January 2013 Landscape Trades by Landscape Ontario

January 2013 VOL. 35, NO. 1

landscapetrades.com

Congress 2013 show planner

Season Opener 2013

Sheridanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s century-long plant parade Turfseed research conserves water

Maximize billable time Paver-brick interface Enhance your media profile PLUS people, products and news... PM40013519

contents JANUARY 2013 VOL. 35, NO. 1

PUBLISHER Lee Ann Knudsen CLP | lak@landscapeontario.com Editorial Director Sarah Willis | sarahw@landscapeontario.com Editor Allan Dennis | adennis@landscapeontario.com Web editor Robert Ellidge | rob@landscapeontario.com Art Director Kim Burton | kburton@landscapeontario.com Graphic Designer Mike Wasilewski | mikew@landscapeontario.com Accountant Joe Sabatino | joesabatino@landscapeontario.com Sales Manager, PUBLICATIONS Steve Moyer | stevemoyer@landscapeontario.com COMMUNICATIONS assistant Angela Lindsay | alindsay@landscapeontario.com Advisory Committee Gerald Boot CLP, Laura Catalano, Hank Gelderman CHT, Marty Lamers, Jan Laurin, Warren Patterson, Bob Tubby CLP

FEATURES 6 Pavers, meet bricks Incorrect paver installation techniques are damaging homes BY BERT MINOR

12 Sheridan’s changing plant palette 100 years of growth BY LAWRENCE SHERK

18 Seeding conservation Turf researchers focus on drought tolerant grass BY LEE ANN KNUDSEN

22 Endorsement: Management certification

Landscape Trades is published by Landscape Ontario Horticultural Trades Association 7856 Fifth Line South, Milton, ON L9T 2X8 Phone: (905)875-1805 Email: comments@landscapetrades.com Fax: (905)875-0183 Web site: www.landscapetrades.com

Designation gives Bob Tubby business cred

LANDSCAPE ONTARIO STAFF Shawna Barrett, Darryl Bond, Laura Brinton, Tony DiGiovanni CHT, Denis Flanagan CLD, Sally Harvey CLT CLP, Helen Hassard, Jane Leworthy, Heather MacRae, Kristen McIntyre CHT, Kathy McLean, Linda Nodello, Kathleen Pugliese, Paul Ronan, Ian Service, Tom Somerville, Martha Walsh

30 Retail on The Rock

Landscape Trades is published nine times a year: January, March, April, May, June, July/August, September, October and November/December. Subscription rates: One year – $46.90, two years – $84.74; three years – $118.64, HST included. U.S. and international please add $20.00 per year for postage and handling. Please make cheque payable to Landscape Trades. Copyright 2013. All rights are reserved. Material may not be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. Landscape Trades assumes no responsibility for, and does not endorse the contents of, any advertisements herein. All representations or warranties made are those of the advertiser and not the publication. Views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the association or its members, but are those of the writer concerned.

BY LEE ANN KNUDSEN

26 Selling online for small business Keep up with changing consumption habits BY CHRIS HEILER

Newfoundlanders understand customer service BY JOHN STANLEY

32 Overcome workplace negativity 10 strategies to transform your team BY KAREN PURVES

34 Rx for your business Organizational health promotes growth, profitability and sustainability BY PHIL HARWOOD

36 Prevent proposal ripoff How to make your landscape plans unbiddable BY JODY SHILAN

COLUMNS

38 SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPING Conference promotes awareness of invasive species BY STU CAMPANA

ISSN 0225-6398 PUBLICATIONS MAIL SALES AGREEMENT 40013519 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT LANDSCAPE TRADES MAGAZINE 7856 FIFTH LINE SOUTH, MILTON, ON L9T 2X8, CANADA

40 LEGAL MATTERS Contractors must meet insurance requirements BY ROBERT KENNALEY

42 ROAD TO SUCCESS Earn media exposure: Be the ‘go-to’ guy

DEPARTMENTS GREEN PENCIL INDUSTRY NEWS CNLA NEWS PROVINCIAL NEWS NEW PRODUCTS COMING EVENTS CLASSIFIEDS WHERE TO FIND IT

4 46 66 70 72 78 80 81

BY ROD McDONALD

44 LANDSCAPE MANAGEMENT Identify waste and generate super profit BY MARK BRADLEY

Cover photo: Mark Fisher, The Escarpment Company JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES |

INSIDE: Congress 2013 Show Preview pages 53-64

greenpencil A refreshing response to our reader survey

We asked for it!

Last month, for the first time ever, we sent an email survey to Landscape Trades readers asking for honest feedback. Our editorial staff travel and attend industry functions to get a pulse on the industry, but it’s difficult to reach out to all of you. We were gratified that 288 of you cared enough to answer our questions, and make some thoughtful comments that will help with editorial planning. We are pleased with a 5.6 per cent response rate to our questionnaire, and like any good report card, we got some great marks and just a couple of ‘needs improvement’ suggestions that we are taking to heart. Planning a magazine that appeals to all facets of the ornamental horticulture industry means balancing the editorial needs of at least 10 different sectors, as well as large companies, By Sarah Willis small companies, established comBy Sarah Willis panies, those in their infancy, and everyone in between. Judging by those of you who took the time to answer, we are hitting the nail on the head most of the time. We learned that Landscape Trades has a great shelf life; we appreciate that the majority of you save issues, or tear out articles, to pass on to your staff. You value the advice, expertise and credibility passed on by our columnists, all industry veterans who have already walked a mile in your shoes. The internet may be a great place for businesses to communicate or market to consumers, but according to our survey, business-to-business communication is still rocking it old school. We learned the great majority of readers still prefer to get their information via personal contact or the printed page, rather than online or through social media.

4 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

Only four per cent of the readers who responded to our email receive industry information through Twitter, blogs and Facebook. The jury is still out on social media, with 83 per cent of you either not sure, or not yet seeing a return on investment in online communication. Several readers expressed pleasure in going off line and browsing through the magazine. One reader responded, “Never go e-version. The pictures and being able to touch the magazine is key. We leave several copies in our reception area for employees and client access.” Another, who admitted to reading news online said, “I still enjoy getting a magazine delivered, it’s becoming a novelty.” Surprising us was that nearly 80 per cent of readers surveyed said they do not use the online Source Book (www.ltsourcebook.com). There were a few great suggestions from readers on how we can make the information online more relevant, which we will try to implement over the next few months. The Source Book is a great place to start if you are looking for a new product or supplier — there’s nothing else like it in Canada. All responses were anonymous, and have answered some questions we’ve had about the direction in which we should be going, as well as prompted lively conversation and debate among editorial staff. We are grateful for and thank those of you who took time to provide your thoughts. Our promise is to use your feedback to make Landscape Trades a better business improvement tool, so you and your staff can work smarter and make more money. Didn’t see the survey? Comments and suggestions are always appreciated; I can be reached at sarahw@ landscapeontario.com. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve LT work to do.

FOR INFORMATION ABOUT OUR PRODUCTS, CONTACT US AT 1-800-BESTWAY OR VISIT US AT BESTWAYSTONE.COM

facebook.com/bestwaystone

twitter.com/bestwaystone

WOODBRIDGE

8821 Weston Road Woodbridge, ON, L4L 1A6

UXBRIDGE

63 Anderson Boulevard. Uxbridge, ON, L9P 0C7

Appalling spalling BY BERT MINOR

Incorrect landscaping technique continues to damage homes A landscape designer takes a look at solutions to problems created by laying pavers over steps or against a brick wall.

While driving around Ottawa earlier this year, during the course of my regular work-day, I noticed an inordinate number of brick homes with ugly water stains and excessive efflorescence. It was obvious these were caused by weep holes being partially or completely covered by pavers or garden walls. It seemed like everywhere I looked there were examples of landscaping projects causing efflorescence. I was struck by how many homes were affected in such a small area, and couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t help but think how many more homes across the city, and the country, are similarly affected. The problem was so striking and pervasive that I decided to do something about it. In two 30-minute sessions, in two completely separate areas of the city, I photographed countless examples of landscaping projects causing efflorescence. I sent this information to several suppliers, as well as engineers at the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute (ICPI), and Tony DiGiovanni at Landscape Ontario. I believed the problem was widespread enough that I needed to get industry leaders involved. The response was quick and deci6 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

sive. A task force was created to look into the issue. It was made up of members of the ICPI construction committee, engineers from a few landscape masonry suppliers, and key members of Landscape Ontario. It is hoped recommendations from this task group will be available for the 2013 season. Why is this happening and why is it such a big deal? Efflorescence in itself can be benign. As most anyone in the industry knows, efflorescence often occurs in the natural curing process of concrete products. When moisture in concrete products evaporates, it can often leave behind salts that are not bound to the cement. This manifests as a white powder that can simply be brushed off. Persistent efflorescence occurring from trapped moisture is another issue altogether and is usually indicative of a more serious problemâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;one that could cause bricks to spall. What is brick spalling and what causes it? Brick veneer is a very porous material and acts almost like a sponge. Weep holes allow water buildup from wind-driven rain to escape. Weep holes also allow

Garden walls built above a house’s brick line and filled with soil will block the weep holes.

for ventilating air to circulate behind a wall to help dry the building’s structure. When weep holes are covered, even partially, moisture can get trapped in the brick. Water expands when frozen. When moisture-laden bricks are exposed to freeze/thaw cycles, the water expanding in the brick will cause the face of the brick to eventually shatter and flake off or spall. While brick spalling as such should cause worry, it could be symptomatic of concealed damage that can be of even greater concern. If moisture buildup goes unchecked, it could lead to serious damage to wall and floor structures. Over time, rot can set in and eventually invite insect damage. Quite often this more serious destruction doesn’t become evident until considerable damage has been done. Why is this happening and what can be done about it? Going over the photos I took, I noticed three specific areas of concern. Garden walls built at or above the brick veneer line This problem is probably the easiest to deal with, and almost falls into the common sense category. I noticed a lot of homes with raised garden beds built at or above the brick line. It’s a given that garden walls built above a house’s brick line and filled with soil will block the weep holes and cause problems, but even walls built at or slightly below the brick line can cause a problem. In the Landscape Guide for Canadian Homes, published by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the recommendation is to keep the ground surface at the house 15cm (6 in.) below the lowest course of bricks or 20cm (8 in.) below stucco or siding. Ground splash back from heavy rains could cause moisture problems in the summer, and snow and ice buildup could cause moisture problems in the winter, if these guidelines aren’t followed. This is one case that can easily be resolved with a bit of education. A note could easily be added to construction details available in supplier catalogues and ICPI training manuals that reflect the recommendations from CMHC. Porches covered in thin veneer-overlays Covered concrete porches or “overlays” is another landscape project that seems to cause efflorescence problems. Several years ago, someone had the idea of covering concrete porches with pavers; if it can be done with flagstone, then why not paver products? This practice became so popular that several suppliers introduced a variety of thin pavers specifically designed to cover concrete porches. While overlays are a great idea and offer homeowners a solution to dull, drab concrete steps and porches, they are often installed improperly or in the wrong conditions. Some paver manufacturers supply technical guidelines for concrete system overlays, but they are usually cursory, technical cross-sections that aren’t detailed enough for most practical purposes. These construction details usually address proper drainage, away from the house, on the surface of the overlay, and water buildup in the supporting bedding sand. They call for the usual two per cent slope away from the house, and step caps to be glued in lines perpendicular to the grade rather than across, so as not to obstruct drainage. The problem here is they don’t deal with installation against masonry walls. Even

when thin pavers are installed as an overlay, there is still the possibility that over time polymeric sand, or even dirt and debris, will block the partially covered weep holes and cause a problem. It’s clear that the technical information currently available for covering concrete is lacking — especially when it comes to overlays installed adjacent to masonry. In the vacuum of proper guidance, many contractors come up with their own solutions. Some have suggested drilling out weep holes on the next highest row of bricks above the pavers, but that seems to have very limited success. Some suggest sealing the bottom row of masonry and drilling out the next row. Some use a thin slice of dimple board against the brick to provide spacing. The solutions are varied, but even following currently available best practices, these solutions can yield mixed results. A proper solution to overlays against masonry has to come from the industry. Raised steps and patios against brick masonry Raised decks and steps, built against brick masonry, is another area of concern I came across. Many contractors today build steps and large raised patios against brick homes using the same methods they would against a siding or stucco home. They apply waterproofing (blue skin or dimple board) and then build their steps or walls directly against the home. Six or seven years ago I was contacted by a customer who wanted repair work done. A contractor had built a large raised deck almost the full length of the back of the house. The overall project was amazing — a beautiful job on a stately home in a very affluent neighborhood. Unfortunately the raised deck was built against dimple board only, and all the bricks along the edge of the deck had spalled. Since the repair work was several thousand dollars, I never

Thin paver overlays are often installed incorrectly or in the wrong conditions. JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES |

Education is the answer In my view, the damage resulting from landscaping projects built against masonry walls can be attributed to unclear industry specifications, poor education and communication, and a lack of research and development. Building garden walls at or above a home’s brick line, for example, is something that could easily be dealt with by improving communication. Something could be added to installa-

Course offers advanced construction techniques The new Advanced Residential Paver Technician Course offered by the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute (ICPI) is an advanced level classroom-based course, designed to build upon the content of the Concrete Paver Installer Course, and provide more specific, in-depth instruction. Over two days, the course covers basic installation review; overlays; multi levels; fireplaces, grills, outdoor kitchens; permeable interlocking concrete pavement; pool decks; material calculation; and advanced business practices. For more information, or to register for a course, visit www.ipci.org, and look under the education tab ICPI offers a variety of services to its members through its vast library of technical publications, online design idea galleries, publications, paver installer certification programs and the industry’s only dedicated magazine, Interlocking Concrete Pavement Magazine. There are over 80 detail drawings and 16 guide specifications available at www.icpi.org.

INTERLOCKING CONCRETE PAVEMENT INSTITUTE

heard back from that homeowner, but I was struck by how much damage it caused — and that was damage I could see. Several years ago I contacted ICPI to get recommendations as to how to build against brick. The answer was simply, “Don’t.” At the time, the recommendation from engineers was to build wood or metal stairs down to a patio area when designing against brick houses. But many homeowners choose brick because they love the low maintenance that paver products provide. Out of necessity we came up with our own way of building against brick homes. We designed our steps to have as small a footprint as possible. We would build a “fake” wall inches away from the house and then mortar or glue the back paver to the fake wall. That kept costs down, gave the homeowner a project with a unified look, and kept what was essentially a free-standing structure away from the house. This let the weep holes do what they were meant to do — allow moisture to escape. The reduced size of the steps meant fewer weep holes were covered. Even though there was a gap between the stairs and the wall, we believed smaller steps would enable more air circulation behind the masonry. The ICPI teaches a technique that closely mirrored what we have been doing when building against brick homes. This method called for a stress relief wall (hidden wall) as a way to keep lateral soil pressures away from the structure’s exterior. While this seems to have been developed primarily to deal with lateral forces against all types of walls — to mitigate excessive force blowing out foundations — the specification also acts as a way of keeping weep holes free. Although I’m not an engineer, I would imagine that as more masonry is covered, more air becomes stagnant. Unless new specifications become available, I think I’ll stick with my rule of designing smaller steps or raised patios over masonry whenever possible.

The ICPI offers specific construction recommendations to avoid spalling due to poor or blocked drainage.

tion specifications from suppliers, and ICPI could include it in their manuals. In the case of concrete overlays, I think more information is needed. Even with the currently available best practices, there is probably still the potential for weep holes to be covered. Perhaps something could be installed adjacent to masonry walls, a mini channel drain, if you will, that would push the pavers away from the weep holes and allow them to do what they were designed to do. I’m certain most paver suppliers have R & D centres that could devote a little time and effort to developing a creative and effective solution to keeping weep holes clear. Finally, in the case of building steps and raised decks against homes, I think ICPI has a very good solution in its specifications for a hidden relief wall. It seems like the perfect answer to keeping weep holes exposed and brick masonry walls properly ventilated and dry. All that is necessary is for this information to make it to suppliers, so they can include it in their available ICPI tech specifications. One thing is clear. The visible damage that is currently being done to masonry on homes is real and prevalent, and reflects poorly on our industry. It’s going to take a concerted effort by all concerned to deal with these issues. Yes, contractors need to take the initiative to better educate themselves and their staff; but manufacturers have to work with industry associations and engineers to develop clear, effective, practical solutions and best practices where none exists or confusion persists. If solutions aren’t available or a product isn’t right for a certain situation, then communicating that should be just as important — even if it means lost revenue in the short term. I don’t know where I picked this up, but when things get hurried and stressed I’m often fond of saying, “There is no such thing as a landscaping emergency.” In this case I may well have found one. It may not be a medical emergency, but as landscape professionals, maybe we should borrow from the physicians Hypocratic oath and LT …first do no harm.

Bert Minor is an Ottawa-based certified landscape designer. 8 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

COME VISIT US AT THE LANDSCAPE ONTARIO CONGRESS SHOW, BOOTH NUMBER 1824.

Innovation at work. For over 85 years, STIHL has been a world-class innovator in outdoor power equipment. German engineered products featuring the latest pioneering technologies make STIHL the market leader. STIHL products are only available at independent STIHL Dealers who provide expert advice and on-site service. Thank you for supporting the leading team and for making STIHL the Number 1 Selling Brand in Canada.

www.stihl.ca

* #1 Selling Brand in Canada is based on an independent market share analysis of imported gasoline powered handheld outdoor power equipment for the year 2011.

Sales & Service

Plant milestones at Sheridan Nurseries BY LAWRENCE SHERK

PART I

In 2013, Sheridan Nurseries joins a small but select group of Canadian growers who have been in business for 100 years. A look through its extensive archives shows how plant material trends have changed and grown along with the company.

New Mahogany MagicTM ninebark was released this year, as one of Sheridan Nurseries 100th Anniversary Introductions. Hardy to zone 3, Mahogany Magic has dark crimson-red leaves, compact branching and pinkish-white flowers in mid-summer.

10 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

The Dunington-Grubbs and Herman Stensson, along with many Sheridan employees, were continually on the search for unique ornamental plants to grow and use in their own projects and to sell to an ever increasing number of enthusiastic Canadian gardeners. We take many of these plants for granted today, but such was not the case in the first half of the twentieth century in Canada. Quotes included in this article are taken from various Sheridan catalogues explaining the Sheridan Nurseries approach when it came to selecting, growing and selling these plants. Only small sizes were listed at first, but as the crops grew more sizes were added. Although low prices were charged for these plants in the early years, records show that Sheridan Nurseries was a profitable company right up until the Depression, when prices had to be drastically reduced. In fact, it is said that not one plant was sold from Sheridan during the first year of the Great Depression. The Second World War provided new sources of discretionary spending and an interest in gardening. This article will attempt to outline the introduction of various plants introduced into the Canadian market. A follow-up article in a later issue of Landscape Trades will deal specifically with Sheridanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s original introductions. continued on page 12

S530 T h

175 ew S eN

0 The Ne w

T5 5

the most popular loaders of all time

New S205 The

0 The New T180

S59 0

New S160

S550 The

e s at th V isit u Show s s C o n gr e

Boo t h

# 99

New S185

e Th

w Ne

T590

The

just got more m-pressive

If you’re looking for the most impressive performance in the most popular frame size, these are the loaders you’ve been waiting for. Major innovations to the M-Series gave seven tough and new 500 platform loaders extra comfort, better performance and more durability. Check out the new 500 platform loaders at your local Bobcat dealer or visit Booth #99 at the Congress Show to see what makes these legendary loaders better than ever.

Authorized Bobcat Dealers

Bobcat of Brantford, inc. Brantford 519-752-7900 • 866-337-3306 www.bobcatofbrantford.com

Bobcat of london London

519-455-4900 www.bobcatoflondon.ca

Casselman farm equipment, ltd Casselman

matthews equipment, ltd Etobicoke

Bobcat of Cornwall Cornwall

Bobcat of ottawa Ottawa

delta power equipment Forest

mcdowell Brothers industries, inc. Sudbury

Bobcat of owen sound Owen Sound

jacobs farm equvipment, ltd Essex

Bobcat of the tri-Cities, ltd Kitchener

john’s equip sales & service, ltd Frankford

877-840-4182 www.bobcatofcornwall.com

Bobcat of durham east, ltd Courtice 905-404-9990 www.bobcatofdurhameast.com

Bobcat of hamilton, ltd Stoney Creek 905-643-3177 www.bobcatofhamilton.com

613-745-5775 • 877-660-9086 www.bobcatofottawa.com

519-372-0937 • 888-865-5782 www.bobcatofowensound.com

519-579-9100 • 866-214-3939 www.bobcatoftc.com

613-932-2034 • 877-244-5593 www.casselmanfarmequip.com

519-786-5335 www.deltapower.ca

519-776-5238 www.jacobsequipment.com

613-398-6522 • 888-803-9244 www.johnsequipmentsales.com

matthews equipment, ltd Barrie Bobcat® and the Bobcat logo are registered trademarks of Bobcat Company in the United States and various other countries. ©2012 Bobcat Company. All Rights Reserved. | 1112651

705-726-2228 www.matthewsequipment.com

416-679-4172 • 888-803-9244 www.matthewsequipment.com

705-566-8190 www.bmcdowell.com

mcgavin farm equipment, ltd Walton 519-887-6365 • 888-699-1022 www.mcgavinequip.com

stratford farm equipment Stratford 519-393-6162 www.sfe-sales.com

1916-17 Note the extensive selection of conifers already available after the third growing season.

1914-15: The first Sheridan catalogue included 260 perennials, 132 shrubs, 20 trees, and seven vines imported in the spring of 1914 from Europe. Listed were 18 iris, 18 phlox with all perennials priced at 10, 15 or 25 cents, except the six tree peonies which were one dollar each. One herbaceous peony, ‘Festiva Maxima’, is still sold today. The 132 shrubs, all small in size, included 19 lilacs and 20 spireas. Charles Joly and Mme Lemoine Lilacs are still grown today. Shrubs ranged in price from 10 cents each for nine-inch Berberis Thunbergii to 75 cents for the four flowering crabs listed at 25 and 30 inches. The trees included five poplars, which were all listed at six feet, selling for 75 cents each; weeping willows at five feet, for 50 cents each; and 30-inch American elms for 20 cents each. The only conifer, the deciduous Larix leptolepis, at 15 inches, was listed under trees. Howard Stensson would later say that fast growing trees and shrubs were chosen in the early years because of their growth rate. 1915-16: The company’s second catalogue had 43 trees and 43 conifers listed, with the latter mostly being the six-inch size. Nine- to 12-inch Norway spruce 12 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

were only 15 cents each, while 12- to 18-inch silver fir were one dollar each. Multiple pricing was listed with a dozen of any one variety sold for the price of ten. The tree of heaven, “a highly decorative tree, which can also be grown as a shrub if cut down to ground every year,” was also included in trees. The first few catalogues included the statement “Only such plants are here listed as are actually to be found growing successfully in our Nursery”.

This first ornamental grass, an Eulalia (now known as Miscanthus), was listed at 50 cents each under shrubs. Under conifers, this catalogue included the statement: “Owing to the severity of our winters, we are entirely dependent upon coniferous trees and shrubs for our supply of evergreens for our gardens. The broad-leaf evergreens, such as rhododendrons, aucubas, laurels, and hollies, so largely used in more temperate climates, are not hardy in Canada. We have therefore introduced an exceptionally large collection of highly ornamental, hardy conifers to take their place. We can supply dwarf conifers in great variety, both for bedding purposes and for planting on rock and Alpine gardens. We also stock tall growing kinds for specimen planting. The golden, silver, and blue forms are to be specially recommended for winter effects. We have on hand a large stock of white cedars, which we can supply in quantity in several sizes for hedging purposes, at unusually low prices.” With the exception of the aucubas, these could all be found in future Sheridan Nurseries’ catalogues, as the nursery tested plants from various sources and found species or selections adapted for use in eastern Canada. 1916-17: Under ornamental shrubs, this catalogue included the statement: “The planting of ornamental shrubs in the vicinity of Toronto has been so frequently attended in the past with disappointment that we are able to offer the following list of Toronto-grown stock in full confidence that in doing so we are

1925 This block of blue spruce was started during the third growing season.

NEW! Beacon Hill Flagstone

™

ShowN iN photo: SiErra

Natural flagstone appearance with the EnduraColor™ Difference Beacon Hill Flagstone™ has a very natural appearance and is ideal for almost any landscape project you can imagine. Its soft blended colors and subtle surface design gives Beacon Hill Flagstone that relaxed historic look and feel.

Almond Grove

desert sAnd

GrAnite

JAvA

sierrA

sYCAmore neW Colour!

CAmeo Premium Colour

sunrise Premium Colour

Random Bundle

smAll reCtAnGle 71/16" x 141/8" x 23/8" 18cm x 36cm x 6cm

individual units cannot be sold separately

sQuAre lArGe reCtAnGle 141/8" x 141/8" x 23/8" 211/4" x 141/8" x 23/8" DRIFTWOOD SLATE 54cm x 36cm x/ COASTAL 6cm 36cm x 36cm x 6cm

not reCommended for vehiCulAr APPliCAtions

w w w. u n i l o c k . c o m LT_Unilock_january 2013_Beacon Hill.indd 1

1-800-UNILOCK 20/11/2012 11:30:46 AM

1926: This catalogue contained a listing and picture of Rhamus cathartica, or Buckthorn, which is now considered an invasive weedy shrub.

1925 Note the extent of the rose field in the summer of 1925.

satisfying a long-felt want in this city. There are two reasons why Torontogrown shrubs must give greater satisfaction than specimens imported from a distance or from a foreign country. In the first place, shrubs grown in this climate north of Lake Ontario are much better adapted to withstand our severe winters, while in the second place the shock of transplantation is very much minimized, as the shrubs can be planted out in the garden the following day after they are dug from the nursery. This latter consideration is all-important. The principal cause of disappointment with shrubbery is the long delay between the nursery row and the garden bed. Owing to our proximity to Toronto, we are able to offer our shrubs at prices considerably lower than those usually charged, as we have no duty and very light freight charges to pay.” 1917-18: This edition included Acer negundo, ash-leaved maple, now known as the Manitoba maple, and a first listing for Japanese maple, Acer palmatum, listed at three feet for two dollars each. The first extensive list of 56 cultivars and species roses appeared this year, selling for 35 to 50 cents each. By 1922 large numbers were being budded on an especially hardy rootstock and promoted as such. Trademarked roses were first listed in 1939 in the retail and wholesale catalogues. At the time, the sale of bare root roses in the fall was very popular and the 1944 retail catalogue noted, “We regret that, owing to the very heavy demand for roses last fall, our stock of hybrid tea, hybrid perpetual, polyantha, and most of the climbers has been entirely sold out. The few varieties listed are available in limited quantities. By next fall our stock will be replenished, when we will again have a large 14 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

1927 “We can supply 10 or 10,000 plants, as above.”

selection of varieties to offer.” Only six varieties were listed. These shortages appeared for several years. In 1952 the catalogue included the All America Rose Society Award winners for the first time. 1923-24: The first listing for Taxus cuspidata, Japanese yew grown from seed imported from Japan, appeared in this catalogue and sold at one to two feet for $2.50. The first order for seed is reported to have been for 300,000 units; however the Second World War brought a halt to this supply. Summer students were sent to McMaster University during the war to collect seed, but this could not hope to replace the numbers obtained from Japan. Bare root plants, nine- to 12-inch and 12- to 15-inch,” were first listed in the trade lists in the mid ’30s, but discontinued in the fall of 1941 to allow them to grow into larger sizes for sale in subsequent years. By 1946, and in subsequent years, overall sales of Japanese yews were limited. Importation of seed resumed in 1948, but it would be the mid 1950s before numbers could reach their previous levels. The first listing for Ginkgo biloba (the Maidenhair tree), four to six feet, also appeared in this catalogue. One of the most unusual plants listed was Juniperus bermudiana. It was never listed again and is now known to be hardy only in zone 9. 1925: This catalogue highlighted, “a block of 3,000 Blue spruce…growing in our nurseries for 10 years.” They were listed up to four feet tall and priced at $4.50 each. These spruce would have been planted as seed or seedlings in 1915, which was the second season for the nursery.

1930: The Kilmarnock willow, now known as the weeping pussy willow, Salix Caprea pendula, was listed for the first time. 1931: This catalogue contained the first listing for the weeping mulberry or Morus alba ‘Pendula’, at five to six feet for only $2.50 each. It also had the first listing for Chinese elm, Ulmus pumila, “one of the fastest growing trees known.” A page from the 1947 catalogue illustrates how this tree was widely regarded as a hedge plant. 1934: Golden bamboo or Bambusa aurea variegate was listed in the catalogue for one year only. Two hardy rose standards called F.J. Grootendorst red and pink are listed for the first time. None was listed in 1935, but six varieties were listed in 1937. The Japanese umbrella pine, Sciadopitys verticillata, was also listed in the retail catalogue for one year only, at 18 to 24 inches for $7.50. The same catalogue listed eightto nine-foot pyramidal cedars at $20 each. 1935: The first hardy cactus, an Opuntia, was listed in 1926. By 1935 the listings included five different varieties, but all disappeared by 1947 and did not reappear until recently. 1936: Rose of Sharon or Hibiscus syriacus had been listed for several years, but the catalogue for 1936 included nine varieties, some of which are still grown. American Holly, Ilex opaca, makes its one and only appearance this year, as does Stranvaesia Davidiana undulata, a zone 7b to 9 broadleaf evergreen, with the note, “Needs winter protection.” 1937: Weeping caragana or Caragana arborescens pendula, with five- to sixfoot stems at two dollars each, first appeared here, as well as 14 varieties of water lilies, Nymphaea, which were priced at $2.50 to $3.50 each. continued on page 16

NEMASYS G ®

A NATURAL BORN

KILLER White Grub

A beautiful lawn is one of life’s great pleasures, but professional lawn care is no picnic. Every day, every hour, your customers’ lawns are under assault from voracious grubs. What do you do with these pests? Talk things over? No, you send in some proven killers to deal with them. Becker Underwood is the world’s leading producer of high-quality, highly infective, juvenile-stage beneficial nematodes. With a minimum of 250 million nasty nematodes in each tray, Nemasys® G is your best natural weapon in the fight against grubs of European Chafer Beetles, Oriental Beetles and Japanese Beetles.

Scan QR code or enter www.nematode.ca, place smart phone in dotted area and watch Nemasys®G at work.

Compatible with other biological control programs, Nemasys® G is environmentally-friendly, with

WARNING

no use restrictions or re-entry interval. Nemasys® G. From Becker Underwood. Performance you can count on®.

Contains graphic scenes of underground violence, grub annihilation, nematode victory and homeowner delight. Many, many grubs were harmed in the making of this video.

VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED

Nemasys® and Performance you can count on® are registered trademarks used under license by Becker Underwood Canada Ltd. The Becker Underwood logo is a trademark of Becker Underwood, Inc. and is licensed to Becker Underwood Canada Ltd.

www.beckerunderwood.ca

1940: The catalogue showed the first separate listing for broad-leaf evergreens, Buxus microphylla koreana from 15 to 18 inches B & B, priced at $1.75. Sheridan Nurseries obtained its first Korean boxwood from the Arnold Arboretum in 1922, only four years after the arboretum. Boxwood is slow growing, so it is not surprising that it was almost 20 years before the crop was large enough to list. The DuningtonGrubb’s search for hardy, broad-leaved evergreens was finally starting to show results.

bungei made its first appearance in Sheridan’s catalogue.

1949: The one and only listing for Japanese quince or Chaenomeles japonica, a most unusual standard, appeared in the dwarf tree section.

1956: Azaleas and rhododendrons made their first appearances.

1950: The globe catalpa or Catalpa

1954: The bigleaf wintercreeper standard, Euonymus fortunei vegetus, first appeared for sale; however photographs show these standards were planted in the front yard of the Dunington-Grubb home before 1945. Finally, in 1954, Howard Stensson got a listing for two “hardy” cultivars of Cherry-laurel, Prunus lauocerasus, one of the plants he lamented wasn’t hardy in his 1915-16 comments about broadleaved evergreens.

1991: Finally two hardy evergreen hollies, the hybrid cultivars ‘Blue Prince’ and ‘Blue Princess’, were listed.

Sheridan catalogues were issued during the First and Second World Wars and the Great Depression. The offerings and pricing of plants changed and adapted with the times. Thousands of plants from other nurseries overseas and in the United States were trialed and introduced, with many being replaced over the years with hardier or more ornamental plants. The constant search for new varieties has added significantly to the betterment of horticulture in Canada. Part II of this article will appear in March, 2013 Landscape Trades, and will look at the many woody plants and roses introduced by LT Sheridan Nurseries.

Larry Sherk has been a member of the Garden Writers Association for 35 years. He is the senior author of Ornamental Shrubs for Canada. He retired in December 2001 after 32 years as chief horticulturist for Sheridan Nurseries.

Canadian grower recognized for international excellence Sheridan Nurseries: World’s best

Sheridan Nurseries has received international acclaim as the Gold Rose winner of the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH). The award repeats last year’s double honour for a Canadian nursery. Sheridan is also this year’s winner of CNLA’s RBC Grower of the Year award. Sheridan ceo Bill Stensson accepted the Gold Rose award on behalf of all Sheridan staff in September, in Horst/Venlo, Netherlands. The nursery was recognized for its excellence in human resource and educational policies, as well as a commitment to high product standards and environmental sustainability. Sheridan Nurseries is also known for its new plant introductions, many of which have become Canadian mainstays. In its application for grower of the year, Sheridan notes that five years ago, the nursery converted nearly all of its production to container grown. Now, more than 97 per cent of product sold at the nursery is containerized. Sheridan Nurseries has more than 900 acres of farmland in southern Ontario, including 54 acres devoted to propagation and 260 acres of container production. The nursery ships 1.8 million plants annually to markets across northeastern North America. Its product line includes more than 1,200 cultivars. Sheridan’s mandate is to have 30 per cent of its sales from new cultivars that have been introduced to the company within the last five years. The company is forward thinking with its marketing. It offers a unique Retail Ready program where a specialized group of perennials is merchandised on racks labelled as Sun, Shade or New Plants. The racks arrive with a poster and rack wrap, ready for instant sale at the garden centre. Another successful program is the Colour Match shrub program for retailers, which matches the pot and bloom colours. Sheridan Nurseries constantly strives for efficiencies. Using its dedicated quality team, as well as in-house industrial engineering experts, the company saved more than $100,000 in labour costs last year. In addition, the company constantly performs trials and tests new products in order to improve its growing process. A recent success was with coir: The company uses 562,000 coco discs each year to reduce weeds and water loss. In addition, 25,000 plants are grown

16 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

in plastic and then repotted into coir pots just before shipping, so the plastic pot can be reused. An industry leader in environmental stewardship, Sheridan Nurseries is committed to reducing its impact on the environment. The construction of its state-ofthe-art water recapture system was featured in May 2012 Landscape Trades. The system includes a water collection forebay, a wetland that acts as a biofilter, and the main pond that holds 117 million litres of water. Through this system, Sheridan Nurseries reduced its draw from the local water source by 30 per cent in 2011. A major focus for the nursery has been to improve its sustainable use of plastic nursery pots. By reducing, reusing and recycling, it has created a closed loop system for pots. More than 160,000 pots were reused in 2011, and all remaining pots were recycled. Since developing its environmental plan, Sheridan Nurseries has diverted 100 per cent more waste from landfill sites, including polyhouse plastic, metals, irrigation drip tape, electronics, paper, cardboard, and landscape cloth waste. Waste media is reused in Sheridan’s composting program and new growing media is supplemented with more environmentally sustainable alternatives to peat. In addition, the company uses 50 per cent of the compost waste generated by the town of Halton Hills. Previously recognized as one of Canada’s best-managed private companies, Sheridan offers a complete human resources package for employees, with training, development, career advancement, succession planning, benefits, and a social program. Job shadowing programs, middle management training programs, professional development opportunities, and participation in company strategic planning sessions all contribute to employee satisfaction in their working conditions. The company is thrilled to receive this international honour going into its 100th year in business. Sheridan’s Bill Stensson says, “The International Grower of the Year award is a tribute to our staff who have worked tirelessly to make Sheridan Nurseries a better company every day. It is an honour to be recognized by one’s peers for your work. I encourage all growers to take part in the competition, as it makes both your company and our industry better and stronger. ”

0% 12 finan mo cin nth g fo s! r For your Canadian dealer call 1-888-337-2199 or visit www.wrightmfg.com

Call toll free 1-888-337-2199 for a dealer near you.

Turf seed industry works to breed cultivars with lower water needs Is grass a villain? Even though plants and landscaping prevent runoff, reduce temperatures, and provide many other environmental and health benefits, public perception is strongly biased against “water-wasting” grass. To be sure, the planet’s freshwater resources are limited; water is gold. Water conservation is top-of-mind these days for all green industry sectors. In response, turf grass seed producers are embracing the challenge of breeding new cultivars that require less water. Market demand for less-thirsty turf is real, but seed producers looking to meet that demand face a long and expensive road. It can take 10 years and up to $100,000 to develop a new cultivar, yet few varieties have market lives longer than five years. Tell the story with numbers Since research is so important to address today’s water issues, three turf grass seed producers founded the Turfgrass Water Conservation Alliance (TWCA) in 2009. The Alliance’s NexGen research station in Oregon’s Wil-

By Lee Ann Knudsen

lamette Valley recently hosted a field day to spotlight its research on drought-tolerant cultivars, and to promote the water conservation message. Drought tolerance is a general term used to describe cultivars that require less water. Researchers are actually looking at several traits, including how long it takes water-deprived turf to go dormant, and how quickly the turf recovers. The research station features a large rain-out shelter, so turf plots receiving measured, documented water amounts can be studied. Further, this group makes the proud claim of removing subjectivity from dormancy determinations. TWCA researchers have devised a light box that can isolate and digitally photograph the plots. The photo is then analyzed by software that assigns precise numeric values to the plot’s green, brown or in-between colour — replacing judgment calls with scientific accuracy. The effort’s public relations message centres around promoting drought-tolerant turf through its solid research and hard numbers. TWCA researchers can sup-

NexGen Research’s rain-out shelter allows evaluation under controlled moisture conditions.

18 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

START THE CONVERSATION... WANT A CONCRETE WAY TO USE YOUR EMPTIES?

BLUE BOX GLASS IN EVERY PRODUCT WE MAKE. Find out more @ atlasblock.com

CURBING

FENCING

PAV E R S

SLABS

WA LL S

Sustainable concrete by design.

Varied performance levels are clear in NexGen research plots.

port claims their cultivars require 30 per cent less water before going dormant. Stated a different way, branded varieties developed under TWCA research stay green 30 days longer than traditional cultivars. Value in the marketplace Manderley Turf Products supplies sod to large areas of Canada. The company became interested in drought-tolerant turf seed several years ago through the green building movement: specifically, helping customers capture LEED credits for using turf with lower water requirements. Sean Moher, market development manager at Manderley, says the company has expanded its efforts to promote the new cultivars to contractors. While the contractors are initially skeptical, he says the new

Turf samples are grown in plastic tubes to gauge and select for root depth.

cultivars can benefit them two ways: “First, contractors can go for customers interested in sustainability. And second, they can go after the lazy people, who don’t want to do as much hose work.” Moher has done the math to support the value of water-conserving turf; while the sod price is only a couple of pennies more expensive per square foot, an installer can justify charges that enhance his margins nicely. Manderley’s Quebec sod farms will plant 20 per cent drought tolerant seed next year, and is moving toward half of its production in the future. Its sod farms in Alberta are planted 80 per cent in seed with lower water requirements. The search for cultivars with low water needs is certainly not a new movement, according to Paul Stevens, Pickseed Canada’s manager of professional turf. “Working on drought tolerance has been a core focus of our program for years. It is a slow process.” The company’s research efforts take place at its own Willamette Valley research farm, and through academic partnerships with uni-

versities such as Rutgers and Oregon State. Stevens agrees that standards and credible, third-party research is the key to marketplace success. “We need to do a better job of selling value.” A new normal The pricing premium for drought tolerant varieties is modest, in the neighbourhood of 10 or 15 per cent. Will industry embrace the extra cost? Dick Olson, president of ProSeeds in Jefferson, Ore., says yes, “The market will get it, eventually.” Real-life results do not always mirror research, but the new turf cultivars are encouraging. Ken Pavely, with Lawn Life of Orangeville, Ont., did some informal trials of drought tolerant varieties, both on his own and for clients. He found the turf stood up very well. Pressure to lower landscape water requirements will not abate. In this environment, using grass seed that performs well with less water seems to be a no-brainer; acLT cording to Pavely, “It’s the real deal.”

Research takes centre stage

The technique for supplying measured amounts of water to plots under the rain-out shelter is quite low-tech, and highly labour-intensive.

20 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

Don’t miss the IPM Symposium, From the Ground Up, at Congress 2013. Blue-ribbon presenters include turf grass researcher Russ Nicholson of Pennington Seed, Tony Bass with Super Lawn Technologies, Katerina Jordan of the Guelph Turfgrass Institute, Michael Brownridge with Vineland Research and Innovation Centre, and more. Now in its 47th year, the IPM (Integrated Pest Management) Symposium helps industry — and society — achieve healthy turf and plants through sound cultural practices. It takes place Monday, January 7 at the Toronto Congress Centre. To register, visit www.locongress.com.

YOUR #1 CHOICE FOR EQUIPMENT SERVICING & REPAIRS!

24H N E P O DURING SNOW MS STOR

416.242.3513 • www.kooybros.com SIGN UP ONLINE TO RECEIVE OUR WINTER STORM OPERATING HOUR ALERTS!

With a line-up of snowplows from 6’8” to the 11’, Blizzard has a plow to match your truck, and Kooy Brothers will look after you like we always do if you happen to break down. – Bill Kooy

NEW BLIZZARD DEALERS WELCOME!

Landscape management credentials:

A Canadian leadership story By Lee Ann Knudsen

Why should a green industry pro take steps to earn management certification? Bob Tubby is clear-eyed and realistic that three letters after his name will not drive customers to beat down his door. But he does say the benefits are real: earning the designation will upgrade skill sets, regardless of starting level. Since everybody needs operating capital, a managment designation gives you the skill and credibility to deal with banks and lenders. It will increase your confidence and, used wisely, improve your business.

Tubbyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s company, Arbordale Landscaping, in Toronto, is widely respected for its professionalism. Tubby participated in introducing landscape industry management certification to Canada; he was one of the high-profile industry members asked to review the programâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s material, specifically the financial management module, before its launch. The Landscape Industry Certified Manager program came to Canada about 10 years ago under the Certified Landscape Professional brand; Canadian certified managers continue to use the

Bob Tubby pilots Arbordale Landscaping as a real-life example of landscape management excellence.

22 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

Your pavers are precious. Protect them.

Natural Look Untouched beauty

techniseal.com

Clear Look Clearly beautiful

Color Boost Reveal beauty within

Visit us at Congress 2013 Booth #1532

Wet Look Ultimate glamour

HP2 Polymeric Sand The allure of high technology

The path to landscape management certification Now is a great time to pursue the Landscape Industry Certified Manager designation, offered through Canada’s provincial trade associations. To earn the designation, candidates must complete written examinations on the program’s seven modules. Detailed information can be found at www.cnla-acpp.ca/CertifiedManager, where you may also order study manuals. Evaluation opportunities scheduled for 2013, to date, follow. Contact your provincial association for details or additional exam dates. March 1-2 March 26-27 April 19-20 July 5-6 July 18-19 September 26-27 October 10-11 October 18-19 November 1-2

Victoria, B.C. Olds, Alta. Truro, N.S. Langley, B.C. Milton, Ont. Kemptville, Ont. Milton, Ont. Langley, B.C. Truro, N.S.

landscape industry

certified manager

24 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

initials CLP after their names. Bob Tubby’s educational background is the Humber College landscape program. He supplemented his landscape education by taking every business course he could find — from personnel and marketing to launching a small business. At that time, there was no landscape management designation to provide an educational outline; today, he believes its modules present the ideal structure for learning. In Tubby’s opinion, the specialized business content of the CLP program should be seamlessly integrated into horticulture training, and students should graduate as CLPs. When it comes to professionalism, how does one quantify that Tubby and his company “get it”? Tubby points to several objective measures. His company has stable finances and consistent profitability. Staff retention is exceptional; employees have been on board for 11, 18, 25, and even 29 years of his company’s 30-year history. Builtin systems ensure project efficiency, and he has systems in place to analyze the profit-

ability of any job — in 15 minutes. Tubby says consistently applying financial analysis to field projects lets you understand where you make money. His callback rate is below two per cent. At one time, Arbordale Landscaping did maintenance in addition to its core construction business. Analysis told Tubby his maintenance jobs were not making much profit; so he turned to a more lucrative niche, founding a second company, Moonstruck Landscape Lighting. “Moonstruck was born because of profitability,” he says. Of course, a business is more than its numbers. Sharing a sandwich with employees around Arbordale’s company lunch table reveals a team that is cooperative, respectful, professional and sincere. Tubby is a soft spoken but powerful business mentor and advocate for management certification. He believes sound business foundations are paramount for the industry and so, in addition to promoting management certification, he founded Landscape Ontario’s Prosperity Partnership (www.horttrades.com/prosperity). The program helps entrepreneurs build a practical framework for profitability. “Guys who are in the business because they love landscaping tend to fail,” says Tubby. “Profit motivation should be key. I love business, and I enjoy numbers.” Behind the scenes, Tubby has helped countless landscape businesses grasp the tools to succeed. In practical terms, Tubby has advice on how a perpetually-busy business owner should approach earning the designation: “Save it for the winter. Make study appointments for yourself, set deadlines, and consider it part of your job description. Do not put study for certification into a separate pile; this is your job, too.” Persuading green industry pros to attain landscape management certification is a tough sell, no question. Tubby responds to the challenge by pointing to the evidence: not one of his associates regrets the time or effort invested to earn this distinction. In fact, the benefits of recognition as a pro are about to accrue to a new generation; Tubby’s son Blake LT is just starting on the same journey.

24 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

Inbound marketing for the green industry: Time to get on board

The Internet has fundamentally changed the way people find, discover, share, shop, and connect. BY CHRIS HEILER

Inbound marketing is based on the concept of earning the attention of prospects and making it easier to find your company online by producing content your customers value. In contrast, cold-calling, direct mail, radio advertisements, sales fliers and other forms of traditional advertising are considered “outbound marketing.” Are traditional, interruption-based advertising mediums like television, radio and print still effective? Consider this: Fewer consumers are subscribing to cable television. On top of that, more and more consumers are minimizing, or even eliminating, commercial interruptions by using DVRs or streaming their entertainment using services like Netflix, Hulu and Roku. More teens in the United States now listen to music via YouTube than the radio. And consumers continue to adopt digital music in the form of mp3 files and streaming services like Spotify and Pandora. This eliminates local commercial interruptions. Kindle e-books are now outselling books in print and more and more consumers are reading their local newspapers on their Kindles and iPads. When I read the Austin Statesman on my Kindle I don’t see a single advertisement — and my subscription costs

much less than getting the print edition on my doorstep.

Consumption habits have changed. Consumers have control. And they don’t want to be interrupted by your marketing message. Inbound marketing and your business Inbound marketing is especially effective for small businesses, like many in the green industry, that deal with high-dollar values, long research and buying cycles, and knowledge-based products. In these areas prospects are more likely to hire companies that demonstrate superior expertise in their industry. Because of this, inbound marketing is an ideal strategy for green industry companies. The content that drives the engine of an

effective inbound marketing program is focused on building thought-leadership, being relevant and useful, and generating qualified leads for a business. This approach is in stark contrast to cold-calling, radio advertisements and other methods of traditional marketing that focus on interrupting a consumer’s attention in the hopes of building greater brand awareness. Inbound marketing basics Your website should no longer be treated as simply an online brochure. It should be a dynamic hub for information and engagement, and the metaphorical front door to your business. (Source: Paul Roetzer, The Marketing Agency Blueprint, 2011.) Social media, search marketing, and content marketing each play a key role in a cohesive inbound marketing strategy. All three must work together — with your website at the core. Everything is connected and success depends on the integration of each key component. Key component #1: Content marketing Potential customers find your business through the content you create and publish. Whether by reading your blog post or watching your video on YouTube, original content is what generates more traffic to your company website and, ultimately, gen-

the best source for all your natural stone and landscaping needs. With over 10 acres of Canadian The best source for all your natural stone and and importedneeds. stoneWith products stock, we have the landscaping over 10inacres of Canadian widest variety of products in the area!the and imported stone products in stock, we have widest variety of products in the area!

1752517525 JaneJane street Kettleby, Street,r.r.#1, King City, ON L7B 0J6OntariO 905-841-8400stonemensvalley.com stonemensvalley.com 905-841-8400

26 Stonemens | JANUARYcolour 2013 quarter | LANDSCAPE page adTRADES for January LT.indd

1 the best source for all your natural stone and landscaping needs. With over 10 acres of Canadian

11/29/2012 3:47:03 PM

Skip the bloomin’ onion: order more Bloomerang®. Everyone wants the Proven Winners® lilac that blooms in spring, summer and fall. It’s one of two hundred great shrubs you can use to build your own Proven Winners® program.

www.colorchoiceplants.com

Growing today for a greener tomorrow

Hear Chris at Congress Chris Heiler is presenting two sessions at Congress 2013. How to avoid the social media time suck Wednesday, January 9, 2:45 to 3:45 p.m. On online presence is a must for marketers, but keeping current can be overwhelming. Chris will give 21 proven tips to better manage your time online. How to use Facebook to build brand enthusiasm and attract customers Thursday, January 10, 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Learn why your company should care about Facebook, and how it can help your business.

erates qualified leads and new customers. Your business is fighting for the limited attention of your customers and prospects. You are also going head to head with your competitors, fighting for the attention of the search engines like Google and Bing. Creating original and compelling content on a regular basis is how you win this battle for attention, yet companies are ignoring this opportunity. A very small number of companies in our industry blog on a regular basis, i.e., three or four times a month. Yet studies have shown that blogging results in a 55 per cent increase in website visitors, and companies that blog have 97 per cent more inbound links than those that don’t. (Source: HubSpot, State of Inbound Marketing Lead Generation Report, 2010.) Key component #2: Social media “Content is fire. Social media is gasoline.” So says social media strategist Jay Baer. Publishing a blog on your website is just a first step in the inbound marketing process. Your blog will attract both direct traffic and organic search traffic, but as mentioned above, sharing your blog posts on your social networks like Facebook and Twitter can really fan the flames and attract more eyeballs to your content.

M. PUTZER HORNBY NURSERY LTD 7314 Sixth Line, Hornby, Ontario L0P 1E0

Phone: 905-878-7226 • 1-800-377-3363 Fax: 905-878-8737 www.putzernursery.com

Quality • Service • Selection 28 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

Key component #3: Search marketing Search engine optimization (SEO) has drastically changed over the past few years, with more emphasis being placed on quality of content and links as well as social signals factored in. Ongoing effort is required to rank consistently in the search engine results pages (SERPs). There is no one-time fix. Sure, your website needs to be designed up front with SEO in mind, but you also have to create meaningful content on a regular basis and participate in social media. The search engines like Google and Bing reward web pages with the right combination of ranking factors or “signals.” SEO is about ensuring the content on your website generates the right type of signals. Your website should be the front door to your business. And it is your content, social media, and SEO that will drive visitors to your door. LT

Chris Heiler is the founder and president of Landscape Leadership, an inbound marketing agency that combines social media, content marketing, and search marketing into integrated and measurable campaigns for green industry clients ranging from landscape design/build firms and landscape management companies to garden centers, growers, and specialty manufacturers. For more information, visit www.landscapeleadership.com. 28 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

Landscape Congress Booth #116

Our Toughness is

Your Strength In a business like yours, “downtime” means “losing money.” When it comes to equipment, only the strongest survive. It’s not personal; it’s business. That’s why we engineer our landscape contractor equipment to be extraordinarily tough. Big, red iron with heavy-duty welds, high-strength spindles and blades, torture-tested components and commercial-grade engines. That adds up to longer useful life, fewer repairs and less downtime. Don’t believe us? Take a fresh look at revenue-generating Toro. Our toughness is your strength.

toro.com

All is hunky dory in Newfoundland

BY JOHN STANLEY

Newfoundland may not be the first place you think of when it comes to retail innovation, but every part of the world has its surprises. I was recently in Newfoundland looking at retail innovation. Before travelling there, I was told five things: make sure you try Bakeapple, drink Screech, kiss a cod, try the beer where the water comes from icebergs, and be careful on the road as this province has the highest number of moose per square kilometre in the world. When I asked about retailing and marketing, there was silence. I had no idea what surprises I was in for. What I learned was fascinating. Newfoundlanders know how to build customer relationships I have travelled to most states in the USA and provinces in Canada. When it comes to building customer relation-

Your employees must make themselves memorable in the eyes of your customers.

30 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

ships, so far, Newfoundland is the best. It started at the airport and continued throughout my tour. The key to success is not to confuse product knowledge with customer relationships. I often found local knowledge was lacking, but that did not matter given the relationship building I experienced. When I arrived, I needed a rental car for a week. I checked in with Enterprise Car Rental in the city. Lorraine, who organized the rental, asked where I was from and what I was doing in Newfoundland. Her customer relations acume really shone when I checked the car in at the end of the week. I was welcomed with a “Hello, John. How was the trip? Where did you go?” Wow! I was impressed. Lorraine then introduced me to her company’s business loyalty program and suggested I join. She bid me farewell and said she looked forward to seeing me on my next visit to Newfoundland. Exceptional customer service is so rare, yet memorable. This was one situation of relationship building that I will be talking about for a long time to come. It raises the question: What are your team members doing to make sure they are memorable in the eyes of your customers? It is so simple to remember a name and ask how a trip has gone, but although I rent dozens of cars every year, this is the first time any car rental clerk has ever greeted me by my first name and asked about my experience. I have a wide choice of car-rental-company “loyalty” cards in my wallet, but now, all of a sudden, I have a “preferred” company I will rent from. Fred understands his market The capital of Newfoundland is St John’s. It has the usual mix of corporate retailers who provide the usual retail options. This situation can make it difficult to be an independent retailer who stands out from the crowd. But, in St. John’s, as it happens, you can learn a lot from the independent retailers. In Newfoundland, retailers live in a market that has a very short season. Vacationers, the main source of income, arrive in July and are gone by September. That means to be successful as a retailer you need to stand out. In St John’s, Fred is different. Fred owns a music shop — but it is no ordinary music shop. It is a centre of excellence for music lovers. Fred is passionate about his music and he tells you this through his branding. It is apparent in the lack of expensive shop fixtures; noth-

ing fancy here, just simple passion. Every CD has a handwritten sign from Fred, or one of his team, commenting about the music on the CD. One gets the impression Fred has listened to all the music on offer and has an opinion about each piece. People buy from passionate people and Fred is passionate. I did not meet Fred nor speak to any of his team, but I could see from their presentation and signage they are passionate about what they do. If I were to walk into your store, would I see that you are passionate about what you do?

NOBODY DOES IT BETTER Professional Grade Industry Leading Warranty and a FLEET PROGRAM like no other!

Plus, we are Hunky Dory Imagine you had a gift shop in one of the remotest parts of the world in a season that lasted only a few weeks. Hunky Dory is just that. It is a tiny gift and local craft shop located in a small fishing village, in the northwest of the island. The key in retailing is daring to be different and not over investing. This is what Hunky Dory has done very successfully. The owner found an old building, moved it to a prime coastal site, painted it and used local items as shop fixtures. These included wooden boxes and a dory boat as a counter. All the products were locally sourced to add to the experience. As a result the little shop stands out and draws passersby inside by its presence. The lessons Retailing is tough at present. But in Newfoundland it has always been tough. What the smart independents have learned is that they have to do something different without spending capital. This can revolve around the people, a tin of paint, passion, and thinking through how to stand out and be noticed using what is available locally. The lessons from Newfoundland can be applied anywhere. By the way, the ice beer is excellent and bakeapple berries are delightful. As for the moose, we only saw one in the whole week. LT

John Stanley is a retail consultant and conference speaker. He can be contacted by email at john@johnstanley.com.au or through his website,

Visit us

at Booth 708 at Landscape Ontario Congress to see our complete line of quality products... now even more affordable with our ECHO Fleet Program. www.echo.ca See our Warranty Policy online for complete details.

www.johnstanley.com.au. JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES |

JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES |

10 ways to see the glass as half full

Overcoming negativity in the workplace

BY KAREN PURVES

When I was in college, I joined a volunteer team travelling to Mexico for a weekend to paint a church for an underprivileged community in San Felipe. Altruistic of me to spend a weekend making such a selfless choice, right? But truthfully, at that time in my life, I wasn’t primarily interested in the trip for a philanthropic reason. I was the little sister to a fraternity. I was primarily interested in hanging out with the frat boys on our team, and secondarily interested in helping out needy kids. Despite my upside-down priorities on that trip though, the most important goal was realized. The church got painted. The good outcome of helping children was realized. I use that example to express a truth about combating negativity at your workplace. Yes, it is optimal that most people feel better about their jobs. However, the most important thing for you as a manager is to realize the outcome: to keep the negativity from affecting productivity and morale. You don’t have to want to turn negative people into positive ones; you just have to want the outcome. The cost of negativity As Gary Topchik notes in his book Managing Workplace Negativity, the effects of negativity are measurable — and costly. In your company, you have probably seen how negativity can lead to these results: more client complaints, higher error rates and lower work quality, increased turnover, increased absences and tardiness, more personality conflicts, loss of morale and motivation, loss of loyalty to the organization, and loss of creativity and innovation. Stop the locomotives in their tracks To resist negativity, consider the mindset of the other person. It doesn’t take a degree in behavioural science to realize that fear is the driving force behind most of the negativity scarring your workplace. 32 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

Hear Karen at Congress 2013 Communicate with Strength! Wednesday, January 9, 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Got the right words? Laugh and learn in this high energy, fun-filled, humorous session offering the latest solutions in effective communication. What are you saying that’s causing your prospects and customers to scamper to your competition? Karen will tell you — and give you replacement words and phrases! Smart Talk, Genius Results Wednesday, January 9, 2:45 to 3:45 p.m. Do you know why employees quit and customers leave? Karen will present proven best practices that help generate greater loyalty among clients and retain staff.

Do you recognize these 10 negative roles in your company? (Do you occasionally see yourself falling into these categories once in a while, too?) If you’re at a loss for how to defuse the fear powering these behaviours, consider these simple strategies for overcoming negativity traps and transforming your team. Locomotives roll over people. Stand up to bullying, and don’t let trains take over the task — or your team. Perfectionists are never satisfied. As a result, they waste time. Help them set realizing expectations of what can be accomplished. Resisters strongly dislike change. Involve them in the process so they don’t feel that new policies and processes are just being thrown at them without any possibility for feedback. Not-my-jobbers- avoid work. Make it “all about them.” Reframe challenges in a way that helps them find opportunities for their own growth. Pessimists always see the worst in situations. For example, when they see www.opportunityisnowhere.com, they see “opportunity is nowhere” instead of “opportunity is now here.” Help them adopt positive behaviours, such as viewing negative situations as temporary. Criticizers knock ideas down. Ask for

specific feedback on reasons an idea won’t work. For every criticism they make, require them to offer one solution. Sacrificers feel unappreciated. They arrive early, stay late and work holidays and weekends. Give them positive feedback as often as possible. Self-castigators constantly find fault with themselves. Gather evidence to the contrary to make them aware of just how much they’re valued. Scapegoaters shift responsibility. Calmly share specific examples of how their mistakes have caused problems for you or the company. Micros focus on small errors. Encourage them to evaluate the whole project and not get bogged down in details. Finally, try this subtle trick: Don’t mentally place yourself “against” these negative not-my-jobbers, criticizers and scapegoaters. Try placing yourself “with” them. Side by side, look at the issues powering the negativity. Little by little, with persistence and patience, you’ll move from confrontation to LT conversation

In her presentations, Karen Purves combines business experience with training from The Second City improv theatre.

DIFFERENT for the RIGHT REASONS

For over 30 years, Walker Mowers has been doing things a little different than other mower manufacturers. The differences, however, have continued to set the product apart and give operators improved productivity, reliability and cost savings. Maybe itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to take a look at something different. See Walker at Landscape Congress Show - Booth #478

Organizational health: The new competitive advantage Our recent study of more than 3,000 business owners and managers found that growth was their number one priority. Not surprisingly, their other top priorities were closely related to growth: becoming more strategic, improving sales processes, and fine-tuning marketing messages, were some examples. This focus on growth is not surprising. When businesses are not growing, they often become obsolete. They lose their best people. They stop investing in new technology and systems. They focus inward and lose their way. Many businesses however are not adequately prepared for growth, because they are not healthy. Organizational health is a prerequisite for growth, profitability, and sustainability. Let me tell you about my personal experience with a business that was not prepared for growth. Early in my career, I spent 10 years with a $500 million retailer, working as a store manager, district manager, and business manager in the corporate office. This company is no longer in business, primarily because of a lack of organizational health. The company began in 1942 as a food market on Detroit’s east side. In 1949, it diversified by opening a greenhouse across the street. Given the seasonal nature of the greenhouse, the company decided to diversify by adding a new category — crafts. Over

the next several decades, the company grew to more than 300 stores in 17 U.S. states. The company continued to diversify, but in doing so it lost its focus on its core business. It opened up Christmas stores, super craft stores, and even added pet supplies. Faced with serious competition from big box retailers in the 1990s, the company had no answer. It lacked a vision for how to survive. Instead, political infighting and turf wars broke out. Cannibalism set in. The company struggled to survive but couldn’t find a way. It finally closed its doors in 2004. Poor organizational health is indicated by a lack of vision, poor leadership, weak culture, high employee dissatisfaction, high employee turnover, poor market positioning, lack of accountability, and lack of teamwork. Healthy businesses have visionary leadership that takes into account the future of the organization, the world we live in, and how the two are related. They not only have a 5-year plan but a 20- to 30-year plan with a clear strategy for executing them. These businesses understand their roles in society, are willing to provide leadership in their areas of influence, and respect their stakeholders. An organization is healthy as a whole only when it is healthy in six critical areas: cohesive leadership teams, purposeful strategy, effective marketing, dedicated people, sound financials, and strong leadership. Think about the car or truck you drive.

Meet Phil at Congress 2013 Building Your Team: How to Attract, Retain, and Motivate the Right People Thursday, January 10 9:45 – 10:45 a.m. As the Irrigation Conference keynote speaker, Phil will look at why the typical company’s approach to recruiting and managing people is flawed. He will present a winning approach to recruiting, managing and motivating people toward higher performance levels. Lunch Panel: Customer Service: Please! 12:00 – 1:15 p.m. Session: Organizational Health: The New Competitive Advantage 2:45 – 3:45 p.m. Phil will discuss what it means for a company to be healthy, and how to make it happen with proven methods and tools. 34 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

BY PHIL HARWOOD

If it’s not running well, it’s because one or more things are wrong with it — specific things that are out of alignment, leaking, missing, or broken. If you take it to a good mechanic, they’ll identify what’s wrong with it and repair it, using a combination of analysis, assessment, and experience to diagnose the problem or problems. A good mechanic knows what critical areas to look at, test, evaluate, or measure. Once the repairs are made, it runs well again — it’s healthy. In the same way, unhealthy organizations require diagnosis, surgery, and rehabilitation. One unhealthy area will affect the whole. Organizational health only exists when each critical area is healthy. Take a few quiet moments and consider your organization. Review the list of six critical areas above. Which critical areas of your business are not as healthy as the others? What have you done to impact this area? Why have these efforts failed? What needs to happen going forward to improve this area? Understanding these areas of opportunity and committing to taking action is the beginning of the road to a healthier company. To further your understanding, my company offers monthly webinars, free to Landscape Ontario members. Visit www. mypmcteam.com for more information and LT to register for our webinars.

Phil Harwood, MBA, Landscape Ontario Preferred Consultant, Landscape Industry Certified Manager, Certified Snow Professional, and PLANET Trailblazer, is the CEO and president of Pro-Motion Consulting, Inc. He is actively engaged with clients throughout North America as an organizational health consultant, coach, speaker, and trainer. Prior to starting his consulting firm, he was part owner of a landscape and snow management firm that he helped grow to more than $10 million in annual revenues in just over eight years. He began his career with a $500 million green industry retailer, and spent four years with the largest landscape and snowcontracting firm in Michigan.

2013

CONTRACTOR

SHOWCASE

H A R D S C A P I N G

BOOTCAMP 36

FREE SHOWS CAN & US

ENROLL NOW!: WWW.TECHO-BLOC.COM/ENROLL

ICPI

INSTALLER CONTINUING EDUCATION

OFFICIAL SPONSORS:

ATTEND AND RECEIVE 4 NCMA & ICPI CREDITS

FOR CONTINUING EDUCATION

VISIT US AT THE LANDSCAPE ONTARIO CONGRESS BOOTH# 1742

CANADA DATES & LOCATIONS Mar-05 KITCHENER, ON ● Mar-06 BURLINGTON, ON ● Mar-07 BURLINGTON, ON ●

Mar-08 MARKHAM, ON ● Mar-12 LA PRAIRIE, QC ■ Mar-13 LA PRAIRIE, QC ■

Mar-15 QUÉBEC, QC ■ Mar-19 LAVAL, QC ■ ● Mar-21 MONCTON, NB ●

English Presentation ● French Presentation ■

Mar-26 POINTE-CLAIRE, QC ■ ● Mar-28 OTTAWA, ON ■ ● Apr-02 CALGARY, AB ●

The

unbiddable master plan BY JODY SHILAN

One of the biggest, best, and easiest ideas I developed during my career is the concept of the unbiddable master plan. It took me almost 15 years to develop the idea, but once I realized what I had created and how to use it, my installation sales tripled. You know what else? The estimates and plans took me less time than traditional drawings and my closing rate improved dramatically. If you’re a landscape designer or design/build contractor and are responsible for selling the installation, then you owe it to yourself to read this incredibly valuable trade secret. I’m sure the first thing that you’re thinking when you hear the term “unbiddable master plan” is, what possible reason could there be for creating a landscape master plan and then not being able to put a price to it? That’s just plain ridiculous. Why in the world would any contractor or homeowner want a drawing like this, and how can it actually help anyone sell more work? Well, to find the answers to these questions, please keep reading. And if you do, you’re going to realize I’m not crazy and that in five minutes I’ve just shown you what it took me 15 years to learn. I never actually set out to create an unbiddable master plan or UMP (pronounced “ump”). You could say I came up with the

idea after becoming frustrated at having yet another one of my plans shopped around to my competition, only to have it underbid. We all know what that feels like — not good. Like most of you, I don’t mind fair competition, but I certainly do mind having someone else build my design. I used to get really mad at both the customer and the other contractor for “stealing” my ideas and my job. One day, however, I realized they didn’t take it away from me — I gave it to them on a silver platter, with all the trimmings. That’s right, it was my fault. I used to create incredibly detailed master plans and proposals that made it unbelievably easy for any other landscape contractor to competitively bid the project. When I look back, I practically begged my clients to shop the drawings to see if they could get a better price than mine. In reality, it was no different than Colonel Sanders calling up Ray Kroc over at McDonalds and saying, “Hey Ray, how ya doin’? How would you like the secret recipe for my Kentucky Fried Chicken? No it’s fine, I did

Hear Jody at Congress The un-biddable landscape plan and proposal Tuesday, January 8, 2:45-3:45 p.m. Jody Shilan considers ‘bid’ to be a four-letter word. Learn what you must put in your landscape plans, along with what you must never, ever put on your drawings. Jody will teach the three magic words that makes comparable pricing impossible. 36 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

all of the work, but you go ahead and copy it and sell chicken for less than I do.” Well not anymore. Now I create unbiddable master plans that make it impossible for my clients to compare “apples to apples” and my sales have gone through the roof. Now before I give you my secret recipe, let’s take a step back for a moment and talk about what an UMP is, how to create one, and why you should use it. If you were formally trained like I was, you were taught that landscape plans need to have a plant list or plant schedule including a plant key, quantities, common name, botanical name, sizes, and specific notes like B&B or container, etc., etc. These drawings also needed dimensions, construction details, complete title blocks, and symbols for everything from existing trees to light fixtures to overhead wires to groundcover. If it was either existing or proposed, it was on your drawings. As if that wasn’t enough, we also had to create a half page of notes describing everything from proper sub-base compaction to the exact percentage blend of grass seed to quality of the soil mixture to backfill the plant material. It was pure insanity and the drawings took forever to produce. These days I do the exact opposite, and I’ll tell you why. All of us want to build what we design;

that’s why the industry is called design/ build. And the last thing any of us want is to have someone else build our designs. If this is truly what we want, we need to stop making it so darned easy for another company to come along, take our drawings and proposals, and give the client a lower price. Right? Good! I’m glad that we can all agree on that. So here’s what you need to do to create your own unbiddable master plans. Unlike the detailed drawings described above, what you need to do is create drawings that are ‘estimate-able’ and ‘build-able’ but still conceptual in nature. That’s right. You need to include enough information so the drawings make sense, but not enough for a client to get a comparable bid. Now calm down and hear me out; I’m not evil. Your clients can still get other prices if they want to. All you’re doing is making it harder for the other contractor to price it up the same way. That’s all. As we all know, it takes a lot of work to do quantity takeoffs, measure square footages, and make all those material calculations, especially if you do everything by hand, like I do. So why should you do all the work and let the other guy run through your list and

Jody Shilan, MLA is an award winning designer and former landscape design/build contractor. He now uses his 35+ years of experience to teach other landscape contractors how to easily and dramatically increase their sales through public speaking, private consulting, group workshops and his members-only website www.FromDesign2Build.com. He is the past president and now executive director of the New Jersey Landscape Contractors Association (NJLCA), and hosts FD2B “Talk” Radio, a weekly, live, internet radio show, where he interviews some of the biggest names in the green industry for the landscape design/build contractor. Jody can be reached at jshilan@fd2b.com.

OUR

All necessary sizes, quantities, or other specifications are included in my proposal, where they belong. Although I do admit that even there I try to keep the information as basic as I can. I hope that you’ve enjoyed experiencing my 15 years of pain and suffering in just 15 minutes, and that you start creating your own unbiddable master plans today. TomorLT row’s fine too. Just do it.

just price it up. It’s kind of like high school when you had a group project to do. You would do the research and all the hard work and your stupid partners would take all the credit during the presentation. Sorry, I just had a high school flashback. Now what I do is keep things as basic and generic as I can on the drawings. Instead of writing things like wet laid, true blue, bluestone patio, random ashlar, min 12”x12” and max 24”x36”, with 4” gravel sub-base 98 per cent compaction, 4” conc. slab with wwf, ½” mortar joints max not longer than 36” in any one direction, 1.5 per cent slope away from house with expansion joints every 10’, I just write “patio.” Wow. I can’t believe I remember all that. The same thing goes for plantings. I’ll show a staggered line of evergreen tree symbols and write “spruce”. Not (15) Picea abies – Norway Spruce 7-8’ 10’o.c., branched to the ground, min 6’ wide at the base, natural (not sheared). Nor will I draw an arrow and write (7) PA with a detailed description in the plant schedule. Now just because I keep my plans “light” on information doesn’t mean my clients don’t know exactly what they’re getting before they sign the contract.

TIME EXPERIENCE DIFFERENCE.

LIGHTS. CAMERA. CONGRESS.

2 1 Visit us in Booth 1260 at Congress to see what separates us from the competition.

GREENHORIZONS SOD FARMS 12 SOD VARIETIES AND SPECIALTY BLENDS INCLUDING ECO-TURFTM. JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES |

sustainablelandscaping

Invasive species whack-a-mole:

Consolidating resources on the invasives problem BY STU CAMPANA

Put the plant in a pot, place it tenderly in the blazing sun and abandon it for several weeks, frantically over-water it just to complete the floral violence, and then wonder why it does not flourish as a muchloved houseplant should. This is my horticultural style. Imagine my surprise then, at learning there exists an entire category of plants that sweep across the landscape without so much as a by-your-leave. Clearly anticipating my next thought, garden centres across North America advertise invasive species as “rapidly spreading.” It’s clever marketing, but it’s also helping invasives gain new footholds across a continent more or less unaware it has been invaded. Just one of the usual assortment of vectors by which plants spread — blowing seeds, fruit for birds, rain and creek ways — is all it takes to carry an invasive species out of cultivation. Purple loosestrife and Norway maple represent two of the more tenacious examples of invasives in Ontario, the latter being difficult to distinguish visually from our native sugar maples. This summer in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., an assortment of ecologists, policymakers, and one lonely landscaping representative met to discuss the scope of the invasives issue and brainstorm solutions. The Terrestrial Inva-

sive Plant Species Conference was the first of its kind: an attempt to foster teamwork on a problem teetering on the brink of a few nightmare scenarios. The latest research suggests that invasive species tend to possess a few interesting characteristics in common. For one thing, they don’t like to leave the landscape the way they found it; invaders can fundamentally alter their ecosystems by out-competing entire species. They are hard at work below ground as well, altering the beneficial mycorrizal fungi communities to suit their own growth and inhibit that of native species. This strategy further promotes invasion, leading to a dangerous positive-feedback loop. A recent University of Toronto study demonstrated that invasive plants can escape their natural checks and balances (herbivores and pathogens) very quickly by moving only a few hundred metres away, and even more quickly by moving North. We already see plants of all varieties expanding and contracting their growing zones with the onset of climate change. Like a football player twisting and turning to escape pursuers, it is not welcome news that these shifts could remove all the natural impediments to the spread of invasives. For all of these dangers, public awareness remains low and those working on the probInvasive plants need to be identified as quickly as possible to limit their spread. Left, purple loosestrife and right, dog strangling vine grows on buckthorn.

lem have yet to settle on a functional method of collaboration. Scientific information on invasive species can be found in no fewer than 189 different journals — a daunting pile of reading for even the most determined of researchers. Compounding these difficulties is the fact that a silver bullet really does not exist. Chemical controls can be effective, but many problems have already spread beyond the bounds of conventional removal methods. Even biological controls, which undergo between three and 20 years of testing, cannot be certain of success. As one researcher pointed out with a touch of irony, “The best control for buckthorn is the dog-strangling vine.” With examples aplenty of invasive species run amok (see: Florida), conference attendees answered the call for a consolidation of resources with a flurry of solutions, designed to identify and address problems as quickly as possible once they pop up. It’s a game of invasive species whack-a-mole, and the newest methodologies are embracing crowdsourcing technologies to bring the public in on this struggle. Concerned citizens can now send in photos and descriptions of suspected invasives to websites where ecologists compile the data and predict future plant movements through mapping. These networks present North America’s newest hope of stopping invasive species before they begin. Which is all well and good, but I maintain that if they were to entrust me with caring for all the world’s garlic mustard, the species would wither completely within weeks. UnLT til then we’ll just have to be vigilant. Stu Campana is operations and communications officer for Fernridge Landscaping in Milton, Ont. Stu has a master’s degree in Environment and Resource Management from the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, and sits on the board of directors of the Halton Environmental Network.

38 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

RED on-board intelligence provides key system alerts by monitoring engine temperature and oil pressure to protect against potentially expensive failures.

As you mow, RED can intelligently reduce engine speeds and thereby reduce fuel consumption without impacting performance or cut quality.

RED can properly reduce engine RPMs at critical times to extend the life of highly stressed parts such as the clutch.

Get more productivity out of every ounce of hard work with the breakthrough technology of a RED equipped Lazer Z.速 The strong may survive. But the smart will dominate. Work smarter with new RED technology, only from Exmark.

exmark.com

legalmatters

Constructing a clear contract Take care in negotiating indemnification and insurance provisions in a contract BY ROBERT KENNALEY A recent decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal touches on a number of issues relating to the insurance and indemnification/hold harmless provisions that typically show up in construction and maintenance contracts. A review of the case might help contractors, subcontractors, and designers understand that the wording and impact of these clauses are important and need to be considered in assessing the risks undertaken in entering into any type of construction or maintenance contract. In Papapetrou v. 1054422 Ontario Limited, [2012] ONCA 506 (CanLII), a contractor was retained to perform winter maintenance services. A woman who slipped and fell sued both the contractor and the owner of the property. In doing so, she made allegations that the owner had independently failed in its duty to properly maintain the premises, beyond what the contractor had been hired to do. The contract included an insurance provision that required the contractor to have the owner named as an additional insured.

The contractor, however, failed to arrange for that coverage. The contract also had an indemnification/hold harmless clause, which provided, in part, that the contractor would indemnify and save harmless the owner against claims “based upon, incidental to, or arising out of the performance or non-performance of the contract by the Contractor.” Relying on the contractor’s breach of its obligation to provide insurance coverage, and on the contractor’s obligations under the indemnification clause, the owner moved before the Court for: a) an order that the contractor provide the owner with a defence of the slip and fall claim, at the contractor’s expense and with the contractor’s lawyer; and, b) an order that the contractor fully indemnify the owner from any award of damages made against the owner, following the trial. The motions judge granted the requests but the Ontario Court of Appeal overturned the decision in several respects. First, the Ap-

peals Court determined there was no basis, under the contract or in law, for requiring the contractor to defend the owner in the action, at its own cost and with its own lawyer. Rather, the Court held that the contractor’s failure to have the owner named as an additional insured was a breach of contract, and that the owner’s remedy was in damages for breach of contract. Accordingly, the Court held that the owner would have to hire its own lawyer, defend its own claim and then recover the cost of doing so from the contractor. The Court did make it clear that the contractor would only be responsible to reimburse the owner for its costs of defending those portions of the claim that the contractor’s insurance company would have covered, had the owner been named as an additional insured. The Ontario Court of Appeal also held that it was premature for the motions judge to order the contractor to indemnify the owner from and against any award of damages made against the owner. The Court

G&L Group,

Partners in Your Performance. The G&L Group was built on family principles of loyalty, hard work and trust. As we innovate and grow into the future, we are passionate about providing the very best soil, salt, aggregates, concrete and waste bin services in the industry. Our mission is continued quality customer service and a commitment to getting the job done right.

GandLgroup.com 40 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

Concrete | Aggregates | Soil | Salt | Waste

noted that the plaintiff’s allegations against the owner included those that had nothing to do with the contract and held that it would be premature to assume the contractor would have to indemnify the owner, by virtue of the indemnity clauses, for everything the owner might be liable for. Do insurance homework There are a number of lessons to be learned from this case. First, contractors should ensure that they meet the insurance requirements of the contracts they enter into. If they do not, they face significant exposure in the event something occurs that should have been, but was not, covered by the insurance. Having the contractual insurance requirements in place can be a lot cheaper than going it alone in the event a problem arises and there is no coverage. On the other hand, if you can’t obtain the insurance required, the requirements should be removed from the contract. Second, the case illustrates how a slightly vague or ambiguous indemnification clause can lead to confusion and problems. In this circumstance, the motions judge was certain that the indemnity clause would cover all claims against the owner, even if the owner were solely at fault. Although the Court of Appeal corrected this, confusion (and legal fees) could have been avoided with a clearer clause. In my view, indemnity clauses should be limited to a clear statement that the contractor will indemnify against claims that arise due to the contractor’s negligence or breach of contract, unless the contractor agrees (preferably for a hefty fee) to become the owner’s insurer for claims the contractor is not responsible for. Address issues during negotiations Care accordingly needs to be taken in reviewing contractual insurance provisions and indemnity clauses at the negotiation stage of contract. In both cases, the requirements can be either vague and ambiguous or overreaching and oppressive. Consider the following example of a negotiation we were recently involved with. The proposed indemnification clause called for indemnification against “any claims which arise out of, directly or indirectly, any operations, work or activities in any way involving or connect-

ed to the agreement.” This, of course, could conceivably include just about anything. The clause further took the unusual step of requiring the contractor to indemnify for all claims for “economic or consequential damage,” which are almost impossible to insure against. (Indemnifying for economic or consequential loss means that if the owner is sued for someone’s lost revenue with respect to something covered by the indemnity, the contractor would have to pay those claims.) More troubling, the proposed clause expressly required the contractor to indemnify the owner against the owner’s own gross negligence or malice (even where the owner solely caused the damage) and gave the owner the right to appoint its own lawyer and decide when and if it should settle the claim — all on the contractor’s dime. Such requirements, of course, go well beyond what most contractors should reasonably be expected to be responsible for. The insurance clauses in the proposed contract took a similar approach. They were based on standard form documents and included requirements that had nothing to do with the work in question and that the contractor could not possibly provide. In addition, and not surprisingly, the “additional insured” provisions expressly required the contractor to insure the owner for the owner’s sole or gross negligence. In this case, we were able to negotiate indemnification provisions that were clear and made sense. We were also (in conjunction with the contractor’s insurance broker) able to negotiate reasonable insurance requirements, and ensure those requirements would be met by the contract. In the end, the owner was more than happy to amend the contract so it was clear and fair to both sides. In that regard, the negotiation was not at all unusual; owners are very often willing to do this. The lesson to be learned is this: If care isn’t taken to address these issues in the negotiation stage, the impact of being stuck with either bad or ambiguous indemnification clauses, or insurance requirements you can’t meet, can be severe. One final note: If you enjoy this column, check out my blog at www.kennaleyconstruction-law.com where I hope to offer brief construction law-related articles and JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES |

case summaries on a regular basis. Recent articles include a case summary on residential litigation gone wrong, and the application of the Environmental Protection Act in the construction context. You can also find me on LinkedIn; feel free to e-mail a LT connect request.

Robert Kennaley has a background in construction and now practises construction law in Toronto and Simcoe, Ontario. He speaks and writes regularly on construction law issues. Rob can be reached for comment at 416-3682522, at kennaley@mclauchlin.ca, or on LinkedIn. This material is for information purposes and is not intended to provide legal advice in relation to any particular fact situation. Readers who have concerns about any particular circumstance are encouraged to seek independent legal advice in that regard.

JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES |

roadtosuccess

Media Savvy

on the Road to Success

Anyone in sales today

is likely used to people coming into their store and quoting some article or expert they saw on the internet. And why not? Customers want to appear knowledgeable, as if they have done their homework, even if it was only a cursory glance at a website prior to embarking on their sales quest. This behaviour is not new. In 1980, I had a customer enter my garden centre with a wish list of perennials. Most I had never heard of, and those that I was familiar with were not hardy for the Regina area. I finally asked her where she had obtained her list; what was her source? Her answer: The New York Times Book of Perennials. How do you sell to someone who has been surfing the web and wishes to garden or landscape based on the information they found online — especially when they have no comprehension of climatic zones or gardening anomalies? My best advice is to have a web presence of your products and your expertise. There is absolutely no value in discrediting the sources the potential customer is referencing. Much better if you can say, “My blog or web page explains why that particular plant does not grow here or has limited chances at best.” To be a successful salesperson, you must establish yourself as the expert. You must become the ‘go to’ person for customers when they need answers. I was in the Toronto region a few years ago and toured some garden centres. Isn’t that what we always do when we are on holidays? At Humber Nurseries, I overheard a couple of customers commenting about a staff member as he walked past us. “There goes the guy who knows everything,” one of them said. Whether or not he knows everything is irrelevant: What is important is the esteem those two customers had for this man.

42 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

Having a presence on the internet, either through a blog, a Facebook page, or a company web site is almost mandatory these days. Over time, you will gain an audience of regular and potential customers. I have a weekly gardening blog that started out a little more than two years ago with 100 readers and has grown to 3,000. It receives around 30 responses a week, which shows it is being read. You are welcome to check it out at www.rodsgardenreport.com. Here are the most important rules of writing a gardening blog or web page. First, all information must be written in customerfriendly language. Don’t go showing off and getting all techie on readers. Use common names and back them up with the Latin, in brackets. It is okay to be folksy. You can write about your own experiences. People want to hear your opinions based on real world gardening activity. They do not want to read your sales pitch. Your ability to sell is directly linked to your ability to connect with your readers. In my blog, I wrote that I did not care what any textbooks say about planting daylilies in semi-shaded areas. I planted an entire bed of them in semi shade and for 10 years and put up with occasional blooms and plants surviving, but never thriving. I moved the plants to a sunny area and all of them produced copious blooms and are healthier than the proverbial horse. When people talk to me about planting daylilies in the shade, I can tell them with the voice of experience, “Go ahead, but you will be moving them after the third year.” Another important issue to address in an online garden blog/web page is honesty. If you don’t care for a certain plant, then tell your readers why. If your writing is filled with positives about every plant that you carry, then people have a right to be suspicious. People know the difference between advertising and sincere opinion. Use that to

BY ROD McDONALD

your advantage. In my blog, when I reviewed The Canadian Artist Series rose ‘Emily Carr’, I told my readers that I was really impressed. That made a statement as I have already established what a fussy gardener I am. Establishing yourself or your firm as the expert within the gardening community is so important. It is what separates those who thrive from those who merely survive. As I grew in age and experience and got some media exposure, I was challenged less and less by customers. Instead of seeking verification that I knew what I was talking about, they sought my input as the ‘expert’. “What do you think we should plant here?” And they often had their notepads out — the ultimate compliment. Besides a blog or web page, seminars are easy and quite inexpensive to produce. I have written here before of my fondness for seminars. First, you will attract many people who are close to purchasing, so you have a live audience. Second, even if people do not attend your seminars, you are creating a public perception that you are the neighborhood expert. And that is what you want. A mother and son once approached me after a tulip-planting seminar. They were pleased with my efforts and thanked me. Their exact words were, “This is a wonderful public service you offer to the neighborhood.” They were a Dutch family, to boot. I don’t know if I was offering a public service or not, but I do know that I sold more tulips than everyone in the rest of the city, combined. My favorite form of advertising is free advertising. I know. My Scottish roots are showing when I salivate over the word free. I knew the writers and producers at the local television and radio stations, and the newspapers. I had a card in my Rolodex (how old school) labeled Media Contacts. I sent them faxes on a semi-regular basis, perhaps

three or four times a year. In the faxes was information about upcoming events, new releases, or other information that would appeal to the news director, especially on a slow day. News directors have to fill up a certain amount of space, every day. Some days there are just too many stories coming in the door and some have to be chopped. Then there are the slow news days, when essentially nothing has happened. Those days are where you come in, with a story about people returning to vegetable gardening as part of the green movement, or how to build a compost pile for little money. One Christmas, I was trialing 26 new varieties of poinsettias — a real mix of new colours and shapes. It was a fun thing for me to do. I called up the newspaper, and guess who got a half page story the next week, complete with colour photos? I also managed to repeat my success with stories about roses, statuary, water gardening, and pruning. Do you know how much a full-page ad with colour photos in a newspaper costs? And consider the fact

that people often discount what is said in an ad because they know you paid for it. But your credibility factor skyrockets if you land a story that is strictly editorial. It is advertising that money cannot buy. On another note, I always took those newspaper stories that quoted me or featured my garden centre and framed them. I hung them at the front of the store, almost like diplomas in a doctor’s office, where they provided credible proof of my expertise. Needless to say, it is very difficult to frame a radio interview. I recommend you become the number one, go-to authority, whenever a local television or radio station needs a sound bite for the six o’clock news. It is advertising that you could never afford to purchase. There’s an outbreak of cankerworms? They should be talking to you and finding out what it is that homeowners need to do. Greenhouses filled with blooming plants are a much better ‘feel good’ story than a visit to a funeral parlor or

a plumbing shop. We have, at our disposal, greenhouses that vibrate with colour and life itself, and it might as well be our place of business in the news as our neighbour’s. Sometimes, you get a story for only one reason: because, you were the one to pitch the news director. Establish yourself and your company as the experts in the gardening world with seminars, media exposure, and an internet presence. Somewhere, at sometime, someone should be quoting what you wrote. Staying on the road to success requires a bit of LT effort; a touch of moxie also helps.

Rod McDonald owned and operated Lakeview Gardens, a successful garden centre/ landscape firm in Regina, Sask., for 28 years. He now works full-time in the world of fine arts, writing, acting and producing in film, television and stage.

Truck Equipment & Accessories ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Snow & Ice Control Equipment Dump Bodies Service & Utility Bodies Special Purpose Units Stake & Platform Bodies Hydraulic Hooklifts & Roll Offs

✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Liftgates Van Interiors Cranes Truck Accessories

SNOWPLOW

Tel. 1.888.272.9945 | twinequipment.com Fisher_snowplow_landscapeAd_v2.indd 1

TORONTO 2215 Midland Ave. Scarborough, ON M1P 3E7

OTTAWA (Head Office) 3091 Albion Rd. North Ottawa, ON K1V 9V9

OTTAWA (West) 2793 Carp Rd. Carp, ON KOA 1L0

JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES 43 12-11-14 2:30| PM

managementsolutions

Super-profit:

Your mantra for next year

Could there actually be a way to earn a higher profit by selling more work at a lower cost than you’re selling today? There is, and from Day One of 2013 make sure the idea of ‘super-profit’ is burned in the front of everyone’s mind all year long. What is super-profit? It’s earning much larger profit margins on your work than anything the industry finds ‘normally’ competitive. Our industry operates at somewhere between two and 10 per cent profit. Companies that make super-profit find ways to earn profit margins of 30, 40, even 50 per cent net profit. On all jobs? Unfortunately not, but you can earn super-profit on a portion of your work. Super-profit is how your company will make the leap from average five to 10 per cent profit margins to between 10 and 25 per cent — doubling (or more!) the average industry profit. Super-profit is not about selling work at prices above the norm. Super-profit is generated through efficiency and productivity. Super-profit happens by making the most of every hour, eliminating waste, and generating more total revenue per man-hour. Identify waste I recommend you sit down with your foremen early this spring and brainstorm a list of problems, issues, or lack of resources that cause wasted time. Better yet, let your foremen develop the list while you help steer the conversation. Start by identifying the prob-

lem/waste, then ask them to make their best guess at how many man-hours per week (not crew-hours, but man-hours) are spent on each waste. I wouldn’t be surprised if you and your staff come up with 50 examples in less than 15 minutes. Here are some examples to get you started: warranty work, re-work, fuelling, work done incorrectly, moving and re-moving materials around a site, equipment breakdowns due to lack of care, working without the proper tools and equipment, waiting for materials or information that should have been better organized, employees showing up late, getting lost, lack of trained labour, and so on. The list gets long in a hurry. Now go through that same list, but this time, add the following: the average number of weeks in your working year; your average charge-out (billing) rate per man-hour. Then multiply the man-hours per week by the working weeks per year to get the total hours per year lost to each waste. Multiply that total by the charge-out rate you normally bill your customers and that’s how much revenue may be lost this year to each of these wastes (see chart below). Clearly, the real cost of moving a piece of equipment isn’t the fuel, or the wage you pay the driver to load and move it. If an employee spends one hour inspecting a truck and trailer and driving to the site with the equipment, one hour loading down, strapping, and inspecting the loaded equipment, one

Quantifying waste

Man-hours Working Weeks/Yr. Charge-out Per Week Rate/Hr.

Total LOST Revenue

Talking on cell phones, texting

2.5

$50 $4,750

Loading/unloading open trailers

2.5

$50 $4,750

Stopping to pick up miscellaneous small materials/tools etc.

$50 $5,700

Floating equipment between sites

$50 $7,600

44 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

BY MARK BRADLEY

hour driving to the next site and unloading the equipment and one hour getting back to the shop and disconnecting the trailer, you’ve lost four hours of billable opportunity. If your typical charge-out rate was $50 per hour, you’ve really lost $200 of potential revenue. Think about it this way. If you hadn’t had to move that equipment, your employee could have been doing billable work: installing pavers, planting shrubs, building a deck—anything that helped complete a job four hours sooner. And if you had finished that job sooner, you would have had four hours extra capacity to do another job before the end of the year. When you add up all the extra capacity created by eliminating waste and staying focused on billable work, it’s not hard to see how each crew can complete an additional $50,000 to $100,000 billable work in a season! Substantial savings And this is exactly where the idea of superprofit comes in. When you can take wasted/ non-billable hours and turn them into billable, production hours, you hit super-profit. Your costs on this extra work are minimal and the profit is through the roof. Assume the crew in the example managed to identify and eliminate $50,000 worth of waste and inefficiency. (Note: Many companies find it easy to identify $25,000 worth of waste before they leave the yard in the morning!) The net profit margin on that extra $50,000 is your super-profit. Let’s break it down. Normal profit: We’ll assume you charge a fair profit on all your work, so you if you complete an extra $50,000 in work, it’s safe to assume you also earned an extra 10 per cent in net profit. Labour costs: Would you have any extra labour costs to do that extra $50,000 in work? Yes, you’d have labour costs, but they’re not additional costs. You are paying wages for the waste time anyway. All we’re

doing is exchanging non-billable (waste) hours for billable (productive) hours. What would normally be labour costs on this extra work (field labour costs are typically 20 to 35 per cent of sales) is now net profit. Equipment costs: Your leases and insurance do not increase because your sales went up. Fuel and maintenance costs may increase slightly. Equipment costs are typically 10 to 15 per cent of sales, and since they increase only slightly with the extra work, you’ve likely found another 10 per cent net profit. Materials costs: If you’re installing materials, these costs will increase with additional work. No extra profit to be found here. Overhead costs: Your overhead costs don’t increase either. Rent, utilities, memberships, your accountant’s fees, your office manager’s salary — none of these costs need to increase because your crew improved productivity. Overhead costs typically range from 15 to 35 per cent of a company’s sales, meaning the average company generates an extra 25

per cent net profit here as well. If you really look at that extra $50,000 in work the crew generated, the net profit margin on that extra work is incredibly high. Because labour, equipment, and overhead costs don’t significantly increase, you can expect to return net profit margins of 50 per cent or more on this extra $50,000 of sales. Now you’ve got a very profitable company with some bonus capital available around to reward those employees who made it happen. While most of your sales will be in the ‘normal’ 10 per cent profit range, the extra sales generated through increased productivity can help your company more than double its total profit in a very small window of time. Worried about finding the extra work to sell? Super-profit helps here too. When your crews are productive and efficient, you reduce the time it takes to complete work, and therefore lower your job costs. With lower labour costs (and lower overhead as a per-

centage of sales), your costs (and prices) can come down without sacrificing net profit. At the end of the day, staff and owners want the same thing. We may have a passion for the industry, for creating outdoor environments, but I think we can all agree that we’d like to earn more for the hard work we invest in creating and maintaining these outdoor living spaces. How can we earn more? Introduce the concept of waste, productivity, and super-profit to your company and make it your daily mantra for 2013 and LT beyond.

Mark Bradley is president of The Beach Gardener and the Landscape Management Network (LMN), in Ontario. LMN provides education, tools, and systems built to improve landscape industry businesses.

HortProtect is a great mix of quality, service, and value that is customized for the horticulture industry. Get a quote from a service team that works for you and your company.

us ss sit re 8 Vi ng 23 Co h # at oot b

Uniquely developed to protect the green industry

Gerald Boot, CLP - Boots Landscaping & Maintenance

HortProtect provides risk protection horticulture industry. Let us show you how tailored coverages can better serve your business needs. Dan Winstanley, Property and Casualty Insurance Specialist Marsh Canada Limited

Customizable programs and exclusive coverage: Commercial and general liability, Employee Assistance Program; Group RRSP and Critical Illness; Group Life, Health and Disability Insurance programs brokered by:

For All Your Insurance Needs

The Investment Guild is a People Corporation company

1-800-459-8990 Group Life, Health and Disability

Marsh Canada Limited 1-888-949-4360 Property and Casualty

For more information on HortProtect, please visit: www.HortProtect.com JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES |

industrynews Congress offers opportunity to build a better business For four decades, professionals in the lawn, garden, and landscaping industry have been using Canada’s leading horticultural lawn and garden trade show to improve their prospects, hone their skills, and build a better business. That tradition continues Jan. 8 to 10, when Landscape Ontario’s Congress trade show and conference returns to the Toronto Congress Centre. This is a huge annual event that brings togeth-

Take advantage of great networking opportunities at Congress 2013.

er more than 600 vendors and close to 13,000 professionals from around the world, to share their expertise and secrets to success in this vibrant and ever-changing industry. This year offers the opportunity to get re-acquainted with popular speakers and inspired by some new industry experts. Motivating keynotes kick off power-packed days. Engage with green industry experts and gain

a competitive edge by learning how to balance work and play — while your business grows and prospers. A newly-formatted program offers maximum value that includes the opening keynote, panels, owners-only workshops, life-lesson lunches, and a wealth of networking opportunities. “With a full schedule of guest speakers, seminars, networking events, and a show floor crammed with new and exciting products, Congress is the ideal platform for discovering innovative ways to expand your business,” says Heather MacRae, director of events and trade shows. “As an association, Landscape Ontario makes an ongoing effort to help our members better their businesses, and what we do at Congress is fundamental to that effort.” Seminars address ways to maximize your business’s presence on social media, improve customer service, and implement best practices in your human resources. Special owners-only workshops will emphasize ways to utilize all the tools available to improve staff relations and grow your business. The New Product Showcase, as always, will feature the latest equipment, tools, plants, and products that delegates will be seeking next season. Exhibitors, presenters, and patrons at Congress include people from every aspect of the lawn and garden industry such as landscape contractors, landscape designers, interior plantscapers, and lawn-care professionals, as well as owners and staff of retail garden centres, staff of municipal parks, recreation managers, and grounds

maintenance managers. “Congress covers every facet of the lawn and garden industry; offerings will impress new-tothe-business landscapers as well as veteran contractors,” says MacRae. “But no matter how much experience you have, there is always room for improvement. That is where our education seminars and workshops, or even just networking on the show floor, will help your business better meet the needs of your customers and foster strong relations with your staff.” Congress 2013 runs from Jan. 8 to 10 at the Toronto Congress Centre, 650 Dixon Rd., Toronto. Conferences begin on Warm-up Monday, Jan. 7. See the entire schedule of workshops and seminars by going to www.locongress.com and clicking on the conference tab on the left-hand side of the page. All professional development programs at Congress qualify for landscape industry certified Continuing Education Credits (CEUs). Visit www.canadanursery.com for more details.

Promoting community green spaces On Oct. 13, the Edmonton Capital Region hosted the 18th Edition of the Communities in Bloom National Awards Ceremonies, honouring municipalities across Canada, Europe, Singapore, and Japan. Communities in Bloom is a Canadian non-profit organization committed to fostering civic pride, environmental responsibility, and beautification, through community involvement and the challenge of a national program, with focus on the promotion

lk & ur Bu re! o Y y Bu He d Salt Bagge

Your one stop shop for Natural Stone & Cultured Stone Veneers A wide selection of natural stone and precast concrete products • Flagstone • Interlocking • Cultured Stone • Masonry products • In-Lite LED Lights

• Retaining walls • Aggregates • Accessories • Bulk/bag road salt • Kichler LED Lights

Office and yard: 25 Langstaff Rd. E., Thornhill, Yonge & Hwy 7-407 Manufacturing plant: 12350 Keele St., Maple 416-222-2424 or 905-886-5787 Fax: 905-886-5795

46 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

www.beavervalleystone.com

Visit us at Congress - Booth #1

industrynews of green spaces in community settings. Congratulations to national award winners: Appleton, N.L.; Lambton Shores, Ont.; Beausejour, Man.; Fort Erie, Ont.; Jasper, Alta.; Granby, Qué.; and the Canadian Forces Bases in Borden, Ont. Strathcona County, Alta., in the large population category, and Boissevain, Man., in the small population category, were the winners in the Class of Champions, a category where past winners compete amongst themselves.

Scholarships recognize environmental contribution Earth Day Canada’s Toyota Earth Day Scholarship Program is entering its 11th year of rewarding graduating high school and Cégep students from across Canada for their efforts to improve the state of the environment through school and community activities, no matter what course of study they choose. Twenty entrance scholarships of $5,000 will be given out. Applications are due Feb. 15. Go to www.earthday.ca/scholarship for details and to apply.

STA Commemorates 25th anniversary Sports Turf Association executive and members, past and present, together with staff, colleagues, family, and friends gathered Oct. 25, 2012, to celebrate the organization’s milestone anniversary at a commemorative banquet in Guelph, Ont. With historical story boards providing a retro-

Attendees at the celebratory banquet included (l-r) Paul Turner, past president; Gordon Dol, past president; Paul Gillen, current president; Michael Bladon, founding president; Jane Arnett, past president; and Robert W. Sheard, first executive secretary. Bladon, Arnett, and Sheard are also honorary life members of the Sports Turf Association.

spective of the past, both founding President Michael Bladon and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affair’s Annette Anderson reflected on the association’s beginnings, growth, and many accomplishments. Bladon challenged the STA executive, “to continue our commitment and mission to provide educational and networking opportunities for our members, along with the promotion of better, safer sports turf to those involved in sports field management as well as the general public.”

TreeAzin earns national registration TreeAzin, an injectable pesticide that treats trees attacked by emerald ash borer, has received full registration in Canada from the Pest Management Regulatory Association. Its manufacturer, BioFor-

Selling Flower Bulbs for over 20 years

est Technologies out of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., is now able to market the product across the country. TreeAzin received emergency registration for emerald ash borer in Ontario and Quebec four years ago, and is registered in the United States. This national registration enables the company to market to all Canadian provinces and territories and also deal with other insect problems besides emerald ash borer. Developed in 2001 by BioForest Technologies Inc., TreeAzin is an injectable organic pesticide manufactured from the Indian neem tree.

Canadian wins North American hardscape award The Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute (ICPI) with the Brick Industry Association and National

Offering you a vast assortment of top quality flower bulbs, potted bulbs and garden products. TradeWinds has the machine that will make it economical to plant flower bulbs en masse! See the machine in action on our website

www.tradewindsinternational.ca • tradewinds@on.aibn.com • 1-877-654-6458 • 905-890-9098 48 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

industrynews Winner in the concrete paver, commercial/ industrial category (over 15,000 ft. sq.) was Cornerstone Interlocking Brick of Dartmouth, N.S., for Dartmouth Crossing Sidewalks.

New low voltage lighting guidelines

Cornerstone Interlocking Brick, Dartmouth, N.S., winner of a Hardscape North American award.

Concrete Masonry Association are pleased to announce the fifth annual Hardscape North America (HNA) Project Award winners. The HNA Project Awards recognize outstanding hardscape projects by contractors building residential walkways, patios, and driveways, and commercial plazas, parking lots, and streets. Twenty winners were chosen from 114 entries. Each winner received recognition at an awards breakfast ceremony Friday, Oct. 26, at the Hyatt Regency, Louisville, Ky. Entries were judged on project intent, design, quality of construction and craftsmanship, compatibility with related construction materials and systems, construction innovation, detailing, and overall design excellence.

The Association of Outdoor Lighting Professionals has released new Guidelines for Low Voltage Landscape Lighting. This document was produced by AOLP members to establish industry guidelines in an area where none currently exist, and to provide guidance to contractors and designers in the lighting trade as well as related professionals such as landscape designers and landscape architects. The Guidelines are available to members of the lighting trade as well as the general public. It is AOLP’s goal to constantly update the guidelines to be current and in the best interest of the trade practice. To download the guidelines, go to http:// aolponline.org/landscape_lighting_guidelines.htm.

Steam used to fight P. ramorum Scientists at Dominican University in San Rafael, Calif., have been using steam to combat Phytophthora ramorum, a pathogen that causes sudden oak death. “It’s certainly a new use for steam sterilization,” said Robert Leavitt, director of plant health for the California Department of Food and Agriculture. “It looks like it is very promising, and it could be a big step forward as a long-term solution for

P. ramorum in nurseries.” For years, steam has been used to sterilize soil in greenhouses, but this is the first time it has been tested on open fields of infected nursery plants. The technique involves piping steam through a hose underneath a tarp covering the infected plot. The researchers found that subjecting high-claycontent soil to at least 50 degrees Celcius for 30 minutes eradicated the harmful pathogen.

Canadian Forest Service releases ash protection model The Canadian Forest Service has developed a model that helps users in deciding the fate of ash trees (Fraxinus spp.) threatened by the arrival of emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis) in North America. The model tracks the ongoing costs of treating a tree with an insecticide versus the one-time costs associated with removing and replacing it. Optionally, users can include other, extended benefits and costs in the model that has been attributed to urban trees, including: property value premiums, energy savings, runoff and pollution benefits, and ongoing maintenance costs. For each year over a 30-year time horizon, the net treatment gain/loss is calculated and plotted, indicating the period of time over which the homeowner could be financially ahead/behind by treating a tree with an insecticide. Default values that describe average costs that could be expected in Canada have been provided, but they can be overridden by users if better information is available for their

Two Great Stores. One Great Source 175 Wyecroft Rd., Box 313. Oakville, Ontario, L6J 5A2 Fax: (905) 845-9109

One Telephone Number • (289) 644-2250 One E-mail • fmackenzie@lockwoodchrysler.com

270 Oak Park Blvd. Oakville, Ontario, L6H 0G3 Fax: (905) 845-5772

l cia r Spescape d Lan Rates Let Fran MacKenzie Peacock put her 25 years of dedicated fleet expertise to work for you. Great products, great selection. Delivered to you, on your schedule, guaranteed. Enjoy professional service delivered with a smile, Fran will do whatever it takes to provide you with a seamless, hassle-free buying experience.

Fran MacKenzie Peacock, Fleet Manager • (289) 644-2250 ☺• Affiliate Chair - NAFA Ontario Chapter 50 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

own location and situation. Users are asked to input information on the existing tree, the replacement tree, and removal and replacement costs. The computer model then calculates the benefits of replacement to home value, potential energy savings, runoff and pollution benefits, as well as future tree maintenance costs. The model shows the treatment gain or loss over a 30-year time period. The ash protection model calculator is available at http://gmaps.nrcan.gc.ca/apm/index.php? lang=e&m=e.

Sheridan Nurseries launches anniversary book Sheridan Nurseries of Georgetown, Ont., has released a new book in celebration of a company milestone. Sheridan Nurseries: One Hundred Years of People, Plans and Plants was written by

Markant by ACO HexaDrain author Edward Butts and company president Karl Stennson. The illustrated book chronicles not only Sheridan’s history, but focuses on the many individuals who have brought the company to where it is today. Stensson notes that, “With so many fantastic achievements over the past century it has been a struggle to fit them all into 288 pages. From the visionary plans created by the Dunington-Grubbs and the Stensson family in the early years to the array of plant introductions, as well as the people who have helped make our dreams a reality, this really has been an amazing journey of innovation and inspiration.” The hardcover book is available at Sheridan Nurseries retail stores for $50.

Emerald ash borer spreads to Quebec The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has confirmed the presence of the emerald ash borer (EAB) in the municipality of Ange-Gardien and in Gatineau Park in the municipality of Chel-

Brickslot

PointDrain

HexaDrain is an innovative plastic residential trench drain system. Ideal for use in residential driveways, patios, walkways or pools.

HexaDrain Brickslot provides a discreet slot drainage system for domestic paver installations. Ideal for use in residential driveways, doorways, patios, walkways or pools.

PointDrain is an aesthetic solution for small scale applications. Its polymer concrete construction offers excellent mechanical and thermal properties. Iron or galvanized steel grate. ACO Systems, LTD. (877) 226-4255 www.acocan.ca

Check with your local landscaping yard for availability or contact us for supply information

JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES |

industrynews sea, both within the municipalité régionale de comté (MRC) Les-Collines-de-l’Outaouais. EAB has also been found in traps set in the Ville de Laval, Québec. Movement restrictions have been put in place that prohibit the movement of all ash materials such as logs, branches, and wood chips, as well as all species of firewood, from the affected site. Further regulatory measures will be considered once all survey work has been completed. The presence of EAB has been confirmed in five areas in Quebec, and in 27 Ontario counties. Although EAB does not pose a risk to human health, it is a highly destructive beetle. It has already killed millions of ash trees in Ontario, Quebec, and the United States, and poses a major economic and environmental threat to urban and forested areas of North America.

2012 Canadian harvest of peat moss The Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss Association (CSPMA) reports the peat harvest has significantly improved from last year’s poor season. In eastern Canada, the industry has achieved higher than ex-

52 | JANUARY 2013 | LANDSCAPE TRADES

pected volumes. In central Canada, the production is on or marginally above expectations. In western Canada, harvest was delayed and affected by adverse weather. The CSMPA represents 95 per cent of the North American Peat Moss production.

continue our evolution as a John Deere “Dealer of Tomorrow.” This combination creates the largest John Deere dealer in Quebec and eastern Ontario. It ensures the long-term success of the business and creates broader opportunities for our employees.

Alliance creates largest John Deere dealership in Quebec

Arborists in Hamilton, Ont., will cut down 10 per cent of its public ash trees each year for the next 10 years, including some that are healthy, to combat the spread of the emerald ash borer. The city has approved a $26.2 million plan that will gradually see the felling of its 22,738 ash trees along streets and in public parks and cemeteries. Councilors, despite reservations about bringing down healthy trees, passed the plan unanimously, recognizing the need to stay one step ahead of the pest. Officials say that a new borer-resistant tree will be planted for every ash tree that is removed, as it is the only way to address areas that are heavily hit on streets and in neighborhoods that won’t have LT any trees left.

Équipements Laguë and JLD Group are joining to form Groupe JLD Laguë. The two companies will formally merge under this new banner on March 1, with each store retaining its brand name and logo. This transaction has been undertaken in partnership with the Champlain Financial Corporation (Champlain), JLD Group›s financial partner. Champlain is a private equity firm that has brought together several Canadian institutional and private investors, including former shareholders and key employees from both Équipements Laguë and the JLD Group, as part of this alliance. The president and CEO of Groupe JLD Laguë, Frédéric Latreille notes, «We are very pleased to announce this alliance which enables us to

City to cut down its trees

2013

Congress Preview

Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 40th International Horticultural Lawn and Garden Trade Show and Conference January 8-10, 2013 Toronto Congress Centre, South Building

Featuring Congress Conference and Special Events January 7th IPM Symposium Landscape Designer Conference Effective Management Short Course January 8th Canadian Fence Industry AGM January 8-10th Congress Conference January 8th Awards of Excellence January 9th Landscape Ontario AGM January 10th Irrigation Conference

AN INITIATIVE OF

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

SPONSORED BY

Husqvarna Forest and Garden

BOBCAT COMPANY VERMEER CANADA INC MEDALLION FENCE LTD

You’re invited to Congress 2013 Canada’s 40th International Horticultural Lawn and Garden Trade Show and Conference

Congratulations!

For 40 years, you have been beautifying Ontario, one landscape at a time. Congress is your once-a-year opportunity to meet close to 600 multinational vendors, increase your business knowledge with advice from leading industry experts and connect with other professionals — all in one place, under one roof, over four days. Mark your calendars today to join us at Congress, January 8 - 10, 2013, in the south building of the Toronto Congress Centre.

Partner Information

Landscape Ontario Horticultural Trades Association is one of the most vibrant associations of its kind, comprised of over 2,000 members, ten sector groups and nine local chapters. Its trade mission is to promote the horticulture industry in Ontario, and its public mission is to promote the joys and benefits of green spaces.

The Canadian Fence Industry Association is a non-profit organization representing contractors, retailers, agents, wholesalers and manufacturers of fence products and services. It is dedicated to representing high construction standards and levels of ethical business behaviour in a competitive market place.

New Products Showcase

Discover game changing new products and vote for the People’s Choice Award!

2 Congress 2013 Preview

Dates And Times Pre-Trade Show Events Monday, January 7, 2013 IPM Symposium: Landscape Designer Conference: Effective Management:

7:30 a.m. in the Cohen Ballroom, Toronto Congress Centre 8:00 a.m. in the International Ballroom, Doubletree by Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel 9:00 a.m. at the Doubletree by Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel

Conference Sessions Tuesday, January 8th to Thursday, January 10th Toronto Congress Centre Opening Keynote: 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Morning Sessions: 10:45 to 11:45 a.m. Life Lesson Lunch Sessions: 12 noon to 1:15 p.m. Afternoon Sessions: 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. and 2:45 to 3:45 p.m. Owners Only Workshops: 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Irrigation Conference Thursday, January 10th 9:30 - 11:30 a.m. Toronto Congress Centre; Sutherland Room Trade Show Tuesday, January 8th Wednesday, January 9th Thursday, January 10th

9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Show Location South Building, Toronto Congress Centre 650 Dixon Road, Toronto, ON, M9W 1J1 Located minutes from the Toronto International Airport and 15 minutes from downtown Toronto.

Trade Show Fact List

Feature Gardens

What will have the greatest impact on future landscapes? Visit the gardens, designed and constructed by students from Fanshawe, Humber, Niagara and St. Clair Colleges and the Ridgetown Campus of the University of Guelph to see what trends and talent you should make note of and to ensure your business growth.

Accommodation

The official hotels for Congress 2013 are listed below and are the only hotels in contractual arrangement with Landscape Ontario. Receive special rates by quoting Landscape Ontario Group Codes as indicated. Special rates are in effect until December 7, 2012. Reservations cancelled after 6 p.m. on the scheduled day of arrival and/or no shows will be billed one night’s room charge plus applicable taxes. IMPORTANT NOTICE: Take care when dealing with travel agencies. From time to time, Congress 2013 delegates are subjected to improper solicitation from unaffiliated hotels or third-party housing agencies. You are advised to exercise due diligence with these unauthorized housing bureaus. It is strongly recommended that you make reservations directly with the host hotels.

Doubletree By Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel Reservations – 416-244-1711 655 Dixon Road, Toronto, ON M9W 1J4 $128 Single or Double – Group Code: LOC

l l l l l l

Explore three shows in one — spread over eight acres See over 600 multinational vendors Engage with close to 13,000 industry professionals Test hundreds of innovative product Increase knowledge with advice from industry experts Celebrate 40 years of landscaping Ontario, one landscape at a time

Registration Information

Pre- register by December 7, 2012 to save money. After that date, fees increase, and badges will be held for pickup. Conference delegates will save even more when they register group for a full or one day conference pass. Every 5th delegate from the same company, registered at the same time will receive a FREE conference pass. All conference passes include admission to the trade show. Badges will be mailed to those registered by December 7th. Exhibitor Conference Passes Each exhibiting company is entitled to ONE FREE full conference pass. Session admission is limited to one person per exhibiting company. Exhibiting company employees may share the badge to attend different sessions. Additional passes may be purchased. Discount Eligibility Members of: Canadian Fence Industry Association, Canadian Nursery Landscape Association, Landscape Ontario Horticultural Trades Association, Ontario Landscape Architects Association, Master Gardeners and the Ontario Parks Association are entitled to member pricing.

Crowne Plaza Toronto Airport Reservations – 416-675-1234 33 Carlson Court, Toronto, ON M9W 6H5 $110 Single or Double – Group Code: LEX Radisson Suite Hotel Toronto Airport Reservations – 416-242-7400 640 Dixon Road, Toronto, ON M9W 1J1 $123 Deluxe Suite/$141 Executive Deluxe Suite – Group Code: CONG for telephone & online reservations Shuttle Service Shuttle service, courtesy of Banas Stones Inc., is provided daily from all host hotels to the Toronto Congress Centre. Shuttle times are posted in the lobby of the hotels.

Early Bird Deadline Policy No extensions to the deadline of December 7, 2012 will be granted. Registration fees after this date and on-site are more expensive. Refund Policy No refunds will be issued unless Congress 2013 is cancelled by Show Management. NOTE: Early morning registration lines can be long. Leave extra time to register if you are attending an early morning session. Pickup a free bag courtesy of

Show Management

Heather MacRae, Director of Events and Trade Shows Darryl Bond, Exhibit Accounts Associate Paul J. Day, C.D.E., Trade Show Ambassador Linda Nodello, Trade Show Coordinator Shawna Barrett, Trade Show and Events Support Coordinator Kristen McIntyre, CHT, Conference and Events Coordinator Tony DiGiovanni, CHT, Executive Director of Landscape Ontario Sally Harvey, CLTI, CLP, Manager of Education and Labour Relations Beth Edney, CLD, Show Committee Chair Terry Childs, Show Committee Vice Chair Brian Cocks, CLTT, CLTS, CLTO Show Committee Vice Chair Phil Charal, Landscape Ontario President Evie Isenberg, Canadian Fence Industry Association

Three Ways To Register ONLINE

locongress.com

CHEQUE Please make cheques payable to Landscape Ontario – Congress 2013 and mail to: CONEXSYS Registration, 7050B Bramalea Rd, Unit 34, Mississauga, ON L5S 1S9 or FAX

905-405-9870 or 800-628-8838

Sponsors: Landscape Ontario thanks the following sponsors for their generous support of Congress. PLATINUM SPONSORS:

GOLD SPONSORS:

SILVER SPONSORS:

Husqvarna Forest and Garden

BRONZE SPONSORS:

Bobcat Company Vermeer Canada Inc. Medallion Fence Ltd Congress 2013 Preview 3

Schedule at a Glance

Registration opens on site, 7:30 a.m., Toronto Congress Centre Trade show open, Tuesday and Wednesday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Thursday 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. MONDAY, JANUARY 7TH PRE-TRADE SHOW EVENTS ON WARM-UP MONDAY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 8TH

Effective Management Short Course IPM Symposium 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 7:30 a.m.p.m. to 3:45 p.m. Held at Doubletree By Hilton FOR Toronto Airport HotelIN 2013 ONLY LOCATION THIS EVENT (Ticketed(Ticketed Event) Event) page x

9:30 - 10:30 a.m. Keynote

10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m. Sessions

Noon - 1:15 p.m. Life Lessons at Lunch

1:30 - 2:30 p.m. Sessions

Social Media: Fad, Necessity or Free Business Marketing Tool?

Best Practices in Human Resources

JOB COSTING SMACKDOWN!

Develop Your Greatest Asset – Your Staff

SketchUp, Layout and Construction Documents

The Scoop on Soil

What the World Needs Now: Improving Urban Tree Survival

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 9TH

Communicate With Strength!

Technology with an Edge: Tech-tools that Give You a Competitive Advantage

TOWN HALL: MY BIGGEST MISTAKES – COMING CLEAN!

G & A Overhead Costs: How to MARC Them

Who’s Paying For Your Equipment, You or Your Clients? Award Winning Landscapes

Peak Performance for Pavers: Benefits of Paver Joint Stabilization

THURSDAY, JANUARY 10TH

Customer Service Activism!

Growth Through Accessibility Creating an Accountability-Driven Organization Are You About To Get Pulled Over by the MTO?

4 Congress 2013 Preview

CUSTOMER SERVICE...PLEASE!

Top Four Critical Priorities for Owners How to Use Facebook to Build Brand Enthusiasm and Attract Customers

Conference sessions are at the Toronto Congress Centre, unless otherwise noted. Separate fees apply to pre-trade show sessions and most special events.

Landscape Designer Conference 8:00 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Held at Doubletree by Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel (Ticketed Event)

IPM Symposium 7:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Toronto Congress Centre (Ticketed Event)

1:30 - 3:30 p.m. Owners Only Workshop

2:45 - 3:45 p.m. Sessions

SPECIAL EVENTS

Balancing, Estimating, Job Costing, and Accounting

The Un-biddable Landscape Plan and Proposal

Legacy Celebration – 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Sutherland Room, Toronto Congress Centre

Sustainable Practices for Landscape Maintenance Companies

Good People – Great Results.

Avoiding the Social Media Time-suck

Simple Systems that make Common Landscape Companies Uncommonly Successful

Smart Talk, Genius Results

Awards of Excellence Ceremony – 4:45 p.m. President’s Reception – 5:15 p.m. Ceremony Plaza Ballroom, Doubletree By Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel (Ticketed Event)

Landscape Ontario Annual General Meeting – 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. International Ballroom, Doubletree By Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel (Open to all members) Special Session: Get informed! Get involved! – 3:45 to 4:45 p.m. (Open to all trade show badge holders) Tailgate Party – 5:00 to 11:00 p.m. Wildrose Revue International Ballroom, Doubletree By Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel (Open to all trade show badge holders)

6 Habits of Highly Successful CEOs

Organizational Health: The New Competitive Advantage Retaining and Motivating Employees in Small Business

Irrigation Conference – 9:30 a.m. Sutherland Room, Toronto Congress Centre (Ticketed Event)

Be Registered. Be Ready. Bill 119: Mandatory WSIB Coverage in Construction; Does it affect you? Congress 2013 Preview 5

Monday January 7, 2013 Pre-trade show events

Effective Management Short Course Full-Day Workshop, Lunch Included Doubletree by Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Ticketed Event - Members: $119 and Non-members: $139. Led by: Jacki Hart, CLP, Clarity for the Boss and Tim Kearney, CLP, Garden Creations of Ottawa

Hosted by the Landscape Ontario Designer Sector Group Full Day Event – Lunch & Reception included Doubletree by Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel, International Ballroom 8:00 a.m. - 4:45 p.m. Ticketed Event. Member rate is $185 and $265 for Non-member. Includes FREE Congress trade show badge. Congress Conference is a separate fee. Presented by: Dave Maciulis, Natural Landscape Inc Carl Hastings, Moonstruck Landscape Lighting Caroline de Vries, O.A.L.A., Tradewinds International Rob Vogel, Vogel Landscape Design & Consulting Group Ltd. Daniel Tal, Ambit 3D Jean-Marc Daigle, Genus Loci Ecological Landscapes Inc Paul Zammit, Toronto Botanical Garden Platinum Sponsor:

Toronto Congress Centre, Cohen Ballroom Full-Day Seminar – Tabletop Displays, Lunch, Networking Reception, Door Prize, MTO and OMAFRA Updates included. Plus 2nd Annual IPM Leadership Award. 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Ticketed Event. Members and Non-members are $119. Includes FREE Congress trade show badge. Net proceeds are donated to lawn care research or a suitable alternative. Congress Conference is a separate fee. Presenters: Scott Olan, Ministry of Environment Dr. Michael Brownbridge, Ph.D.; M.Sc., B.Sc.; Vineland Research and Innovation Centre Dr. Hannah Mathers, Ph.D.; B.Sc., M.Sc., Ohio State University Pam Charbonneau, OMAFRA Dr. Christopher Murray, Lakehead University Katherine Jordan, Ph.D., M.Sc., B.Sc. Ken Pavely, Lawn Life, Russ Nicholson, Pennington Seed; Steve Tschanz, Weedman Canada; Claus Zander, Zander Sod KEYNOTE PRESENTATION The E-Myth Landscape Contractor Tony Bass, Super Lawn Technologies

Gold Sponsor: Silver Sponsors:

Thursday, January 10, 2013 Hosted by the Landscape Ontario Irrigation Sector Group Toronto Congress Centre, Sutherland Room Half-Day Keynote – Plus Meet & Greet Sponsors 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. Ticketed Event. Members and Non-members rate is $55. Includes FREE Congress trade show KEYNOTE PRESENTATION Phil Harwood, Pro-Motion Consulting

Symposium Sponsor: Gold Sponsor: Reception Sponsor:

Silver Sponsors:

Keynote Sponsor: Tabletop Sponsors:

6 Congress 2013 Preview

Bronze Sponsors Agrium Advanced Technologies, G.C. Duke Equipment, Koppert Canada, Plant Products, Turf Revolution

John Deere Landscapes, Turf Care

LOADING DOCKS

16 15 14

1308

1405

1402

1404

1503

1324

1326

1328

1332

1336

1419

1423

1425

1427

1431

1433

1406

1408

1346

1342

1350

1447

1366

1352

1356

1453

1465

HALL

1412

1507

1414

1418

1420

1517

1513

1424

1426

1428

1525

1527

1529

1432

1434

1462

1543

1533

1456

1565

13 12 10

TCC FRIDGE

1512

1607

F08

F09

F12

F13

1520

1516 1617

1625

1618

F32

F06

F31

1624

1626

1725

1727

1542

1532

1629

1621

1612

1606

1526

1628

1632

1546

1643

1634

1556

1560

1562

1661

1660

1652

1642

1737

F16

F17

F18

F21

F22

F23

F19

1724

1566

1570

1666

1670

1761

DOOR 4

1742

F29

F30

WASHROOMS

1750

TO TRADE SHOW FLOOR

TO CONFERENCE

1826

1842

ATRIUM CONFERENCE REGISTRATION

1756

1762

1766

G.PINSENT ROOM

1858

1870

SP DANBY ROOM

BAILEY ROOM

O.PETERSON M.ATWOOD LOBBY

LOBBY

L COHEN BALLROOM

CONGRESS CONFERENCES

w WASHROOMS

P.BERTON ROOM

CONFERENCE/ MEDIA OFFICE

M.SAFDIE ROOM



KAREN KAIN

A.COLVILLE LOBBY

N.JEWISON LOBBY

FENCECRAFT PACHTER- KARSH ROOM

SUTHERLAND ROOM CIFA SEMINAR ROOM

2021

The Courtyard CAFE

A.WAXMAN ROOM

WASHROOMS

2019 2020

1848

F28

E.MIRVISH

CONGRESS CONFERENCES ENTRANCE

2012

2018

AISLE 1800

RO OM

TCC SECURITY

1732

F25

F24

AISLE 1800

F26

DOOR

DRIVE-IN

F11

F14

F10

FENCECRAFT

EXIT

W AS H

F02

RO OM

RECEIVING

1470

F01A

F03

LOADING DOORS

Conference 2013 Overview

1468

1567

W AS H

T.C.C STORAGE

1502 F2115

F01

2008 1466

2011

1506

F00

SECURITY / RECEIVING

1469

HALL

2111

9 8

1320

1417

2110

Conference Map 6

1316

HALL

1602

EXIT

1312

1409

KINDRIE GROVE LOBBY

TRUCKS/TRAILERS

1403

2109

2010

1302 2108

#LOCongress

NO ENTRANCE TO SHOW FLOOR

DIXON ROAD

Celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Congress and Congress Conference. You will get re-acquainted with popular speakers and get inspired by some new industry experts. NEW – OPENING KEYNOTES Daily 9:30 - 10:30 a.m. Cohen Ballroom Tuesday, January 8th

Social Media: Fad, Necessity or Free Business Marketing Tool? Frank Ferrragine, City TV, Breakfast Television, CityNews Toronto, Ontario

Engage with green industry experts and gain a competitive edge by learning how to balance work and play – while your business grows and prospers. A newly formatted program offers maximum value that includes – opening keynote, panels, owners only workshops, life lessons at lunch and networking at its best! All sessions qualify for landscape industry certified CEUs. Please visit www.canadanursery.com for details. Our IPM Symposium qualifies attendees for CECs from the IPM Council of Canada. Please check your program re-certification criteria for qualifying information to determine if Congress Conference sessions, special symposiums and events qualify. Conference sessions at the Toronto Congress Centre are held in the meeting rooms in the south end of the building.

OWNERS ONLY WORKSHOPS Daily 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. Waxman Room Tuesday, January 8th

Balancing, Estimating, Job Costing, and Accounting

Charles Vander Kooi Vander Kooi & Associates, Littleton, Colorado Wednesday, January 9th

Good People – Great Results

Wednesday, January 9th

Mark Bradley TGB Landscapes, Toronto, Ontario

Karen Purves, M.A., Innovative Impact Las Vegas, Nevada

Thursday, January 10th

Communicate with Style

Six Habits of Highly Successful Landscape CEO’s

Jeffrey Scott The Leader’s Edge, Trumbull, Connecticut Thursday, January 10th

Customer Service Activism

Roy Prevost, Oakray Marketing Services Ltd. Burnaby, British Columbia

Legacy celebration January 8 — 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The Ontario Horticultural Trades Foundation of Landscape Ontario is hosting the Legacy Room at the Toronto Congress Centre. Drop in and network with other members of Landscape Ontario, including the pioneers, while enjoying light refreshments. Open invitation to all members of Landscape Ontario.

Life lessons at lunch Daily between 12 noon to 1:15 p.m. Cohen Ballroom Lunch is provided. Tuesday, January 8th JOB COSTING SMACKDOWN! Featuring: Mike Beadle, Mark Bradley, James Huston, Charles Vander Kooi Wednesday, January 9th TOWN HALL: MY BIGGEST MISTAKES – COMING CLEAN! Featuring: Mark Bradley, Chris Heiler, Alistair Johnston, Karen Purves, Jody Shilan Thursday, January 10th CUSTOMER SERVICE – PLEASE! Featuring: Phil Harwood, Chris Heiler, Roy Prevost, Jeffrey Scott, Andrew Wall Congress 2013 Preview 7

8 Congress 2013 Preview



Badge Holders Only

ENTRANCE

Registration and Badge pick-up

MAIN ENTRANCE

Compliments of

Free Hotel Shuttle Drop-off/Pick-up

102

103

STUDENT WAITING AREA

EXHI BITO R REG

Complimentary Bag Pick-up

REGISTRATION

HALL

AISLE 400

NEW PRODUCT SHOWCASE

LANDSCAPE ONTARIO RESOURCE CENTRE

COAT CHECK

w WASHROOMS

q WASHROOMS

ST. CLAIR COLLEGE

FANSHAWE COLLEGE

HALL

E18

E17

E16

E30

E29

E28

E27

E26

E25

BUSINESS CENTRE

364

Featuring Green Infrastructure Pavillion

Toronto Congress Centre

January 8-10, 2013

40years

celebrating

Badge Holders Only

ENTRANCE



EXHIBITOR REGISTRATON

#LOCongress

2000

HALL

AS W

HALL

1167

CONFERENCE/ MEDIA OFFICE

WASHROOMS

CONGRESS CONFERENCE ENTRANCE

SECURITY/RECEIVING

DOOR 4

WASHROOMS

HALL

CONGRESS CONFERENCES

SHOW OFFICE

BOOTH NUMBERING LEGEND “E” booths for Educational and Association, Not for Profit companies “GI” booths for Environmentally Conscious & Ontario Parks Assoc. Members “F” booths for Canadian Fence Industry Association Members

Congress 2013 Preview 9

Exhibitor listings As of November 12, 2012 4SP - NOVA ENVIROCOM ............................. 637 A&R GEOSYNTHETICS INC ......................... 312 A.M.A. PLASTICS LTD ......................................... 1417 ACCULINK FENCE AND WIRE INC...... F26 ACO SYSTEMS LTD.................................................. 335 ACORUS RESTORATION NATIVE PLANT NURSERY ..................... 1331 ACTI-SOL INC .............................................................. GI38 ADVANCED ENTRY SYSTEMS OF CANADA.............................................................. 564A ADVANCED EQUIPMENT SALES / TREBRO ......................................................................... 1467 AIR-FLO MANUFACTURING CO............ 572 ALFA PRODUCTS INTERNATIONAL. 260 ALGONQUIN COLLEGE................................ 2111 ALL TREAT FARMS LTD ..................................... 460 ALLIANCE AGRI-TURF INC ...................... 1118 AL-MAR VINYL PRODUCTS ......................... F30 ALPINE PLANT FOODS CORPORATION ..................................................... 1725 ALTURNAMATS, INC ............................................... 133 ALUMI-GUARD.............................................................. F42 AMACO EQUIPMENT ....................................... 2000 AMERISTAR FENCE PRODUCTS ......... F10 ANTIQUE ................................................................................. 20I APPRENTICESEARCH.COM-H.I.E.C. .... E1 AQUA INNOVATION ............................................ 1101 AQUA MIX ........................................................................ 1116 AQUASCAPE, INC .................................................. 1206 ARBORVALLEY URBAN FORESTRY....................................................................1250 ARCTIC EQUIPMENT MFG CORP....... 642 ARMTEC/BROOKLIN....................................... 1512 ASB GREENWORLD LTD............................ 1317 ASSOCIATION OF ONTARIO ROAD SUPERVISORS ......................................................... E29 ATLANTIC PACKAGING PRODUCTS LTD.......................................................................................... 1248 ATLAS BLOCK CO LIMITED ......................... 538 ATLAS POLAR COMPANY LTD............. 1729 ATLAS ROLLING ENTRY SYSTEMS....... F33 ATPONDS - DIV OF A&T INDUSTRIES INC.......................................................................................... 1513 AVALANCHE/LEDEX INDUSTRIES................................................................ 508 AVK NURSERY HOLDINGS INC ....... 2101 BAG-O-SAND INC ................................................ 1560 BALSAM PROMOTIONS........................................ 90 BANAS STONES PRIVATE LTD................. 750 BANJO PRODUCTS............................................ 167L BANNERMAN LTD.................................................... 236 BARDOBEC...................................................................... 20K BARKMAN CONCRETE LTD ................... 1634 BARRACUDA INC.................................................. 1243 BATTLEFIELD EQUIPMENT RENTALS............................................................................ 766 BEC EQUIPMENT ..................................................... 165 BEIJING GOLD CASCADE LANDSCAPE ART CO., LTD.................................................................. F29 BEST WAY STONE LTD ....................................... 672 BIG BEAR TOOLS INC......................................... 148 BILLY GOAT................................................................... 478B BLUE SKY NURSERY LTD ........................ 1217 BOBCAT COMPANY................................................... 99 BOB-CAT/SCHILLER................................... 1442A BOBS TRAILER PARTS INC ......................... 635 BOREAL AGROMINERALS INC......... 1527 BOSMAN HOME FRONT INC.................... 129

BOT AGGREGATES LIMITED...................... 436 BOULDERS STONE SUPPLY INC ... 1842 BOWERSTON BRICK.................................... 1466F BRADSTONE / STONEROX .................... 1121 BRANDT TRACTOR LTD.................................... 373 BRAUN NURSERY LTD ................................. 1235 BRICKSTOP CORP .................................................. 446 BRITESPAN BUILDING SYSTEMS...... 655 BROWN PRODUCTS .................................... 1442D BROWN’S CONCRETE PRODUCTS LTD.............................................................................................. 364 BROWN’S FUELS................................................... 1102 BUDGET ENVIRONMENTAL DISPOSAL ........................................................................ 155 BUSINESS CENTRE ............................................. E23 BUZON CANADA .................................................... GI53 BVR EQUIPMENT INC..................................... 1626 C & M AQUATICS MANAGEMENT LIMITED ................................................................................ GI4 C PINE ASSOCIATES INC ........................... 1124 CALCO SOILS.................................................................. 342 CALHOUN SUPER STRUCTURE ......... 449 CALIN STONE LTD .................................................... 412 CAMBRIDGE AGGREGATE SERVICES................................................................ 1155C CAMPANIA INTERNATIONAL ........... 1155A CAN AM PRECAST PRODUCTS LTD.......................................................................................... 1343 CANADA BLOOMS....................................................... 70 CANADA GREEN FARM ................................... 369 CANADA POWER TECHNOLOGY - CPT ........................................................................................ 548 CANADALE NURSERIES LTD ............... 1212 CANADIAN EQUIPMENT OUTFITTERS ................................................................. 546 CANADIAN FENCE INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION (CFIA) ......................................... F35 CANADIAN NURSERY LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION............................................................. 41A CANADIAN RESTORATIONS GTA INC................................................................................ 151 CANADIAN SALT COMPANY LTD (THE) .......................................................................... 171 CANADIAN SCALE COMPANY LIMITED ................................................................................... 78 CANADIAN SHIELD PAVEMENT PRESERVATION PRODUCTS .............. GI40 CAN-CLEAN PRESSURE WASHERS.................................................................... 1567 CANNOR NURSERIES LTD ...................... 1149 CARMIX CANADA.................................................. 1607 CASE IH DEALERS .................................................. 282 CAST LIGHTING LLC.......................................... 1132 CENTRAL IRRIGATION SUPPLY OF CANADA INC ............................................................ 1106 CHEROKEE MFG .................................................. 1316 CHRYSLER CANADA INC................................... 39 CJ BLOWER TRUCK SERVICES ............ 169 CLE LEASING ENTERPRISE LTD......... 477 CLEARY EVERGREENS ............................... 2107 CLOTURES DIRECTES INC............................... F9 CLOUD CERAMICS ........................................ 1466D COASTAL SOURCE CANADA .................... 512 COLONIAL BRICK & STONE.............. 1155B COMMANDER ATTACHMENTS.............. 378 COMMANDER INDUSTRIES ...................... 250 COMMUNITIES IN BLOOM - NATIONAL ................................................................. GI50

Landscape Ontario Annual General Meeting Join your fellow members on Wednesday, January 9, 2013, Registration and breakfast served at 7:15 a.m. The meeting will begin at 8:00 a.m. sharp. Open to all members.

COMPASS CREATIVE STUDIO INC .... 536 COMPLETE INNOVATIONS........................ GI71 CON X EQUIPMENT CANADA INC.......................................................................................... 1621 CONCORD ALUMINUM RAILINGS..... F46 CONNECT EQUIPMENT .......................................... 2 CONNON NURSERIES/ CBV HOLDINGS LTD ......................................... 560 CONNON NURSERIES/ NVK HOLDINGS INC ..................................... 1456 CONTRAX EQUIPMENT................................1556 COOPER EQUIPMENT RENTALS........ 147 CREDIT VALLEY CONSERVATION .... E30 CUB CADET....................................................................... 628 CUBEX LIMITED ..................................................... 1724 CURV-RITE INC ........................................................... S16 DA-LEE PROFESSIONAL DUST & ICE MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS.................. 111 DAVEY RESOURCE GROUP.................. 1468 DAY & CAMPBELL LIMITED.................... 2109 DECK MASTERS OF CANADA ..................... 14 DECLOET STRUCTURES LTD ............... 1326 DEER FENCE CANADA INC .................... GI87 DEER SHIELD....................................................... 1137D DEERBUSTERS....................................................... 1426 DEL EQUIPMENT LTD......................................... 102 DELAWARE PUMP AND PARTS LTD.............................................................................................. 167 DEVTRA INC ..................................................................... 820 DFK EQUIPMENT SALES INC.................. 872 DIAMOND PRODUCTS................................... 1516 DIAMOND SYSTEMS INC............................ 1660 DIRECT SOLUTIONS FORMERLY AGRIUM ADVANCE TECHNOLOGIES..................................................... 533 DITEQ CORPORATION........................................ 551 DIVERSITREE PLANTS INC ..................... 1202 DIXIE CHOPPER ............................................................ 94 DNM RETAINING WALL SYSTEMS... GI51 DOMAX CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT ................................................................. 247 DRIVE PRODUCTS ................................................... 744 DRIVETEC................................................................................. 95 DUCKBILL........................................................................... 20F DUKE (GC) EQUIPMENT LTD...1546,1442 DURACRETE CONCRETE FENCE PRODUCTS INC........................................................ 564 DURA-TOOL............................................................. 1137E DUTCHMASTER NURSERIES LTD... 1566 DYNA .......................................................................................... 443 DYNABLAST HOT WATER WASHERS................................................................... 167C DYNASCAPE SOFTWARE .......................... 1218 EASTERN FARM MACHINERY LTD..... 382 EASY PRO POND PRODUCTS................. 141 EASY-FLO........................................................................... GI47 EBEL QUARRIES INC...................................... 1743 ECHO POWER EQUIPMENT (CANADA) ......................................................................... 708 ECO LAWN..................................................................... 478D ECO SOLUTIONS (MILTON) INC ......... GI18 ECO WATER INNOVATIONS..................... 1207 ECO WOOD PRODUCTS LTD..................... 543 ED’S CONCRETE PRODUCTS LTD........................................................................ 1117,1136 ELIET USA INC .............................................................. 408 ELOQUIP LTD ........................................... 1366, 1272 ENCORE LANDSCAPE LIGHTING..... 1351

Are you

International Ballroom at the Doubletree By Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel, 655 Dixon Road, Toronto, Ontario

Please RSVP to Kathleen Pugliese at 1-800-265-5656 ext. 309 or kpugliese@landscapeontario.com, by January 4, 2013.

10 Congress 2013 Preview

ENDICOTT CLAY PRODUCTS .......... 1466A ENVIROBOND PRODUCTS CORP .................................................................................. 1113 ENVIRONMENTAL FACTOR INC / EFI .......................................................................................... GI41 ENVIRONS WHOLESALE NURSERY..................................................................... 1528 EQUIPMENT JOURNAL ................................... 333 ESTATE ADVANCEMENTS INC............ 1256 EVERGREEN PROPAGATORS LTD ... 1271 EVERPLAY INSTALLATION INC ........... GI31 EXCEL INDUSTRIES, INC ............................... 572 EZ-GRASS, INC ........................................................ 1252 FAIRFIELD TREE NURSERIES INC.......................................................................................... 1142 FAIRGREEN SOD FARMS LTD............. 1433 FANSHAWE COLLEGE.................................... 3, E5 FEDERATED INSURANCE............................ F43 FELCO....................................................................................... 20L FELCOTRONIC ..................................................... 1137B FENCAST INDUSTRIES LTD ........................ F11 FENCE PEOPLE LIMITED (THE) ........... F22 FERRIS INDUSTRIES INC .............................. 416 FERTI-HYDRO............................................................... 20A FERTILEC LTEE/MASTER TURF............... 20 FERTI-PRO......................................................................... 20H FIBRAMULCH .................................................................... 16 FIRST CONCRETE LTD....................................... 468 FIVE STAR RAMPS.............................................. 167H FLEXI-TIE...................................................................... 1137C FLOJET PUMPS......................................................... 167I FOCUS INDUSTRIES......................................... 2020 FOREST FENCE & DECK CO LTD ....... 2112 FORTRESS FENCE PRODUCTS................ F2 FOX HOLLOW FARMS..................................... 1324 FRENSCH (C) LTD ................................................ 1137 FS PARTNERS, A DIV OF GROWMARK, INC............................................... 1203 FTT ................................................................................................. 613 FYFE (ALLAN) EQUIPMENT LTD .......... 361 G R DISTRIBUTORS INC .............................. 1303 G&D EQUIPMENT INC/ MORBARK....................................................................... 184 G&L GROUP OF COMPANIES ............. 1507 GARDEN MAKING MAGAZINE........... 2108 GARDENLINK INC ................................................... 466 GARDENSCAPE.......................................................... 20J GENERAL MOTORS OF CANADA........... 17 GENERAL SEED COMPANY ................. 1204 GLOBAL ARCH INC................................................ 518 GRAVELY, AN ARIENS CO BRAND....... 172 GREAT LAKES WOOD PRODUCTS INC.......................................................................................... 1617 GREAT NORTH LANDSCAPE PRODUCTS..................................................................... 552 GREEN ROOFS FOR HEALTHY CITIES .................................................................................. GI32 GREEN TRACTORS ................................................ 334 GREENHORIZONS GROUP OF FARMS LTD (THE) ...................................................................... 1260 GREENVILLE - A PART OF WRIAN MARKETING.................................................................. 553 GRO-BARK (ONTARIO) LTD......................... 328 GROUNDS GUYS (THE)............................... 1327 GROWER’S CHOICE .......................................... 1226 G-TRAX WEAR PARTS INC............................ 175 HANDI-HOOKS........................................................ 133D HANES GEO COMPONENTS.................... 860

Yes, I am!

Stop by the Landscape Ontario Booth #41 and pick-up a ribbon for each certification credential you hold – attach it to your show badge with pride.

PLUS: Get info on how certification can benefit you and your company.

Exhibitor listings As of November 12, 2012 HARKNESS EQUIPMENT LTD............. 2015 HEALTH CANADA - PEST MANAGEMENT REGULATORY AGENCY ............................................................................ E27 HEFFCO ELASTROMER INC .................. GI65 HILLEN NURSERY INC..................................... 264 HILLTOP STONE & SUPPLY..................... 1251 HONDA CANADA INC ..................................... 1612 HORST WELDING / AMI ATTACHMENTS ........................................................ S12 HORTICULTURAL MARKETING INC........................................................................ 1158,1155 HORTPROTECT - THE INVESTMENT GUILD .................................................................................... 238 HUB - SINCLAIR COCKBURN INSURANCE BROKERS............................... 818 HUNTER INDUSTRIES INC.......................... 434 HUSQVARNA CANADA CORPORATE............................................................. 1652 HUTCHESON SAND & MIXES ................. 432 HYDRO-RAIN .................................................................. 243 HYPRO PUMPS ...................................................... 167K ICPI - ONTARIO CHAPTER ........................... E25 INDUSTRIAL SAFETY TRAINERS INC.............................................................................................. 862 INFRASTRUCTURES................................................. 34 IN-LITE DESIGN CORPORATION...... 1524 INNOVATIVE SURFACE SOLUTIONS................................................................. GI69 INTEGRATED APPLIANCES LTD - LYNX GRILLS ..................................................... 1361 INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY OF ARBORICULTURE ONTARIO INC (ISAO)..................................................................................... E11 IRON EAGLE INDUSTRIES INC .............. F39 ISLINGTON NURSERIES LTD .................... 310 ISUZU COMMERCIAL TRUCK CANADA...................................................................................... 1 J LIPANI AND SON SOD FARMS LTD.......................................................................................... 1302 JB&D COMPANY LTD....................................... 1266 JC BAKKER & SONS LTD ........................... 1542 JC ROCK LTD .................................................................. 347 JCB INC .................................................................................. 678 JOE JOHNSON EQUIPMENT INC...... 267 JOHN DEERE LANDSCAPES LTD ..... 232 JOHN DEERE LTD................................ 728B, 728 JOHN FUMERTON SERVICES ................ 481 JRT NURSERIES INC....................................... 1403 KAGE INNOVATION LLC................................... 772 KANSAS BRICK .................................................. 1466E KATO’S NURSERY (2007) LTD ............. 1224 KAWARTHA ROCK QUARRY INC .... 1145 KEN BEGG NURSERY SALES INC 1135 KERR LIGHTING.................................................... 552D KESMAC BROUWER TURF ......................... 561 KIOTI TRACTOR - DIV OF DAEDONG USA, INC ................................................................................. 51 KOBES NURSERIES INC............................ 1313 KODIAK POWER WASHERS ................. 167B KODIAK WATER PUMPS............................. 167D KOPPERT CANADA LTD............................... 1425 KROWN RUST CONTROL SYSTEMS 854 KUBOTA CANADA LTD ....................................... 686 KUNE ENGINEERING - ACREASE 478C KWIK LOAD PRODUCTS LTD ..................... 115 L&R SHELTERS INC........................................... 1230 LAC BALSAM .......................................................... 1137A

LAHMAN PRECAST CONCRETE INC.......................................................................................... 1209 LANDINI CANADA INC ........................................... 15 LANDSCAPE MANAGEMENT NETWORK ................................................................... 1506 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO RESOURCE CENTRE .................................................................................. 41 LANDSOURCE ORGANIX LTD ................ 547 LANING (ROBERT H) & SONS LTD....... 866 LAWN LIFE...................................................................... 1350 LAWNSHARK USA................................................... 183 LEISURE POOLS USA TRADING, INC.................................................................................................. 83 LESCO...................................................................................... 20E LIGHTHOUSE SALES GROUP................. 665 LIGHTNING EQUIPMENT SALES INC.......................................................................................... 1167 LIMBERLOST STONE INC.......................... 1525 LIMESTONE TRAIL CO INC ......................... S18 LINNAEA NURSERIES LTD...................... 1421 LINZEL DISTRIBUTING ..................................... 132 LIPANI HYDROSEEDING INC ............... 1302 LS TRAINING SYSTEM............................................ 72 LVG AUCTIONS......................................................... 1150 LYON & BUTLER INSURANCE BROKERS LTD ....................................................... 1329 MACCAFERRI CANADA LTD ....................... 415 MACHER EQUIPMENT LTD............................. 32 MAGIC LITE LTD ........................................................... 450 MAGUIRE SUPER-SHIELD / MAGUIRE CROSS-FIRE................................................................. 166 MAHINDRA USA INC........................................ 1646 MAKITA CANADA INC .......................................... 565 MANITOU AMERICAS INC FORMERLY GEHL ................................................... 2A MANKAR ULTRA-LOW VOLUME SPRAYERS .................................................................. 1328 MAPLE LEAF NURSERIES LTD .......... 1732 MAPLE LEAF NURSERY (DIV OF PBN) ........................................................... 1335 MAR-CO CLAY & STONE ................................. 138 MARTEK SUPPLY.................................................. 1414 MASONAL STONE INC................................... 1519 MASSARELLI’S .......................................................... 1154 MASSEY FERGUSON ............................................. 2C MASTER HALCO CORP......................................... F5 MAYNE INC .................................................................... 1405 MAYNOOTH NATURAL GRANITE .... 1427 MCCLOSKEY INTERNATIONAL ......... 1766 MEDALLION FENCE LTD................................. F36 MEGADOME / HARNOIS INDUSTRIES.............................................................. 1130 MILLER COMPOST - THE MILLER GROUP................................................................................. 346 MILLGROVE PERENNIALS INC ......... 1432 MILLROAD MANUFACTURING ............... 451 MINISTRY OF THE ENVIRONMENT.... E26 MIRAFI GEOTEXTILES & GRIDS ...... 552E MISKA TRAILERS .......................................................... 11 MITSUBISHI FUSO TRUCK OF AMERICA, INC...................................................... 10 MODERN FENCE TECHNOLOGIES........ F7 MONSTER POWER EQUIPMENT... 1442C MORI NURSERIES LTD...................................... 428 MS GREGSON; DIV OF RAD TECHNOLOGIES INC.................................... 1255 MULLIGAN MARKETING GROUP.... GI60 MULTI SHELTER SOLUTIONS............... 1420

MUNGER LAWNSCAPE DISTRIBUTION........................................................ GI45 MUSKOKA ROCK COMPANY LTD ......... 314 NAPOLEON APPLIANCE CORPORATION ......................................................... 272 NATIONAL BUILDING GROUP............ 1428 NATIONAL CONCRETE ACCESSORIES .......................................................... 568 NATIONWIDE INDUSTRIES .............................. F4 NATURAL TECHNOLOGIES INC........... 539 NEW ENGLAND ARBORS CANADA.......................................................................... 1409 NEWROADS NATIONAL LEASING ......... 30 NIAGARA COLLEGE ............................................. E16 NISCO NATIONAL LEASING ................... 1337 NLS PRODUCTS.............................................................. 31 NORLEANS TECHNOLOGIES INC ........ 185 NORTHERN PERFORMANCE ................. 649 NORTHLAND QUARRY SUPPLY LTD.......................................................................................... 1325 NORTHSTAR INDUSTRIES............................ 609 NORTON ABRASIVES O/A SAINT GOBAIN ABRASIVES CANADA INC.......................................................................................... 1628 NURSERY SOD GROWERS ASSOCIATION OF ONTARIO ....................... E2 NUTRITE............................................................................. 2008 NUVO IRON - LOCINOX ........................................ F8 OAKS CONCRETE BRAMPTON BRICK LTD................................ 318 ODOTRACK.................................................................... 2110 OHIO STEEL ................................................................ 167G OMEGA II FENCE SYSTEMS....................... F17 ONTARIO PARKS ASSOCIATION........ GI33 ONTARIO REGIONAL COMMON GROUND ALLIANCE (ORCGA) ....... 1214 ONTARIO SAWDUST SUPPLIES LTD... 341 ONTARIO SEED CO LTD ............................... 1134 ONTARIO TIRE STEWARDSHIP........... GI61 ONTARIO TREE SEED PLANT MINISTRY OF NATURAL RESOURCES................................................................ 343 OPERASOFT ................................................................. GI22 ORACLE RMS INSURANCE RISK MANAGEMENT SERVICES....................... 113 OREGON DISTRIBUTION LTD .............. 1502 ORGANIC EXPRESS INC................................ 246 ORGANIC OUTDOORS SUPPLY CANADA LTD ............................................................. GI74 OUTDOOR SUPPLIES AND EQUIPMENT INC ................................................ 2004 OUTFRONT PORTABLE SOLUTIONS - A DIV OF ALL COVER PORTABLE SYSTEMS........................................................................... 528 OUTRIGGER PADS ............................................. 133B OXFORD PALLET & RECYCLERS LTD.................................................................................................. 76 PALMAC TRUCK BODIES....................................... 7 PEBBLEMAN NATURAL STONE (THE)........................................................................................ 615 PEETERS (JM) NURSERIES LTD ..... 1353 PERMACON GROUP............................................ 648 PERMALOC....................................................................... 20B PERMALOC CORPORATION ...................... 413 PES CANADA .................................................................. 173 PESTICIDE INDUSTRY COUNCIL - PIC ......................................................................................... E10 PHANEUF DESIGN GRAPHIQUE... 1556

PHOENIX MEASUREMENT SOLUTIONS INC ...................................................... 153 PICKSEED CANADA INC............................. 1520 PINEMEADOW TREE FARM LTD . 1202A PINENEEDLE FARMS ..................................... 1133 PLANT PRODUCTS CO LTD..................... 1216 PLAYCARE AND DESIGN INC.................. 549 PLEASURE-WAY POOLS ................................. 513 PLS INSOLES INC ................................................. 1408 POTTERS ROAD NURSERY INC....... 1529 POWER SOURCE CANADA ..................... 1756 PRECISION PRODUCTS INC................. 167E PREMIER EQUIPMENT................................. 1449 PREMIER TECH HOME & GARDEN - IGC....................................................................................... GI39 PRESTIGE IRON WORKS........................... F26A PRICELESS PRODUCTS LANDSCAPE DEPOT................................................................................... 719 PRIMEMAX ENERGY INC........................... GI26 PRO FLEET CARE..................................................... 822 PRO LANDSCAPE BY DRAFIX SOFTWARE..................................................................... 417 PRO TECH ENGINEERING INC......... 1858 PROFESSIONAL LAWN CARE ASSOCIATION OF ONTARIO ....................... E9 PROLINE EQUIPMENT: DIVISION OF HERITAGE OAK FARM, INC .................. 1429 PROMO SHAN CORP ...................................... 1258 PRO-POWER CANADA INC ......................... 478 PUTZER (M) HORNBY NURSERY LTD.......................................................................................... 1424 PYGAR SALES CANADA LTD ..................... 365 Q & Z NURSERY INC ........................................ 1562 QUALITY FERTILIZERS INC......................... 473 QUALITY SEEDS LTD........................................ 1435 QUEST AUTOMOTIVE LEASING SERVICES......................................................................... 228 RAMROD (DIV OF LEON MFG COMPANY INC)..................................................... 1761 REDMAX............................................................................ 1661 REGION OF PEEL..................................................... 474 REIST INDUSTRIES INC ................................... 372 RELINKS............................................................................. GI30 RH2O NORTH AMERICA ................................ 367 RIDGEVIEW .............................................................. 1155D RIGBE ROCK 2012 ................................................. 653 RITTENHOUSE SINCE 1914.................. 1533 RIZMI STONE AND AGGREGATES INC.......................................................................................... 1127 ROB-ENS EQUIPMENT INC ....................... 179 ROCK VALLEY NATURAL STONE..... 1473 ROMA FENCE GROUP OF COMPANIES........................................ F26, 564 ROYAL BOTANICAL GARDENS ................. E3 ROYNAT LEASE FINANCE......................... 2105 RTF TURF PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION.......................................................... 1644 RTF WATER SAVER GRASS SEED / GRANVIEW FARMS LTD ............................. GI81 RUBAROC ........................................................................ GI46 RYAN BY SCHILLER ..................................... 1442B RYMAR SYNTHETIC GRASS LTD ...... GI70 SABLE MARCO INC............................................ 1128 SANTERRA STONECRAFT........................ 1312 SEAL KING INC ........................................................ 1160 SEAL TECH INC....................................................... 1624 SENECA COLLEGE.................................................... E8 SESTER FARMS INC.......................................... 1246

Tailgate Party XVII

Wednesday January 9, 2013 - 5:00 to 11:00 p.m. International Ballroom, Doubletree By Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel

Grab a partner and get ready to kick-up your heels. Great food, entertainment and foot stompin’ fun! Dress code:

Denim and Diamonds