20 minute read
Association News
PROFESSIONAL NEWS
Peer to Peer Network thanks the Covid-19 Task Force
Editor’s note: The following letter was written collectively by members of the Landscape Ontario Peer to Peer Network and addressed to members of the COVID-19 Task Force and association staff.
As exceptionally proud Landscape Ontario and ‘Peer to Peer’ members, we would like to express our sin cere thanks for the outstanding leadership, support and commitment you have demonstrated on our behalf, as we navigate the challenges of the COVID19 pandemic.
You have provided us with the most up-to-date information through the Resource Hub, frequent and timely updates, webinars, commentaries and count less other things. It is through these efforts that you have helped us all remain positive and hopeful.
To the many people: Tony DiGiovanni and the leadership team, the volunteer-led COVID-19 Task Force, all of the LO staff, our president Dave Wright, industry leaders and so many others who have worked endlessly and tirelessly on our behalf, to protect and enhance our professional reputations with the public, and various levels of government — we extend our sincere thank you. You have led us through this crisis, to the point where we are now able to continue our livelihood.
As members, in an effort to demonstrate our appre ciation, we will continue to commit to the professionalism exemplified by your efforts and to continue to represent Landscape Ontario as proud and pro fessional green industry members. We will endeavour to lead our own teams and supply them with the knowledge, commitment and support you have given us. You have taught us how to step up when many thought we could not. You gave us direction, courage and bolstered our spirits. You have proven to us that as a profession we have the support and intuitive lead ership that will keep us going forward and viable in the future. There is no better way to honour what you have done than for us to go forward as professionals and represent our association to the level that you have demonstrated in this most complex time.
Respectfully submitted,
Landscape Ontario Peer to Peer members
“I have always called my clients my community, and I call my team my family,” said Joe Salemi, LO’s new Deputy Executive Director. He is already well known among landscape professionals, having served for 10 years with the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association, and eight years in a leadership role with Dynascape Software. He completed a communications and business degree at Brock University and earned a post graduate diploma in Human Resources Management at Mohawk Joe Salemi College. Salemi and his wife Dawn are the parents of three-year-old Matthew.
Executive Director Tony DiGiovanni said, “I love how Joe interacts with customers. His integrity, trustworthiness and values are right for LO.”
Salemi joined LO during the coronavirus crisis, and firmly believes LO members’ willingness to help others at a moment’s notice is what sets them apart. Salemi’s career includes experience working with many other associations across North America, and he says he did not see that volunteer spirit as strong in most other groups. “Other associations could not mobilize to be relevant as quickly as LO did,” he said. He goes on to credit LO’s financial stability as a success factor, as he watched other associations worried about having to close.
“Small business is the cornerstone of our economy. Whenever we focus on business development, it has to be small business; I love helping businesses work toward success. I worked with hundreds of small businesses at Dynascape, and that is where I found my passion. Small business is ultimately important,” he adds.
On following Tony DiGiovanni’s leadership, Salemi said, “Nobody on the planet can walk in Tony’s shoes. I have my own style and have to follow my own path. Tony has built a legacy; he set LO up for success. Now it’s our responsibility to continue.”
Salemi is eager to connect with LO members, noting that Ontario Premier, Doug Ford put his cell number on Twitter, indicating willingness to talk to anybody, any time. “I respected that. Dynascape is known for accessibility, and I want to carry that on at LO.” Salemi invites members to email him any time at jsalemi@landscapeontario.com, or call his cell at 905-220-4106.
Adapting to the new reality: A guide to upcoming association-run meetings, events and programs
The coronavirus outbreak of 2020 forced many events to be postponed, cancelled, or reinvented. Limits on non-essential travel, combined with a majority of people working from home, kids not in schools, and public health officials restricting the number of people that can gather in a group, have all made a major impact on the way we learn, stay connected, and do business.
Below is a guide to the current status of many upcoming Landscape Ontario and partner events. Please continue to visit HortTrades.com and read LO’s weekly e-news for the latest updates, as the situation and details will likely change.
Chapter and Sector Group meetings
Landscape Ontario’s nine regional chapters usually take a break during the hectic summer season, typically holding monthly chapter meetings from around September through to May. This spring, some chapters held meetings virtually via video conference. The Toronto and Georgian Lakelands Chapters also held “Shop Talk” events online, with Ottawa planning one as well.
LO’s Membership and Chapter Coordinator Myscha Stafford expects most chapters will continue to meet online this fall in a webinar-style format that will usher in an exciting, new era for chapter communications and networking.
Some LO sector groups have also met via video conference this spring in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Groups will continue to meet virtually throughout the rest of 2020. In addition, specific Facebook networking pages have been created for the Garden Centre, Grower and Irrigation sector group members to share information, ideas and to connect with one another.
Sector Group events
The LO Growers Sector Group’s Industry Auction, typically held in summer, has been postponed until 2021. An integral part of the event sees the submission, judging and announcement of winners in the LO Growers Awards of Excellence program. Plans are being made to hold the grower awards in some other format. Details will be made available at IndustryAuction.ca.
The Growers Sector Group has cancelled plans for a summer tour this year.
The Growers Fall Dinner Meeting on Nov. 24 will go ahead. Plans are being made to hold the usual dinner event, which could change to an online town hall format if necessary. The format decision should be made sometime in September.
The Growers Short Course is scheduled for Feb. 3, 2021.
The annual Contractor Lecture has been cancelled. Many chapters are in the process of organizing virtual “Shop Talk” events that will bring a similar format with a local relevance.
Snowposium
The annual gathering of snow and ice professionals typically held at the LO site in Milton, Ont., will become a virtual event this year. Scheduled forJuly 28, organizers are looking to provide a great lineup of educational sessions, and a virtual trade show featuring many products and demos. Details will be released at Snowposium.ca.
Green Streets Challenge
Last year saw a record number of communities take up the Green Streets Challenge. Held across the province, the hugely-popular event had LO members lay down sod to create temporary parks on prominent streets. Together with Come Alive Outside, the events celebrate the importance of outdoor unstructured play.
With heavy hearts and public safety in mind, organizers have postponed the Green Streets Challenge this year. However, outdoor play is more important than ever. A summer passport program full of outdoor activities that call be completed while physical distancing has been created for kids. Download a copy at ComeAliveOutside.com/passports.
Plans are also underway to hold the Come Alive Outside Design Challenge in a virtual format this fall.
Awards of Excellence Program and Ceremony
Landscape Ontario’s annual awards competition recognizes the top professionals and projects in the province via three separate programs: construction, maintenance and design; growers; and garden centres. All three programs, including the nomination and recognition of individual awards, will still go ahead this year.
Online entries can be submitted online at LOawards.com starting July 1 for the construction, maintenance and design program. Entries will be judged this fall and several ideas are currently being explored for the annual awards ceremony in January if it can not be held due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Scholarship Program
Students enrolled in secondary and postsecondary scholarship programs now have until July 31 to apply for scholarships awarded by the Ontario Horticultural Trades Foundation, which includes the Cullen Family Scholarship Program. Details on the many scholarships available can be found at OHTF.ca.
Scholarship recipients are recognized each year in the November issue of Landscape Ontario magazine, and at the LO Awards of Excellence ceremony in January.
Professional Development Seminar Series
Landscape Ontario’s popular professional development series that offers over 120 seminars from November to April was abruptly cut short in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some titles were held, and in the weeks that followed, organizers were able to offer an association first — a selection of online professional development webinars led by the same well-known and knowledgeable instructors from the series.
LO’s professional development offerings are typically released mid-Oct each year. Currently, planning is underway on the 2021 schedule, which will continue to offer essential hands-on learning and in-class opportunities to help support and advance the skills development of participants.
Building upon this spring’s successful Pro Dev webinars, participants can expect to see more offerings as part of next season’s program.
Congress 2021
Landscape Ontario’s trade show and events team has been busy forging ahead with plans for Congress 2021 — the largest gathering of green industry professionals in Canada. Two versions of Congress are being planned: the face-to-face version the profession is accustomed to, and a virtual trade show and conference in the event that public health officials still recommend against large gatherings.
Organizers are confident that whatever form Congress takes for 2021, it will provide a level of networking, education, sharing, and buying on a digital level that has not yet been experienced by the profession.
The decision on whether Congress 2021 is held virtually or face-to-face will be made sometime in September.
For the latest news on all association activities and events, visit HortTrades.com.
Awards of Excellence program continues for 2020
For over four decades, the Landscape Ontario Awards of Excellence program has celebrated the most outstanding craftsmanship, design and innovation the green profession has to offer. This year will be no different. Entries for the Garden Centre, Construction, Maintenance and Design programs open July 1.
Last year saw a record-breaking number of entries, and organizers are hoping to break the record again in 2020.
All entries are submitted online via LOawards.com, where you will find detailed information about the categories and guidelines, eligibility requirements and submission details. The program is open exclusively to members of Landscape Ontario.
Tillsonburg, ON
Details about the Awards of Excellence ceremony will be announced at a later date. Organizers are continuing to plan for a face-to-face ceremony in conjunction with Congress, but are also exploring a number of virtual options… the show must go on!
Questions about the awards program or the entry process can be directed to Myscha Stafford, LO Membership Coordinator, at 1-800-265-5656, ext. 3233, or awards@landscapeontario.com.
Specializing in field grown and potted cedars along with perennials, trees and shrubs of both deciduous and evergreen varieties.
519-688-0437 info@pottersroadnursery.com
PottersRoadNursery.com
Availability list includes plants not in catalogue
In memoriam — Leo Bezaire
Leo Bezaire passed away peacefully on May 18, 2020 at the age of 87.
Working with many members of the family, Leo was owner and operator of Malden Tree Farms in Windsor, Ont. Leo was an accomplished landscape designer and Leo Bezaire later in his career, turned his attention to propagating and growing. Leo was a founding member of the Windsor Chapter of Landscape Ontario, and served on the association’s Provincial Board of Directors from 1976-1978. Leo was awarded the Past President’s Award in 1981 for his “outstanding long-term contributions to Landscape Ontario.”
Beloved husband of the late Jeannette (nee Walker), dear father of Paul and Marlene Bezaire, Joanne and Guy Renaud of Ottawa, and Gerry and Patti Bezaire. Heaven’s latest angel was a loving grandfather and great-grandfather to many adoring children.
Leo suffered from a brain abscess at age 59, leaving him impaired on the right side. He fought through months of difficult therapy, eventually contributing again to the family business. Despite his impairment, he lived independently, drove his own car, and even at age 87, often cooked meals for the family and took pride in planting his begonia baskets every year. While his grandchildren were the light of his life, his new passion was for his greatgrandchildren. He took great joy in rallying the family to attend Mass and dinner every year in remembrance of Jeannette’s passing.
A private family interment took place at Assumption Cemetery. A Memorial Mass and gathering will take place at a later date.
Special thanks to the WRH Ouellette Campus Emergency Department.
Donations to Windsor & Essex County Cancer Centre Foundation, Hospice of Windsor & Essex County or a charity of choice would be appreciated by the family.
The Ontario Horticultural Trades Foundation has announced the application deadline for the 2020 scholarship and bursary program has been extended to July 31. The extension comes after the closure of schools and many non-essential businesses due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Students and apprentices enrolled in landscape and horticulture programs across the province can apply for a portion of the over $50,000 of financial assistance available via a wide range of scholarships. These include a number of regional scholarships offered through various Landscape Ontario chapters (Waterloo, Ottawa and Upper Canada), and sectorspecific scholarships to students pursuing career paths, such as property maintenance, native plants and lawn care. Other scholarships have been created in memory or recognition of industry leaders and pioneers who helped make the profession what it is today.
Cullen Family Scholarship Program
Under the Foundation umbrella, the Cullen Family Scholarship Program offers an additional $30,000 to students pursuing careers in landscaping and horticulture. Individual scholarships of $2,000 are available to students in every postsecondary institution across the province that has a landscape or horticulture program.
The deadline to apply for these scholarships is also July 31, 2020.
How to apply
Most scholarships require the student to submit an essay, explaining why they should be considered for a specific scholarship, as well as a transcript and sometimes a nomination from their educator.
Established in 1979, one of the primary goals of the Foundation is to nurture and advance the horticultural industry through the funding of industry-related scholarships. Scholarships are available only to those who reside in Ontario and scholarships support students at all levels of education: college, university, post-graduate and apprentices.
For a full list of available scholarships, criteria, and an application form, visit HortTrades.com/scholarships. For information on supporting the Foundation, visit OHTF.ca.
Association webinars a huge success
From March 26 to May 14, Landscape Ontario hosted a record number of webinars aimed at informing members of the landscape and horticulture profession of the latest information on the novel coronavirus pandemic. The webinars also provided a networking and informationsharing forum for members to connect and ask questions online.
The 24 free webinars featured a number of well-known business coaches, a registered psychotherapist, human resource and safety experts, marketing specialists, and Landscape Ontario member business owners. Each Tuesday, members of the LO COVID-19 Task Force held a Town Hall meeting to provide updates and get feedback from business owners and employees.
Having never hosted any webinars previously, Landscape Ontario staff quickly sprang into action, researching and testing the technology, and sourcing and working with presenters.
“Our COVID-19 Task Force recognized early on the need for us, as an association, to filter and clarify the sometimes conflicting and confusing information that was coming in,” says Tony DiGiovanni, LO executive director. “The dedicated Task Force members meet daily via video conference to interpret the latest government assistance programs and advice issued by public health officials, in order to then communicate those developments to members and how it relates to them, their business and families. I am extremely proud of each and every member of our team.”
Attendance for the online info sessions was impressive. In total, over 4,000 people registered and attended the webinars, with online replays posted to YouTube earning an additional 4,000 views.
One LO member commented: “I have listened to the Town Hall series and found them very informative. Topics were relevant and well-presented. Thank you to your team who took time out of their busy schedule to participate. We are in this together!” Another said:”Thanks for all of the effort putting these on they are greatly appreciated!”
Due to the success, LO plans to hold regular Town Hall-style webinars as a means of effective communication even in the postcovid era.
Ottawa Chapter tulip donation brightens Barrhaven Legion
By Martha Walsh
LO Ottawa Chapter Coordinator
The beauty of Mother Nature is that she always gives us hope. Hope that when we plant, we will reap the rewards in many ways: beautiful blooms, fruit, vegetables, and renewal. In the fall of 2019, Landscape Ontario Ottawa Chapter purchased bulbs from the Canadian Tulip Festival to participate in the 2020 Liberation tulip planting.
The special edition tulip celebrates the 75th anniversary of the Liberation of Holland. The Ottawa Chapter board donated many of the bulbs to members of the chapter, and to the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 641, located in Barrhaven, Ont.
In November 2019, over 500 Liberation 75 bulbs were planted in two concrete planters at the Legion, in the hope that spring 2020 would see Legion members enjoy the display and celebrate the historic anniversary.
Unfortunately, prior to the arrival of spring, all events, including those at the Legion, and the Canadian Tulip Festival, were cancelled due to public health concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic. The Canadian Tulip Festival moved all events online so the public could participate safely.
Despite the pandemic, Mother Nature continued her renewal process at RCL Branch. The bulbs planted there have marked the start of spring and are now blooming. Their blooms are a sign that even though the world has changed, and we are getting settled into a “new normal”; spring will continue to happen. Spring will provide beautiful blossoms and hope, this year, and for years to come.
PALACE PERENNIALS Proudly growing perennials f� over 31 years
Over 1200+ varieties of perennials Many unique and hard to find varieties Fruits and succulents Great fern, hosta and ornamental grass selection, premium tropical selection, premium annuals, hardy vines, Ontario Natives, clematis, herbs, and water plants
Catalogue at palaceperennials.com
519-542-8353
866-843-0438 (sales)
sales@sipkensnurseries.com
Letters to the Editor
An employee’s perspective
This time is not easy. It is not “comfortable.” The people and businesses we were preCOVID…are gone.
“Drop-by anytime after 5 p.m.” Nope. Shaking hands at the first meeting. Nope. Morning, tailgate team meeting. Nope.
Orientation and training — VERY different from what it was.
Conventions, Canada Blooms, workshops: yes, but with restrictions or online only.
“Business as usual” is going to be anything but “usual’ moving forward.
We are all going to be facing new challenges we can’t even predict at this early stage.
Policies and procedures have evolved and will continue to (weekly, if not daily) moving forward.
WE have been given the green light to proceed to deliver our services.
Our profession has been recognized as ESSENTIAL!
As individuals and businesses, we are in a volatile time of improvement, reflection, evaluation and evolution.
NONE OF US have to improve, reflect, evaluate or evolve ALONE.
With the guidance of LO’s Peer-to-Peer Network and the support of Landscape Ontario, we have the opportunity to move forward together, stronger and more effective than ever before. The dedication, time and effort put forth from Jacki Hart, Tony DiGiovanni, Sally Harvey, Joe Salemi, Lindsey Ross and the COVID Task Force have been nothing less than extraordinary.
Engaged members have been brought together, kept informed, guided, encouraged and empowered to continue to work “as usual as possible,” while supporting and learning from each other.
Businesses will change. People will change. Positions, workflow and tasks will be rearranged and some people will lose their job. But they will not lose hope, or support from Landscape Ontario. Going forward, working through this pandemic and after, I am convinced this industry has the right people at the helm within Landscape Ontario and we are beyond lucky to have them.
When we return to work “as usual,” I ask that managers and people of seniority keep in mind how challenging the start of this season has been — not JUST for owners, but for employees as well. We are anxious to get back to work, but worried about job security. We wonder how we will be able to look after our families and pay our bills, and more than anything, WE want to be deemed “essential.” We want to know that the work we do makes a difference. That what we do
INDUSTRY PROVEN INDUSTRY PROVEN
#WhyGambleWithYourFleet #WhyGambleWithYourFleet
Complete visibility Complete visibility of of workforce, workforce, assets and costs assets and costs Track fuel usage & idling Track fuel usage & idling trends trends Monitor Monitor engine engine hours hours & & PTO PTO usage usage High-performance GPS technology High-performance GPS technology Advanced Advanced dashboard reports dashboard reports Membership pricing Membership pricing
Association Membership Pricing Association Membership Pricing
MATTERS and that our efforts and sacrifices are noticed. We want to feel and know that WE are “essential.”
During these next few months, employees may cry, get emotional, and overreact to situations. Sometimes we might not even show up. We could be dealing with not being able to visit family members in hospital, living at home with someone who works in a hospital, working reduced hours and receiving reduced wages, or have been exposed to someone who “might” be COVID19 positive (and have to stay at home in quarantine). We as employees want to work. We want to contribute. We want to make a difference and we need to know that we are “essential.”
Stay strong friends, we are all in this together.
Heather Jerrard, Proud member of LO’s Peer to Peer Network TLC Professional Landscaping London, Ont.
Thanks to the LO COVID-19 Task Force
Hi Tony,
Thank you very much to you and the LO COVID-19 Task Force. As an owner of a small garden maintenance business, your guidance was absolutely essential for me during the time that we were not permitted to work. It was a confusing and unstable period, but having an organization like Landscape Ontario advocating for us as an industry and reaching out to its members with the weekly webinars really helped.
My crew and I have been working for the past week, and although it is a constant challenge to adapt to the new health and safety protocols, we are conscientiously following all compliance guidelines and are aware of how important these procedures are to keep ourselves, our clients and the public safe.
Once again, my most sincere thanks to you and the whole LO team. Moving forward, I hope we can all salvage some joy out of our season!
Sincerely, Karen Henderson, Owner Hillholm Gardening Toronto, Ont.
