway maple, locust and little leaf linden, were brought to North America in the 1700s. Very compatible with the North American climate, they were considered to be bulletproof and soon became a replacement for the American elm, whose populations were largely decimated by Dutch elm disease. Their popularity began to decline slowly but progressively as environmentalists began to point out less-desirable traits, especially invasiveness, and an equally slow but progressive demand for more native trees was born.

Because of the lengthy production time for caliper trees, the transition to native tree production was not an easy one for growers to make, as there was no accurate way to predict demand, especially at the municipal level. Compounding the issue was the unreliability of transplant success of native trees within the urban environment. Over time, better performers were identified, and many native trees and shrubs became an integral part of nursery production across Canada.

Despite the many advantages of container growing, nursery stock production both in containers and the field was extremely labour intensive. The need to reduce labour costs was always at the forefront and resulted in the development of various production and automation technologies. The first potting machines used by container growers beginning in the late 1960’s used a hopper to add media to pots placed on a carousel. Eventual modifications included the ability to automatically add pots onto a carousel or conveyor, to press the media down into the pots, and even to add fertilizer and water. Not only was less labour required, but an increase in the consistency of potting quality was achieved. For larger crops, hand placement of the plants is still general practice, but automation became common for seeds, small liners, plugs and seedlings. The use of standardized pots and advancements in propagation also increased efficiencies. The switch to propagation from open trays to plug trays and cells made it possible to implement automated transplanting equipment.

Traditional field production was particularly labour intensive. Large crews of workers were needed during the spring

and fall periods to plant everything from seedlings to large tree whips in the ground, irrigation, pruning, weeding, and harvesting. Specialized equipment development was a natural progression to lessen the labour burden. Particularly important was the introduction of tree spades. Although some very early models of tree spades were introduced as early as the 1950s, it was not until the 1970s that their use became widespread, greatly facilitating the harvesting of caliper trees, generally of 45 mm and larger. Specialized tractors and attachments to plant, harvest, weed and fertilize tree and specimen row plantings were developed (e.g., the high-boy, weed-badger, etc.). Automated pruners reduced repetitive strains and improved efficiencies. These hydraulic-based pruners were widely used in field production for both tree limb pruning as well as root pruning before potting. Larger pruning machines were developed for consistent in-field trimming of evergreens (for boxwood or yews, for example). Other labour-saving devices, which have all evolved significantly since their invention and introduction, include tree handling and tree tying equipment and crop protection product application technologies.

Even with the introduction of labour-saving equipment, an adequate and reliable source of labour was and continues to be integral to the success of the nursery production sector. From the 1950s through to the 1980s, the nursery industry, together with their colleagues in the landscape and landscape maintenance sectors enjoyed good access to European immigrant labour and especially from countries such as Portugal and Italy. Noted Manuel Sobrinho of Sheridan Nurseries, whenever Sheridan Nurseries needed more labour, key supervisory employees such as himself were sent “home” for a vacation and a mission to recruit

more workers. Unlike the landscape sector, however, by the time this European labour force began to age and retire, the nursery grower sector in Ontario already had access to the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP). Introduced to Canada in the late 1960s, this federal government program made workers available to the agricultural and horticultural sectors, initially from Caribbean countries such as Jamaica, and eventually from Mexico. Through the SAWP program, workers were available for up to 10 months each year, however, upon agreement between the employer and the worker, they can return to the same nursery every year. Provision of housing and transportation was the responsibility of the employer.

In BC, because of several successive government policies dating back to the early 1900’s designed to encourage immigration from India, the agricultural and horticultural sectors of that province had access to a large pool of Indo-Canadian labour. These largely unskilled labourers were made available to farming operations through labour brokers on a seasonal basis, although by-and-large, most workers were mostly “attached” to specific companies, who could in turn provide them with the necessary training to make them a valuable part of their workforce. As these workers started to age and retire, beginning in 2004, the SAWP program was extended to the horticultural sector in BC. Within this same general time frame, the SAWP program became available in all other provinces across Canada.

Especially at the administrative level, the advent of computer and cell phone technology also made a significant impact on the business of nursery growing. With their need to manage huge inventories and customer records, the early use of mainframe computers was adopted by several large wholesale nurseries, including Brookdale Kingsway Nurseries and the McConnell Nursery Company. Sheridan Nurseries boasted an IBM Unit Record, described as being half the size of a pool table with wires plugged into sockets like a telephone switchboard for programming. Their follow-up, state-of-the-art Honeywell computer boasted a 5k CPU! While time-saving, these early computers were not without their problems and they represented a financial and operating investment that was outside the scope of most of their nursery competitors.

Plant potting machine

The introduction of the home and office computer brought technology that once took up a large office space to a single desk. Imagine that more than one person in the office could be provided with their own computer! Whereas once nursery inventory was managed via manual record-keeping systems, within a few years nursery-specific programs were developed, adding to the convenience that computers had

already brought to invoicing and accounting functions. Computer and cell phone technology also brought previously unthinkable advancements to the art and science of growing and selling nursery stock.

Although it was a technology with a rather limited life span, the invention of the fax machine was a godsend for advertising inventory availability, submitting orders, and sending and receiving shipping information. One BC grower noted that he organized a group purchase of fax machines to lower the cost to BCLNA members. “It wouldn’t do me any good to have a fax machine if my customers didn’t have one.”

The list of improvements that would not have been possible without these technological advancements is practically limitless. Irrigation systems that once required constant onsite monitoring can now be run from a smartphone. Laptop computers and even smartphones now deliver inventory availability and facilitate on-line ordering and shipping. Tablets are used in nursery production to enter information on inventory and pest scouting, with the data being downloaded directly into the mainframe system.

As this anniversary publication goes to press, the business and practice of nursery growing is moving to a whole new paradigm, as growers adapt a whole new range of technology to their growing operations. Robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) are increasingly being adapted for use in nursery production. Robots have been used for measuring caliper in deciduous tree production and improvements in AI are now supporting the grading of trees, including evaluation of tree habit and quality in addition to the trunk size. Inventory assessment in the field requires significant labour for large farms, and accuracy is improved when assessments can be done more regularly. AI is also being used in pest management to identify and map hot spots for disease and insect issues to allow for targeted and timely crop protection. How will the

sector view these wonderful advancements 25 years from now? The wholesale nursery grower sector is also moving into uncharted territory as we witness a consolidation of the sector. Within a relatively recent timeframe, a significant number of nursery growers across Canada have closed their doors for a variety of reasons that are mostly related to the encroachment of urban areas into agricultural lands. This fact, together with the extraordinarily high cost for business start-ups, makes it reasonable to predict that in the near future the nursery sector will consist of fewer growers operating larger companies. Even a quick look at any newspaper or on-line media source makes it clear that this occurrence of ‘fewer but larger’ is not limited to the wholesale nursery grower sector. We can be confident that the nursery growing industry will remain as an important contributor to the growth and prosperity of the ornamental horticulture sector overall.

CREDITS

Our sincere thanks to the following for freely sharing their time and their many recollections on the evolution of the nursery sector:

MEETING FACILITATORS

John Byland, Byland’s Nurseries, BC John Bakker, JC Bakker Nurseries, ON

PARTICIPANTS AND OTHER CONTRIBUTORS

Anita Heuver

Arnold Heuver Betty-Anne Gifford Bill Stensson Bill Van Belle Bruce McTavish Case Vanderkruk Dan Vanderkruk Garfield Marshall Gerry Aubin

Gord Shuttleworth Harry Worsely Jeanine West Jim Wotherspoon

John Folkerts Manuel Sobrihno Vic Krahn Wilbert Ronald

Leaders in commercial landscaping, striving for excellence and professionalism within our industry. We offer complete site development and landscape services.

Land Tec Landscape Contractors LTD. www.landtec.ca 14210-141 Street, Edmonton, AB T6V 1H7 email: info@landtec.ca 780-457-5751 • www.landtec.ca

an historic look at the Landscape Sector

CANADA’S LANDSCAPE INDUSTRY can be traced back to the early 1900s and even earlier, although at that time professional landscaping services were limited primarily to the design and construction of estate gardens, both private and public. Publications such as Landscape Architecture and the history of Sheridan Nurseries, One Hundred Years of People, Plans and Plants, provides insight into the many challenges of creating magnificent estate gardens in what was then referred to as ‘the colonies.’ The earliest projects undertaken by Sheridan Nurseries founders Howard and Lorrie Dunington-Grubb include details about the design and installation of public gardens such as University Ave and Hamilton’s Gage Park. The construction of private estates such the Wood’s estate (now Falconer Hall) and the Colonel McLaughlin’s Parkwood Estates were clear indicators that landscaping was for the well-to-do only.

It was not until the post-war boom of the 1950s that the landscape construction and landscape maintenance sectors as we know them today began to come into their own. A whole new era of post war prosperity resulted in the construction of suburbs and the very real possibility of home ownership was realized by the baby boomer generation. The term ‘disposable income’ was coined and there was competition by industries everywhere for a share of those dollars. Vacations were to be taken, homes were to be decorated and front and backyards were meant to be enhanced and enjoyed by families. As our society grew in prosperity, eventually more and more people found it advantageous to engage the services of professional landscapers. At the corporate and industrial level, companies found it increasingly necessary to portray a suitable image that included an attractive landscape to enhance office buildings and even factory locations.

The introduction of interlocking paving stones to the North American marketplace soon became a whole new sales and revenue stream for the landscape construction sector.

LABOUR

The post war boom enjoyed by Canada was in large part fuelled by a mass immigration from mainly European countries. While these new immigrants mostly did not bring any monetary wealth, they did bring a diversity of expertise from “the old country” including an abundance of horticultural and construction knowledge. Most importantly, they brought a solid work ethic and a desire to see themselves and their families prosper in their new country. Some started their own small businesses upon arriving in Canada or, more typically, after working for a few years to establish themselves. Many more of these new immigrants were the basis of a solid labour pool for the landscape sector and, with ties to family back home, they were able to attract more people to Canada to feed the landscape sector’s ever-growing need for capable workers. In later years, as these first-generation immigrants aged and retired, landscape companies became increasingly challenged to find skilled and even unskilled labourers.

Labour availability was very much impacted by economic boom and bust periods to which the landscape sector was particularly vulnerable. Realizing the inevitability

PHOTO COURTESY ALTERNATIVE LANDSCAPES

of labour issues and that solutions were beyond the capacity of any single company, the sector increasingly looked to their provincial and national associations to help them to find solutions. Managing human resource issues on behalf of all sectors became an association priority. At the federal level, the CNLA played a leading role at CAHRC (Canadian Agricultural Human Resources Council) to advocate for the labour and training needs of the landscape and nursery sectors. Provincial associations, supported by CNLA as required, promoted the availability of their apprenticeship programs. In 2008 the industry achieved a milestone when the landscape sector was officially recognized as a Red Seal program. The Association’s most notable contribution to assist the industry in managing their labour training and availability issues was the establishment of their own landscape industry certification program.

ADVANCES IN MAINTENANCE

An early John Deere tractor with mower as the industry became mechanized.

PHOTOS COURTESY JOHN DEERE

FIRST ZERO TURN MOWER

In 1964, the first zero-turn, twin-lever mower was introduced, called The Hustler, able to maneuver irregular landscapes.

PHOTO COURTESY HUSTLER

1 A separate chapter on the development of the CNLA’s industry certification program can be found on page 112.

CNLA's priority is to help manage human resource issues for the landscape industry.

COMPACT EQUIPMENT

Skidsteers and mini-excavators are the mainstays of the landscape construction sector.

BROUWER

SOD HARVESTER

The invention of the sod harvester revolutionized the industry.

EQUIPMENT

An excerpt from the 1967 CNLA Centennial Yearbook provides a striking example of how improving equipment technologies have played an important role in the development of the landscape sector. In his article, Landscaping in Retrospect, Albert Brown of Sheridan Nurseries recounted how the replacement of horse-pulled Hoosier wagons with mechanized Fresno scrapers in the late 1920s revolutionized the process of large-scale earth moving.

The introduction and ongoing advancement of large equipment such as earth movers, bulldozers, front- end loaders and more played an important role in the growth and development of all building construction industries, including commercial landscape construction. In terms of overall numbers, however, the residential landscape and grounds maintenance sectors make up the largest number of CNLA member companies by far – a statistic that would not have been nearly as significant without the introduction of smaller equipment such as mini-excavators and skid-steer loaders. With either rubber tires or tracks, these small equipment introductions and their multitude of useful attachments saved on back-breaking labour, improved productivity and revolutionized both the scope and cost of work that could be performed in smaller residential settings. Even equipment manufacturers were initially skeptical of the benefits to early adopters, however it was not long before they were proven wrong and smaller equipment was considered essential to profitability.

Further productivity gains were realized with the introduction of Hydro Excavation trucks, employing pressurized water together with a vacuum system to allow for an accurate and less destructive method of excavating soils and digging

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

Manufacturers have made vast changes to hand-held tools, with changeable heads, lighter weight and more portability.

BATTERY POWERED MOWERS

Lawn care maintenance has undergone a metamorphasis over the 100 years, from horse-pulled to battery powered robotic mowers.

of post holes and tree pits in areas where the presence of underground utilities otherwise posed the risk of liabilities. Blower truck technology revolutionized the placement of soil, mulches and gravel to any garden, even on roof tops. The introduction of truck-mounted tree spades, with the capacity to move very large trees, gave a whole new meaning to the concept of instant landscapes.

Within the grounds maintenance sector, compact laboursaving equipment such as backpack blowers, line trimmers, fertilizer spreaders, dethatchers, aeration equipment and numerous improvements to lawn mowing equipment have made professional grounds maintenance services an affordable service for residential as well as commercial clients. Just as importantly, a good equipment line-up became essential to attracting and keeping seasonal employees.

Any article on equipment in the landscape sector would not be complete without mention of the Brouwer Sod Harvester invented in the late 1960’s by Canada’s Gerry Brouwer. This invention revolutionized the way sod was harvested around the world. Instead of a sod cutter which meant cutting sod and stacking it onto pallets or trucks by hand, the Brouwer harvester cut sod, transferred it onto a conveyor, rolled it and put the rolls on a pallet, all in one operation.

Gerry Brower’s contribution to the modernization of the turf production sector also included a big roll sod harvester, facilitating installation of sod on sports fields and other large commercial applications. Another revolutionary invention, the Hitch-Hiker truck-mounted forklift, allowed sod suppliers to deliver product to the job site without the need for the customer to provide their own unloading equipment.

NEW PRODUCTS AND NEW OPPORTUNITIES

Several new and innovative products played an important role in upgrading the scope of landscape projects and consequently the overall growth of the sector. The introduction of the interlocking paving stone in the 1970’s, was a significant game changer for the landscape industry. Most suburban homes of the 1950s and 1960s had a backyard patio for relaxing and outdoor dining constructed of two-foot square concrete slabs. A more well-todo clientele might instead have opted for a patio constructed of natural flagstone. Creosote-treated railway ties were also a common landscape material, used for edging and building small retaining walls. As supplies of railway ties dwindled and the safety of creosote in the home landscape came into question, they were eventually replaced by pressure-treated four-inch by four-inch timbers.

The history of the paving stone dates to Roman times, however it was the need to repair war-damaged roadways in Europe that resulted in the development of an efficient manufacturing process in the late 1960s. Their inevitable introduction to the North American marketplace occurred a few short years later. Over time, dozens of manufacturers produced a seemingly endless array of design and colour combinations and demand surged within the commercial, industrial, and residential sectors. As the installation process required skilled labour and specialized equipment, the installation of paving stone patios, walkways, driveways and retaining walls added a whole new profit centre to the landscape sector. By the early 2000s, the predominance of interlocking stone as a paver resulted in some resurgence of natural stone as a paving alternative. However, considering the relatively low cost to supply and install concrete pavers in contrast to their natural stone alternatives, it seems unlikely that this trend will spell the demise of the paving stone as an important landscape element.

Gradually, the introduction of other new products and technologies allowed for the introduction of many new features to the landscape. Improvements to low voltage technologies meant that landscape lighting became a musthave in higher-end residential landscapes. The installation of irrigation systems, once considered to be practical only

in commercial and industrial settings, became standard in even more modest landscape projects. Water features too, became a design highlight in residential landscapes as manufacturers sought to increase marketplace share with specifically designed products. The trend to outdoor living was yet another boon to the landscape sector, bringing kitchen style elements such as elaborate cooking and entertaining areas to the outdoors. Even as homes became larger and lot sizes became smaller, the trend to low-maintenance landscapes also started to make a real impact on landscape designs as stonework and other hard landscaping features took precedence over the use of plant materials.

Initially, landscape contractors sought to train their employees in the design and installation of these products. However, with the increasing demand for these specialized elements, most soon found it far more advantageous to hire qualified sub-contractors for the supply and installation of these many landscape-enhancing features.

THE MUNICIPAL FACTOR

The relationship between the landscape and nursery sectors and the municipal sectors has always been an important one. A notable milestone for the private sector occurred in the early 1980s when the City of Mississauga made it mandatory for all developers’ plans to be accompanied by a landscape plan carrying a stamp from an accredited landscape architect as a prerequisite to acquiring a building permit. This requirement was intended to reinforce the City’s standards for the quantity and quality of trees to be planted in conjunction with all new builds on private lands within the City. This practice has since been adopted by most municipalities across the country and is additional to their planting programs in public green spaces and street tree planting programs.

INFLUENCERS

That gardening was ranked as the number one leisure activity across North America beginning in the mid-1980s was of consequence to all sectors of the ornamental horticulture industry. Influencers of the day, including Martha Stewart, together with a multitude of home and gardening magazines and TV programming, especially HGTV, all wished to participate in this very popular trend. Collectively,

they provided the industry with an unprecedented amount of free publicity. The launch of HGTV programming coincided with the sector’s emergence from the early 1990s recession and, according to many, sparked an undiminished interest in home improvement and landscaping.

At the local level, home and gardening shows became popular spring-time attractions and allowed for more direct promotional opportunities for the landscape construction sector.

The influence of McDonald’s restaurants was also significant. A leader in bringing the fast-food phenomenon to North America, McDonald’s influenced more than consumer eating habits. Noting the importance of gardening and landscaping to their baby boomer target audience, the installation of upscale landscapes at each of their restaurant locations undoubtedly inspired many homeowners’ landscape designs as well. And, at the time of their restaurant expansion, McDonald’s landscape and maintenance contracts were a considerable boost to the landscape sector.

THE IMPACT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT

A significant impact to both the landscape construction and especially the grounds maintenance sectors was the ever-growing environmental movement. While on the one hand, this global trend to all things green was seen as being favourable to the sector overall, at the same time the environmental movement caused a great deal of upheaval as the industry was forced to consider their own impact on the environment.

The call from environmental groups to limit or eliminate pesticide use for so-called cosmetic use began in the mid-1990’s. With the sale and application of pesticide products being regulated at the provincial and eventually municipal levels, the ultimately unsuccessful industry lobby against any bans was coordinated primarily by the provincial associations. Hudson, Quebec was the first municipality to ban the use of lawn care chemical products in 2001. By 2006, lawn care pesticide use was banned province wide. Ontario followed soon afterwards, with a province-wide ban coming into effect on Earth Day, April 22, 2009. By 2015, seven provinces across Canada had banned the use of some or all lawn care chemicals.

The impact to the lawn care sector was dramatic. Many companies were able to make a transition to environmentally friendly lawn care programs employing the use of organic fertilizers and pesticides such as nematodes and corn gluten. A key part of the transition included the need to manage consumer expectations. However, the changeover was not an easy one to make and, with many homeowners not willing to pay for lawn care that included at least some tolerance to weeds, many lawn care companies went out of business.

Overall, however, the landscape sector viewed the environmental movement as being industry-friendly, although they struggled to make their voices heard among the clamour of “green” messaging. From banks to homebuilders, all industries had their own environmentally friendly messaging. The ornamental horticulture industry at large, that considered themselves to be the original green industry, found it difficult to make any significant impact. The CNTA responded with several national promotional programs, including “Green Survival, It Depends on You” launched in the 1970s. Despite some passionate advocates, the program was unable to gain widespread consumer recognition.

With the benefit of hindsight, today the case could be made that the Green Survival Program was simply too far ahead of its time. Increasing concern about climate change and global warming resulted in a groundswell of government, corporate and consumer attitude and policy changes, all designed to reduce our environmental impacts.

The leading role taken by municipalities to improve tree canopy cover translated to unprecedented business opportunities for the landscape and nursery sectors. Politicians at the federal and provincial levels also jumped on the bandwagon, and a commitment to plant two billion trees by 2050 became a key message of the Liberal Party in their 2019 election campaign. While this program was largely focused on the planting of seedlings, aided by CNLA lobbying, this commitment was eventually upgraded to include some planting of larger caliper trees. And the message to all was clear: planting trees was good for the environment, and it was a proactive action in which just about everyone could participate at some level.

More recent naturalization and wetland reconstruction projects, sometimes described as “rebuilding nature,” indicate that the although the environmental movement has already had a profound impact on the the sector, the industry will look back in 25 years to realize the trends of 2022 were simply the proverbial tip of the iceberg.

2 See Evolution of the Nursery Sector beginning on page 90 for additional information on the transition to container growing.

DEFINING MOMENT

The mass installation of large trees at Expo 67 proved now anything was possible in landscape installations.

PHOTO COURTESY SHERIDAN NURSERIES

It is generally accepted that while the economic influences of the post-war era shaped the industry we know today, Expo 67 is widely recognized as the single most important defining moment in the growth and development of Canada’s landscape construction sector. It was an exciting time for the country, as we looked to invite the world to celebrate the milestone of our 100th anniversary with us. Quebec and Ontario landscape contractors played a key role in the site development and landscaping, including the planting of thousands of large caliper trees on the newly created islands.

Oversight of the massive landscape project was the responsibility of Lakeshore Tree Farms. In a later interview with then foreman Horst Dickert, he recounts the need to use dynamite to deal with the frost conditions which were threatening the project’s productivity. Lakeshore reported they were able to increase their productivity from one tree to 80 trees per day. In all, the project stats revealed the planting of 14,950 trees, a further 898,000 shrubs, plants and bulbs and installation of 197 acres of sod.

With the success of Expo 67, it seemed the sky was the limit for the size and scope of landscape projects to be installed in the years that followed, especially in eastern Canada.

Only 19 years later, the landscape and nursery sectors of western Canada, and especially in BC, realized the same boost to both sales and a hugely enhanced image of the sector when Vancouver was chosen as the site of the Expo 86 World’s Fair. Widely hailed as the start of the young city’s transformation into a prosperous metropolis, the benefits to the landscape and nursery sector have continued since then.

PLANT TRENDS IN THE LANDSCAPE SECTOR

Beginning in the 1950s and 60s, the pallet of ornamental nursery plants began a noticeable expansion, as growers transitioned away from the production of fruit trees and shrubs to service the ever-expanding landscape and retail sectors. A game changer for all sectors was the transition by the nursery growing sector to container growing of nursery plants, allowing for almost year-round access to nursery stock.

Early planting lists, for both residential and commercial landscapes, were quite predictable. Selections such as paper birch, purpleleaf sandcherry, forsythia, Russian olive, Austrian pine and Colorado blue spruce provided the requisite variety of colours and textures and predominated the residential and small commercial planting plan. For municipal street tree and large commercial landscape plantings, trees such as Norway and Crimson King maple, green ash, crab apple varieties, mountain ash and fast growers such as willows, poplars, and Chinese elm dominated planting lists. Over time, many

of those varieties came into question due to various disease and insect problems and issues such as invasiveness.

Driven mostly by the environmental movement, the industry witnessed a gradual shift away from the popular introduced street tree varieties such as Norway maples, lindens and locust to a selection of native varieties.

Demand for ornamental varieties for the residential landscape continued to remain strong, however. As home lot sizes decreased over the years, the grower industry responded with the development of smaller ornamental trees, often made possible through top grafting. One of the first to hit the market was the weeping mulberry, introduced by a California nursery grower in the early 1970s. Since then, many other small weeping and globe types, such as weeping caragana and weeping cherry, were also introduced to the marketplace. Smaller-growing selections and trees with a narrow growth habit continued to grow in popularity. One of the most popular smallergrowing ornamental trees, Ivory Silk Japanese tree lilac, was introduced by Sheridan Nurseries in 1973. It has since been planted in landscapes and as a street tree in cities around the world.

Upright junipers such as Skyrocket, Mountbatten and Blue Haven were just a few of the varieties that dominated the residential landscape market in the 1960s and 1970s. Spreading junipers, such as Hetzii, green and golden pfitzer, tamarisk, blue rug and many more were also popular in foundation plantings. Although these items are still grown in more limited quantities and some continue to be mainstays

in colder climates, by and large they have been replaced by a plethora of other evergreen, shrub, and perennial varieties. Beginning in the 1990s, with the consumer continually clamouring for new and exciting varieties to plant in their gardens, plant breeders responded with a dizzying array of new perennial varieties. While the trend to perennials was often deemed to be a passing fad, consumers did not agree with this sentiment. Over time, perennials became increasingly important, eventually taking away significant market share from evergreens and deciduous shrubs.

TECHNOLOGY

The introduction of computer technology marked the beginning of a revolutionary change to all business sectors. In 1983, articles began to appear in Landscape Canada magazine on the use and benefit of home computers to the ornamental sector overall along with advice on how computers could and should be an important business management tool.

CONGRATULATIONS ON 100 YEARS!

Within the same time frame, cell phone technology was also introduced to the business community. Featuring large and cumbersome devices, early so-called mobile devices had receiving equipment that could take up a significant amount of trunk space and, with a price tag of several thousand dollars, limited range and expensive service contracts, this invention was not immediately affordable to the average landscape contractor. As the technology for both was refined and the associated costs of ownership and rental became more affordable, computer and cell phone technologies were applied to virtually all facets of running and managing a business. The introduction of the World Wide Web in the mid 1990s added yet another level of functionality to these new and emerging technologies.

The computerization of bookkeeping and accounting functions was just the proverbial tip of the iceberg of the numerous benefits that computer technology would bring to the industry. Once upon a time, secretaries or more often wives took messages that needed to be returned, mostly in the evening hours. Problem-solving could take several

Hardy, easy to care for perennials continue to be consumer favourites.

days, whereas modern cell phone technology allowed for on-the-spot decision making. With the advent of texting and emailing capabilities, providing documentation evolved from letter writing and mailing to instant written communication. Verifying hours of work, change orders, providing quotes and so much more could happen instantly. The impact to landscape design was just as significant. Previously, the design process included client visits, manually generated plant and material lists and hand-drawn blueprints often undecipherable to the client. CAD and 3D technologies soon made takeoffs faster and more accurate and provided the customer the comfort of viewing 3D perspectives of the proposed finished product. GPS technology allows managers to accurately track their trucks and has often been used to find stolen equipment.

As the CNLA prepares to celebrate the Association’s 100th anniversary, few would argue that the impacts of the many factors that have contributed to the sector’s growth and prosperity, including Canada’s economic prosperity, the environmental movement, and especially the pace of technological advances will decline anytime soon. It would

be impossible to speculate on what the industry might look like 25 or even 100 years from now, but forward-looking members of CNLA will certainly be instrumental to the sector’s continued successes.

CREDITS

MEETING FACILITATORS

Harold Deenen (ON) Christene LeVatte (NS)

PARTICIPANTS AND OTHER CONTRIBUTORS

Bruce Hunter (BC)

Ruth Olde (BC)

Dwayne Beck (AB) Ron Oudyk (AB)

Hank Gelderman (ON) Richard Rogers (ON) Garfield Thompson (ON) Rene Thiebaud (ON)

Gerald Boot (ON) Bill DeLuca (ON)

Peter Guinane (ON) Michael Murray (NL) Sandy Roberton (NS) Leslie Cornell (SK) Phil Paxton (AB)

A NEW DIRECTION FOR ORNAMENTAL RESEARCH

CANADA’S ORNAMENTAL

HORTICULTURAL SECTOR

has benefited from federal research programs since the early 1900s and for many years was an important part of the research programs at federal government stations located at Morden (MB), the Central Experimental Farm in Ottawa and L’Assomption (QC). Focused primarily on plant breeding and the introduction of hardy ornamental varieties, an informative summary by Dr. Wilbert Ronald elsewhere in this Anniversary book outlines the history of plant breeding in Canada.1

Beginning in the 1970s, the federal government began to gradually phase out their commitment to ornamental horticulture breeding programs. Ornamental research at

Morden Station, including the popular hardy rose breeding program, was halted in the late 1990’s, although to their credit, the program’s valuable genetics were maintained by AAFC. Finally, in 2010, an agreement was reached between CNLA and AAFC that would see the Association take over the program in cooperation with the then new Vineland Research and Innovation Centre.

The research infrastructure in Canada has always been and continues to be a complex one, and generally involves intricate, ever-changing agreements between the federal and provincial governments and university research institutions. As Canada’s largest province and home of the University of

1. The Canadian Ornamental Horticulture Alliance (COHA) was formed in 2007 as a strategic partnership of CNLA, Flowers Canada Growers and the Fédération interdisplinaire de l'horticulture ornementale du Québec (FIHOQ).

See also Canadian landscape and fruit crop breeding page 40.

Research programs are key to developing plant breeding and the introduction of varieties suitable for the Canadian climate.

Guelph, Canada’s primary agricultural university, a considerable body of production research has been undertaken in the province of Ontario. Other institutions such as Laval University (QC) and Kwantlen Polytechnical University (KPU) have also made important contributions to ornamental research. Identifying adequate and sustainable sources of funding was and continues to be a major roadblock to improving research capacity for the ornamental horticulture sector. In the mid 1990s, CNTA and their provincial partners spent considerable money and effort to establish a levy program, based on new enabling legislation introduced by the federal government. Encountering unsurmountable bureaucratic barriers, this effort was eventually shelved. Many other agricultural sectors also experienced failed attempts to establish production levies.

Classified as primary producers, matched funding programs were often available to the nursery sector, through federal or provincial agricultural ministries, making it easier to fund critical research needs. This seemingly unfair advantage was often a point of contention, however, for their landscape and retail sector colleagues.

A turning point for the ornamental sector, including greenhouse floriculture occurred with the formation of the Canadian Ornamental Horticultural Alliance2 in 2007, just prior to yet another restructuring of AAFC’s research funding programs. Through this partnership, the sector successfully participated in three five-year AgriScience Cluster programs, securing significant funding to support a variety of research projects.

MAKING THE TRANSITION TO LANDSCAPE RESEARCH

Despite this success, there was disappointment too, that CNLA-supported projects intended to provide much-needed research into the survivability of tree planting in the urban environment did not qualify for AAFC funding.

Discussions had started in 2008 between the Ontario Ministry of Transportation and Landscape Ontario on the need for research on the survivability of trees in the harsh urban environment. These talks intersected with the start-up of Vineland Research and Innovation Centre’s Environmental Horticulture Department and resulted in the project, Greening Ontario’s Highways. A follow-up project Greening Canada’s Highways, funded through the Cluster program provided useful results based on research carried out in both Ontario and Alberta. Unfortunately, further applications were disallowed on the assertion the research no longer qualified as being relevant to agriculture and primary production.

At the same time, climate change concerns inspired increased tree planting and improved canopy cover initiatives at the municipal level, triggering demand from the entire urban landscape value chain for more research in areas such as soils, root management and species selection. With interest coming from the entire value chain, including nursery growers, landscape contractors, municipalities, developers, landscape architects and project consultants, new funding models for funding research were explored by Vineland.

The end result was the Greening the Landscape Research Consortium. Funded through membership fees, the consortium model allows for the cost of research to be assumed by all players in the value chain.

Certification Program

CNLA Certification PROGRAM

OUR MISSION

CNLA, with the Provincial Associations, will develop programs, undertake initiatives and form alliances in order to achieve sustainable prosperity for members and stakeholders.

Arguably the most important milestone achieved by the CNLA in realizing their stated mission on behalf of their members across Canada was the ongoing development and delivery of their national Landscape Horticulture Certification

Program. From the original concept stages to its current status as a nationally recognized program confirming the adoption of industry best practices, the history of the CNLA’s certification program remains an outstanding example of the value of an industry association that is passionately supported by its members.

First presented to a small group of Canadian landscape company owners by their colleagues in the US, the concept of certification – to provide employees with a means of demonstrating and proving their expertise in a variety of

LANDSCAPE HORTICULTURE CERTIFICATION program

essential landscape construction proficiencies – was immediately appealing. The need for a more professional image for the sector was a long-standing objective. At the same time, landscaping was a sector that had come to rely on immigrant and then casual labourers who had learned many skills through on-the-job training. Why should these workers and their employers not have an opportunity to verify these skills to their clients?

In 1992, a small group of Canadians, including Peter Foley, Geoff Lewis, Bruce McTavish and Bruce Hunter arranged for a casual meeting with some of their US colleagues from the American Landscape Contractors Association (ALCA). In theory at least, the concept – to design a series of practical site tests that would prove the candidates’ skill and competency in a number of essential landscape tasks – was a relatively simple one. It would be the responsibility of the

Association to design practical testing procedures that would establish minimum skill standards while emphasizing safety. Practical on-site testing of skills would be supplemented with a written test to verify basic industry knowledge.

The recommendation to adopt a similar program in Canada, either solely or preferably in a partnership arrangement with ALCA was readily approved by the CNLA Board of Directors. Bruce McTavish was hired to develop an occupational standard to meet Canadian industry requirements, and Sandy Roberton of Earthworks Landscaping (NS) enthusiastically took on the responsibility as the first chair of the Certification Committee. It was determined that program development would be a CNLA responsibility, but that the actual testing process – which included promotion, registration, fee structure and cost recovery, and coordination – would be the responsibility of the provincial associations.

A series of practical tests were designed to prove a candidate's skills in essential landscaping job duties.

A MEETING OF THE MINDS?

provinces were not far behind, holding their first tests in the spring of 1996. The Alberta industry negotiated with their colleagues at Olds College for a permanent site at the college and hosted their first test in 1997. The successful candidates were able to proudly display their CCHT (Canadian Certified Horticultural Technician) badges under the landscape installation or landscape maintenance designation.

With the help of a solid partnership with their US colleagues, together with industry and association assistance coordinated in October of 1995 by Bill Hardy, the first tests for both the landscape construction and the landscape maintenance sectors were designed and delivered in BC. A flurry of testing days across the country followed. Landscape Ontario hosted their first test in the winter of 1995-96 and the Atlantic

There were, of course, many hiccups in the early years of the Certification program, the most notable being the extraordinarily high resource requirements to host practical, on-site testing days. The set-up of test stations, trained judges required for each station, timers and various other support tasks required numerous staff and a great deal of coordination. Material and equipment needs were high as well, as skills to be tested included everything from plant identification and paving stone installation to equipment operation and more. Across Canada, organizers were mostly able to access willing volunteers along with donated materials and loaned equipment, but the smaller and even mid-sized provincial associations found it difficult if not impossible to afford staff resources for the much-needed up-front administrative details that were required for each CHT testing event.

As seen by this 2009 group shot taken at the end of a successful test day, a large number of staff and especially volunteers were necessary to conduct up to 20 testing stations operating concurrently throughout the day.

The committee of the first Atlantic Region Certification test (l-r) Walter Penney (LNB), Christene LeVatte (LNS), Jeff Morton (Dept of Agriculture), David Stenhouse (LNS), Sandy Roberton (LNS and chair), Michael Murray (LNL) and Ross Godfrey (LNS)

Recognizing the huge value of the certification program to the landscape sector at large, it was not difficult for the CNLA to make the decision that the national association needed to play a larger role in supporting the provinces in the delivery of the CHT certification program. Staff were hired to assist the provinces with promotion and especially the coordination of test events, reducing the burden to the provincial associations. For their part, the provincial associations across Canada began their own significant investments in infrastructure, mostly by collaborating with educational institutions to secure set up permanent or semi-permanent test facilities, thereby notably reducing the time and cost of set-up.

By the late 1990s, the recognition of CHT Certification and the natural evolution of the sector itself, both in Canada and the US, led to the development of a landscape management certification designation. Over the course of one intensive week, later to be referred to as the Denver Summit, delegates from both countries arrived at a solid outline of the elements of what would soon become the Certified Landscape Professional designation. Other sectors were

eager anxious to participate, and a retail component was added in 1996. A Certified Landscape Design test was added in 2003-04. Eventually, an occupational analysis was also developed for the nursery sector, and a pilot test program was held in BC in 2014.

The CHT Certification program was always intended to be a test to verify skills competency, and its development also included the creation development of a Certification Manual, which outlined in detail the expectations of the testing program for each skill. Over the years, there were accusations of “training to the manual” presumably making it possible for candidates to pass test stations without the necessary skills. Noted Bill Hardy, “We had good confidence in the testing process , that required candidates to show up, work hard and demonstrate that they were well-trained.”

Although subject to ongoing tweaks and improvements, by 2010, actual certification testing programs had achieved a good level of stability across Canada, with new tests being offered yearly in each region. Certified

Certification testing was made available by the provincial associations with assistance from CNLA across the country, from Nova Scotia to BC.

LANDSCAPE DESIGNER

A Certified Landscape Design test was added to the program in 2003-04.

individuals were well-supported to maintain their certification status through a well-communicated continuing education credit system.

A historical look at the ongoing evolution of the Certification program also requires a few words about the US-Canada relationship of the associations on both sides of the border. According to chair Jeff Foley (BC), “We can’t over-emphasize the importance of Canada-US relationships which were developed through international cooperation for the development and administration of the Certification program.”

Over time, CNLA’s committee, now renamed as the Professional Development Committee (PDC) and the US National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) formed an International Certification Committee, making it possible for each country to tailor programs, especially at the managerial level, to best meet their specific requirements.

In 2010, after several years of cooperative discussions between PDC and NALP, a major overhaul was undertaken, to eliminate redundancies and to better reflect the specializations in the industry, including softscape installation, hardscape installation, turf maintenance, ornamental

maintenance and irrigation design and installation. At that time, the logo and designation system were also modernized.

As both PDC and NALP sought to best meet the needs of their own members, it was only natural that eventually each country would choose to pursue somewhat different directions for their Certification programs, and by 2019 the two associations adopted their own country-specific programs. Although Canada’s PDC was invited to remain a member of the international committee, they would no longer have access to the Landscape Industry Certified identity.

The years following the so-called separation from their US counterparts brought substantial changes to the Certification program as the CNLA sought to merge new opportunities that would lead to a modernized program with even more public recognition. Improvements were made to the Certification program so that it would be more aligned to the Red Seal Occupational Standard, a federal-provincial government program that aligned provincial apprenticeship programs so that they would have national recognition.

Achieving Red Seal status for the sector in 2008 was a hard-won accomplishment for CNLA and a connection

TESTING FOR A FOUR SEASON JOB Skill testing for snow removal is a component of the Landscape Maintenance testing program.

Beginning in 2021, work began on upgrading the Certification Program to use video technology as an alternate to traditional on-site testing.

between it and industry certification would not only simplify the testing process for candidates but would also add a large measure of credibility to the Certification Program.

A whole new image and logos were designed to bring greater awareness to the now named Landscape Horticulture Certification Program (LHCP) and its various designations of Certified Landscape Horticulturist Technician, Certified Landscape Horticulturist Manager, and Certified Landscape Designer.

Of particular significance as the CNLA prepares to celebrate their 100th anniversary, the LHCP uses web-based applications to allow candidates to complete their written and hands-on certification tests online. Video technology makes it possible for candidates to demonstrate their proficiency at specific skills while working on an actual job site. While traditional on-site testing will continue to be an option offered in collaboration with the provincial associations, the new LHCP makes it considerably easier for employees and their employers to participate in this important industry certification program.

PIONEERS

WE CANNOT OVERLOOK THE CONTRIBUTIONS made by the pioneers of the industry to the success of the ornamental horticulture sector. Through their hard work and dedication to a fledgling industry, today’s landscape, grower and retail sectors are able to benefit from the prominence and consumer recognition they now take for granted.

The following is a representative list only of the sector’s early pioneers. It is intended to be a tribute to all of the

landscape, garden centre and wholesale nursery grower companies that have over the years contributed to the growth and well-being of the sector. Many are no longer in business. Compiled from a variety of sources, including personal recollections and older trade magazines, this list is meant to be a random cross section of those companies that have gone before to pave the way. Oversights and omissions were in no way intentional.

PHOTO

Lakeshore Tree Farms started out in the mid-1930s in Saskatchewan, planting and propagating fruit trees.

COURTESY LAKESHORE TREE FARMS

Canadale Nurseries, St. Thomas, ON, was a family business right from the start.

PHOTOS COURTESY CANADALE NURSERIES

WHOLESALE NURSERY GROWERS

The history of Canada’s very earliest nursery growers dates back to the 1800s and was well-documented by R. Warren Oliver, in the CNTA’s Centennial yearbook . All regions of Canada are represented by now famous names such as ED Smith, Fonthill Nurseries, and Wellington and Stone in Ontario, Mr. Patmore and Mr. Skinner in Manitoba, Mr. Layritz of BC and many more.

Moving forward, the 1900s saw the start-up of many large nurseries that eventually made the transition to the production of ornamental nursery stock to keep up with the quickly changing marketplace demands.

The McConnell Nursery Company, established in 1912 and HC Downham Nursery Company, established in 1919 are two notable industry pioneers that set the stage for a prosperous nursery growing industry. Of particular note was their forward-thinking attitude and acknowledgement on the impor tance of establishing good industry-government relationships through the formation of trade associations.

As Canada’s oldest surviving nursery today, Sheridan Nurseries also holds the distinction of being one of this country’s first established for the sole purpose of growing ornamental plants. The founders of Sheridan Nurseries, Howard and Lorrie Dunington-Grubb were able to lure Danish-trained Herman Stensson and family from the UK in

1913. The company’s rich history and contributions to both the industry and the Association are well-documented in their own anniversary publication, One Hundred Years of People, Plans and Plants.

English-born Leslie Hancock studied horticulture at Ontario Agricultural College, but he is especially recognized for the distinctive horticultural expertise he brought back to Canada after spending four years at China’s Nanking University. He eventually went on to found Woodland Nurseries, located in Mississauga, where he specialized in the growing of rhododendrons and azaleas.

Major John Connon first started with a flower shop in Hamilton in the early 1900s. The nursery, first established in Winona was eventually moved to Waterdown. He was joined by C. Vanderkruk in 1953 after immigrating from the Netherlands with his family. They became partners in 1957 with Mr. Vanderkruk becoming a full owner in 1959.

Noted propagator Jens Pederson and his wife Joan started Rose Arbor Nurseries in 1943. Their greenhouse and field production, was sold in Ontario and out of province to Quebec and the prairie provinces.

Both the nursery and greenhouse sectors boast a long list of immigrants from the Netherlands, including JC Bakker & Sons. John Bakker Sr. arrived in Canada in 1948 and started their now-thriving nursery business started business in 1949 in the St. Catharines area. The company is well-known for their quality production and especially their rose production. Ten years later, cousin Harry Bakker immigrated to Canada. He was ready to start his own small nursery business, Maple Leaf Nurseries in 1963 in Niagara-on-the-Lake, later moved to St. Catharines. The first crops of roses, hedging plants and poplar trees were soon expanded to a complete line of inventory.

Also located in the Niagara area, Leno Mori of Mori Nurseries started growing ornamental stock alongside his Italianborn father’s fruit tree production in the early 1950s. Mori Nurseries was one of the few nurseries that continued to supply orchard producers and expanded to include farms in New York and Michigan. Once one of Canada’s largest wholesale growers, the nursery was closed after Mr. Mori’s retirement in 2015.

Although Otto Timm of Timm Enterprises immigrated to Canada from Germany in 1958 with the intent of continuing

his horticultural apprenticeship, he soon noticed the lack of grower supplies and equipment. He began importing tools and supplies such as labels and burlap for the sector and founded the company in 1962.

Despite their cold and challenging winters, Canada’s Prairie provinces boast a rich history of nursery production dating back to the late 1800s and early 1900s. Many of the celebrated names in Canadian horticulture hail from Manitoba, due in large part to the presence of the Morden Research Station and the earlier commitment of Agriculture Canada to breeding and research of ornamentals.

Operating from 1883 until 1915, Patmore Nurseries is considered to be “the” pioneer nursery of the Prairie provinces. Founder Henry Lewis Patmore introduced a number of new plant varieties to the industry, including the very popular Brandon pyramidal cedar.

Boughen Nurseries Ltd. Valley River, traces their beginnings back to the early 1900 when Mr. William J. Boughen settled in the Valley River area as an early pioneer. An avid horticulturist, Mr. Boughen was recognized by the Dominion of Canada for his fruit tree and shrub introductions, and the company

PLANTING CEREMONIES

Tree planting ceremonies have been, and continue to be an important element in any event. Included in this planting ar John Zaplatynsky, Gerry Hutchinson and Karl Stensson.

PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE

CNLA staff, board members and provincial leaders gather to share ideas and plan for the future of the green industry.

eventually went on to add many new perennials to their inventory. The company was closed in 2020.

Aubin Nurseries, still in operation today, was founded in 1927 by the late Gerald Aubin, after spending two years working at the Morden Research Station. Upon his death in 1958, his son Lawrence returned to Manitoba from Niagara Falls to continue the family business, today operated by grandson Gerry Aubin. The nursery supplies a wide assortment of nursery stock to the landscape and garden centre trades.

A legendary name in the horticultural sector and beyond was Frank Skinner, an extraordinary horticulturist who started

Manitoba Hardy Plant Nursery in 1925, which was renamed to Skinner’s Nursery Ltd. in 1947. During the course of his nursery career Frank Skinner introduced over 140 improved varieties of species ranging from lilies, chrysanthemums and roses to trees such as larch and basswood.

Further west, the province of Saskatchewan boasts an equally impressive line-up of horticultural pioneers. Theodore Andrew Torgeson, simply known to one and all as Torgie Torgeson, came to the Estevan area of Saskatchewan from North Dakota in 1911 to eventually purchase Prairie Nurseries, a company which he expanded from its original 80 acres to over 700 acres. The company remained in business for 63 years.

A salesman for Prairie Nurseries, Albert (Bert) Porter eventually started Honeywood Nurseries. He was responsible for the breeding and introduction of many hardy fruit varieties, including raspberries, hardy cherries, and apples. Some years later he also began to introduce a number of ornamental varieties and especially lilies.

Any mention of the early days of nursery production in Saskatchewan would not be complete without a mention of Lakeshore Tree Farms, started in 1936 by Jacob Dyck and his foster son George Krahn. Just one example of George Krahn’s dedication to the industry and trade associations alike was his authorship of the SNTA’s 25 Year Anniversary book (1957-1982)

In Alberta, John McDonald purchased the existing Mitchell Nurseries in 1913, renaming it to Lacombe Nurseries. The 20-acre nursery grew in size to 160 acres, growing deciduous trees, evergreens and fruit trees. For many years, mail order was a large part of the company’s sales.

Eagle Lake Nurseries was started by Tony Heuver in 1970. The company specializes in caliper tree production to service the landscape market, including commercial, residential, and local government agencies.

BC’s contribution to this honour roll of industry pioneers includes respected names such as J. Henry Edie and Lloyd Smith, the two first presidents of the Horticultural Trades Association of BC.

One of the first nurseries to be established in BC was Layritz Nurseries of Victoria. Established in 1890, the company specialized in growing the unique species and specimen plants for which BC is noted.

Established around 1905 to 1910, Royal Nurseries was the largest nursery in Vancouver at that time. The nursery supplied large quantities of ornamental trees and shrubs. After the company went out of business many of their key employees went on to start their own businesses or take up prominent positions, such as at the Vancouver Parks Board. One of these was H.M. Eddie. He went on to work for the Oregon Nursery Co which for a few years had a branch in BC, before starting his own business a few years later. In 1947 he became co-owner owner of a new business, Murray and Wood Growers Limited. This company was one of the first to specialize in large, boxed container trees for the landscape industry.

Henry Heuver (left), Chris Andrews and Phil Pearsel (right).

Stewart Brothers started in Kelowna in 1911, by brothers John and Richard Stewart, as growers and exporters of fruit trees to countries such as China and Australia. Fruit tree production was phased out entirely by 1970, to focus on the production of deciduous ornamental trees.

Reimers Nurseries, founded around 1935, specialized in tree production, with most product exported out of province, to US as well as BC and he prairies.

Murray Nurseries of Vancouver, started with the production of mums and expanding to grow trees and shrubs, was a pioneer in BC in container production. Everett (son) joined the business in 1933.

John Massot, owner of Massot Nurseries was recognized as one of Canada’s leading nurserymen. John studied horticulture in France and moved to BC in 1953, worked for others for very short periods before staring on his own in Richmond BC, initially growing geraniums and junipers. He led the way in the container growing of nursery stock, especially large specimen plants in wooden boxes.

Walter Van Vloten Nurseries, Pitt Meadows, BC was incorporated in 1964. The company grew a wide range of stock but began to specialize in less hardy varieties, to fill a marketplace demand.

LANDSCAPE

William Ellerbrok arrived in Canada from Germany in 1954, and established their landscape construction and nursery growing company in Nova Scotia (Cape Breton). As one of the first landscape companies in the area, many of today’s Maritime landscape companies trace their proverbial roots back to Ellerbrok. One of these is Sydney Landscaping and Nurseries, started in 1964 by John Stenhouse and his wife Monica Ellerbrok and former Ellerbrok employee Julius Mesics. The company was expanded to include sod production in 1970. The companies that remain today are

Sydney Landscaping and Nurseries, Highland Landscapes for Lifestyle and Highland Sod Farms, and AMD Landscapes.

Edmonds Brothers Enterprises was incorporated in 1966 by brothers John and Roger Edmonds. Operating from their offices in Halifax, the company grew to become one of the largest in the area, offering a wide diversity of services including snow removal, heavy trucking, and sod and nursery stock production.

Also in Nova Scotia, Maritime Sod was incorporated in 1970 by Robert Arsenault due to the unavailability of good lawn sod for the company’s landscape operation.

Maritime Landscape Services was founded in 1974 by Stan Kochanoff, offering landscape construction and landscape consulting services to Nova Scotia clients. Other notable names in that province include Gerald Milligan of Milligan Landscaping and Terra Nova Landscaping, started in 1976 by Grant and Dorothy Mosher.

In Ontario, McLean and Peister (Kitchener) were known for their large project construction and management and well respected by all the landscape architects. Founder Glenn Peister eventually transitioned into site and golf course development.

Also well known for the quality of their workmanship, Leslie Solty & Sons operated a large landscape division, a nursery and sod farm and retail garden centre. The company worked on many high-profile landscape projects, including the construction of the courtyard gardens at the Sheraton Hotel. Associated Landscape owner Willy Huber had an eye for design and did a lot of the work for Cadillac Fairview, a major developer at the time. He had his own designers on staff and landscaped and helped create most of Erin Mills. There was also a garden centre and yard located in Brampton.

CNTA BOARD

CNTA Board of Directors posed in front of the Landscape Ontario offices, Milton, ON

John Putzer, of M. Putzer Nurseries started as a landscape contractor focused on the Toronto marketplace, but as his nursery expanded, he felt his love for growing was stronger than fighting with clients and consultants and eventually the landscape sector was closed.

Bruce S. Evans was a dynamic man with the landscape division playing a role in many major projects throughout Canada and into the US. His firm built many of the famous and favourite golf courses in Canada. Their firm was one of the first to unionize. He was also involved in road building, concrete plants, and development.

Lakeshore Landscapes Ltd of Mississauga was a partnership of Bill Schreiber and John Northwood with assistance from their excellent lead man, Horst Dickert. They knew quality and were always competitive. They started a nursery in Georgetown and in Shelburne. Landscape architects loved them when the partnership broke up the business was sold to Aldershot Landscaping which agreed to use it as their unionized division for five years. The company was sold to O’Brien Contracting but eventually closed.

A well-known multi-faceted business, Braun Nursery and Landscaping operated a garden centre and landscape construction business in the Hamilton area in addition to their caliper tree nursery. Eventually the landscape division was phased out to focus on nursery stock production and the manufacture of wire tree baskets.

PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE

Strategic plans for the future of the association included Gord Shuttleworth (centre) and Marc Thiebaud (right)

Another company that eventually phased out of landscape construction to focus on the manufacture of high-quality decorative planters and furniture for the landscape was Knecht and Berchtold. The company was renowned for their exceptional workmanship, taste and quality.

Moving to the prairie provinces, McEwen Bros. landscape contractors were the largest in the prairies. Started in 1957 as a partnership between brothers Bill and Mel, the company focused on commercial, golf course and development projects.

Henry Heuver immigrated to Canada from the Netherlands in 1963 together with his brother Tony and together they started Foothills Landscaping in 1967 which eventually grew to become one of Calgary’s leading landscape construction companies.

T. Moscone & Bros Landscape was started by Tony Moscone in 1948 with brothers Angelo, Irvano and Vincenzo. The company grew to be a full-service contractor, including maintenance, irrigation and landscape lighting.

In BC, Tom Dineson Landscape and Nurseries was started shortly after Tom Dineson arrived from Demark in 1955. Gunter Blasig started Gunter Blasig Landscape Design and Construction 1in 1960. In the early 1970s, Kris Johnson started a landscape construction company, but by the 1980s phased out the construction division to concentrate on the production of large caliper trees.

Don Fraser of Northwest Landscape Supply, started in the 1980s was an important contributor to the progress of BC’s landscape sector through their convenient supply of a vast array of decorative stone and other landscape supplies and especially his support of the association.

RETAIL GARDEN CENTRES

Although retail sales have always been very important to Canada’s pioneer nursery growers, it was not until the 1950s and later that stand-alone retail garden centres became a familiar part of the ornamental horticulture sector.

Two notable exceptions occurred at opposite ends of Canada. The Halifax Seed Company, established in 1866 was damaged in the 1917 Halifax explosion. At that time the company was moved from the harbour to Granville Street. Halifax Seed has since expanded to two retail locations, one in Halifax, NS and one in Saint John, NB. On the west coast, Cedar Hill Nurseries, started in the 1920s in Victoria was hailed as a very modern garden shop.

Now one of the largest garden centres in the Maritime provinces, Scott’s Nursery was established as a perennial and bedding plant grower in NB upon the arrival of Oliver Scott from Scotland in 1935. Upon his death in 1957, the business was taken over by sons Jim and George.

In Nova Scotia, Lakeland Plant World was founded by Ross and Peggy Godfrey in Dartmouth, NS in 1976 as one of the area’s largest full serve garden centres. In Portugal Cove, NL, Murray’s Garden Centre was started by Michael Murray in 1980. The retail shop is part of a multi-faceted company that also includes landscape services and a greenhouse growing operation. Started in 1980 by Bob Osborne, Cornhill Nurseries, located near Sussex NB is also a multi-faceted business that includes growing, landscaping and a retail garden centre. The company became well-known for their passion for and care of the environment.

Vancouver Summer Tour in 2005.

Made possible by a donation from Robert Lawson Cotton, Burnbury Nurseries (PEI) was established by the provincial government in 1947 as suppliers to the islanders of a variety of trees, shrubs and perennials. The nursery was closed in 1998 after the retirement of the nursery manager.

In Ontario, the Weall & Cullen Garden Centre chain started by Len Cullen in 1947, grew to a total of five garden centres as well as the celebrated Cullen Gardens and Miniature Village, a world famous tourist attraction located in Whitby, ON. Well known as an avid horticulturist, Len Cullen devoted countless hours to the Association for the betterment of the industry. Noted as being among the first to offer a complete line of gardening accessories and giftware, remaining open year-round was Little Tree Farm (London) started by Ted Shuttleworth and his wife Gladys in 1954. Industry tours to view the retail and growing operations were a regular occurrence.

Victor Santacruz

PROMOTING PLANTS

Clever marketing to savvy consumers has created brand loyalty and a confidence that the plant material will be easy to grow and maintain.

Hugh McCracken Garden Centre, Brantford ON, started by Hugh as a landscape company in 1954, expanded to include what would eventually become a very successful retail garden shop.

Alex Raab, the founder of White Rose Nurseries was known as an innovator and inventor. The first White Rose garden centre, located in Unionville ON, was opened in 1957. The chain grew to become one of the largest horticultural operations in the world, with growing and retailing facilities in Canada, the US and Israel. At its peak, the business had a total of 42 stores.

The father and son team of Frank D. Reeves and Frank T. Reeves started Plant World in the 1960s and served the gardening needs of the Toronto area until they permanently closed their doors at the end of the 2019 gardening season. Located west of Winnipeg, Shelmerdine’s retail operation was a natural 1960’s expansion of the company’s growing and landscaping operation, although the two separate companies of Shelmerdine Garden Centre Ltd. and Shelmerdine Ltd (landscapes) were not separately incorporated until 2005. In the Oakbluff area, south west of Winnipeg, Jensen’s Garden Centre was added to the landscape and nursery business in 1971. To meet growing local demand, a new garden shop was built in 1999. Mel McEwen, McEwen Bros opened a new full-service garden centre in Winnipeg in 1977.

Of course, the Krahn name is also important in Saskatchewan’s retail garden centre sector. Lakeshore Garden Centre was founded by George Krahn in 1936 and is still in operation today, managed by Lee Krahn. Dutch Growers Garden Centre, owned and operated by the Van Duyvendyk family was started in 1953. Today, garden centres are operated in both Saskatoon and Regina.

Established in the Edmonton area in 1952, Holes Greenhouses was transformed into a retail garden store by Ted and Lois Hole approximately 18 years later. The store was expanded considerably in 1979 by siblings Jim, Bill and Valerie to become one of the largest independent retail garden centres in Canada.

The Golden Acres Garden Centre chain was started in Calgary in 1964 by Wade Hartwell and his father. The landscape division was closed a few years later, followed by the addition of several more retail locations, including one in Edmonton. In the Red Deere area, Parkland Garden Centre, was started by Earl Beck in the mid-1970s as a division of a company that also included landscaping and nursery growing. Retail operations were taken over by daughter Gloria Beck in 1982 and brother Dwyane took over management of the nursery growing division.

Hunter’s Garden Centre, later renamed to David Hunter Garden Shops was founded in 1953 by David and Margaret Hunter. A second location was purchased from Lloyd Smith and Bryan Sutton in 1960. For many years, the company also operated a landscape and maintenance division.

PLANT PROTECTION AND PROMOTION:

PRESERVING THE ROLE OF THE CANADIAN ORNAMENTAL PLANT FOUNDATION

THE NEED FOR AN ORDERLY PLANT REGISTRATION SYSTEM and the protection of new plant introductions to the marketplace through some form of plant patents or breeder’s rights was identified from the earliest days of the Eastern Canadian Nurserymen’s Association. Although these objectives were ultimately achieved, the long and arduous road to success would not have been possible without the support of ECNA and its successor organizations and the Canadian Horticultural Council.

Even at an international level, the protection of new plant introductions, through Plant Patents or Plant Breeder’s Rights is a relatively new concept and it was not until 1968 that the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) was first ratified by several European countries. Within Canada, attempts to introduce Plant Breeder’s Rights began in 1971, but suffered numerous political setbacks, and it was not until 1990 that Canada’s Plant Breeder’s Rights Act went into effect.

Not willing to wait for government regulations but seeing the challenges of individual breeder/grower licensing agreements, in 1964, forward-thinking individuals representing the combined floriculture and nursery sectors took matters into their own hands with the creation of the Canadian Ornamental Plant Foundation (COPF). Their objective was to bring together breeders, propagators, growers and wholesale sellers for the orderly introduction of new plants to the Canadian marketplace. Breeders registered their plants with COPF, growers would pay royalties directly to COPF on all registered plants and COPF would redistribute royalties back to the breeder, minus a small percentage fee to cover administrative costs. Although the system was voluntary, it was mostly respected by the industry at large, and in time, COPF was able to implement a monitoring protocol.

Despite concerns that new PBR regulations would diminish the role of COPF, in fact quite the opposite was true, as the need for an orderly royalty collection system was greater than

ever now that breeders had the security of legal protection. Also, due to the costs associated with acquiring PBR protection, many breeders continued to register new plants with COPF for voluntary collection of royalties.11

The role of COPF was particularly important in securing protection and collection of royalties for the many varieties of plants, especially hardy roses but also varieties of perennials and shrubs introduced to industry by Agriculture Canada breeders. Eventually, royalties collected on AAFC varieties were returned to AAFC to further support their breeding programs, especially at Morden Research Station.

Beginning in the early 1990s, a new industry trend began to emerge, as breeders and their marketing companies began to compete for consumer attention with aggressive marketing strategies. Using coloured pots, labels and other marketing aids, the promotion of plants and especially those grown for the retail marketplace, became the domain of the breeder. Many breeders did continue to employ Patents or PBR as a method of securing legal protection for their new introductions, however, most also began the practice of using trademarks as a way to protect their brands and new plant introductions. Contracts were direct with the grower as a means of protecting brand identity.

This paradigm shift in the marketplace was responsible for a steady decline in COPF revenues and in 2018 the COPF Board announced their decision to cease operations. As the owners of new rose genetics through their 2010 takeover of the AAFC rose breeding program, and in consideration of the very diverse needs of their smaller and medium-sized growers, the CNLA board agreed to take over the management of the COPF business model. The small amount of revenue now realized by CNLA is allocated to funding research. Just as importantly, the CNLA have ensured that small breeders could also have access to the new plant market, at the same preserving an important part of the nursery and floriculture sectors’ heritage.

1 see also Landscape Trades article, COPF, 1964 to 1994, 30 years of bringing new introductions to the Canadian marketplace.

WOMEN IN THE HORTICULTURE INDUSTRY

When determining the list of topics to be documented as part of the CNLA’s 100th Centennial Yearbook, it was only natural that the progression of women and their role in the horticultural industry was deserving of some discussion. It is important that the distinction be made between women in horticulture – those very talented female horticulturists that have made significant contributions, often in plant propagation and breeding, and women in the horticulture industry. This latter category is far broader and includes all women that have chosen to pursue a career in the horticulture industry, be it in landscaping, retailing or nursery growing and related sectors.

To achieve this objective, we elected to send a survey to a broad cross-section of women with a long history of employment in the industry and asked them to provide us with some personal observations on how the sector has changed – or not – over the years in its attitude towards and acceptance of women in the horticultural workplace. As much as possible, we reached out to women employed in a good cross-section of ornamental horticulture and who also had some degree of involvement with a horticultural trades association. Besides asking for a few basic statistics, the survey was mostly comments-based. Many of these women are still involved in the industry and a few are now retired. The recollections shared with us date back as far as the 1970s.

The consensus of respondents was that the prevailing attitudes and practices regarding the treatment of and attitude towards women in the horticulture industry were societal in nature and typical of the times. A good starting point to recognize just how far women have progressed in the workplace is to understand that in the 1960s and 1970s, it was standard for conference planners in any industry sector to organize ladies’ days programs for the benefit of those wives that wished to travel with their husbands. This was even though most wives were very involved in the day-to-day running of the business and essential to their overall success. In an early nod to the feminist movement, eventually ladies’ programs were renamed to spouses’ programs and ultimately they were done away with altogether.

In a sector where an employee’s worth was often equated with physical strength, a particular challenge faced by women was the need to be able to keep up in terms of physical ability to gain the respect of their co-workers. From lifting

of heavy objects on landscape projects to being a part of a nursery planting or potting crew, and even operating machinery such as forklifts and driving large trucks, not shying away from physically demanding jobs typically thought to be doable only by their stronger male counterparts secured respect and acceptance on the job site. Mechanization was no doubt a contributing factor to women being able to participate equally with their male counterparts on the jobsite, but it could also be argued that better equipment was equally important to the retention of all employees, both male and female.

“I was once asked why I was taking a course; shouldn’t I be home running the house? It has taken time, but I have seen a real change in the respect now shown to women.”

“Assumptions were always made that male counterparts were the decision makers, money source or even the owner.” “Male counterparts often found it easier to convince someone of their ability and knowledge while women had to work harder to convince others they are very capable.”

More difficult to overcome were the challenges associated with attitudes especially in male-dominated professions such as landscape construction and maintenance. Not being taken seriously, either on the job or as a member of an association committee, needing to work twice as hard as male counterparts to prove oneself, convincing clients of their skills and management decisions and less pay for equal work were among the list of burdens cited by all. While this situation has vastly improved over the years, there continues to be room for improvement, by both the public and within the workplace. The comment that “there remains a male dominant mindset in our sector which offers opportunity for real growth in terms of diversity and inclusion” summarized the overall viewpoints expressed by respondents.

For many women, their determination to make a career for themselves in ornamental horticulture at a time when their numbers were solidly in the minority, was a result of being introduced to the sector through a family business. Could it be said that business-owner fathers with daughters were among the early adopters of feminist principles? Although it was sometimes felt that those with a family business connection had an advantage over those that did not, these mostly second-generation family employees played a very important role in paving the way for others to follow. They were more

apt to make opportunities available for other women and contributed significantly to a positive change in attitude to female employees.

“One of our best employees came to our company after being poorly treated by a competitor – their loss in so many ways. Perhaps women’s best advocates are, in fact, women.” “I have advanced many women in my own business. They have usually exceeded my expectations.” “As we are seeing more women owning companies and taking on leadership roles, they will already be open to hiring women for leadership roles in their own companies.”

It has long been a characteristic of ornamental horticulture, and especially within the landscape and maintenance sectors where there are fewer costs and barriers to entry, that talented employees are very apt to starting their own business. Certainly, the number of women-owned businesses has risen dramatically as talented women seek to improve their own prospects. With the huge shift in societal attitudes, many are finding good support from a consumer base eager to support this new and growing trend.

There was no lack of enthusiasm from the respondents to the question on adequate opportunities for women in the sector, although all stressed the need for hard work, network building and volunteer work at the provincial association level. The following best summarized the comments overall: This is a legacy career filled with opportunities to leave your

mark on the world in an environmentally sound way, through installation of creative green designs that will beautify living spaces of future generations for years to come.

And finally: “To all those women out there starting into the industry. Figure out what you love to do and hone your skills. Also, find some time each week to weed a garden. It is soul-searching work and can clarify everything for you.”

OUR

SINCERE

THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION:

Gloria Beck, Parkland Nurseries and Garden Centre (AB)

Laura Coupar, Elmsdale Landscaping (NS)

Betty-Anne Gifford, Dutchmaster Nurseries (ON) Sally Harvery, Green Design Landscaping Inc and Landscape Ontario

Anita Heuver, Eagle Lake Nurseries Ltd. (AB) Leanne Johnson, Canada Garden Works Ltd. (BC) Hella Keppo, Stems Interior Landscaping Inc. (ON) Pamela Pippy, Pamela Pippy Landscape Design (NL) Christene Stenhouse LeVatte, Highland Landscapes for Lifestyle (NS)

Heike Stippler, Heike Designs Inc. (BC) Renata Triveri, Grow and Gather (BC) Anna van Maris, Parklane Landscapes (ON)

To all those women out there starting into the industry. Figure out what you love to do and hone your skills. Also, find some time each week to weed a garden. It is soul-searching work and can clarify everything for you.

Growing & Creating Our Future

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