UAC Professional Landscape Awards winners See page 8
URBAN AG COUNCIL MAGAZINE GEORGIA
Keeping Georgia’s green industry informed
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UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
One industry. One voice.1
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UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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UAC Magazine
URBAN AG COUNCIL MAGAZINE GEORGIA
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
UAC NEWS
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President/Executive Director message UAC’s new blog Opportunity for members to connect with consumers UAC Professional Landscape Awards Judges and winners 2013 UAC Education Award winner Louise Estabrook What did you miss? Field day, clay tournament, and EDGE Expo SEED sponsorship opportunities 2013 UAC/John Deere Landscapes scholarship winner UAC member receives GUFC award Eric King UAC welcomes new members
BUSINESS 32 Ratio, ratio, on the wall What’s most important of all? 34 Coming in 2014 New obligations, hiring goals, and more 38 Bright ideas for 2014 Quick business tips from Manta
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
INDUSTRY
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2014 Sod Producers’ Report Survey examines inventory and price 2014 State of the Industry Report Lawn & Landscape survey results UGA-bred turfgrasses Research from Georgia to the world Look before you pump! Ethanol Education & Consumer Protection
URBAN AG
52 55 56 58
Impatiens Downy Mildew Looking beyond 2013 Bloom ‘N Again Azaleas 25 new varieties Wet, dry, hot, cold A look back at 2013 and ahead to 2014 weather Protecting wildlife habitats NWF and landscapers join forces
IN EVERY ISSUE
18 20 22 24 26 28
Save the date Have you met...Leland Smith, Smith & Associates Pest 411 Tawny crazy ant Safety works The dangers of silicosis Health & benefits Seasonal employees and healthcare reform What the tech? 10 email stats you should know
Official publication of the Georgia Urban Agriculture Council
Board of Directors
Tony Gibson, President Gibson Landscape Services, LLC George Wolf, Vice President John Deere Landscapes Bret Bowlin, Treasurer Mountain Valley Farms Dixie Speck, Secretary Solterra, Inc. Aaron McWhorter North Georgia Turf, Inc. Ken Morrow Sod Atlanta, Inc. Chris Nelson Piedmont Park Conservancy Bob Scott Irrigation Consultant Services, Inc. Teddy Russell, Past President Russell Landscape Group, Inc.
Ex Officio
Kris Braman Interim Dir., Center for Urban Agriculture Ellen Bauske UGA Extension Public Service Assistant Bodie Pennisi UGA Extension Horticulturist Clint Waltz UGA Extension Turf Agronomist
Staff
Mary Kay Woodworth Executive Director Kathy Gatten Johnson Marketing Director & Editor
A member of: Atlanta Botanical Garden Georgia Agribusiness Council Georgia Arborist Association Georgia Association of Water Professionals Georgia Green Industry Association Georgia Urban Forest Council Georgia Water Alliance PLANET Southeastern Horticultural Society
Georgia Urban Ag Council PO Box 817 Commerce GA 30529 P: 800.687.6949 F: 706.336.6898 E: info@urbanagcouncil.com www.urbanagcouncil.com
All contents copyright 2014
UAC NEWS
Dear UAC Members and Supporters, As a new year begins, it’s a good time to
look back and see where we’ve been and where we are going. A recent national industry survey from Lawn & Landscape magazine lists the impact of the Great Recession and five years of uncertainty: • Leaner (and meaner) landscapers • High profits and high stress • More focus on the business Survey says that a typical landscape contractor does about $680,000 a year in gross revenue, brings home about 10 percent of that as his/her own salary (if collecting a salary), has eight employees, does full service landscaping for mostly residential accounts. The owner is the primary salesman, especially in a design/build business and he/she is still working in a production capacity during the day and doing backoffice work in the evenings and weekends. The biggest concerns are fuel costs, lowball competitors, where to find good help (production level and management) and the job stress.
However, Lawn & Landscape’s editor Chuck Bowen, predicts that 2014 is ripe with opportunity. Specifically: • Rise of water management advisers • Design/build and construction and renovation work will continue to grow
Tony Gibson President
• •
More M&A as owners age, and more PE investment in lawn care and maintenance businesses Continued consolidation in the middle of the market ($5 to $10 million) More and more interest in propane and commercial-grade electric equipment
More on page 48. To review the complete survey, go to www.urbanagcouncil.com and click on the link “2014 Industry Survey”
The way you do business has changed, and just as you have examined your business, the Georgia Urban Ag Council thinks it’s time to reexamine our commitment to you, our members and what we bring to you. What benefits and services are most important to you? Education, networking, advocacy? How can our association be more relevant to you and your employees? As we examine our organization and how to best serve you, we’ll consider the time pressures you are under, the value expectations that you have for membership, and the most important needs that you, as business owners, have. The UAC Board has scheduled a Strategic Planning session for January 2014 and we’d like your help! All we ask of you is feedback – and a few minutes of your time completing an online membership satisfaction survey. Please copy and paste this survey link in your browser and complete the five-minutes survey. Thank you! https://www. surveymonkey. com/s/2014UAC. Don’t worry we’ll send you a reminder if you haven’t completed the survey before our session!
Mary Kay Woodworth Executive Director
Thank you for your time and important feedback as we continue to make UAC the premier urban ag industry in Georgia!
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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UAC NEWS
GEORGIA
LANDSCAPE PRO
Brought to you by the professionals of the Georgia Urban Ag Council
Pro tips to keep your landscape...
growing green
& gorgeous!
Introducing: UAC’s Georgia Landscape Pro blog georgialandscapepro.com
This consumer-targeted blog is a consumerfriendly spot to promote the Georgia Urban Ag Council and our members as THE authorities in the landscape industry. Join the other UAC members who are already providing content for the blog and start getting your company in front of consumers. Are you sending newsletters to your customers? Send us some of your articles in a Word document so we can consider adding them to our blog.
If you already have a blog, great! We will include a few lines in our blog post as an intro, then link back to your blog to drive traffic to your website. We also will include your logo and a few lines about your company at the bottom of our post, along with a link to your website.
Where did we get these great photos? From UAC Professional Landscape Awards entries! We are always looking for quality photos for our own publications and to share with others, like Atlanta Home Improvement Magazine. It’s great exposure for your business.
Email your articles, blogs and photos to info@urbanagcouncil.com for review! Just one more way that UAC membership benefits you and your company!
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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2013 Professional Landscape Awards
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
UAC NEWS
Judges
Mark Banta
Rick Barnes
Louise Estabrook
Banta built Centennial Olympic Park’s operations team from the ground up and recently launched Klyde Warren Park in Dallas. A well-respected horticulturist, he is a past president of both the Georgia Turfgrass Association and MALTA and has served on the UAC board.
Barnes owned his own landscape company for 12 years and has been a part of the NatureScapes team for 18 years. He is a past Chairman of GGIA, a certified arborist and has made nearly 50 landscape awards submissions during his 30-year career.
Estabrook is the UGA Extension Agriculture and Natural Resource Agent in Cherokee County, previously serving in Fulton County, GA and in Suffolk County, NY. She is a Masters Candidate in UGA’s Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication program.
Todd Guilmette
Bejie Herrin
Walter Reeves
As president of Unique Environmental, Guilmette and his award-winning team have brought imagination to landscape design and quality maintenance services to the metro Atlanta area and the state of Georgia since 1988.
Herrin has worked in the horticulture industry for 20+ years. For the last eight years she has been an instructor at Chattahoochee Technical College and is implementing the college’s Environmental Technology program.
Reeves is retired from 29 years with the UGA Extension Service. He now hosts a call-in radio show, writes a newspaper column for the AJC, hosts a public television show, manages his extensive website, and writes gardening books.
UAC NEWS
• All entries are judged without knowledge of who entered the project. • Entries do not compete against each other. • Entries are evaluated using criteria specific to the category. Merit
For projects that meet the standard in the category
Distinction
For projects judged as superior overall
Grand
For projects judged as greatly exceeding all criteria
Community Stewardship For projects that promote safe, healthy, and sustainable communities Green Star
For the distinction or grand award winners in the installation, management, and seasonal color categories that employed innovative sustainable solutions
Judges’ Choice
For the grand award winner (or winners) in the installation, management, and seasonal color categories that “WOW”ed the judges
Green Star and Judges’ Choice awards will be announced at the awards banquet in January 2014
Entries & Awards Landscape Management: Commercial
Merit
Distinction Grand
Chatham Landscape Services................ Villas at South Point New Leaf Landscape Services................ NEGA Hospital Arborguard, Inc....................................... Jekyll Island Beach Village Russell Landscape Group....................... Gwinnett Medical Center Irrigation The Fockele Garden Company.............. Magnolia Trace
Distinction
Floralis Garden Design.......................... Atlanta Intown Maintenance Gibbs Landscape Company................... Leebow Residence New Leaf Landscape Services................ Thompson Residence New Leaf Landscape Services................ Winston Residence
Design/Build/Installation: Seasonal Color - Commercial
Merit
Distinction
Grand
Arcoiris Design Gardening.................... Overlook III Roof Modern Office HighGrove Partners................................ Morehouse College Chatham Landscape Services................ Post Alexander Chatham Landscape Services................ Post Riverside Crabapple Landscape Experts............... One River “The Sanctuary” Gibbs Landscape Company................... Canoe Chatham Landscape Services................ 3630 Peachtree
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Landscape Management: Residential
2013 Professional Landscape Awards
Judging
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2013 Professional Landscape Awards
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
UAC NEWS
Design/Build/Installation: Seasonal Color - Residential
Merit
Chatham Landscape Services................ Davis Residence Chatham Landscape Services................ Devore Residence Floralis Garden Design.......................... Seasonal Color Gibbs Landscape Company................... Woods Residence
Grand
Design/Build/Installation: Small Space
Merit
Distinction
Grand
Arcoiris Design Gardening.................... Downtown Urban Picnic Area Garden Wonders, Inc............................. Dunwoody Residence Arcoiris Design Gardening.................... InterContinental Marble Corporation Classic Landscapes, Inc.......................... Martin Residence Arcoiris Design Gardening.................... Organic Kitchen Garden Planters, Inc............................................. Brookhaven Guest Cottage
Design/Build/Installation: Residential, under $50,000 Merit Distinction Grand
Daniel’s Landscape Design.................... Merchlinsky Residence Home & Garden Design......................... Hoover Front Yard Makeover Home & Garden Design......................... Urquhart Discovery Play Garden Gibbs Landscape Company................... Gebbia Residence Planters, Inc............................................. Ansley Park Residence
Design/Build/Installation: Residential, $50,000 - $150,000 Distinction Grand
Floralis Garden Design........................... Mountain Lodge Planters, Inc............................................. Historic Highlands Residence
Design/Build/Installation: Residential, over $150,000 Distinction Grand
HighGrove Partners................................ Wozniak Residence Planters, Inc............................................. Yancey Residence
Design/Build/Installation: Commercial, under $75,000 Merit Distinction
Chatham Landscape Services................ Arium Riverside Apartment Homes Chatham Landscape Services................ Post Brookhaven Apartment Homes
Design/Build/Installation: Commercial, $201,000 - $500,000
Distinction
Russell Landscape Contractors............. 92 West Paces
Design/Build/Installation: Commercial, over $500,000
Merit
HighGrove Partners................................ Lakeside Village Apartments
Community Stewardship Award
Chatham Landscape Services................ KIPPS Ways KaBoom! Playground
UAC NEWS
SuperCrew finds innovative crews! Foster children learn new career path by Louise Estabrook, Cherokee County ANR Agent
Originally intended for existing landscape crews, the SuperCrew training is a comprehensive training series developed for the entry-level landscape employee. Ten senior high school boys - all foster children residing at the Goshen Valley Boys Ranch in Waleska - attended a week-long SuperCrew landscaper training at the Cherokee County Cooperative Extension office. Each of the boys completed all of the modules and testing, asking pertinent questions and demonstrating a real interest in the subject matter. We also spent time talking about appropriate interview techniques. Foster children typically have a high risk of unemployment and even homelessness. Career training is rare and if they even complete their high school education, they seldom attend college. All ten Goshen Valley boys received their certificates of completion. Through the training I was able to offer them, using the SuperCrew modules, a third of the trainees have become productive, self-sufficient individuals. They are earning fair wages, have medical benefits and a much greater hope for the future.
This is the second time that I have sought out new audiences for the SuperCrew landscaper training. The first was with a group of men from the Atlanta Mission’s Drug and Alcohol Rehab Unit in Atlanta. These men traveled to Perry, GA, and met with Ag Commissioner Gary Black who was so impressed with their commitment that he offered to connect them with a personal friend for interviews. True to his word, Commissioner Black arranged for a manager from Russell Landscape Group to interview the trainees and several of them were offered jobs!
2013 UAC Education Award recipient This award is presented each year to the County Extension Agent who has planned and implemented the most innovative and/or effective educational efforts in support of urban agriculture and the landscape industry.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Four of the foster children trained are now full-time landscapers at a local golf course.
Louise Estabrook
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UAC NEWS
WHAT DID Sod & Landscape Field Day
November 6, 2013
Sporting Clay Tournament
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
November 14, 2013
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Winning team: Pennington Seed
Individual winner: Rob Estes
UAC NEWS
YOU MISS? EDGE Expo
December 11 - 12, 2013
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
UAC NEWS
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UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Sod Atlanta has the best service - they always deliver it when I need it and have consistent quality.
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UAC NEWS
seed support | energize | enable | develop
URBAN AG COUNCIL GEORGIA
SEED sponsorship opportunities support | energize | enable | develop SEED sponsorships offer our members an additional opportunity to promote their businesses and support UAC at a level beyond the membership dues. Donors will receive the benefits listed below. This is an annually renewable program, beginning on the contribution date.
Diamond
$5000
Company name listed on UAC printed materials, the UAC website, and signage at Field Day and EDGE Expo events; choice of four full-page color interior ads in UAC Magazine OR four tickets to each UAC dinner meeting (excludes awards dinner) in 12-month period; and a complimentary trade show booth. Total value of additional benefits: $2600.
Platinum
$2500
Company name listed on UAC printed materials, the UAC website, and signage at Field Day and EDGE Expo events; choice of two full-page color interior ads in UAC Magazine OR two tickets to each UAC dinner meeting (excludes awards dinner) in 12-month period; and a complimentary trade show booth. Total value of additional benefits: $1500.
Gold
$1000
Company name listed on UAC printed materials, the UAC website, and signage at Field Day and EDGE Expo events; choice of one full-page color interior ad in UAC Magazine OR one ticket to each UAC dinner meeting (excludes awards dinner) in 12-month period. Total value of additional benefits: $450.
Silver
$500
Company name listed on UAC printed materials, the UAC website, and signage at Field Day and EDGE Expo events; one half-page color ad in UAC Magazine in 12-month period. Total value of additional benefits: $275.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Bronze
Company name listed on UAC printed materials, the UAC website, and signage at Field Day and EDGE Expo events.
Thank you to all of our Charter SEED Sponsors! Diamond
tree_logotypeUpdateGENERIC.pdf
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Platinum C
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Gold
Buck Jones Nursery Plants • Sod • Landscape Supplies
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Contact us today to see how you can become a SEED Sponsor! 800.687.6949 | SEED@georgiauac.com | www.urbanagcouncil.com
Bronze
UAC NEWS
Making an impact on the industry
2013 scholarship winner looking toward future by Clinton Steketee
Several experiences have helped me prepare to make an impact on the green industry. I graduated with a Bachelors of Science degree in crop and soil sciences from Michigan State University in May 2012. I am currently in my second year of a Master of Science program majoring in plant breeding, genetics, and genomics at the University of Georgia (UGA). My degrees will provide me an opportunity to impact the urban agriculture landscape industry in several ways. Upon completion of my thesis project and degree requirements, my education at UGA will have provided me with training to become a successful turfgrass breeder or geneticist. I would like to use this, and my background in turfgrass management, to produce new, elite varieties of turfgrass that minimize the impact these species could potentially have on the environment. My professional and educational goals go hand in hand with making an impact on the green industry through production of improved turfgrass cultivars. Upon graduation from UGA, I would like to continue my education by pursuing a Ph.D. in plant breeding, genetics, and genomics. Professionally, I would like to either become a public plant breeder working as a professor at a university, or work in the industry as a breeder for a seed or sod company.
Eric King (pictured left), a principal of King Landscaping, recently received the Georgia Urban Forest Council President’s Award from Rob Ryan (right), the organization’s president. The President’s Award is given annually to an individual who has gone “above and beyond” in supporting the Georgia Urban Forest Council and its efforts to promote healthy urban forests in Georgia. GUFC was founded in 1988 with the mission of sustaining the state’s green legacy by helping communities grow healthy trees.
UAC/John Deere Landscapes Scholarship winner This scholarship program promotes professionalism in the landscape industry by encouraging and promoting education and encouraging standards and management practices that will foster improvements in the human environment through protection of our natural resources.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
UAC member receives GUFC award
Clinton Steketee
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SAVE THE DATE
Coming in January 2014
JAN
?
2013 Professional Landscape Awards Banquet We promise it will be worth the wait! At press time, details were still being finalized, but plan to gather your coworkers together and join your colleagues for a very special evening of amazing projects and surprises. Date and location will be announced via email and on the UAC website.
Fescue • Bermudas • Zoysias • Centipede •
Landscape Timbers • River Rock • Mulches • Stone •
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UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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Get in the zone and get rewarded!
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Sponsored by W.S. Pharr & Co.
Award categories Group 1 All entries meeting category criteria will receive a certificate.
AWARDS Why participate?
• Vehicle Safety • Health • Lost Time • Safety First
Group 2 Maximum of three plaques will be awarded in each category, based on company size. 1 small (0-10 employees) 1 medium (11-49 employees) 1 large (50+ employees)
> Public recognition ur business > Safety impacts yo ess OSHA-ready > Make your busin > It’s free!
• Safety Excellence • Safety Improvement
Safety issues? Enter anyway!
www.maltamembers.com/safetyzone • There is no entry fee. All Group 1 entries that meet the criteria will receive a certificate.
• Only UAC member companies in good standing may submit entries.
• These awards recognize safety performance from January 1 December 31, 2013.
• Enter any or all of the award categories.
• Applications are due Friday, March 14, 2014. Awards given at the May 2014 UAC dinner.
Georgia Urban Ag Council web: www.urbanagcouncil.com • email: info@urbanagcouncil.com • phone: 800.687.6949
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Download criteria, judging, entrance procedures, entry form:
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SAVE HAVE THE YOUDATE MET
Leland Smith, RLA, ASLA, ISA, AICP
Smith & Associates, Creative landscape architecture + planning My first job in the green industry was...as a brush
cutter for a Georgia Power Company contractor, cutting power line right– of–ways in the mountains of North Georgia and swamps of South Georgia. It was hot work. One time I was stung by several black-ball hornets because I cut into their nest without Leland Smith knowing it. The crew Smith & Associates, LLC actually took time for lunch while I started Address: P.O. Box 751 Clarkesville, GA to swell up like a Phone: 706.968.3910 balloon. About three Email: mlelandsmith@gmail.com hours later I made it Web: www.smithandassoc.net to the doctor. I woke up the next day sore all over, but I wanted to get back to work. Believe it or not the work was fun.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
The biggest challenge in my career has been...surviving the downturns in the
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economy. I asked the Lord for strength and God has given me difficulties to solve.
The person who has influenced my career is...my Dad. He was a perfectionist, the toughest
man I ever knew and very vocal. Once, when I was in my final year in the landscape architecture curriculum, Dad visited me. Our conversations were never very long and so what he said was concise, short, and to the point. It went like this as he looked around, “Don’t rest on your laurels.” I thought to myself, ‘Well, OK. Well, I guess the work has just begun. Thanks, Dad.’ When Dad visited me at that time I felt like I had really received a tremendous compliment. I felt honored by his gesture and presence.
My biggest career success so far has been...as an accomplished landscape
architect combining Master of City & Regional Planning with Bachelor of Landscape Architecture degrees and Arborist Certification. Then, applying it with my clients and their needs.
If I had it to do over again, I would... wear more flip-flops.
The thing I like most about my career is... that every site always has a specific solution that will meet the exact needs of the site. The site always dictates the solution.
My least favorite part of my job is... cost estimation, period.
One piece of advice I would give to someone entering the green industry today is...keep your drive, excitement, passion, and tenacity and sustain it with the renewing of your mind every day by reading. Forget about being politically correct.
The one thing most responsible for my success is...belief and faith in the Lord. To
paraphrase Romans 8:28, “And we know all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Sometimes I get negative feelings and thoughts and then I change the channels in my mind to the things that God says about me. And it works for me.
If I could change careers, just for one month, I would...be city manager for the City of Atlanta, Georgia.
One thing that really annoys me is...a
client that is very angry, difficult, and, in general, hard to get along with. I’ve learned to love them at a distance and provide solutions that can be completed within a specific time frame. I’ve also learned to handle certain difficult clients closely and ‘take their temperature’ and keep their satisfaction level as high as possible. Have you had any clients like that here?
HAVE YOU MET When I’m not working, I like to...read
One thing most people don’t know about me is...I’m a registered
and run. I have cut off the television and now I’m able to have more time to get on with my day. I’ve found there’s less distraction without the tube on. I’m not infatuated with television because I grew up on it and now I get my info from the internet because increasingly TV is too discriminating and opinionated and TV is hurting for programming. I’m drawing and sketching more.
landscape architect, certified city planner, certified arborist with memberships in ASLA, ISA, and AICP, but I am also Six Sigma certified. I never thought I would use statistics again until the Six Sigma classes began. There are lies and then there are statistics….
To paraphrase my friend James Richards, ‘Why draw? To unlock creative ideas through reconnecting mind, eye, and hand. A generation of new landscape architecture graduates is wading into complex projects without the sketching skills that have sustained designers for millennia. What is needed, as reflected in the market demand for our services is the development of quick, fluid hand-drawing skills that serve the earliest conceptual levels of a project to capture a flow of ideas as they occur.’
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UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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PEST 411
Tawny crazy ant
UGA county agent finds new ant species in Georgia by Sharon Dowdy
The tawny crazy ant has made its way into Georgia for the first time.
Danny McDonald/Texas A&M
“They’re reddish in color, very tiny, and they run around and scurry really fast. And they don’t march in a straight row like Argentine ants,” Morgan said.
University of Georgia Extension agent James Morgan of Dougherty County discovered the ant—which originates from South America—on Aug. 15 and submitted a sample to the University of Georgia for identification.
Prior to his discovery, the ant was found only in a few counties in Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. Where it occurs in those states, it is a major nuisance. Morgan stumbled upon the ants at an assisted living facility, after the director called the UGA Extension office for help controlling the insect.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Thousands travelling together
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“What I found was thousands of dead ants in a pile in the corner of the bathroom floor,” Morgan said. “The duplex was vacant, and the ants had come in looking for a food source. When they came in, they died and we found hundreds of them piled up around baseboards and in corners.” After further investigation outside the facility, Morgan found droves of the ants in an outbuilding. “We found them in the lawn on debris and dead wood, and we traced them back to a storage area that was full of appliances,” he said. Accustomed to identifying Argentine ants, fire ants and other ants common to Georgia, Morgan knew these ants were different.
“They’re reddish in color, very tiny, and they run around and scurry really fast. And they don’t march in a straight row like Argentine ants,” Morgan said.
Confirmed as tawny crazy ants
He sent a sample to UGA entomologist Dan Suiter, an Extension specialist in urban entomology housed on the UGA campus in Griffin. The samples were confirmed as tawny crazy ants (Nylanderia fulva) by taxonomist Joe MacGown at the Mississippi Entomological Museum. The ant is classified as a nuisance because of its attraction to electricity and because it travels in masses. It likes to get into electrical boxes, Suiter said. Large accumulations of the ant can cause short circuits and clog switching mechanisms, which can result in electrical shortages in phone lines, air conditioning units, chemical-pipe valves, computers, security systems and other electrical locations. “Most people will be overwhelmed by the number of tawny crazy ants they’ll find. It’ll be through the roof,” he said. “They’ll come in your house, and it becomes a kind of ‘ant from hell’ scenario.” Suiter said once an ant species gets established, it’s “really hard to dislodge them.”
Not Argentine ants
He expects Georgians to confuse the tawny crazy ant with Argentine ants. Like Argentine ants, the tawny crazy ant travels indoors in search of food and water. It doesn’t sting like a fire ant, but it probably has a mild bite, he said. The ant also is capable of spraying small quantities of formic acid, which may irritate some individuals. About one-eighth-of-an-inch long, tawny crazy ants are slightly larger in size than Argentine ants
PEST 411 and have erratic foraging patterns. Argentine ants are dark brown in color, slightly smaller and do not move as fast or as erratically.
may have hitched a ride on a plant brought into the state from a region where the tawny crazy ant is already established.
“We will probably get a lot of reports that people have it when they really have Argentine ants. Those are sugar ants—the ones you see in trails,” he said.
Back in Albany, Morgan says the director of the assisted living facility had no knowledge of anyone traveling to any of those regions.
Suiter describes dead tawny crazy ants as looking like snowdrifts. “They can be inches deep in a pile,” he said. “When they get up and going, the numbers that die will be in the tens of thousands in and around a structure.”
Likely came through a port
Like many non-native, invasive species, no one knows exactly how the ant came to the U.S. or how it made its most recent trip to the Peach State. “It probably came into the U.S., initially, from several Florida ports and one in Mississippi and one in Galveston,” Suiter said. He thinks the ant
To discourage the new ant species and other pests from entering a home, Morgan recommends searching for and sealing any cracks around doors and windows. Due to large populations, the tawny crazy ant typically requires a pest management professional. To verify the presence of tawny crazy ants, take a sample to the nearest UGA Extension office. For office locations, call 1-800-ASKUGA1 or seeextension.uga.edu. About the author Sharon Dowdy is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
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23
SAFETY WORKS
The dangers of silicosis
How to recognize and avoid damage from silica dust by Jono Agurto, Risk Management Partners for W.S. Pharr & Co.
What is crystalline silica?
Crystalline silica is a basic component of soil, sand, granite, and many other minerals. Quartz is the most common form of crystalline silica. Cristobalite and tridymite are two other forms of crystalline silica. All three forms may become respirable size particles when workers chip, cut, drill, or grind objects that contain crystalline silica.
What are the hazards of crystalline silica?
Silica exposure remains a serious threat to nearly 2 million U.S. workers, including more than 100,000 workers in high risk jobs such as abrasive blasting, foundry work, stonecutting, rock drilling, quarry work and tunneling.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Crystalline silica has been classified as a human lung carcinogen. Additionally, breathing crystalline silica dust can cause silicosis, which in severe cases can be disabling, or even fatal. The respirable silica dust enters the lungs and causes the formation of scar tissue, thus reducing the lungs’ ability to take in oxygen.
24
There is no cure for silicosis. Since silicosis affects lung function, it makes one more susceptible to lung infections like tuberculosis. In addition, smoking causes lung damage and adds to the damage caused by breathing silica dust.
Types of silicosis
There are three types of silicosis: chronic/classic, accelerated, and acute. Chronic/classic silicosis, the most common, occurs after 15–20 years of moderate to low exposures to respirable crystalline silica. Symptoms associated with chronic silicosis may or may not be obvious;
1.
SAFETY WORKS therefore, workers need to have a chest x-ray to determine if there is lung damage. As the disease progresses, the worker may experience shortness of breath upon exercising and have clinical signs of poor oxygen/carbon dioxide exchange. In the later stages, the worker may experience fatigue, extreme shortness of breath, chest pain, or respiratory failure. Accelerated silicosis can occur after 5-10 years of high exposures to respirable crystalline silica. Symptoms include severe shortness of breath, weakness, and weight loss. The onset of symptoms takes longer than in acute silicosis.
2.
OSHA has an established Permissible Exposure Limit, or PEL, which is the maximum amount of crystalline silica to which workers may be exposed during an 8-hour work shift (29 CFR 1926.55, 1910.1000). OSHA also requires hazard communication training for workers exposed to crystalline silica, and requires a respirator program until engineering controls are implemented. Additionally, OSHA has a National Emphasis Program (NEP) for Crystalline Silica exposure to identify, reduce, and eliminate health hazards associated with occupational exposures. For more info, visit www.osha.gov. Jono Agurto is Safety/ Claims Specialist with Risk Management Partners, LLC, for WS Pharr & Co.
3.
Acute silicosis occurs after a few months or as long as two years following exposures to extremely high concentrations of respirable crystalline silica. Symptoms of acute silicosis include severe disabling shortness of breath, weakness, and weight loss, which often leads to death.
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25
HEALTH & BENEFITS
Seasonal employees and healthcare reform Clearing confusion about this moving target by Michael Parker, CFP©, Pharr Insurance Services, LLC
Seasonal employees have posed a challenge
The reality moving forward is that seasonal employees as defined in years past will no longer exist under healthcare reform.
for companies as it relates to healthcare reform. Confusion around defining a seasonal employee has been a moving target, along with several other pieces of the healthcare law.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
The reality moving forward is that seasonal employees as defined in years past will no longer exist under healthcare reform. Businesses will have to adjust to this new reality and plan accordingly.
26
The healthcare law has done very little to give a clear-cut definition of a “seasonal employee.” Instead, it has defaulted to what is called a “variable hourly employee” definition for individual employees. The only - and I stress ONLY - definitive language around “seasonal employees” is at the company level. If a company maintains a seasonal workforce of 50 employees
or more for greater than 120 days in a given calendar year then they are deemed a large employer. It stops there. Notice 2012-58 has been issued and finalized at least through 2014 on how to treat seasonal/ variable hourly employees. This notice separates how employers can treat what are considered “ongoing employees” and “new hire employees.” • Ongoing employees are the easier calculation of the two. If an employee has been with the company for one full measurement period and averages 30 hours per week during that measurement period they are considered full-time and eligible for health coverage. • New hire employees are a little more complex. “An employee is a variable hour employee if, based on the facts and circumstances at the date the employee begins providing services to the employer (start date), it cannot be determined that the employee is reasonably expected to work on average at least 30 hours per week.” This is where the “Reasonable and Good Faith” language appears in the guidance. The burden and ability for employers to reasonably track
Most companies will set up their measurement periods as a derivative of their health insurance renewal for ease of administration, examples below:
HEALTH & BENEFITS hourly employees has been acknowledged by the healthcare law, so employers have been given some discretion with new hire employees, at least initially. Specifically, if an employer deems a new hire employee “seasonal,” they are allowed an initial 12-month measurement period for that employee before determining fulltime status. This is a change from what came out in the original guidance. However, this change does not go without some additional administrative burden to an employer. This will mean an employer will have to track each individual new hire under their own measurement period along with the “ongoing employee” measurement period. Lastly, employers will have to deal with a transition phase for new employees to ongoing employees. See examples on previous page.
Although the 4980(H) penalties have been delayed until 2015, decisions you make in 2014 concerning your seasonal workforce will affect you in 2015! About the author Michael Parker is Vice President of Group Benefits with Pharr Insurance Services, LLC. P: 404.216.1108 E: mparker@thriveag.com
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27
WHAT THE TECH?
10 email stats you should know And what you should do about them by Lee Brogden Culberson
66% of consumers have made a purchase online as a result of an email marketing message (Direct Marketing
3.
Association)
Why you should care: That’s a startling
Did you know that there are now over 3.6 billion email accounts* and that 91% of consumers check their email at least daily*? (*Radicati and ExactTarget)
As a green industry professional, you have access to so much data and so many resources that it’s often a challenge to wrap a good strategy around what to do, when, and why. Email marketing should definitely be in your mix for the coming year. Hubspot recently compiled a list of marketing stats that everyone needs to know. We’ve identified some of the most interesting and shared why you should act on them now.
74% of consumers prefer to receive commercial communications via email (Merkle)
1.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Why you should care: If you thought
28
that email was dead or ineffective, you are wrong. As technology and communication become more distributed and ubiquitous, your prospects are looking for ways to help streamline their channels. Email is easy to receive, easy to organize and easy to view. You should be touching your customers and prospects regularly via email.
The average clickthrough rate for B2B marketing emails in Q2 2013 was 1.7% (Epsilon)
2.
Why you should care: Seem low? It’s not.
In fact, calculate the return on investment if you had only 1.7% of your list click through to a welldesigned landing page with a strong offer. What could that final number mean to your business?
number to some, but it shouldn’t be. People like to receive well-developed value-add content when they need it – and they act on it. Know the cycle of how/when your prospects buy and develop a strong marketing message for each part of that cycle. Reach them with the right message at the right time in the right way – and you’ll reap the benefits.
59% of companies are integrating email and social channels together (eConsultancy)
4.
Why you should care: If you are still treating each of your marketing channels as silos or relegating social to the red-headed stepchild you are sorely behind the curve. Providing easy and clear ways for your prospects and customers to move between your online communities and email is critical. It’s a comprehensive dialog with you in the way they prefer. All of your messages should work together.
5.
48% of emails are opened on mobile devices (Litmus)
Why you should care: I’m surprised this
number wasn’t higher, frankly. It will only grow! Everything you do should be well-optimized for mobile. Period.
6.
Only 11% of emails are optimized for mobile (Equinux)
Why you should care: Sooooooo, only
11% are mobile-ready, which means they don’t look good or perform well on a mobile device and YET 48% of your list is likely opening on a mobile device? How much money or good will are you squandering by not having a good mobile strategy in place?
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
29
WHAT THE TECH? 69% of mobile users delete emails that aren’t optimized for mobile (Litmus)
17% of marketers don’t track or analyze email metrics for their organization (MEC Labs)
Why you should care: And here is the
Why you should care: Finally, you don’t
7.
clencher on the mobile…almost half open on a mobile device and more than that DELETE the email if it is not rendering properly or easy to read/use on their mobile device…and yet only a small percentage are designed for mobile. And, if you think that your recipients are not using mobile, you are probably wrong. But, if you are right, don’t worry: they will be using mobile soon enough.
8.
25% of emails are opened on iPhones (Email Client Market Share)
Why you should care: Testing your email on a variety of mobile devices is crucial. You cannot assume you know what device your recipient is using.
Suppressing anyone in your list who hasn’t engaged with your emails in over a year increases your deliverability rate by 3-5% immediately
9.
(HubSpot)
Why you should care: Constant care
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
and feeding of your email list is crucial to deliverability.
30
10.
know what you don’t know. Actionable data is power. Create a dashboard that clearly shows meaningful qualitative and quantitative data. • Who are you emailing? • What are you sending? • Why are you sending it? • How does it flow with other channels? • What is the level of engagement? • How are they engaging with it? • What is the result? There are many different data points that should be considered and evaluated.
Make it work for you
In summary, email is still an incredibly costeffective way to reach the right people at the right time with the right message. And, it works. Consumers really do prefer to receive wellcrafted emails that are relevant to them. As you are preparing your inbound marketing calendar and strategy for 2014, how will you ensure your email marketing strategy hits all the marks?
Your email database is one of the most valuable assets your organization has! Everything you do to the list affects its quality and the quality directly affects the amount of revenue and goodwill you can generate from it.
About the author Lee Brogden Culberson is Founder & Partner of Professional Mojo LLC in Atlanta, a full-service marketing company that specializes in telling your business story irresistibly online and in print.
Tag and remove those recipients who have not engaged with your messaging. Then, consider crafting a unique message just to them to try to bring them back into the fold.
P: 678.561.6656 E: lee@professionalmojo.com W: professionalmojo.com
Claim your complimentary social media audit today and find out how you can start improving your marketing efforts tonight!
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31
BUSINESS
Ratio, ratio, on the wall
What’s the most important of all? by Larry Fish, GCLP
Take it from me, I know the value of
understanding the numbers side of our business. Sales, profit, pricing, budget to actual, projections, re-forecasting, plus the myriad of other transactions that take place in a business make it difficult to stay on top of important trends. I am not an accountant by training, but as a business owner, I feel that’s a pretty feeble excuse for not knowing the key drivers of your operation and the resulting financial trends. One of the ways to monitor your business without having to look deeply into the financial details is to identify some key ratios that, if properly monitored, can give you a “heads up” on both positive and negative trends, especially regarding customer and people costs. Let’s take a look at a few that might make sense for your business.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Revenue to expense
An old controller-turned-CEO once told me that the ideal relationship between revenues and expenses is that revenues should grow at twice the rate of expenses. Obviously this is hard to do, but it does create a ratio that helps identify how much revenue your company generates for every dollar of expense it incurs. Many very solid companies operate at a $1.50 to $1.65 revenue to expense ratio. How’s yours?
Revenue to expense ratio
total revenues divided by total expenses
Return on space
Companies that are constantly trying to determine the most productive use of square footage and real estate might find this ratio an interesting one to watch.
Return on space
net profit after taxes divided by floor space
32
Revenue to space
Conversely, operations that are largely retail driven maybe interested in this ratio, since it will give them a good look at how efficient their use of available floor space is in terms of generating revenue. It might also come in handy when evaluating what revenue needs to be generated when leasing very expensive floor space. This ratio only measures dollar sales per square foot and does not look directly at the cost of space.
Revenue to space
net sales divided by floor space
Expense growth
Expense growth from one year to another can be an elusive trend if you don’t have an easy way to check it. It’s a good idea to look at this one alongside growth in net sales as well.
Expense growth
total expenses minus expenses last year divided by total expenses last year
Customer growth
Real growth from one year to another can sometimes be determined by the growth in new customer accounts. This is by no means an absolute indicator of growth but may be another key indicator worth tracking. This ratio tends to indicate a fundamental growth that is not affected by market changes or economic factors.
Customer growth
100 x customers this year minus customers last year divided by customers last year
BUSINESS
Employee turnover
Employee turnover is another good ratio to track. It should never be looked at in a vacuum, but should be tracked in concert with other important ratios that are indicators of the health of the business. Far beyond the impact turnover has on employees who actually leave a company, it is also an important indicator of management’s effectiveness in dealing with an increasingly scarce resource, its people.
Find your ratio
All of us have certain blind spots and weakness when it comes to understanding and using good financial information. Determine what your blind spot is and then see if there is a ratio that, if identified and tracked on a regular basis, can give you a set of good questions you should be asking of those who do your books. Look at combining and tracking certain key ratios that might have cause and effect relationships. You’ll be surprised what you will uncover.
Employee turnover
100 x employee terminations divided by average number of employees employed during the year
Larry Fish, GCLP is President and Founder of GreenSearch, which provides human capital and recruiting solutions for the Green Industry nationwide. E: larry@greensearch.com P: 770.392.1771
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Now, don’t go out and fire your accountant, bookkeeper or CPA after reading this article. Ratios are meaningless unless they are compared to something and tracked on a regular basis. Another trap with ratios occurs when we start to track so many of them that the process implodes from over-analysis and under-use.
About the author
33
BUSINESS
Coming in 2014
New obligations, hiring goals, and more by Gene Caudle, Onesource HRM and Lynn C. Stewart, Esq. Schreeder, Wheeler & Flint, LLP
41 C.F.R. Parts 60-300 and 60-741 Vietnam War Era Veteran’s Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, as amended by the Jobs for Veterans Act of 2002 (VEVRRA) and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) is an agency within the U.S. Department of Labor which enforces Executive Order 11246, as amended and two laws that prohibit employment discrimination and require affirmative action by companies doing business with the Federal Government.
34
•
VEVRRA prohibits covered federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating in employment against protected veterans. • Similarly Section 503 prohibits covered federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating in employment against individuals with disabilities (IWDs). The Final Rules strengthen the affirmative action provisions of the regulations and brings the Section 503 nondiscrimination provisions into compliance with the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA).
Specifically, covered Federal contractors must engage in affirmative action and provide equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability or status as a protected veteran.
Significantly, for the first time the Final Rules create a set of non-binding hiring or “utilization” goals for these two protected categories.
On September 24, 2013, the OFCCP issued final rules, published in the Federal Register, requiring new affirmative action and non-discriminatory obligations for certain federal government contractors. One rule updates the regulations implementing the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, 38 U.S.C. §4212 (VEVRRA); the other updates regulations implementing Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
While both categories have longstanding coverage under existing OFCCP regulations, these new, expanded rules dictate significant changes in a company’s recordkeeping and information gathering responsibilities necessary to substantiate good faith efforts to increase recruitment of veterans and persons with disabilities. Further, the Final Rules require subcontractor compliance and the use of specific mandated notification language to be used when
Identifying
+ Attracting = + Hiring
770-392-1771
|
Innovative Management Search Solutions for the entire Green Industry info@greensearch.com
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+
15+ years serving the best urban ag companies
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+
BUSINESS incorporating the equal opportunity clause into a subcontract by reference. The new regulations become effective on March 24, 2014. As a general rule of thumb the nondiscrimination and general affirmative action requirements of Section 503 apply to all government service and support contractors with contracts or subcontracts in excess of $10,000 for the purchase, sale, or use of personal property or nonpersonal services, including construction (See 41 CFR 60-741.4). The requirement to prepare and maintain an affirmative action program (AAP), the specific obligations of which are described at 41 CFR 60-741.44, apply to those contractors that have a contract or subcontract of $50,000 or more and 50 or more employees. Similarly, VEVRRA, part 60-300 applies to any single Government contract or subcontract of $100,000 or more entered into on or after December 1, 2003. Federal contractors and subcontractors that meet the coverage threshold and have 50 or more employees must develop an AAP (see 41 CFR 60-300.40). The VEVRRA Final Rule also highlights that the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) and VEVRRA are separate laws with distinct obligations for contractors and clarifies that a contractor must continue to comply with any USERRA obligation to reemploy employees returning from qualifying military service, and emphasizes that compliance with 41 CFR Part 60-300 is not determinative of compliance with USERRA.
Described below is a brief review of the new OFCCP regulation requirements and suggested steps for compliance by covered contractors.
Hiring goals must be established
The Department of Labor has set a 7% utilization goal of hiring IWDs within each established EEO job group. Contractors with 100 or fewer employees are to measure compliance across the entire workforce, rather than by EEO job group. The utilization goal is not a “required quota,” so a contractor that does not meet its goal of hiring enough people with disabilities cannot be found out of compliance for that reason alone. The goal for hiring veterans has been set at approximately 8%, which represents the national percentage of veterans currently in the labor force. A contractor may set another goal percentage, if special circumstances are present. Organizations that set their own benchmark hiring goals will be required to document the reasons for this choice and will be required to maintain those records for three years. Special circumstances which might allow the contractor to set a lower hiring goal might include a contractor located in an area with a very low veteran population; or, a contractor that has a highly specialized or professional workforce where the desired number of trained veterans may not be available.
Required changes
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UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
For contractors and subcontractors that have written AAP plans and programs, the new rules require revisions to the content of
H m
Effective
+
Overview of new requirements
35
BUSINESS the organization’s EEO/AAP policy statement. The top U.S. executive must confirm his/ her support and commitment for the organization’s affirmative action program and nondiscrimination efforts. Further, contractors must annually review the prior year’s good faith outreach recruiting efforts to hire veterans and IWDs, and make process modifications if their recruiting efforts have not been effective in meeting the target goals. Contractors must document all efforts at good faith outreach and recruitment of veterans and people with disabilities and retain these records for at least three years.
Requirements for subcontractor communications
The new regulations require federal prime contractors to use specific mandatory language to notify applicable subcontractors of their requirement to comply with the new affirmative action and nondiscrimination obligations toward veterans and people with disabilities.
Recordkeeping requirements expanded
Requirements to allow job applicants and employees the opportunity to self-identify as a veteran or a disabled person have been modified and expanded.
• •
•
•
•
Provide all employees with the opportunity to identify as disabled; Revise the contractor’s affirmative action program policy statement to document the organization’s top U.S. Officer’s support for the program; Add references to 40 C.F.R. §§ 60–300.5 and 60–741.5 to all subcontract templates, and use the mandatory language to inform subcontractors of their new affirmative action and nondiscrimination obligations; Create an annual review process to measure and document the effectiveness of affirmative action outreach recruiting efforts; and Ensure all revisions to the contractor’s affirmative action program and related decisions are thoroughly documented and records are retained for at least three years.
Affected contractors and subcontractors are encouraged to review the new regulations on the Department of Labor, OFCCP website www.dol.gov/ofccp and to seek assistance as needed from legal counsel or an affirmative action consultant.
About the authors
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Compliance recommendations for Federal contractors
36
The new regulations do not substantially change the OFCCP’s overall affirmative action compliance requirements but do require covered contractors to make process changes to their good faith outreach recruiting, hiring and recordkeeping procedures. To ensure compliance with the new OFCCP regulations, federal contractors and subcontractors subject to the new rules should consider the following changes within the next six months: •
•
Establish a hiring goal for the employment of veterans (currently recommended by OFCCP to be 8% of the workforce or within each EEO category); Revise employment pre-offer, selfidentification forms to include veteran and disability statuses;
Lynn C. Stewart is a partner with Schreeder, Wheeler & Flint, LLP in Atlanta, practicing employment law and counseling, and construction and general business litigation.
Gene Caudle is Managing Partner with Onesource HRM, dedicated to Diversity/ AAP compliance services and the integration of workplace information technology solutions.
P: 404-954-9865 F: 404-681-1046 lstewart@swfllp.com
O: 770-354-1530 C: 404-991-7341
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
37
BUSINESS
Bright ideas for 2014
Quick business tips from Manta Celebrate with free offers
Get customers running back in 2014 with amazing offers! Send coupons via email, snail mail or mobile marketing, and offer up a free e-book, how-to guide, or video. Reach out, entice them, and solve their pressing problems. Do this quarterly and celebrate all year ‘round.
The gift of customer service
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Surprise your customers with your helpfulness, free product knowledge, and hand out coupons redeemable in 2014. Treat customers well and they’ll return again and again. Ensure your future, and give the gift of great customer service.
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Pin your way to success
Take advantage of Pinterest’s business accounts. Whether you own a virtual storefront, cafe, landscaping company, or a bed and breakfast in the Catskills, start pinning your heart out. First, take unique and quality images of what you do best. Then add them to your Pinterest boards. Show the world they can’t possibly live without you! You’ll be tickled pink when you start raking in the green.
Research pays off
While we don’t advocate stalking, we do recommend you find out a whole lot about your customers. Use Facebook’s Graph Search to get the full scoop on the people who want to do business with you. You’ll uncover curious insights about what they like, what they don’t, and what’s important to them. Once you discover your target audience, market to them madly, and promise you’ll leave your night goggles at home.
Avoid the “S” word
It’s the worst of the worst. The word no business owner wants to be - a spammer. Many business owners are unknowingly spamming. If you’ve added your virtual friends, followers and fans to your email list, you’re a spammer. Here’s a tip, stop now if your LinkedIn connections, Facebook friends and Twitter followers have not given you permission to email them. No matter how tempting it may be to email your virtual friends, don’t do it.
Mix up your marketing
Listening to the same song over and over is dull, right? The same goes for marketing. Don’t be a broken record - people stop paying attention. Use multiple marketing channels to drive business, and find customers who will commit to buy. Mix it up like a 1994 cassette tape with social media, print, direct mail, radio and mobile.
Go postal and stand out
Don’t get deleted, be the one they remember! Try a classic method and mail (yes, with stamps!) postcards for your next big event. Stand apart from your competition and incorporate graphics, top-notch copy, even your own handwriting, to send a personal message. With no need for envelopes, this cheap alternative is a tangible bit of personal branding that gets the message out and doesn’t require a click-through to be impactful.
BUSINESS
Get mobile
Get mobile and let your customers feast on all you have to offer. Make sure your website plays nice with mobile devices. Use a responsive website design that adapts to any device, create a separate mobile site, or use tools like Mobify or Wirenode to optimize your current site. Don’t dismiss the importance of mobile.
Optimize your page titles
Title tags of your website display in the top bar of internet browsers and on search result pages. Give every page of your site a unique title. Select one or two keywords per page and use them first in the title, as they could be cut off or adjusted in certain browsers. This simple improvement will ensure your page titles are optimized for search results.
Don’t ask, tell
When it comes to getting prospects to take action, tell them what you want them to do. It is important to give clear and definitive direction to make sure your marketing messages have a strong call to action. Use simple phrases such as “download now” or “sign up” so your audience knows exactly what to do.
What’s in a name?
Brand with the future in mind
If you have plans to scale your business, it’s a good idea to build a brand early. When deciding between business or personal branding, be forward-thinking. If your personality or knowledge are what customers are buying, then a personal brand may be more appropriate. Whichever you choose, keep the future in mind to set yourself, and your business, up for longevity.
Share files in a snap with Bump
Without uttering hocus-pocus you can transfer digital information from point A to point B effortlessly. There’s no uploading, downloading, or emailing a thing - the devices don’t even need to be on the same network. With a gentle bump from one device to another you can share your world. This app is the stuff Isaac Asimov and H.G. Wells dreamed about. Seamlessly transfers photos, contact information, videos, and documents from your smartphone to your co-worker’s smartphone or computer, and vice versa! So don’t be shy, share reports, vacation photos, even that video of your office doing the Harlem Shake. The wizards at Bump make it a piece of cake to share faster than you can say abracadabra!
You’ll love organizing
Let’s get organized for 2014. It’s tough to keep swirls of post-it notes and digital documents in pristine order - so we’d like to introduce you to Evernote. This uncomplicated app is mulitfaceted, speaks multiple languages, and is a great partner for anyone. Evernote is an organizational tool to help you relax as it manages anything you dare to dream. You and Evernote are a match made in organizational heaven! It even keeps your brilliant ideas - and those of your team - in a centralized spot that’ll sync up nice and snug with all of your devices. Trust us, we think Evernote may just be the one.
Accounting tying you down? We can fix that! Hate being tied to your desk, balancing budgets and invoicing? Then have a gander at FreshBooks’ app. Do your accounting from your computer, tablet, or smart phone. And the best part: it was built for small business owners.
FreshBooks even handles stuff from across the pond. If you need to invoice a client abroad just create it from the device of your choice. You’ll know the moment your client reads their invoice. It even converts dollars to euros, just like that. If your client forgets to pay, kindly nudge him with a FreshBooks reminder. It makes the daunting world of recordkeeping a snap. All of the money that comes and goes will be in fine fiscal order. And you can do it all from wherever you’d like, whenever you’d like.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko and Greta Lovisa Gustafsson landed in Hollywood and promptly became Natalie Wood and Greta Garbo. Would they have achieved the same fame with their real names? Your business name and logo set the tone for how people think of your brand. You want it to reflect your personality, capture what you do, be memorable, and not leave customers tongue-tied.
Apps to make life a little easier
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BUSINESS
Say “I Do” to your marketing strategy
To get the most out of your marketing strategy, commit to a consistent effort. Outline a plan up front and stick with it. You can always adjust the tactics based on your results, but don’t give up! A single press release or an email or two is not enough to judge the success of a strategy.
What’s your reading level?
If you write like an academic you may lose an audience that prefers simple language and vice versa. The Google Reading Level tool (found under the Search Tools tab in Google search results) tells you if your content is basic, intermediate or advanced. Use the results to make sure that you are writing at a level that is appropriate for your audience.
Low-tech approach to high-tech purchases
High-tech gadgets on your wish list ? Make sure the technology is right for you. Determine if it can be implemented, and if there’s training. Research what’s needed, and understand all costs before you waste time and money. New technology without implementation and proper training won’t do you any good.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Team up to save money
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Save money by teaming up with another business or group of business owners to share marketing expenses. Plan a joint campaign that promotes each other’s products or services and split the costs on advertising, trade shows or professional help. By combining forces you’ll save on expenses and help generate sales for one another.
Keep calm and password protect
Don’t fret about the security of your business. Enlist the help of cyber-security software to help you out. It’ll track your passwords and protect your website from being compromised.
Ditch the disk
Clouds - not just for angelic harpists anymore. Forget flash drives, disk drives, and zip drives! Cloud computing gives you universal access to your data and applications, and services like SkyDrive, Google Drive or DropBox allow you to back up your precious data. You’ll be able to work from any device, anywhere there’s an Internet connection. Access everything you need through the divine cloud without the hassle of cumbersome cords or devilish drives.
Read your insurance policy
Understanding your insurance needs - and the coverage you have - is key to keeping you in business. So take the time to read through your existing policy, and talk to your agent.
Get charitable
Why not make your favorite charity a part of your brand? “Cause marketing” shows the world you care, and it will get customers hooked on your cause and your company. Donate your wares when people purchase over a certain amount, or give your time to soup kitchens, women’s shelters, the humane society - whatever moves you. Share your charitable work on social media, and watch their love for you grow.
Create a solid billing process and stick to it
Keep open communication with customers. Get tools to make billing (for you) and payment (for the customer) seamless. With a simple plan you’ll get paid on time and you’ll never have to bark at a customer again.
Use it or lose it
Too much clutter in your home can land you on Hoarders, but clutter in your business can cost you money. Sell, trade-in, or dispose of outdated items, and stop paying for memberships or subscriptions that go unused.
Information provided by Manta. Manta helps small businesses profit, connect and grow through the largest online community dedicated entirely to small business. Millions of people come to Manta each day to buy from, partner with and connect to companies. By joining Manta, small businesses easily harness the power of the Internet. Visit www.manta.com
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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INDUSTRY
2014 Sod Producers’ Report Annual survey examines inventory and price by Clint Waltz and B.J. Johnson, University of Georgia
In October 2013, the Georgia Urban Ag Council, conducted their twentieth consecutive survey of sod producers. The purpose of the survey was to determine the status of inventory levels and projected price changes for Spring 2014.
Survey details
Thirty-five producers participated by telephone survey, representing farm sizes which were: • less than 300 acres (27 participants) • 300 to 600 acres (2 participants) • 601 to 900 acres (3 participants) • more than 900 acres (3 participants)
Figure 1. Percentage of bermudagrass producers projecting adequate to excellent supply for the past five years.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
* Projected supply for the first 5 months of the calendar year.
Figure 2. Percentage of zoysiagrass producers projecting adequate to excellent supply for the past five years.
* Projected supply for the first 5 months of the calendar year.
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Inventories
The survey obtained estimates of the inventory for bermudagrass, zoysiagrass, centipedegrass, St. Augustinegrass, and tall fescue based on estimated sales for the first five months of 2014 as excellent (more than 10% of demand), adequate (equal to demand), and poor (more than 10% shortage). Pricing information included farm price and price for truckload orders to the Atlanta area or within 100 miles of the farm, all costs were reported as price per square foot of sod. Bermudagrass is being grown by 83% of the surveyed producers. Inventory levels had stabilized through the early part of the decade then increased in the later years. Due to drought conditions in South Georgia during the 2011 growing season inventory declined for 2012. Although not drought, it appears environmental conditions experienced during the 2013 growing season will negatively impact inventory in 2014 (Figure 1). Fifty-two percent of the producers rated their inventory as adequate to excellent this year, the lowest ever measured. For 2014, 48% of all bermudagrass producers projected having less than adequate supplies, compared with 19% last year and 31% in 2012. No growers with greater than 900 acres expect an adequate bermudagrass supply, while only 60% of producers with 600 acres or less project having sufficient inventories. Regardless of grower category, bermudagrass supply is low. According to this year’s survey, the number of producers growing zoysiagrass (60%) was an increase over the last three years. Of the producers responding, 52% estimate an adequate to excellent inventory, which reversed last year’s upward estimate (Figure 2). Only 2007 had fewer growers anticipating a suitable supply. For early spring 2014, 48% of the zoysiagrass producers project a shortage of grass.
INDUSTRY Of the 35 producers surveyed 20 (57%) were growers of centipedegrass. Sixty-five percent of the growers had adequate to excellent inventory compared to 74% in 2013, and 61% in 2012. Two of three growers with greater than 900 acres expect a shortage in centipedegrass supply. Thirty-five percent of all centipedegrass growers anticipate a shortage during 2014. St. Augustinegrass is being grown by 5 of the 35 producers surveyed. Sixty percent reported adequate supply, including the two growers with greater than 600 acres in total turfgrass production. Consistent with previous years, tall fescue was grown by a similar percentage of producers (20% to 34%). Eighty-six percent of tall fescue producers reported excellent to adequate inventory, which continues a ten-year trend of sufficient tall fescue supply. The amount of tall fescue sod grown in Georgia meets demand.
Pricing
For 2014, the on-the-farm prices for four of five grass species were greater than 2013, while the delivered price for all species increased. Bermudagrass, centipedegrass, and St. Augustinegrass are expected to increase by more than 13%. Figure 3 provides a five-year perspective of sod prices, bermudagrass and centipedegrass are at historic levels.
The 2014 average price for a delivered truckload of zoysiagrass increased slightly from 2013 levels. The average price of delivered zoysiagrass in 2014 was 35.8 cents and ranged from 24.0 to 48.0 cents. In 2013 zoysiagrass prices ranged from 21.0 to 48.5 cents and averaged 35.3 cents. Considering expected price increases for 2014 and a consumer demand, as spring and summer 2014 progress zoysiagrass prices are likely to exceed these surveyed prices.
Change in prices from Spring 2013 to 2014 Turfgrasses
On-the-farm Delivered* 2013
2014 % change cents / ft2
Bermudagrass 14.1 16.0 13.5 Zoysiagrass 29.1 30.6 5.2 Centipedegrass 18.8 17.7 -5.9 Tall Fescue 19.4 22.8 17.5 St. Augustinegrass 26.3 30.2 14.8
2013
2014 % change cents / ft2
17.8 20.3 14.0 35.3 35.8 1.4 20.8 23.5 13.0 23.6 24.0 1.7 29.5 34.6 17.3
* Delivered price includes freight and pallets. The delivered price included the Atlanta area or within 100 miles of the farm.
Table 2.
Comparison: Farm to delivered prices, 2014 Turfgrasses
Bermudagrass Zoysiagrass Centipedegrass Tall Fescue St. Augustinegrass
On-the-farm Delivered* Price (avg.) Range
16.0 30.6 17.7 22.8 30.2
Price (avg.) cents / ft2
10.0 - 27.0 21.0 - 45.0 11.0 - 24.0 22.0 - 24.0 24.0 - 36.0
20.3 35.8 23.5 24.0 34.6
Range
14.0 - 32.0 24.0 - 48.0 14.0 - 32.0 20.0 - 30.0 24.0 - 40.0
* Delivered price includes freight and pallets. The delivered price included the Atlanta area or within 100 miles of the farm.
Figure 3. Historical perspective of sod prices in Georgia, 2010 to 2014
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
The average price per square foot for a truckload of bermudagrass delivered to the Atlanta area, or within 100 miles of the farm, is expected to rise 14% (Table 1). The 2014 survey indicated prices varied from 14.0 cents to 32.0 cents, with an average price of 20.3 cents (Table 2). The average price in 2013 was 17.8 cents per square foot and ranged from 13.8 cents to 25.0 cents.
Table 1.
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INDUSTRY Table 3.
Percentage of survey respondents that grow certified grass and the additional charge for certified grass
Growers with certified grass Growers that charge a premium
Year
%
n*
2014 54 19 2013 57 24 2012 60 24 2011 65 30 2010 70 31
%
n*
47 54 58 40 48
9 13 14 12 15
Average Range cents
2.0 3.0 1.8 1.6 1.5
2.0 - 3.0 1.0 - 10.0 1.0 - 4.5 1.0 - 5.0 1.0 - 3.0
* Total number of respondents 35, 42, 40, 46, and 44 for 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, and 2010 respectively
Table 4.
Historical freight rate for sod deliveries Year
2014 2013 2012 2011 2010
Range
Average
% Change
$ / mile
1.00 - 5.50 1.00 – 6.00 0.50 – 5.38 1.00 – 4.00 1.00 – 6.00
3.20 3.19 2.96 2.60 2.70
0.3 7.8 13.9 -3.7 -17.7
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
* Delivered price includes freight and pallets. The delivered price included the Atlanta area or within 100 miles of the farm.
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Relative to the previous year, centipedegrass prices rose markedly. Prices in 2014 ranged from 14.0 cents to 32.0 cents and averaged 23.5 cents, compared to 2013 when the average delivered price was 20.8 cents and ranged from 15.0 to 25.0 cents. Interestingly, it has taken seven years for centipedegrass to match or exceed 2007 prices (21.3 cents). The 2014 delivered price of tall fescue increased (1.7%), which reversed last year’s -6.0% decrease in price from the previous year. This year, prices ranged from 20.0 cents to 30.0 cents, with an average of 24.0 cents. Both the low- and highend price was greater than 2013. Reversing last year’s decrease, the price of delivered St. Augustinegrass increased substantially in 2014. This year’s gain (17.3%) brings St. Augustinegrass back in-line with 2006 and 2007 prices. The average price of delivered St. Augustinegrass in 2014 was 34.6
cents and ranged from 24.0 to 40.0 cents. In 2013, St. Augustinegrass prices ranged from 15.0 to 38.0 cents and averaged 29.5 cents. 2005 was the first year St. Augustinegrass was included in this survey, during that time prices have varied wildly compared to other species (e.g. bermudagrass). There have been years, like last year, with a 13% decrease from the previous year, to years like 2014 where prices rose 17%.
Projected increases
Regarding grower price expectations, 28% of bermudagrass producers expect steady prices during the first five months of 2014. This is a decrease from 2013 where 61% expected constant prices. This year, 72% forecast bermudagrass prices to increase; regardless of category no grower anticipates a decrease. For zoysiagrass, 43% of producers anticipate steady prices during the first five months of 2014; 57% of producers forecast an increase. For centipedegrass, 50% of producers expect prices to remain constant in 2014, one grower forecast prices to fall. Tall fescue producers anticipate constant prices. Sixty percent of St. Augustinegrass producers expect prices to remain unchanged; 40% forecast an increase. Considering the “big 3” species (i.e. bermudagrass, centipedegrass, and zoysiagrass), the preponderance of growers anticipate rising prices in 2014.
Certified grass premiums
2014 had 19 producers representing 54% of the respondents with some certified grass on their farm (Table 3). Forty-seven percent of these growers charge a premium for certified grass. The remaining growers either do not place an added value on certified sod or do not participate in the certification program. This survey indicates a seven-year trend of increasing average prices for certified grass (Table 3). In 2014, the typical extra cost ranged from 2.0 to 3.0 cents per square foot and averaged 2.0 cents. This translates to between $10.00 and $15.00 on a 500 square foot pallet. Disregarding 2013 which had an anomaly in value of certified grass, for 2014 the low end of the range is up relative to the past four years. The upper end however
INDUSTRY fell back to 2010 levels. With the average rising but the upper end price falling indicates more certified producers are increasing the value of their grass. The consumer should consider this a nominal cost to insure varietal purity of a perennial species.
Figure 4.
Ten-year comparison of average sod price with fuel cost
Freight
Freight rates per mile shipped to Atlanta, or within 100 miles of the farm, are unchanged from 2013 (Table 4). For 2014, costs ranged from $1.00 to $5.50 and averaged $3.20; this is a 0.3% increase from the 2013 average ($3.19). Freight costs as a part of price quotes for customers was reported by 88% of respondents. Sixteen respondents (47%) reported charging an unloading fee in 2014 compared to 31% in 2013. The minimum unloading fee ($35) decreased in 2014 but most producers charge between $75 and $100. Nearly all producers (88%) will make additional drops on a load. The low-end charge was up to $35 in 2014, compared to $20 in 2013. The high-end charge increased to $100. The average cost for additional drops in 2014 was $58, a slight increase from 2013 ($50).
Fuel surcharge
While fuel surcharges can offset increased fuel costs associated with delivery, it is interesting how disproportionate sod prices are in relation to increased fuel prices (Figure 4). Since 2004 the average sod prices rose 27%, whereas diesel fuel costs rose 120% ($1.76 to $3.88 / gallon) between 2004 and 2013. Fuel being only one input for sod production (e.g. labor, fertilizer, pesticides, etc.), it is difficult to see how the
Average grass price was calculated for the five turfgrass species commonly grown in Georgia. ** Average annual retail fuel cost for the Lower Atlantic region was found at www.eia.doe.gov. For 2013, the average retail fuel cost was calculated through December 2.
Table 5.
Ranking of industry segments for sale of turfgrass Industry segments
2014 2013 Rank
Landscape contractors Homeowners Sports/Athletic fields Golf Courses Brokers Garden centers Existing developers Landscape designers
Average*
Rank
Average*
1 39.0 1 47.5 2 14.0 2 15.8 3 9.5 3 9.8 4 7.8 4 7.8 4 7.8 6 6.8 6 4.8 5 7.3 7 2.8 7 4.0 8 1.8 8 1.5
* Average percentage of total sales.
average increase in price from 21.6 to 27.6 cents per square foot within a ten year period is keeping track with rising costs.
Sales by industry segments
The 35 producers that participated in this survey estimated that the highest amount of sod was sold to landscape contractors (Table 5). The
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Declining from 2013, 12% reported adding a fuel surcharge to a load in 2014. This is less than reported in 2008 (46%) when fuel costs were lower than 2014 levels (Figure 4). In 2013 the number of producers adding this charge was 17%. This year, the average surcharge was $60 per load, down 16% from last year. Figure 4 compares the average sod price for all species grown with the average annual retail price for gasoline and diesel fuel. Historically the greatest fuel surcharge corresponded with the highest fuel rates but 2014 appears to be an exception.
*
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INDUSTRY average percentage of sales to homeowners declined slightly in 2014 to 14%, the sixth consecutive year this group held the number 2 position. Sports retained the third position in this year’s survey. In 2008, brokers were the second largest industry segment for sale of turfgrass. In 2014, this group accounted for 7.8% of sales, up from 2013.
The second question was, “Are additional reductions expected in 2014?” In 2014, no grower expects to remove acres from turfgrass production. To the contrary, some growers (18 of 35) indicated they plan to add acres in 2014. A potential average of 26% more acres could come into production. However, this addition would not affect the market until 2015 or 2016.
Acreage in production
Summary
In the last four year’s survey, amid reports of farms being sold, acres being taken out of turfgrass production, and long-time producers going out of business, ancillary questions were included. The first was “Did you reduce sod production (acres) in 2013?” Last year 24% of the respondents answered that they removed some acreage on their farms. On this year’s survey 17% responded that they had removed turfgrass acreage from production.
From this survey it appears that prices for the three species in greatest production (i.e. bermudagrass, centipedegrass, and zoysiagrass) are increasing substantially with bermudagrass and centipedegrass at historic levels. Due to unfavorable environmental conditions for regrowth this past summer and strong fall sales (personal communication from several growers) inventory for all warm-season species is expected to be lower than commonly experienced for the first five months of the year.
Turning Georgia Green Since 1997
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Personal Service • On Time Delivery • Top Quality Sod
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• Beautiful Color • Soft Texture • Low Maintenance • Drought Tough • More Durable
• Good Shade Tolerance • Fine Leaf Texture • Dark Green Color • Extremely Wear Tolerant • Minimal Thatch Problems
We also offer Tifway Bermuda Sod, Centipede Sod, and Sprigging Services Contact Us: 229.425.7732 | Office: 229.365.2525 | www.mcintyreturf.com
INDUSTRY Observations and trends over the past thirteen years are that growers with the greatest volume (i.e. >600 acres) of grass tend to have the greatest impact on inventory and are a barometer as to where the market is heading on prices. There have been years where the forecast between smaller and larger growers was inconsistent, but that was not the case for 2014. Both groups were equally affected by the lack of sunlight during the 2013 growing season and were unable to regrow enough grass to meet expected demands. Over the past six years the number of sod producers has declined, as have the total acres in turfgrass production. These interrelated factors are contributing to an overall decline in inventories and increased prices. It will simply take time for inventory to recover although growers are looking to put acres back into turfgrass production. In the meantime, prices will likely remain high and potentially rise further. If projects are planned for 2014 where sod will be needed, it would be prudent to get price quotes regularly. Not all producers will “book” or presale grass at a locked price, but if they will, contacting them early may help ensure availability and the best price.
2014 Sod Producers’ Report overview
> Bermudagrass and zoysiagrass supply is low, regardless of grower category.
> The delivered price for bermudagrass, centipedegrass, and St. Augustinegrass are expected to increase by more than 13%.
> Bermudagrass and centipedegrass prices are at historic levels. > Considering the “big 3” species (i.e. bermudagrass, centipedegrass, and zoysiagrass), the preponderance of growers anticipate rising prices in 2014.
> 2014 continues a seven year trend of increasing average prices for certified grass.
> Freight rates per mile shipped to Atlanta, or within 100 miles of the farm, are unchanged from 2013.
> Fewer growers reported adding a fuel surcharge in 2014. > No grower expects to remove acres from turfgrass production.
> More turfgrass acreage could come into production in 2014. > The primary markets for Georgia sod are landscape contractors and homeowners.
> Get price quotes regularly. > If possible “book” or lock prices to ensure availability and price.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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INDUSTRY
2014 State of the Industry Report
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Lawn & Landscape survey results
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Landscapers go mobile • 8 out of 10 contractors use a smartphone for work. • About 60% of landscapers are on Facebook. The next biggest platform is Linkedin, and then Twitter. • They’re using these devices to take photos and text with their employees and customers, as well as to access urgent information like the weather reports on the go.
INDUSTRY
Do you agree? • 69% say landscape installations are prohibitively expensive • 75% say landscaping increases the value of their home • 60% say green space around a home is an important contributor to the environment
Motivators for landscape purchases • • • •
86% -- the ability to enjoy the outside space 77% -- a sense of personal pride 69% -- having an outdoor entertainment area Neighbors’ opinions didn’t rank very high
Key trends for 2014 and beyond Water, water, water Labor worries (H2B vs. domestic) Business systems/technology Stress (regulations, pricing/margins, labor) M&A/private equity investment Fuel (alternatives, ethanol and cost)
Five opportunities in the next five years 1. Rise of water management advisers 2. Design/build and construction and renovation work will continue to grow 3. More M&A as owners age, and more PE investment in lawn care and maintenance businesses (See: Brickman, JDL) 4. Continued consolidation in the middle of the market ($5 to $10 million) 5. More and more interest in propane and commercial-grade electric equipment
View survey:
urbanagcouncil.com Click on the link “2014 Industry Survey”
Provided by:
Chuck Bowen Lawn & Landscape cbowen@gie.net 216-446-2712
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
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INDUSTRY
UGA-bred turfgrasses
Research from Georgia to the world For more than 60 years, scientists
with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences have worked to provide researchbased information for the turfgrass industry. The warm-season turfgrass breeding program began in the 1950s and continues today with programs focused on the development of sustainable bermudagrass, centipedegrass, zoysiagrass and seashore paspalum cultivars. UGA-bred seashore paspalum covers golf courses along the world’s coastlines. This species slowly grew into a popular member of the UGA turfgrass family. Tried and true Tif-varieties, like TifGrand, cover golf courses and sports fields across the nation and the globe. UGA’s grasses have been used at some of the most popular sports venues like the Olympics and World Cup.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
Tif-varieties grow on many golf courses around the world (top) and on sports fields like Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga.
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Turfgrass researchers at UGA continue to develop and evaluate new turfgrasses in search of cultivars that require fewer inputs and are more disease and pest tolerant. The UGA Turfgrass Team focuses on drought tolerance, among other traits, and some promising lines have already been identified. UGA scientists also strive to stretch the scientific boundaries with novel approaches to management and education, like
using mobile sensing units or creating mobile applications for today’s smartphones. Turfgrass Extension specialists at UGA extend this research to the general public and to the green industry to make research findings accessible to turfgrass professionals, homeowners and county Extension agents. UGA turfgrass faculty aim to train new scientists through the college’s academic programs and prepare industry professionals to create a well-educated workforce.
Thriving on the world stage
Four varieties of University of Georgia turfgrass developed under Wayne Hanna’s leadership in Tifton, Ga., thrive on the national and international stage: TifGrand, TifSport, TifEagle and TifBlair centipedegrass. Each has its own strengths that appeal to golf courses, sports field or home lawns. TifEagle, released in 1999, is popular among golf course superintendents because it provides a smooth putting surface for golfers and is uniform in texture and color. Cold tolerance and uniformity are what set TifSport apart. It’s a versatile turf that can be used on golf courses, athletic fields and lawns. There is an increasing trend for home lawns and sports fields, in addition to golf courses, to be planted in TifGrand because it can thrive in 60 percent shade and is tolerant of severe weather Hanna’s successor, Brian Schwartz, says the newest UGA turfgrass, TifGrand, provides a unique, emerald green color and can be mowed at a wide range of heights. TifGrand is often used around greens and on shady tee boxes, providing superintendents with a strong color contrast and good plant density. It’s the perfect turfgrass for an entire golf course, especially for those with lower maintenance budgets. For more details on UGA-bred turfgrasses, see the website www.GeorgiaTurf.com.
INDUSTRY
Look before you pump!
Ethanol Education & Consumer Protection Program Look at the fuel pump before dispensing gasoline and check the ethanol content. Outdoor power equipment was made to run on fuel containing no more than 10 percent ethanol. The same fuel you put in your car may not be the same fuel meant for your mower, chain saw, snow thrower, grass trimmer, or other lawn and landscape equipment. The Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI) encourages users to reference the equipment’s operating manual for specific fueling requirements.
What is the ethanol situation?
Today, there are more fuel choices for consumers than ever before. No longer can anyone go to a gas station and assume the fuel from the pump is safe and legal for their specific automobile, lawn and landscape equipment or other small engine equipment.
Consumers need to be vigilant starting today and look before they pump. Check to make sure you put the right fuel in the right engine product or automobile.
In an effort to meet federal renewable fuel standards, higher ethanol blends are being brought to market. In 2012, some retail gasoline stations began offering the new 15 percent ethanol (E15) fuel for sale. In addition, we saw the expansion of fuel blender pumps which dispense multiple mid-ethanol blends. The outdoor power equipment industry grew concerned. OPEI and the industry are not anti-ethanol; however, the industry recognizes that higher ethanol fuel can damage outdoor power equipment. We want to protect our customers and future customers from inadvertently damaging their equipment by using the wrong fuel. The EPA has stated E15 and higher is not legal for use in off-road engine products, and only legal for a subset of automobiles. Yet, the only warning against “mis-fueling” is a small 3×5 pump label. Given most consumers are unaware of even the current ethanol level in their fuel is up to 10 percent, the odds of using the wrong fuel is heightened. Most people believe any fuel sold at a gas station or other retail fuel station is likely legal and safe for any engine product. This is not true, and OPE owners and purchasers need to become aware of the fuel for which their equipment was designed, built and warranted – and use only that fuel. If you need specific information about OPEI’s market forecast reports or other industry intelligence, please call Kristen Reamy at 703-549-7600 or email kreamy@opei.org. See more at: http://opei.org/ethanolwarning/contact/#fact-sheet
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Most fuel sold today at gas stations for automobiles and outdoor power equipment contains up to 10 percent ethanol (E10). However, in the past year, more gas stations are selling ethanol fuel blends greater than 10 percent – such as E15 and E85. This is problematic for anyone who owns or purchases small engine equipment, whether it’s a mower, chain saw, snow thrower, grass trimmer, or other lawn and landscape equipment. Most outdoor power equipment was not made for ethanol blends higher than 10% ethanol or E10. In the past, consumers were physically kept from selecting the wrong fuel – with diesel you have to use a different pump, for example. This isn’t the case now as gasoline blender pumps, which dispense various ethanol fuel blends, become more widely available.
How did we get here?
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Impatiens Downy Mildew Looking beyond 2013 by Sara Tambascio
“If they did not cut back extensively, some of them were left with plants that just didn’t sell,” she says. “Really no one told me they wished they’d grown more of them.”
The landscape of confirmed cases Compared to 2012 when impatiens downy mildew was confirmed in 33 states, landscape reports for 2013 were relatively few, Ball Horticultural’s Colleen Warfield says. Early season landscape reports of this disease came from Florida, Texas, Louisiana, California and Hawaii.
Tom Creswell, Purdue University, Bugwood.org
Lower leaf surfaces of impatiens showing a layer of spores of Plasmopara obduscens, the cause of downy mildew.
Between warnings from garden writers and the national media and extensive signage at garden centers and retail outlets, the public was well aware of a problem UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
with Impatiens walleriana in 2013.
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“Some people reported they couldn’t sell the Impatiens walleriana they grew because the press had been so alarming to gardeners that they weren’t purchasing them,” says Cornell’s Margery Daughtrey. Growers were also aware of possible problems with impatiens downy mildew and made adjustments to their production. From what Daughtrey observed in the market, the amount growers cut back on producing Impatiens walleriana varied quite a bit in 2013. Some box stores asked growers to produce them, and that was probably the main channel for their distribution this year, she says. Other growers cut back by 40 to 100 percent.
Impatiens downy mildew appeared in southern Florida in October 2012, though it usually doesn’t show up on more established crops like curcurbits until around Thanksgiving, and never went away. University of Florida’s Aaron Palmateer grew impatiens in a research shade house continually during this period and consistently saw downy mildew, even on young plants. “This was when temperatures were in the 80s and low 90s, and it was not cool during the nights,” he says. “Typically, downy mildews like cooler temperatures. This one is surprising me, and that’s not good.” Growers in South Florida substantially decreased the amounts of impatiens they produced in 2013. “We don’t have any reason to think it will ever go away [in southern regions], because impatiens live all the time there,” Daughtrey says. “There’s continuation of the disease on the host all through the season. That’s an area where you have to raise your eyebrows at the future success of impatiens.”
URBAN AG Kentucky had an early report of impatiens downy mildew in May 2013. It was seen in Arkansas in June. By late June, there were isolated cases in New York and Delaware, possibly from overwintering spores. In late July, impatiens downy mildew had been confirmed in landscapes in North Carolina, Tennessee, Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, Oregon, Washington and Vancouver, B.C. with a suspected case in Georgia and isolated reports in Colorado. “Something to consider is that a landscape find does not necessarily mean the plant got infected in the landscape,” Warfield says. “Plants could have been asymptomatic (or, hopefully not, symptomatic) when planted, and did not develop symptoms until after being planted out. That’s important because the pathogen may not survive and spread in some areas under normal conditions.” Many areas that were affected in 2012 may not have been in 2013 because of the weather. If it was not wet enough in the spring, the disease may not have established itself in a way that was noticeable enough for people to report it, Daughtrey adds.
Alternative plants
When looking for something that grows in the shade, Warfield and Daughtrey say that most growers and gardeners reached for New Guinea impatiens, begonias, torenia, coleus and caladiums as replacements. Syngenta’s Brian Corr reports an increased interest in the breeder’s Florific New Guinea Photo courtesy of Gibbs Landscape Company impatiens series from seed, newly Coleus and caladiums are options to replace impatiens in the landscape. introduced in 2012. “We’ve also seen strong demand across the rest of our shade-loving assortment, especially for Bada Bing, Bada Boom, Eureka and Volumia begonias,” he says. Corr also adds that breeding companies are working on new genetic alternatives to impatiens for use in the shade. Palmateer is working with a breeder to develop varieties with resistance. Further research in Fall 2013 will trial more products that are cost-effective and environmentally sound for homeowners and landscapers.
“Depending on when the disease develops in a given region, this season will influence whether or not consumers will buy impatiens next year. We still have a couple months to go in the current season before we’ll know the answer to that.”
Interestingly, downy mildew was also spotted in Delaware and New York on a different species of impatiens —I. balsamina.
As of Summer 2013, Daughtrey and Warfield both agreed that the remaining fall season could still result in more reported cases of impatiens downy mildew.
“What’s interesting is that it made it through the winter and showed up on those plants in the spring,” Daughtrey says. A reseeding annual, Impatiens balsamina isn’t killed by downy mildew, but leaves become spotted. Downy mildew, however, can move from I. balsamina to I. walleriana.
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“One thing is for certain, if growers are producing bedding impatiens, regardless of the region where they are growing, they need to be managing this disease preventively using a combination of cultural and chemical methods,” Warfield says.
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What can you do?
reach some percentage of their current volume and maintain a steady level at that point.”
In the landscape, Palmateer says some phosphorous and phosphoric acidcontaining products that are labeled for use as foliar fertilizers have now shown to be highly effective against impatiens downy mildew and may even have eradicative properties.
When will that future arrive? Daughtrey says that while many growers may be thinking about returning to heavier production of Impatiens walleriana in 2014, a wait-and-see mentality may still be appropriate for some time.
A prime example is Actaphos, which is labeled for use in Florida as a 0-28-25 fertilizer. These products are cheaper than some fungicides and landscapers who are using them for fertility are seeing the added benefit of impatiens downy mildew control, although they aren’t labeled for use in all states. “It’s not labeled as a fungicide, so I don’t dare recommend it as a fungicide, but my research has shown that it’s highly effective at controlling downy mildew on impatiens,” Palmateer says.
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Palmateer says that while I. walleriana has no natural defenses to downy mildew, with these types of treatments, he is more optimistic about the future of impatiens in South Florida.
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And although there are now steps landscapers can take to protect landscapes, and greenhouses have good chemistries for control, Palmateer still recommends growers in Southern Florida not rely completely on impatiens, but to also offer some alternatives. “In Florida, my recommendation would be to have Impatiens walleriana, but I wouldn’t put all my eggs in one basket,” he says. “If [growers] deal with landscape professionals that are using some of the new information that’s coming out of the University of Florida, I think they can do it successfully.” Corr agrees that there is a future for Impatiens walleriana in the American landscape and that what’s happened in Europe may be an indicator. “Impatiens sales will likely be down, but it will not be the end of impatiens as we know them,” Corr says. “In the future, impatiens will likely
“If impatiens downy mildew was active in their area once before, the possibility is still there for it to be active in their area again,” Daughtrey says. “I think caution is a good message right now.” If you do choose to grow impatiens in 2014, Daughtrey recommends a preventative program, including a Subdue/Adorn combination drench at the end of the production cycle, which will give protection in the landscape for about a month. “As long as growers follow recommendations for growing a healthy crop, there is no reason that impatiens cannot remain an important part of the bedding mix,” Corr says. “The treatment recommendations from Syngenta include products such as Micora, Heritage and Subdue Maxx fungicides, which have been tested and will help provide several weeks of extended protection after the plants leave their facility.”
Contribute to the research
USDA is looking for a better understanding of impatiens downy mildew and other diseases and has started a program to collect samples from across the country. If you come across a plant infected with impatiens downy mildew (or boxwood blight, rudbeckia downy mildew, sunflower downy mildew or brown rust of mums), visit OrnamentalPathology.com to find out how to share a sample. This article originally appeared in the August 2013 issue of Greenhouse Grower magazine and is republished with permission. Visit www.greenhousegrower.com.
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Bloom ‘N Again Azaleas 25 new varieties
The Gardener’s Confidence Collection is
pleased to offer a new series of repeat blooming azaleas that make it easy to add vibrant color outdoors during both the spring and the fall. The Bloom ‘N Again azaleas were carefully selected for their multi-season blooms and exceptional cold hardiness. The evergreen shrubs make them ideal for planting along shrub borders or in naturalized areas such as woodland gardens. Look for stand-out varieties such as the Pink Explosion azalea, pictured here. With its stunning dark pink blooms, the azalea maintains its vibrancy for several weeks. Other brilliant colors range from dark red, orange, purple, pink and white. With 25 different varieties to choose from, the Bloom ‘N Again azaleas will fit the palette of any landscape. While you can add azaleas to the landscape year round, keep in mind that the best times to plant Bloom ‘N Again azaleas are early fall and spring time. Pick a spot in the garden that receives at least six hours of full sun (preferably in the morning) to help produce beautiful blooms and lush foliage.
For a complete listing of all of the new Bloom ‘N Again varieties offered through the Gardener’s Confidence Collection, check out the website at www.GardenersConfidence.com. About Gardener’s Confidence Collection Gardener’s Confidence Collection plants are evaluated for years to determine which are the best in disease resistance, prolific blooms, beautiful foliage and form. These plants are grown by a network of experienced horticulturists at quality nurseries throughout the United States.
Pink Explosion Azalea, one of 25 varieties in this new series of repeat blooming azaleas.
Features • Attracts birds • Attracts butterflies • Attracts hummingbirds • Can serve as groundcover • Deer resistant • Disease resistant • Drought tolerant once established • Provides fall color • Mildew resistant
Plant profile • Part Sun • Average Height: 3’-4’ • Average Width: 3’-4’ • Average Spacing: 3’-4’ • Hardiness Zones: 6B-9 • Prefers moist, but well-drained acidic soil
Companion plants Below are a few suggestions of plants with similar cultural requirements: • Camellias • Mini Penny Hydrangea • Magnolias • Dogwoods • Abelias • Pinwheel Gardenia • Hosta • Phormium • Epimedium
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Container plantings are another perfect way to bring the charm of azaleas to the outdoor living spaces. Keep moderately moist but well drained (just enough to keep the roots semi-moist) and place outside when temperatures warm up.
Photo courtesy of Gardener’s Confidence
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Wet, dry, hot, cold A look back at 2013 and ahead to 2014 weather by Pam Knox, University of Georgia
In the last 12 months Georgia
saw the tale of drought, one of the wettest springs and summers on record. Then abnormally dry conditions returned. 2013 was a climatic roller coaster to say the least.
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Wet and cool summer slowed crops in 2013; winter looks drier with highly variable temperatures.
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Overall, the abovenormal rainfall delayed planting, prevented farmers from getting into their fields and increased some fungal diseases and pests. The rain did result in lush growth, but persistent cloudiness across the state also delayed crop development once it was established.
As the rainfall diminished in the fall, abnormally dry conditions returned to some parts of the state as the growing season came to a close. This caused grazing pastures to turn brown earlier than usual.
A year for the record books
Several stations in the state accumulated noteworthy rainfalls for the 2013 growing season, measured during the seven-month period from May through October. Most notable was Macon, which had its third wettest April to October in 122 years of record keeping, with 41.71 inches. Climatologists had to go back to 1928 to find a wetter growing season. That year climatologists reported 42.89 inches during the same period.
Macon is also currently setting a record for yearto-date rainfall with 60.45 inches, ahead of the 59.88-inch record set in 1929. Macon also had its fifth coldest summer this year, due in part to the cloudiness and rainy conditions. Atlanta experienced its fourth wettest year, in the 136 years that people have been keeping records, with 39.37 inches. The last time Atlanta received this much rain was in 2009 (40.87 inches), which included the significant flooding event of September 2009 that affected much of the Atlanta metropolitan area. Columbus reported its fourteenth-wettest growing season in 66 years of record. However, it is interesting to note that Columbus experienced three of its five wettest growing seasons in the last decade -- in 2003 (fourth), 2005 (third) and 2009 (second).
Drier times return
Despite summers’ rains, conditions became much drier across Georgia during the fall, and abnormally dry conditions returned to a significant part of Georgia for the first time since April. The National Weather Service cooperative observer in Warrenton (Warren County) reported no precipitation in October. This was the driest October they have had in 100 years of record. The Climate Prediction Center of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predict these drier than usual conditions will continue through the next few months. The highest chance of dry conditions is in southern Georgia, stretching south into Florida.
Expect fluctuation
No El Niño or La Niña, so expect lots of fluctuation in temperatures.
URBAN AG According to NOAA, there are equal chances for above, near or below normal temperatures through the winter. One reason this trend can be projected is the current status of the El Niño Southern Oscillation is neutral, which means that neither an El Niño nor La Niña is likely to occur this winter. These neutral ENSO conditions are expected to continue until at least summer. In neutral ENSO conditions, Georgia does not experience a strong trend toward above or below normal rainfall or temperature. However, the state does tend to experience large swings in temperature between warm and frigid conditions. The chance of a late frost in the spring following a neutral winter is increased, although still relatively rare.
If we experience a warm spell in early spring, gardeners and farmers are likely to want to get started planting early to take advantage of the warm conditions. However, the increased chance of a swing back to cold temperatures, and the potential for frost, should make them proceed with caution. Watch the weather carefully before starting the planting process. Published on November 27, 2013 online at http://georgiafaces.caes.uga.edu/
About the author
Pam Knox serves as University of Georgia Agricultural Climatologist with UGA Department of Crop and Soil Science.
UAC welcomes new members Mr. Mark Andrade 240 Holly Ln. The Rock GA 30285 (770) 567-3532 mark@pikepest.com
Bio-Green of North East Georgia
Mr. Ray Cason
323 Old Jesup Rd. Brunswick GA 31520 (912) 279-2838 rcason@glynncounty-ga.gov
Ideal Home and Lawn, LLC Ronald Burch 92 Atlanta Street McDonough GA 30253 (404) 391 8434 ronnie0211burch@gmail.com
Peach State Freightliners, LLC
Ms. Lorna Nissen
The Sod Source Inc.
Ms. Donna Park
Mr. Tommy Walker
P O Box 724902 Douglasville GA 30133 (404) 641-4406 Kathy Malone kathy@mylandmasters.com 120 Peterson Building 2132 Tamu College Station TX 77843 (678) 457-4278 ldnissen@neo.tamu.edu 2455 Ashton Dr. Roswell GA 30076 (770) 337-3383 donna@parkplaceslandscape.com
PAT2H Horticultural Research Ser., Inc. 43 Stephen Way Rydal GA 30171 (770) 382-6048 Warren Davenport warren@pat2h.com
5884 Frontage Rd. Forest Park GA 30297 (404) 366-8044 Doug Lackey dlackey@peachstatetrucks.com P.O. Box 791 Unadilla GA 31091 (478) 230-1619 Chris Hays sodsource@windstream.net 8275 Midland Trail Columbus GA 31909 (706) 563-9630 tommy@southernlawns.org
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Tim Kilgore 308 Laurel Oak Drive Cornelia GA 30531 (706) 968 8312 timk@bio-green.com
Landmasters
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Protecting wildlife habitats
NWF and landscape professionals join forces Landscaping professionals around the country are now able to become a Certified Wildlife Landscaping Professional under National Wildlife Federation’s Certified Wildlife Habitat® program.
UAC MAGAZINE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014
The professional must demonstrate a commitment to supporting New certification highlights ecologically sound landscaping professionals that and wildlifepromote wildlife-friendly methods friendly methods of landscaping in the business. NWF and landscape professionals around the country are combining forces to address a nationwide concern for wildlife habitat loss and fragmentation.
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NWF’s brand new Certified Wildlife Landscaping Professional program certifies landscaping professionals as a complement to its long-standing Certified Wildlife Habitat® program and its companion programs, Schoolyard Habitats® and Community Wildlife Habitat®. These wildlife-friendly landscapes and gardens help keep water and air resources clean, are healthier for people and the environment, and are less resourcedependent than conventional landscapes.
Wildlife-friendly landscapes can serve to enrich our urban areas and give residents pride in their neighborhoods.
“We’re partnering with professional landscapers to promote sound wildlife conservation efforts through their business practices,” said Jaime Matyas, executive vice president and COO of National Wildlife Federation. “This program connects homeowners, schools, businesses and others with professionals who can help them create an outdoor space that will serve as a haven for wildlife for years to come.” “There’s no more rewarding way of helping wildlife than by restoring habitat in our cities and towns,” said David Mizejewski, naturalist with NWF. “Whether it’s in our own backyards, a local schoolyard or park, or even a corporate landscape, any place that can support a garden can attract colorful birds, beautiful butterflies and other wildlife. There’s no better way of connecting with nature than stepping out the door into a wildlife-friendly garden.” The Certified Wildlife Landscaping Professional program engages professionals who can commit to becoming more sustainable in their business practices and encourage wildlife in their communities through their services to homeowners, businesses, schools, churches, parks and other institutions. As a benefit, professionals receive certification, marketing resources, and promotion to the nation’s largest wildlife gardening network and more than 4 million members. Certified professionals are profiled on NWF’s growing searchable database of Certified Wildlife Landscaping Professionals as a way to assist individuals, businesses, and organizations to find a landscape professional who can help them become more wildlifefriendly in their own landscapes.
For more information, please go to: www.nwf.org/landscapers. For more National Wildlife Federation news, visit: www.nwf.org/news.
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