Horticulture Review - March 2009 by Landscape Ontario

Horticulture The Voice of Landscape Ontario

Review

March 15, 2009

Canada Blooms

Industry’s best blossoms this spring Page 11

Home reno tax break? - Page 11 • GreenTrade Day - Page 15 • Turfgrass economics - Page 22

NEW MEMBERS DURHAM CHAPTER Brinks Property Services Ltd. andrew Piercey 18 Camborne Ct Unionville, ON L3R 7S2 Tel: 905-294-1954 Membership Type: active

GEORGIAN LAKELANDS CHAPTER Rainbow Irrigation Inc. Ken Vowels 147 Old Ferguson Road Huntsville, ON P1H 2J2 Tel: 705 789 0799 Membership Type: active

GOLDEN HORSESHOE CHAPTER FORTERRA INC. Ed Beattie 2272 HWY. 6 R.R.#3 Puslinch, ON N0B 2J0 Tel: 905 659 8194 x225 Membership Type: associate

Vallance Equipment Ltd. Kay Notman 4179 Simcoe St North Oshawa, ON L1H 7K4 Tel: 905-655-3291 Membership Type: associate

Way to Grow Irrigation Luke Pattman 124 Covered Bridge Trail Bracebridge, ON P1L 1Y3 Tel: 705 645 1795 Membership Type: active

Spring Showers Irrigation Doug Rolfe 51 Lynden Road PO Box 77 Lynden, ON L0R 1T0 Tel: 905 309 1618 Membership Type: active Zimmerman Bros. Landscaping Jason Zimmerman 3780 West Main Street,PO Box 259 Stevensville, ON L0S 1S0 Tel: 905 382 1857 Membership Type: active

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LONDON CHAPTER Sifton Properties Ltd Jerry Hakkers 1955 Jack Nash Terrace London, ON N0K 5R1 Tel: 519 823 1500 Membership Type: active OTTAWA CHAPTER Coates Landscape Services Richard Coates 6577 Marina Drive Manotick, ON K4M 1B3 Tel: 613 692 1880 Membership Type: active Integrated Forestree Services Inc. andrew Boyd P.O. Box 13593,Stn. Kanata Ottawa, ON K2K 1X6 Tel: 613 838 5717 Membership Type: active Root Plus Landscaping Fred Sova 357 McDermott Drive Rockland, ON K4K 1K9 Tel: 613 833 5879 Membership Type: active TORONTO CHAPTER Green Circles Landscaping Cameron Mcintosh 3688 St. Clair ave. East Toronto, ON M1M 1T2 Tel: 416 269 1259 Membership Type: active Panoramic Property Maintenance & Design Ltd. Mario Parmigiano 8880 - 9251 Yonge Street Richmond Hill, ON L4C 9T3 Tel: 416 884 7479 Membership Type: active Jordan Hill Bradford, ON Membership Type: Horticultural UPPER CANADA CHAPTER Treefrog Design Judy Bell 89 Maitland Drive Belleville, ON K8N 4Z5 Tel: 613 966 8163 Membership Type: Interim WATERLOO CHAPTER James Emary Waterloo, ON Membership Type: Horticultural

2 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - MaRCH 15, 2009

Coming events

For more coming event listings, visit www.horttrades.com.

March 18 - 22 Canada Blooms Metro Toronto Convention Centre, South Building For information, or to register as a volunteer at the show, visit www.canadablooms.com. Members can purchase discounted tickets to Canada Blooms for $12 from Kathleen Pugliese at the LO office (905) 875-1805, ext. 309, or by e-mail kpugliese@landscapeontario.com. March 18 Erosion and Sediment Control Workshop Landscape Ontario 7856 Fifth Line South, Milton The joint workshop by Hamilton Conservation Authority and Conservation Halton is designed to provide information on the roles and responsibilities of contractors and regulatory agencies that operate in the Hamilton/Halton watersheds with regard to development and associated erosion and sediment control on construction sites. Cost is $100, plus GST. Course runs from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. To register for the course, visit www.locc.ca. March 19 LO Industry Night at Canada Blooms Metro Toronto Convention Centre, South Building Come celebrate the Ontario industry’s stunning contributions with your peers – at Canada Blooms! This special event begins at 5 p.m., with the LO contractors group annual landscape lecture series. Featured speakers are Joe Murgel from Stonetech Landscape Contractors and Real Eguchi, LA, from bReal art + design. The lecture is followed by a wine and cheese social at the Canada Blooms feature stage, concluding with the Canada Blooms Feature Garden Awards Program. RSVP to

kathleen@landscapeontario.com. For more information contact 1-800-265-5656, Kathleen at ext. 309, or Kristen, ext. 321. March 25 Georgian Lakelands Chapter Meeting Innisbrook Golf and Country Club, Barrie Ready for the road? Join the chapter for the annual MTO meeting on Mar. 25, from 1 to 3 p.m. Guest speaker is Hank Dube from Ministry of Transportation. Chapter elections will also be held during the meeting. There is no charge but an RSVP is required to Stephanie at 1-800-265-5656, ext. 354 or ssmith@landscapeontario.com. March 28 Winter Blooms St. Clair College, South Campus, 2000 Talbot Road West, Windsor Don’t miss the annual Winter Blooms show, presented by Landscape Ontario’s Windsor Chapter and St. Clair College. For more information call

the Horticulture Department at (519) 972-2727, ext. 4457 April 7 - 21 Peony Festival Tour to China China Visit some of the gardens of ancient China in time to see the cherry blossoms and peonies in bloom. This fabulous land price per person sharing is only $3,450 with single supplement and additional $888. For more information visit www.gardeningtours.com or call Donna at 1-866-642-7120. April 8 Upper Canada Chapter Meeting New Strathcona Paper Centre Arena, 16 McPerson Dr., Napanee The Upper Canada Chapter helps get your company ready for spring with this morning meeting focusing on employee training, WHMIS, small tools maintenance and skid steer training. The meeting runs from 9 a.m. - noon.

dutchmaster N U R S E R I E S

L T D .

The one-stop location for your nursery needs:

. One of Canada’s largest suppliers of nursery stock

. Specialists in caliper trees . Vast selection of container plants . Perennials, Vines, Groundcovers, Marsh and Bog Plants available

. Various nursery supplies for resale . Top knotch customer service

www.dutchmasternurseries.com

March 15 -17 Canadian Gardens and Tourism Conference In Conjunction with Canada Blooms The Canadian Gardens and Tourism Conference will bring together delegates from the garden and tourism industries to better understand each other’s needs in order to grow both industries. For information, visit www.gardensandtourismconference.com

3735 Sideline 16 Brougham, ON, Canada L0H 1A0 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - MaRCH 15, 2009 3

Landscape Ontario staff LO staff members are committed to member service. Please call with your questions or concerns.

Landscape Ontario’s mandate is to be the leader in representing, promoting and fostering a favourable environment for the advancement of the horticultural industry in Ontario. Suffix for all e-mail addresses below: @landscapeontario.com

Executive board President

Robert Adams, robertadams@ Past president

7856 Fifth Line South Milton, ON L9T 2X8 Tel: (905) 875-1805 or 1-800-265-5656 Fax: (905) 875-3942 Web: www.horttrades.com

Windsor Chapter

E-mail suffix for all staff members: @landscapeontario.com

Sectors

Executive director Tony DiGiovanni CHT, ext. 304, tonydigiovanni@

President: Karl Klinck, kklinck@ Board rep: Garry Moore

Designers

Executive assistant Kathleen Pugliese, ext. 309, kpugliese@

Tom Intven, tintven@

Chair and board rep: Beth Edney CLD, bedney@

Second vice-president

Garden centre

Administrative assistant Jane Leworthy, ext. 301, jleworthy@

Bob Tubby CLP, bobtubby@ First vice-president

Tim Kearney CLP, tkearney@ Secretary/treasurer

Phil Charal, pcharal@

Chapters Durham Chapter

President: Brian Marsh, bmarsh@ Board rep: Mark Humphries, mhumphries@

Georgian Lakelands Chapter President: Michael Laporte Board rep: Mark Goodman

Golden Horseshoe Chapter

President: Tim Cruickshanks, tcruickshanks@ Board rep: Walter Hasselman

London Chapter

President: Tim Cradduck, tcradduck@ Board rep: Michael Pascoe CHT, mpascoe@

Ottawa Chapter

President: Tim Dyer Board rep: Bruce Morton CLP, CIT

Toronto Chapter

President: Fiona Penn Zieba Board rep: George Urvari, gurvari@

Upper Canada Chapter President and board rep: Paul Doornbos CHT, CLP, pdoornbos@

Waterloo Chapter President: David Wright Board rep: Mike Hayes

Chair and board rep: Bob McCannell, bmccannell@

Grounds management Chair: Mike DeBoer, CHT Board rep: Brian Marsh

Growers

Co-chairs and board reps: Bart Brusse, Dave Braun

Interiorscape

Controller Joe Sabatino, ext. 310, jsabatino@

Project coordinator, member services team Kristen McIntyre CHT, ext. 321, kristenm@ Membership and chapter coordinator. membership services team Stephanie Smith, ext. 354, ssmith@ Membership coordinator, Ottawa Chapter Lynn Lane, 613-796-5156, llane@ Membership coordinator, London and Windsor Chapters Wendy Harry, 519-488-0818, wharry@

Chair and Board rep: Stephen Schell CHT

Manager, Pesticide Industry Council Tom Somerville, tsomerville@

Irrigation

Manager, education and labour development Sally Harvey CLP, ext. 315, sharvey@

Chair: Chris LeConte Board rep: Steve Macartney CIT, smacartney@

Landscape contractors Chair: Peter Guinane Board rep: Bruce Warren

Lawn care

Chair: Gavin Dawson Board rep: Alan White, awhite@

Lighting

Chair: John Higo Board rep: John Scanlon

Snow and ice management

Chair: Ed Hewis Board rep: Gerald Boot CLP, geraldboot@

Education and labour development Ken Tomihiro, 647-723-5451, ktomihiro@ Education and labour development Kathy McLean, ext. 306, kathym@ Project coordinator, Education and labour development Rachel Burt, ext. 326, rachelb@ Trade show manager Paul Day CDE, ext. 339, paulday@ Trade show sales Lorraine Ivanoff, ext. 366, lpi@ Trade show coordinator Linda Nodello, ext. 353, lnodello@ Sales and business development manager Gilles Bouchard, ext. 323, gbouchard@ Manager, public relations Denis Flanagan CLD, ext. 303, dflanagan@

Members at Large

Manager, information technology Ian Service, 416-848-7555, iservice@ Publisher Lee Ann Knudsen CLP, ext. 314, lak@

CNLA Board Rep

Editorial director Sarah Willis, ext. 313, sarahw@ Editor Allan Dennis, ext. 320, aldennis@

Jacki Hart CLP Gregg Salivan

Gerald Boot CLP, geraldboot@

Horticulture Review

Web editor Robert Ellidge, ext. 312, rob@

The Voice of Landscape Ontario

March 15, 2009 • Volume 27, No. 3 Views expressed in Horticulture Review are those of the writer concerned. Horticulture Review and Landscape Ontario assume no responsibility for the validity or correctness of any opinions or references made by the author. Copyright 2008, reproduction or the use of whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited. Published 12x per year. Rates and deadlines are available on request. Subscription price: $40.43 per year (GST included).

For subscription and address changes, please e-mail subscriptions@landscapeontario.com

4 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009

ISSN 0823-8472 Publications Mail Agreement No. PM40013519 Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses To: Circulation Department Horticulture Review 7856 Fifth Line South Milton, ON L9T 2X8

Art director Melissa Steep, 647-723-5447, msteep@ Graphic designer Mike Wasilewski, ext. 343, mikew@ Sales manager, publications Steve Moyer, ext. 316, stevemoyer@ Communications assistant Susan Therrien, ext. 305, stherrien@

Green for Life: Excitement builds By Denis Flanagan and Lee Ann Knudsen

ur new Green for Life consumer program is officially launching at Canada Blooms, with a whole lot of public relations noise! First, let’s talk about the launch, then we will spend a few minutes sharing how you can take advantage of that noise for your business. First things first. At Canada Blooms you will see the Green for Life program showcased with not only the amazing garden display in the LO booth, but we worked to let both consumers and the press hear the story: 1) New logo is on the cover of 40,000 Garden Inspiration magazines, incorporating the Canada Blooms show guide and including complete member listings. Extra copies of this handout are available at cost, to LO members only. This beautiful colour magazine really tells the story about Green for Life and our wonderful industry. 2) We printed 45,000 four-by six-inch colour postcards as a booth giveaway. Each card has an award winning design on front and the back has messaging about how consumers can use the website for inspiration and how they may connect with members. 3) New logo will be in various locations throughout the Canada Blooms show hall. 4) Press kits with the who/what/why of the Green for Life program and website have gone to all members of the consumer press. We also worked closely with the Canada Blooms PR team to get the message out to newspapers, magazines, TV and radio throughout Ontario. To the press, we focused on how the new website will inspire people to do more outdoor living. Okay – so what? How do I use this for my business? That should be your question! If we assume that all talk about doing more with landscape and garden plants is good for all of us – the rising tide floats all boats idea – then broad general messaging is a good thing for your business, too. But let’s see how we can get more from this new program! 1) Get copies of the press kit and send to all your local media. Now we did send the press kit to most media outlets, but it is good biz practice to always send PR outreach frequently – and if the press kit is coming from your business, you can add your name as a local contact. You want

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Samples of the 45,000 postcards to be handed out at Blooms.

to be interviewed by your local paper or radio station. 2) Add your own press release. Yes – this means you must do one – but this a perfect time to tie in how your business will be helping local homes and businesses be Green for Life by beautifying the neighbourhood. 3) Call and follow-up with the local media about the program. Have they heard about it? Can you answer any questions? Would the local media like to come out to your business to do a follow-up story about the green industry? PR is all about frequent contact. At the end of this you want to be on a fi rst-name basis with all your local media reps. 4) Use the program support pieces. a. Link your site to the new landscapeontario.com site

b. Make sure your member profi le is fi lled out so folks can fi nd you in the Choose a Professional section c. Take advantage of the Green for Life store signs, banners and truck stickers d. You and your staff are invited to write content – stories and articles for the website. We want new material every month to keep consumers coming back! We can link to Youtube videos and podcasts, so get those to us for posting on the site. Remember the more places your company ‘lives’ on the web, the more likely it is your customers will fi nd you. By taking advantage of the Green for Life consumer outreach you can help create more noise and more customer interaction for your business. This is an exciting time to be a member of Landscape Ontario!

HORTICULTURE REVIEW - MaRCH 15, 2009 5

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

Accepted with thanks By Tony DiGiovanni CHT LO executive director

y grandfather used to say, “If someone wants to give you a gift take it with thanks.” In the new proposed budget, the federal government has given our industry a gift in the form of the Home Renovation Tax Credit. The timing is perfect! It is probably the first time in history that landscaping, sod, decks and retaining walls are mentioned in a federal budget.

Tony DiGiovanni

How it works Families will be able to claim up to $1,350 on their 2009 taxes for expenditures on home renovations including landscaping, laying sod, retaining wall construction and building decks and patios. Costs that accumulate to a mini-

Uxbridge Nurseries

“We keep on growing”

P.O.BOX 400, UXBRIDGE, ONTARIO L9P 1M8

905.655.3379 1.877.655.3379 FAX: 905.655.8544 sales@uxbridgenurseries.com

www.uxbridgenurseries.com

mum above $1,000, or up to a maximum of $10,000 are eligible. Routine maintenance will not qualify. Although some details are not yet clear, here is how the Ministry of Revenue describes the eligibility criteria. Who is eligible? “To be eligible, expenditures incurred in relation to a renovation or alteration to an eligible dwelling (or the land that forms part of the eligible dwelling) must be of an enduring nature and integral to the dwelling, and includes the cost of labour and professional services, building materials, fixtures, rentals and permits.” Please see: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/ bdgt/2009/fqhmrnvtn-eng.html#q4. We are not quite sure of the definition of “enduring nature,” but it may mean that all soft and hard landscaping are covered. We will clarify this point as soon as we can. Landscape Ontario will promote the tax credit as much as possible under the banner of our new “Green for Life” awareness campaign. You need to do the same. Here is how we are planning to help: 1. We are developing an online brochure as well as a consumer e-newsletter that you can download and send to your clients. 2. There will be a prominent link on our consumer site, detailing the tax credits. 3. We will promote the tax credit at Canada Blooms and in the Garden Inspiration/ Canada Blooms magazine. 4. A paper-based brochure will be available. 5. Posters and banners will be produced for garden centres. 6. An html tag will be available for members to use on their websites. 7. Press releases will be sent to all garden writers and media. Please e-mail me if you have any other awareness ideas. The industry and the public have been given a gift. Let’s help the government promote it. Green for Life co-branding campaign The purpose of Landscape Ontario is to create a community that helps each other. We are in the inter-dependence business. As a unified industry, we have awesome, powerful and enviable public-communication potential beyond the reach of many corporations and governments. Let’s use it!

6 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009

The new landscapeontario.com Green for Life campaign will be launched at Canada Blooms. The strategy is to use members’ points of contact to communicate a message of public benefit, millions of times. It will only work if you co-brand your company with our new logo and tag line. Its effectiveness will grow and expand as each member uses it. There are two versions of images that members may choose. Both use the landscape Ontario.com (this is meant to be a verb and a call to action as well as the name for the association) and both use the Green for Life tag line. Millions of collective impressions will drive traffic to a new expanded website where the public will find quality information about landscaping and gardening. It will also help them source professional operations to help them green their lives.

Why the two images? The “little girl on a swing” appeals to women between the ages of 35 to 55. It communicates nurturing and supportive emotions and signifies legacy and future benefit. It was tested on over 800 people. The “tree” signifies stability, strength, credibility and environmental benefit. It uses the image from our old logo and is meant for internal industry communication. Use the image that suits the audience you are trying to reach. Although most landscape and outdoor living purchases are strongly influenced by women, this is not always the case, especially if you serve the industrial, commercial and institutional markets. In any case, it’s your choice. Both logos are a call to action. Both communicate the life enhancement benefits of what we do for a living. Both will drive people to the website. But neither will work unless you use it. Tony DiGiovanni may be reached at tonydigiovanni@landscapeontario.com.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Looking towards spring By Robert Adams LO president

e have made it. Winter is almost over. Sure we may see a few flurries, but the light at the end of the tunnel is becoming very bright. And, it’s not a day too soon. We have all heard it before: “No one knows what the future holds for us.” Yesterday is in the past. Today is the present. Tomorrow is a mystery. YESTERDAY: What has been done to get you to where you are today? Foundations were laid for a path to be travelled to attain goals, dreams and aspirations. We reflect on what seemed a simpler time. Was it really? Was it “easier” to realize our goals back then? TODAY: We have made it this far! We have been busy building our businesses, mentoring, enriching your staff and clientele with information and developing your skills in many directions. TOMORROW: We will need to discover

Quote of the Month

“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.” — Anne Bradstreet

new techniques, try to complete tasks in a different manner and develop new partnerships. One thing is certain. WE WILL SUCCEED! Remember, landscapeontario.com Green for Life. Please, if you have an idea or concern, contact me at robertadams@ landscapeontario.com. I encourage you to become involved in LO. It is your association.

HERBMATIC Designed for minimal use of pesticide. Allow 3 operations

Ideal for seeding small area or to repair existing lawn

1- Apply fertilizer 2- Apply fertilizer + full pesticide coverage 3- Apply fertilizer and pesticide on demand

Compact sprayer for maximum space saving 100 or 200 gallons gas engine or 12 V motor

Available size of 200 to 1000 gallons. Powered by Honda Engine. Trailer version available.

HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009 7

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PUBLIC RELATIONS

A consumer show template By Denis Flanagan CLD Manager, public relations

s we move into some exciting times with our Green for Life campaign, we will try and make it as easy as possible for chapters, sector groups and individual members to help get the message out to consumers. One great example of what is possible on the local level is to follow what has been done in the Upper Canada Chapter. Spearheaded by Paul Doombos from Thornbusch Landscaping this event in March could serve as a template for other groups. Visit www.quintehomebuilders.com and click on Home Shows. Ten Step Plan Step 1. Include promoting a consumer event in your strategic plan Step 2. Develop a strong relationship with a like minded association or group Step 3. Suggest partnering to create an educational event or speaker series Step 4. Seek out funding through Chapter promotional funds, government grants, Private companies Step 5. Utilize your Milton offi ce to help secure speakers Step 6. Utilize your Milton offi ce to develop marketing pieces Step 7. Engage the members of both organizations to promote the event Step 8. Engage the local media Step 9. Enjoy your success Step 10. Start planning for next year I know many other Chapters have developed other fabulous relationships at the local level, it would be great to receive your input and ideas. Through the efforts of the branding committee, print material and props will support province-wide consumer events for our Green for Life message. Contact me at the Milton office to find out what is available. Finally, we often find our members have great ideas to promote their association, but do not always have the time to follow through with all the details. Always remember, your staff at the Milton office run a full-time business supporting members. Denis Flanagan may be contacted at dflanagan@landscapeontario.com

8 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - MaRCH 15, 2009

PROFESSIONAL AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

CHT has a new look and a new test format By Sally Harvey CHT, CLP Education and Labour Development Department

s many know, the Certified Horticultural Technician (CHT) designation went through some major changes during 2008. These changes came about following an evaluation of the test, and by putting that test through an Occupational Analysis (OA). The process revealed that improvements were in order. The next step in the test revision process was to ensure that the material tested corresponded with the real-world tasks that a technician performs in the workplace. It was also important that the testing be an accurate measurement of the minimum standards established in the OA. This work was an industry-driven effort. It began with a group of experts who identified the real tasks of a landscape technician. The categories include: Both the installation and maintenance modules have been split, resulting in the following certifications: Hardscape Installation, Turf Maintenance, Ornamental Maintenance and Irrigation. The industry task force confirmed that the elements common to all industry technical certifications are safety, communication, motor vehicles, math and reporting. The new common core will be written and will focus on only these areas. Changes to the certification test • Comprehension: Each of the five certifications have a specific series of written exams. Some problems, such as irrigation identification and pruning, have been changed from hands-on problems to part of the written exam. For all other problems, where the judge asked questions requiring a verbal response, the verbal portion has been moved to the written exam. • Calculations: Several hands-on problems required the candidate to do complete mathematical calculations. These questions will be moved to the written comprehension sections of the written exam. • Written exam length - The new written exams will be longer, due to the changes listed above. As a result of dividing the maintenance and installation modules, the hands-on portion can now be completed in less than four hours.

The new certifications will test a narrower scope of material that is more relevant to the occupation of the landscape technician. Technical and safety components have been re-weighted for all hands-on tests. Prior to the test, candidates will be provided with a clear breakdown of the technical component and the safety component of each problem. Some candidates will find that they have been awarded one of the new certifications, but are maybe one or two problems short of receiving the second certification. The decision to finish the second certification will be left to the candidates, however, they will be encouraged to complete the remainder. Those who still require one or more stations, or who have yet to complete this designation, will be contacted by letter this spring to notify them which stations remain outstanding, as per the new test designation requirements. Please go to the following web link www. horttrades.com/cht for test dates, registration forms for re-tests and full tests. This year all registration forms must be completed in full by the applicant. He must identify which manuals and tests he intends to challenge. Payment in full must be made prior to being sent the test confirmation package, and to access the test day. New this year is the opportunity to challenge the written test in full or re-test segments during the winter months, and then attend the official test days in Ottawa and in Milton for the practical sections. If this is of interest, register today at the above-mentioned link. Early season orientation The 2009 landscape season is just around the corner. It’s a time for all employers, managers and supervisors to prepare for both new and existing staff to return. One of the first steps to ensure a successful start is to make sure planning and preparation has been done in advance. Below, you will find a brief checklist that you may wish to refer to and build on as you prepare: • Health and safety committee, or safety representative meet and develop strategies and goals. • Update safety policies to be read by all staff, and ensure you operate in compliance with MOL, WSIB, etc. • Ensure employee contracts and handbooks are ready. • Request driver abstracts for all drivers.

• Copy operators’ training manuals for equipment and tools (we always keep the original in the office). • Arrange WHMIS training for all staff. • Check all trucks and workplaces and have new CVORs. • Update vehicle and trailer inspection forms, hours of work forms, fire extinguisher, a first aid kit and MSDS sheets. • Ensure all supervisors/staff have up-to-date first aid training. • Service all tools and equipment. • Order uniforms. • Order and prepare all PPE (personal protective equipment). • Bring training records up-to-date for existing staff and prepare files for new employees. • Organize the annual orientation day and make sure the agenda is set. • Call on Farm Safety for selection of posters, stickers, training manuals, WHMIS training, etc. www.farmsafety.com • Set the weekly tailgate safety meeting schedule for the entire season, with all attendance sign-offs prepared in advance. New strategy for job and career fairs All successful businesses see priorities change. This is no different for our department, as we make changes such as how we support career and job fairs. In the past, Landscape Ontario did its best to attend as many as possible in order to market our industry as a viable and challenging career path. What we often found was that the people attending job fairs are ‘really’ looking for jobs. So, now we are offering our members the opportunity to attend job fairs. LO will continue our support by notifying members of the fairs through our weekly e-news update (sent by e-mail to every member company) as well as offering the short term use of a table top display, along with handouts to augment your business cards, employment applications and company brochures, so that you may stand face-to-face with potential employees. Should you wish to attend a job fair, the e-news update will direct you to a contact person. Please confirm your attendance with this contact person in advance in order to avoid disappointment. Sally Harvey may be reached by e-mail at sharvey@landscapeontario.com.

HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009 9

HORT PROTECT

Chronic diseases and the contributing factors By W. Michael Thomas CFP, CLU, CH.F.C, R.F.P.

tatistics reveal that the contributing factors to chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, chronic respiratory disease and diabetes, are on the rise. These contributing factors include stress, obesity, depression, smoking and Type 2 Diabetes. A major concern for many employers is the drug costs and disability claims associated with the increase of chronic diseases. According to the Conference Board of Canada, the consensus is that “Canada like other countries is facing an epidemic of chronic disease, and if we do not learn to both prevent and manage these diseases more effectively, the healthcare system will break under the strain.” Although the issues surrounding chronic disease are complex, the contributing factors

include a lifestyle component. Obviously some risk factors associated with chronic disease cannot be controlled, such as age, ethnicity, family history and gender. However, the good news is that the three main risk factors for chronic disease, an unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and tobacco use, can be eliminated just by changing behaviour. Encouraging employees to develop positive lifestyle habits that include healthy eating and increased physical activity, while decreasing unhealthy habits like smoking and excessive alcohol and other substance use, goes a long way to decreasing the contributing factors towards developing a chronic disease. Those employers that have implemented Employee Wellness Programs are already seeing the rewards of motivating employees to eat well, butt out and get active with an increase in overall productivity and a reduction in claims.

More focus on the controllable factors and lifestyle issues will help keep chronic disease and the doctor away and eventually lower claims’ costs. If you have any questions, please contact Michael Thomas at the address below. W. Michael Thomas is a partner with The Investment Guild – endorsed provider of the HortProtect Group Insurance Program and is a director of ‘Ontario Horticultural Trades Foundation. The Investment Guild HortProtect Insurance 1-800-459-8990 11 Allstate Parkway, Suite 100 Markham, ON L3R 9T8 www.hortprotect.com info@hortprotect.com

LO joins interiorscape coalition Landscape Ontario is well represented on the newly formed Interiorscape Industry Coalition (IIC), which held its second organizational meeting on Jan. 16 in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. In attendance at the meeting was Stephen Schell CHT, who also chairs LO’s interiorscape sector group. Joining him on the coalition is Sally Harvey, manager of education and labour development. At the meeting, the organizational strucETEL07_BA Hort.Review.qx 1/30/07

ture of the coalition was discussed and defined. LO is the only Canadian member. There was discussion on projects that the IIC might undertake to support the interiorscape industry. Two projects were given priority: grant writing and development of an informational website. Exploring the possibilities of available grants would help direct the next steps with other projects, so a grants committee was formed with Stephen named 7:43 AM Schell Page 1 to this committee.

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for Aggregates in Southern Ontario. Providing Quality Crusher Runs, Screenings and Sand/Gravel

10 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009

Other actions included the use of the IIC member organization logos and links on other IIC member organization websites for crosspromotion; and that IIC members request their organizations become investors in Green Plants for Green Buildings. The coalition is scheduled to meet again at the PLANET 2009 summer leadership meeting, from June 24 to 27, in Stevenson, Wash.

call us at 416.798.7050 or toll-free at 1.800.870.0926

www.brockaggregates.com Brock Aggregates is part of The G&L Group of Companies

LO members volunteer to create the best-ever Canada Blooms Volunteers have been busy for weeks preparing for Canada’s most prestigious flower and garden festival, Canada Blooms. Over the past 13 years members of Landscape Ontario have donated thousands of hours to ensure Canada Blooms maintains its showpiece status. This year has seen even more involvement. Tim Kearney CLP, LO’s second vicepresident, and his company Garden Creations of Ottawa, is spearheading the construction of LO’s 4,000 square foot garden. It will greet visitors at the entrance to Canada Blooms, featuring a 32-foot oak tree as its centrepiece. This display will help launch LO’s new branding initiative landscapeontario. com Green for Life. “I believe that this display will do more for educating the public

on our association than ever before. This, combined with our amazing branding initiative, will become the buzz of the show,” said Kearney. Volunteers will hand out the new expanded magazine Garden Inspiration, which brings together the Canada Blooms show guide with a complete listing of LO members and the story behind Green for Life. Landscape Ontario’s publishing team took on the task to create the improved show guide, which this year will be given out free to visitors to the festival. As well postcards will be handed out. Each card contains information on how consumers can connect with the professional members of LO. The LO exhibit will also showcase the amazing community work that LO chapters offer to communities across Ontario.

The branches of the tree direct visitors to all points of the compass where Landscape Ontario chapters feature recent community projects. Every chapter will have ‘pockets’ in this large garden to help show interesting pictures and vignettes of the members’ amazing community work. Charlie Dobbin, horticultural director of Canada Blooms (see cover photo), has been busy preparing the plants that will be displayed at the many gardens at the Canada Blooms. The painstaking task of forcing blooms has come under the guidance of Dobbin for the past five years. With numerous volunteers, the plants are cared for and then delivered to the garden builders at the convention centre, all in time for Canada’s celebration of horticulture from March 18 to 22.

Landscapers await clarification on renovation tax credit rules Many questions remain for members of the landscape industry as to the specifics of the Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC) announced in the federal government’s economic budget of Jan. 31. The Canadian Nursery and Landscape Association (CNLA) held a conference call on Mar. 2nd with members of a action group that includes, Vic Krahn CHT, chair of CNLA’s Political Action Committee, Michael Murray, CNLA past president, Victor Santacruz, CNLA’s executive director, Werner Knittel, BCLNA executive director, Joe Salemi and Allan Dennis, representing Landscape Ontario. The season is about to begin for landscapers and some clarity is required immediately from the government on the rules for the tax credit. Since the plan was announced by finance minister Jim Flaherty in January, the landscape industry have been unable to find answers to questions, such as if the purchase and installation of plant material (ie. trees and shrubs), landscape irrigation, outdoor lighting, ponds, and pools would be considered eligible. Early March news reports revealed that the tax cut plan is so complicated that finance officials couldn’t get legislation ready to include it in the first budget implementation bill that made its way through Parliament. It has been announced that the second bill won’t be introduced until the fall.

The consensus of those participating in the telephone conference is that an answer is required from the finance minister by Mar. 16. If an answer is not been received at that time, press releases from both CNLA and provincial associations will be sent demanding answers. As well the landscape associations will ally with counterpart building trade associations to pressure the government for concrete answers on the tax credit. All that has been announced is that eligible home renovation expenditures for work performed, or goods acquired, are those between Jan. 27, 2009 and Feb. 1, 2010. A 15 per cent credit may be claimed on the portion of eligible expenditures exceeding $1,000, but not more than $10,000, meaning that the maximum tax credit is $1,350. Properties eligible for the HRTC include houses, cottages and condominium units that are owned for personal use. Expenses such as labour, building permits, equipment rentals, professional services and incidentals are also eligible. Do-ityourself labour is not eligible for the tax credit. To date, the government has announced the HRTC eligible and ineligible expenditures are: Eligible Projects • Building an addition, deck, fence or retaining wall • Painting the interior or exterior of a house • Resurfacing a driveway

• Laying new sod Ineligible Projects • Purchase of tools • Maintenance contracts such as furnace cleaning, snow removal, lawn care, pool cleaning, etc. Calls to Canada Revenue by both CNLA and Landscape Ontario have failed to result in any clarification on the specifics of the tax credit. Promises from ministry officials to call back to clarify if homeowners may claim that trees and perennials, irrigation and lighting systems, decks, pools, ponds, walkways are included in the tax credit plan never materialized. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is quoted as saying that nobody should worry that they won’t get credit for renovations done before the legislation passes. He is reported to have said, “The legislative changes needed for the tax credit are complex and were not included in the first budget implementation bill that is currently making its way through Parliament.” Opposition MPs have noted that the present government will face at least three more confidence motions tied to the budget before the fall, which any one of could lead to the government’s defeat. Landscape Ontario and CNLA plan to release recommendations for members by Mar. 16.

HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009 11

OMAFRA TURF REPORT

The good and the bad of winter 2009 By Pam Charbonneau OMAFRA turf specialist

“The ample snowfall and lack of an ice layer means that there will probably be very little winter injury to turf come spring time.”

et’s try to move our attention away from the Cosmetic Pesticide Ban Act for a few moments and talk about what has been good and bad about the winter of 2009. What has been good? Fall temperatures fell slowly with lots of sunshine, allowing for good hardening off of the turfgrass plants. In addition, the summer of 2008 was one of the wettest on record and turf looked very good all season long and in good shape going into the winter. The ample snowfall and lack of an ice layer means that there will probably be very little winter injury to turf come spring time. The persistent snow cover means there was no chance for winter desiccation this year. Winters with very little snow cover give the wind a chance to draw the moisture out of the exposed blades of grass which leads to a loss of water and eventual turf thinning and death.

And, the snow cover was not in place long enough to result in grey snow mould damage this coming spring. What has been bad? The turf insects that over-winter under the cover of snow have been nicely insulated since midNovember, even though we had some very cold temperatures earlier this winter. Under the snow, temperatures consistently hovered around 0º C and this is a good temperature for winter survival of insects. So far the predicted survival

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12 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009

of insects like hairy chinch bug and bluegrass billbug has probably been good. We are losing the snow cover right now (mid-February) but if we get some plunging temperatures, this could kill off some of the over-wintering insects and could lead to some winter injury. The relatively long period of snow cover so far has meant that pink snow mould has been actively growing on turf for a good 60 days. This could lead to some lawn snow mould damage, especially in areas where the snow is piled along driveways and roadsides. The relatively long period of snow cover provided ample time for voles to scurry under the snow, eating away to form grass runways in the turf. During the mid-winter snow melt, there were lots of leatherjackets up in the turf canopy. So far their winter survival looks good and spring feeding could come early. Pam Charbonneau can be reached at 519-824-4120, ext. 52597, or by e-mail at pamela.charbonneau@on.ca.

Sipkens Nurseries Ltd.

Proudly growing fine perennials in Wyoming, Ontario for over 21 years • Over 900 varieties of perennials • Many unique and hard to find varieties • Available in 9 cm, 1 gal. and 2 gal. pots • Great fern and ornamental grass section, plus tropical vines, hardy vines and clematis • Herbs in 9 cm pots, waterplants with large picture tags • Ornamental grasses in 50 cells for growing on (and contract growing) Phone: 866-843-0438 (sales) or 519-542-8353 Fax: 519-542-1079 Robert Schuijt (on the road sales): 519-827-0853 Catalogue at www.sipkensnurseries.com Current availability at: www.sipkensnurseries.com/reports Division of Sipkens Nurseries Ltd.

OMAFRA NURSERYLANDSCAPE REPORT

Weed competition By Jen Llewellyn OMAFRA nursery crops specialist

n this fast-paced age of multi-media communication and data-hungry users, sometimes we find ourselves rushing through information before we’ve had a chance to consider it fully. Imagine yourself at a conference in a sea of posters, coming upon one entitled: ‘Response to Light Quality as a Competitive Mechanism: Biomass Partitioning Associated With Shade Avoidance Characteristics in Glycine max L. Merr. (Soybean).’ Your eyes might glaze over momentarily, and you might take a deep breath and look at the pictures before you move on. But when you meet the intelligent young author, a graduate student named Emily Green-Tracewicz from the University of Guelph, you’ll find that this research may have some implications to ornamental crops. Everyone knows that plants respond to the reduced light levels that are the result of competition and shading from their weedy neighbours. Plants respond through stem elongation, altered flowering time and increased apical dominance in order to successfully complete their life cycle in amongst those weedy competitors. Because they shift their energy into shade avoidance-type growth, biomass allocation (e.g. yield of seeds in soybean) may be reduced. Even more significant, as in the case of ornamentals, plant morphology will change radically and undesirably. What was novel about Emily’s poster was the discussion of a recent theory: Plants are able to detect their competitors by not only reductions in light intensity but by perceiving differences in light quality. Plant tissue reflects a different quality of light (e.g. green light) than soil, and this reflectance can actually change the quality of light that influences plant growth (e.g. the red to far red light ratio). Essentially, the reflectance of weedy competitors reduces the amount of red light and therefore has a negative impact on photosynthesis of crop plants. Crop plants, like soybean, perceive these light quality differences and shift into “shade avoidance” mode, resulting in leggy growth that is very undesirable. The thing is, the competing plant (or weed) does not necessarily have to be shading the crop plant in order to be detected. The crop plant can actually detect weeds (in the case of this experiment, trimmed turfgrass) even when the weeds are well below the crop canopy (upward reflectance) and the root systems of the weeds are in a separate compartment. Not only did the crop plants exhibit the shade avoidance response under these conditions, there was a decrease in overall dry matter and they were developmentally delayed by 0.5-2 full trifoliate stages. The delay in development could have major implications for several crops. I wonder if these findings could have significance for ornamental plant propagation and production. Whether it’s a carpet of seedling bittercress, moss or liverworts, are we underestimating weed control in our propagation and production systems? Could our juvenile ornamental crops be detecting (what we think are) insignificant, low growing weed populations, and could these weed populations be negatively influencing the morphology, development and biomass allocation more than we know? Jen Llewellyn may be reached at 519-824-4120, ext. 52671, or by email at jennifer.llewellyn@ontario.ca. See her Nursery-Landscape Report: http://apps.omafra.gov.on.ca/scripts/english/crops/agriphone/ index.asp

Wholesale Availability List Shade and Ornamental Trees

Acer x freemanii: Armstrong, Jeffersred, Autumn Fantasy Acer platanoides: Columnar, Crimson King, Deborah, Drummondi, Emerald Queen, Fairview, Royal Red Acer pseudoplatanus Acer rubrum: Autumn Flame, Bowhall, Embers, Northwood, October Glory, Franksred, Sun Valley Delivery Acer saccharinum: Silver Queen and planting Acer saccharum: Commemoration, available Green Mountain, Majesty, Legacy Acer tataricum Acer truncatum x Acer plat. Keithsform, Warrenred Aesculus carnea Briotii, Glabra, Hippocastanum, Baumanii Amelanchier can: Tree/shrub, Ballerina, Grandiflora Autumn Brilliance Betula: platyphylla var. japonica Whitespire single/clump, Nigra single/clump Carpinus betulus: Fastigiata, Caroliniana Celtis occidentalis Cercis canadensis: Tree/shrub Fagus sylvatica: Cuprea, Pendula, Riversii, Rosea Marginata Fraxinus americana: Autumn Purple Manitou, Skyline, Nigra Fallgold Fraxinus penn: Bergeson, Cimmzamm, Marshall’s, Patmore, Summit Ginkgo biloba Gleditsia triacanthos: Shademaster, Skyline, Sunburst Juglans: Cinerea, Nigra, Regia Malus: Baccata, Columnaris, Dolgo, Eleyi, Everest, John Downie, Liset Malus: Madonna, Pink Spires, Profusion, Zumi Calocarpa, Red Splendor, Royal Beauty, Royalty, Sargentii Rosea, Snowdrift, White Angel, Zumi Calocarpa Platanus x acerifolia Bloodgood Populus tremuloides Prunus: serrulate Kwanzan, subhirtella Pendula Pyrus: calleryana Redspire, Glen’s Form Quercus: acutissima sawtooth, Bicolor, Coccinea, Imbricaria, Macrocarpa, Palustris, Robur Fastigiata, Rubra Sorbus: aucuparia Michred, Fastigiata, Pendula, Rossica, Thuringiaca Syringa: reticulata Ivory Silk Tilia: americana, Redmond, Cordata Greenspire, Glenleven Ulmus: americana, japonica x wilsoniana Morton Zelkova serrata Green Vase

We have these trees in mixed sizes, from 45 mm, some up to 200 mm or even up to 900 cm tall

Evergreen Trees

Please contact us for availability and a quote

Abies: balsamea Concolor, Fraseri Metasequoia glyptostroboides Picea: Abies, Glauca, Densata, Omorika, Pungens Glauca Pinus: leucodermis/var.heldreichii, Nigra, Strobus Pseudotsuga menziesii Thuja: occidentalis, Emerald, Fastigiata, Nigra, Wintergreen

We have these evergreens mixed sizes from 150 cm, some up to 800 cm tall

Stam Nurseries Inc. BURGESSVILLE, ON

Phone: (519) 424-3350 • Fax (519) 456-1659 E-mail: info@stamnurseries.com • www.mankar.ca

www.stamnurseries.com

HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009 13

Chapter News

Steve Fadi, left, and Gerd Hermanns were among those at Georgian’s Ski Day.

Over 10,000 people visited the London Homebuilders Association’s Lifestyles Show, where the London Chapter’s garden was a big hit.

London Chapter garden a big hit at annual Lifestyles show The feature garden created by members of LO’s London Chapter was a big hit with visitors to the London Homebuilders Association’s Lifestyle show in London, Ont., held from Jan. 23 to 25. The LO booth was popular, as consumers grabbed the how-to sheets and handy pamphlets that outlined the best methods to hire a contractor. The Green for Life logo was proudly displayed in the garden. Approximately 10,000 people attended the show. The London chapter took the opportunity to announce its Gardens of Distinction Tour, coming on July 11. The launch was well received by the hundreds who received the postcard. This is the second year that the London chapter has been involved in the show. A spe-

cial thank you goes to member Grant Harrison of Escape Outdoor Living Designs, who organized and installed the feature garden at the show, along with volunteer members Patrick J.Callon Landscape Design, Rural Roots Landscaping, PGS Landscape, Pete Vanderley’s Lawn Maintenance and Landscape Services and Sifton Properties. Gratitude also goes to the suppliers who donated material: Stratford Farm Equipment, Fisher Landscape and Golf Supplies, Permacon Paving, Custom Metal Creations, Van Horiks Greenhouses and Brycraft Gardens. And, a big thank you to board members who worked the booth throughout the weekend, answering questions and promoting LO. Without these volunteers and suppliers, the chapter would not be able to participate in the show. Next year’s display will be even bigger.

14 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009

Attendance triples at Ski Day The number of skiers taking part in this year’s Georgian Lakelands Chapter’s Ski Day set a new attendance record, with over three times as many LO members taking part this year compared to last. The high attendance was even more remarkable, considering the whiteouts and nasty road conditions for those driving to the Feb. 20 event at the Alpine Ski Club in Collingwood. This was the 12th annual Ski Day that skiers and snowboarders could enjoy the slopes, followed by food and socializing with fellow LO members. On the race course, Rob Vogel took the fastest run, with Ray Nyhuis taking first prize for the matched time and Claudia Baun accepting the award for being the most cautious skier. After the skiing, George Urvari of Oriole Landscaping spoke to the crowd about the economic climate and how to take advantage of it. The Chapter thanks Dufferin Aggregates and Beaver Valley Stone for sponsoring the trophies and for their ongoing support of LO chapters and their various events. Also, thank you to Atlas Block, United Rentals, Hino Tri Truck Centre, Sheridan Nurseries and Unilock for contributions to the prize table. There were many new faces this year and we thank everyone for participating in this great annual event. If you missed out this year, there is always next year! Bring your family and friends for this full day of fun and food.

keeping your chapter connected

GreenTrade Expo creates great enthusiasm An energetic crowd of 1,000 people filled the aisles of GreenTrade Expo on Feb. 18th in Ottawa. “There’s a positive energy today, a buzz in the air…the people here are feeling optimistic about the season ahead,” stated show chairman Bruce Morton, as the mid-day crowds flowed into Landsdowne Park. Visitors had a lot to see and do. There were more companies exhibiting than ever before, and that meant lots of new products and services on display. The coffee bar, sponsored by Twin Equipment, was at capacity all day, as old friends and new colleagues spent time talking and reconnecting. The day’s seminars were filled to overflowing, thanks to seminar area sponsor Connon Nurseries/NVK Holdings. At one point over 100 people waited in line for the complimentary lunch presented by the show lunch sponsors. Many thanks go out to B & T MacFarlane Ottawa, Donnelly Automotive Group, Gro-Bark (Ontario), Manotick Tree Movers, Ontario Regional Common Ground Alliance, Permacon Group and Petersen’s Turf Farms. Thanks also to our show bag sponsor Manderley Turf, and show guide sponsor Greely Sand and Gravel. This year the Ottawa Board of Directors brought in Leonard Lee to speak at the noon Profit Builders Lunch. “We are trying to help companies focus on being positive and proactive in the upcoming season,” said Bruce Morton. Lee talked about how he grew Lee Valley Tools, and how he weathered, changed and grew his company over many different

GreenTrade Expo had a record number of exhibitors this year.

economic cycles in the last 20 years. Lee then joined a panel discussion with prominent local industry people, Chris Burns of Clintar Ottawa, Darrell Kekanovich of Ritchie Feed and Seed and Bill Hamilton of Mountainview Golf and Athletic Turf Specialists. The goal of this event was to get people talking about how their companies will thrive during the next years. A few of the highlights of this discussion include: - refuse to participate in the recession - be proactive - stay on top of your business - the spoils are going to go to those who work the hardest and refuse to give up - refuse to give up

- do what you’ve been doing all along…just do it harder In short, do the things you should be doing anyway: advertise, watch costs, watch receivables, and network with others in the industry. Thanks go to all who participated. Funding for this project was provided in part by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), through the Agricultural Adaptation Council’s CanAdvance Program. Many thanks also go to the sponsors: Clintar Ottawa, Smith Petrie Carr and Scott Insurance Brokers and Turf Care. Watch for GreenTrade Expo 2010 when it takes place at Lansdowne Park, on Wed., Feb.17, 2010.

HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009 15

Hillen Nursery Inc Botanical Name

Vines - 1, 2, 3 gal.

Akebia quinata ‘Silver Bells’ Ampelopsis glandulosa ‘Elegans’ Aristolochia durior Campsis ‘Balboa Sunset’ Hydrangea anomala petiolaris Lonicera japonica ‘Halliana’ Lonicera X ‘Mandarin’’ Lonicera per. ‘Belgica Select’ Lonicera per. ‘Serotina’ Polygonum aubertii Parthenocissus quinq ‘Engelmannii Parthenocissus tri ‘Veitchii’

1 gal 2 gal 3 gal price price price

6.00 6.00

6.00 6.00 6.00

8.00 8.00

8.00 8.00 8.00 8.00

Evergreens - 1, 2, 3 gal. Azalea ‘Golden Hi Lights’ Azalea ‘Orchid Hi Lights’ Buxus microphylla Buxus semp. ‘Green Mound’ Buxus semp. ‘Green Gem’ Buxus ‘Green Mountain’ Buxus ‘Green Velvet’ Buxus micr.’Faulkner’ Chamaecyparis pis ‘Filifera Aurea Chamaecyparis pis ‘Aurea Sungold’ Cotoneaster adpressus ‘Compactus’ Cotoneaster ‘Coral Beauty’ Cotoneaster dammeri ‘Major’ Cotoneaster microphyllus Cotoneaster salicifolius ‘Repens’ Euonymus fortunei ‘Canadale Gold’ Euonymus fort.’Emerald Gaiety’ Euonymus fortunei ‘E.T.’ Euonymus fortunei ‘Emerald n Gold Euonymus fortunei ‘Goldtip’ Euonymus fortunei ‘Sunrise’ Euonymus fortunei ‘Sarcoxie’ Euonymus fortunei ‘Surespot’ Euonymus fortunei ‘Vegetus’ Ilex meserveae ‘Blue Prince’ Ilex meserveae ‘Blue Princess’ Juniperus media ‘Mint Julep’ Juniperus media ‘Pfitz.Compacta’ Juniperus procumbens nana Juniperus communis ‘Repanda’ Juniperus conferta’Blue Pacific’ Juniperus hor ‘Blue Horizon’ Juniperus hor ‘Blue Prince’ Juniperus hor ‘Icee Blue’ Juniperus hor ‘Andorra Compact’ Juniperus hor ‘Torquoise Spreader Juniperus hor ‘Wiltonii’ Juniperus hor ‘Yukon Belle’ Juniperus hor ‘Youngstown’ Juniperus sabina Juniperus squamata ‘Blue Carpet’

13.50 13.50 11.00 11.00 11.20 11.00 11.20

5.00 5.00 5.20 5.00 5.20 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00

5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 6.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00

11.00 11.00

7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00

11.00 11.00 9.00 9.00

11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 13.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00

Botanical Name Juniperus squamata ‘Blue Star’ Juniperus virginiana ‘Grey Owl’ Larix laricina Microbiota decussata Metasequoia glyptostroboides Myrica pensylvanica Picea abies Picea abies ‘Nidiformis’ Picea glauca Picea glauca ‘Conica’ Picea pungens ‘Baby Blue’ Picea glauca ‘Densata’ Picea omorika Picea pungens kiabob Pieris jap ‘Mountain Fire’ Pinus mugo mughes Rhododendron ‘Northern Starburst’ Rhododendron Aglo(PJM) Thuja occidentalis Thuja occidentalis ‘Brandon’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Danica’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Hetz Midget’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Little Giant’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Nigra’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Smaragd’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Wintergreen’ Thuja plicata ‘Spring Grove’ Tsuga canadensis Tsuga canadensis ‘Jeddeloh’ Tsuga canadensis ‘Pendula’ Taxus cuspidata ‘Aurescens’ Taxus cuspidata nana Taxus media ‘Densiformis’ Taxus media ‘Hicksii’ Taxus media ‘Hillii’ Taxus media ‘Wardii’ Yucca filamentosa Yucca flaccida ‘Golden Sword’

1 gal 2 gal 3 gal price price price 5.00 5.00 5.00

5.00

5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00

7.00

11.00 11.00

11.00 7.00 11.00 7.00 7.00 11.00 7.00 11.00 13.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 7.00 11.00 13.50 13.50 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00

Deciduous Shrubs - 1, 2, 3 gal Acanthopanax sieboldianus Acer campestre Acer ginnala Alnus rugosa Amelanchier laevis Aronia melanocarpa Aronia melanocarpa ‘Autumn Magic” Aronia melanocarpa ‘Viking’ Buddleja davidii ‘Black Knight’ Buddleja ‘Ellen’s Blue’ Buddleja davidii ‘Ile de France’ Buddleja davidii ‘Nanho Purple’ Buddleja davidii ‘Pink Delight’ Buddleja davidii ‘Petite Plum’ Buddleja davidii ‘Purple Prince’

16 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - MaRCH 15, 2009

7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00

8.00

Botanical Name Buddleja davidii ‘Royal Red’ Buddleja davidii ‘White Profusion Berberis thunbergi’Rose Glow’ Betula papyrifera Caryopteris cland. ‘Dark Knight’ Cephalanthus occidentalis Cercis canadensis Cercidiphyllum japonicum Chaenomeles speciosa ‘Nivalis’ Chaenomeles superba’Texas Scarlet Clethra alnifolia ‘Paniculatum’ Clethra alnifolia ‘Pink Spire’ Cornus alternifolia Cornus alba ‘Elegantissima’ Cornus alba ‘Ivory Halo’ Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’ Cornus amomum Cornus kousa chinensis Cornus racemosa Cornus stolonifera (sericea) Cornus stolonifera ‘Bud’s Yellow’ Cornus stolonifera ‘Kelseyi’ Corylus avelana Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’ Corylus avellana ‘Red Majestic’ Cotinus coggygria’Royal Purple’ Cotoneaster acutifolius Cotoneaster horizontalis Diervilla lonicera Deutzia crenata ‘Nikko’ Deutzia gracilis Deutzia x ‘Strawberry Field’ Euonymus alatus ‘Compactus’ Fagus sylvatica ‘Purpurea’ Forsythia X int. ‘Goldtide’ Forsythia int.’Lynwood’ Forsythia ‘Northern Gold’ Forsythia ‘Kumson’ Forsythia ovata ‘Ottawa’ Hibiscus syr.’White Chiffon’ Hydrangea arbor. ‘Annabelle’ Hydrangea macroph.’Forever Pink Hydrangea macroph.’Nikko Blue’ Hydrangea’Endless Summer Blushing Hydrangea mac.’Endless Summer’ Hydrangea macroph.’Glowing Embers Hydrangea macroph.’Merritt’s Beau Hydrangea macr’Princess Beatrix’ Hydrangea macroph.’Penny Mac’ Hydrangea pan. ‘Grandiflora’ Hydrangea pan. ‘Kyushu’ Hydrangea pan. ‘Little Lamb’ Hydrangea pan.’Limelight’ Hydrangea pan.’Pinky Winky’ Hydrangea pan. ‘Tardiva’ Hydrangea serrata ‘Bluebird’ Hydrangea serrata ‘Little Geisha’ Hamamelis virginiana

1 gal 2 gal 3 gal price price price 7.00 7.00 6.00 9.50 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.45 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 16.00 17.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 5.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 5.00 8.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 5.60 7.00 7.00 7.00 14.00 14.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.30 7.00 7.00 7.60 7.60 7.60 7.00 7.00 7.60 7.00

8.00 8.00

8.00

9.00

8.00

Many More Cultivars and sizes available

Botanical Name Ilex verticilata Ilex vert.’Afterglow’F Ilex vert.’Winterred’F Ilex vert.’Southern Gentleman’M Kolkwitzia amab ‘Pink Cloud’ Kerria japonica ‘Pleniflora’ Lonicera tatarica ‘Arnold Red’ Lonicera xylost.’Clavey’s Dwarf’ Lonicera xylost.’Emerald Mound’ Magnolia loebneri ‘Leonard Messel Magnolia stellata ‘Royal Star’ Philadelphus coronarius ‘Aureus’ Philadelphus ‘Innocence’ Philadelphus ‘Natchez’ Philadelphus schrenkii ‘Snowbelle Philadelphus ‘Minn.Snowflake Dwar Physocarpus opulifolius Physocarpus opulifolius’Coppertin Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Diabolo’ Physocarpus opulifolius’Dart’sGol Physocarpos opulifolius ‘Luteus’ Physocarpus opulifolius’Summer Wi Populus tremuloides Prunus cistena Prunus virginiana Potentilla frut ‘Abbotswood’ Potentilla frut ‘Cor.Triumph’ Potentilla frut ‘Dakota Sunrise’ Potentilla ferrari ‘Gold Drop’ Potentilla frut ‘Goldstar’ Potentilla frut ‘Pink Beauty’ Potentilla frut ‘Tangerine’ Quercus bicolor Quercus robus ‘Fastigiata’ Quercus rubra Ribes alpinum Ribes aureum Rosa Bonica Rosa Carolina Rosa Henry Kelsey Rosa X ‘J P Connell’(ex) Rosa ‘Pavement Scarlet’ Rosa rugosa Rosa rugosa ‘Hansa’ Rosa x ‘Champlain’ Rosa X ‘The Fairy’ Rubus odoratus Rhus aromatica Rhus aromatica ‘Low Grow’ Rhus typhina Salix bebbiana Salix discolor Salix eriocephala Salix exigua Salix gracilis ‘Purpurea Nana’ Salix integra ‘Flamingo’ Salix integra ‘Hakuro-nashiki’ Salix matsudana ‘Tortuosa’

1 gal 2 gal 3 gal price price price 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00

5.00

7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.85 7.60 7.00 7.00 7.85 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.50 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00

11.00 11.00

8.60

8.00

Botanical Name Salix nigra Sambucus canadensis Sambucus canadensis ‘Aurea’ Symphoricarpos chenaultii ‘Hancoc Spiraea alba Spiraea arguta Spiraea bumalda ‘Anthony Waterer’ Spiraea bumalda ‘Crispa’ Spiraea bumalda ‘Froebelii’ Spiraea bumalda ‘Goldflame’ Spiraea betulifolia ‘Tor’ Spiraea fritschiana Spiraea japonica ‘Alpina’ Spiraea japonica ‘Dakota Goldchar Spiraea japonica ‘Dart’s Red’ Spiraea japonica ‘Goldmound’ Spiraea japonica ‘Golden Princess Spiraea japonica ‘Little Princess Spiraea japonica ‘Magic Carpet’ Spiraea japonica ‘Manon’ Spiraea japonica ‘Neon Flash’ Spiraea japonica ‘Shirobana’ Spiraea japonica ‘White Gold’ Spirea tomentosa Spiraea vanhouttei Sorbaria aitchisonii Sorbaria sorbifolia Sorbaria sorbifolia ‘Sem’ Syringa hyac. ‘Pocahontas’ Syringa meyeri ‘Palibin’ Syringa patula ‘Miss Kim’ Syringa vulgaris Syringa vulgaris ‘Beauty of Mosco Syringa vulgaris ‘Monge’ Syringa vulgaris ‘Sensation’ Tilia cordata Tamarix pentandra Viburnum dent.’Chicago Lustre’ Viburnum ‘Emerald Triumph’ Viburnum lantana Viburnum lentago Viburnum opulus ‘Nanum’ Viburnum recognitum/dentatum Viburnum trilobum ‘Bailey Compact Viburnum trilobum ‘Compactum’ Weigela florida ‘Alexandra’ Weigela ‘Elvira’ Weigela florida ‘French Lace’ Weigela florida ‘Minuet’ Weigela florida ‘Purpurea Nana’ Weigela florida ‘Rumba’ Weigela florida ‘Victoria’ Weigela florida ‘Nana Variegata’ Weigela ‘Red Prince’ Weigela ‘Polka’

1 gal 2 gal 3 gal price price price

5.00

7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.25 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.60 7.60 7.60 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00

8.00

8.00 8.00

Botanical Name

Evergreens - 5 gal.

5 gal price

Chamaecyparis nootk ‘Green Arrow’ Chamaecyparis nootkatensis’Pendula’ Juniperus chinensis ‘Spartan’ Juniperus scop. ‘Blue Haven’ Larix laricina Metasequoia glyptostroboides Metasequoia glyp. ‘Goldrush’ Picea abies ‘Acrocona’ Picea glauca ‘Conica’ Pinus mugo mugo Thuja occidentalis ‘Brandon’ Thuja plicata ‘Green Giant’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Holmstrup’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Little Giant’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Nigra’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Smaragd’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Wintergreen’ Tsuga canadensis

36.00 36.00 19.00 16.00 17.00 25.00 40.00 35.00 28.00 19.00 19.00 19.00 19.00 19.00 19.00 19.00 19.00 33.00

Deciduous Shrubs - 5 gal.

8.00

8.00 8.00 8.00

Acer palmatum’Bloodgood’ Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum Acer palmatum ‘Garnet’ Acer rubrum Cercis canadensis Cotinus coggygria’Royal Purple’ Fagus sylvatica ‘Purpurea’ Hydrangea mac.’Endless Summer’ Hydrangea pan. ‘Compacta’ Hydrangea pan. ‘Grandiflora’ Hydrangea pan. ‘Kyushu’ Hydrangea pan.’Limelight’ Magnolia loebneri ‘Leonard Messel’ Magnolia ‘Susan’ Magnolia stellata ‘Royal Star’ Populus tremuloides Quercus robur ‘Fastigiata’ Spiraea bumalda ‘Flaming Mound’ Spiraea bumalda ‘Goldflame’ Syringa meyeri ‘Palibin’ Syringa prestoniae ‘Donald Wyman’ Syringa pres’James Macfarlane Tilia cordata Viburnum ‘Emerald Triumph’ Viburnum trilobum ‘Compactum’

Botanical Name

Evergreens - 15 gal. Chamaecyparis nootkatensis’Pendula’ Metasequoia glyptostroboides Thuja occidentalis ‘Brandon’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Nigra’ Thuja occidentalis ‘Wintergreen’ Thuja plicata ‘Spring Grove’

51.00 51.00 51.00 25.00 19.00 18.00 35.00 21.70 17.00 17.00 17.00 17.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 16.00 25.00 13.00 13.00 16.00 16.00 16.00 17.00 18.00 16.00

15 gal price 49.00 41.00 41.00 41.00 41.00 41.00

RR 2, Mount Brydges, ON N0L 1W0 Tel: 519-264-9057 • Fax: 519-264-1337 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - MaRCH 15, 2009 17

Congress 2009 best booth awards On the show’s first day, booth award winners were announced in seven different categories:

Best promotion award: New Roads National Leasing

Best Booth 200 square feet or less (excluding heavy equipment) Aquascape

Best Booth 201-400 square feet (excluding heavy equipment) Sheridan Nurseries

Best Booth over 400 square feet (excluding heavy equipment) Santerra Stonecraft

Best Booth (small equipment) The Mojack

Best Booth (heavy equipment) Strongco Equipment

Best in Show Envirobond Products

From left; Brian Lofgren, Congress chairman, John Gilliland, national sales manger, Kubota Canada, Leon Denbok, president of Denbok Landscaping and Design, and his foreman Scott Brodeur, who won the pre-registration prize, a Kubota RTV 500, and Paul Day, Congress show manager.

Winkelmolen Nursery Ltd.

For Bareroot and Container Grown Trees • Native • Shade • Ornamental 148 Lynden Road, P.O. Box 190 Lynden, Ontario L0R 1T0 Tel: 519-647-3912 • Fax: 519-647-3720 www.winkelmolen.com 18 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009

LO receives good press Dan Clost is a LO member who writes a weekly column, The Good Earth, for The Shield EMC group of newspapers. His recent column contained some positive words after visiting Congress 2009. A founding member of the Upper Canada Chapter, Clost has been treasurer, newsletter publisher, and served on the education committee. Currently his LO volunteer work is judging at the Kemptville site for CHT testing. He is the nursery supervisor and trade accounts supervisor for Connon Nurseries, CBV at the Trenton site. With Dan’s permission we re-print his column on the pages of Horticulture Review. Recently, I spent three days at Landscape Ontario’s Congress, the best horticulture trade show in Canada. It is held at the Toronto Congress Centre drawing in more than 12,000 visitors who view 600 exhibits, participate in more than 50 seminars, check out close to 250 new products and learn a bit in the Green Forum. We also celebrate our members with an Awards of Excellence ceremony, take care of business with the AGM (which can be a lively session especially when you consider the members are independent business owners accustomed to making decisions with a consensus of one), let our hair down at Tailgate, meet our friends, and most important—learn. If you’re a working member of the green trade and you didn’t go to this show, make a note in your daytimer to be there in 2010. For you media types who write about gardening, same advice. You will see, first-hand, what the

sharp edge of the green trade shovel is digging into. Tie that in with the other Landscape Ontario (LO) trade show, Garden Expo, where the retail trade meets to decide what will be offered to the public and you’ll be many steps ahead of your journalist counterparts. Visit yet one more LO show, Canada Blooms, and you get a synopsis of the entire year before it happens. Why do I feel it important to tell you this, Gentle Reader? First and foremost, it is essential that you understand that Landscape Ontario Horticultural Trades Association is a volunteerrun organization. Currently we have more than 2,300 members; it’s the largest trade association of its kind on the entire planet. Its mission is to be the leader in representing, promoting and fostering a favourable environment for the advancement of the horticultural industry in Ontario. What that translates to is the members have decided to work together to improve all aspects of the business so that everyone benefits, especially homeowners. So when you see a landscaper’s truck with the LO logo on it, you know you have a dedicated professional who is working to improve his or her industry. They have voluntarily agreed to conduct themselves following a specific Code of Ethics. Second, this show brings together all the elements of horticulture in one place. Want to know what sort of plants your local nursery will have? All of the big players in the growing side are there: stone products, including the newest manufactured offerings. Tons of it. How green is the greenest industry? A complete section of

Gelderman and Ziraldo honoured LO gave out two of its most prestigious awards at Congress 2009. Landscape Ontario’s Honourary Life award went to Hank Gelderman of Jan Gelderman Landscaping in Waterdown. Reserved for a select few who have been life-long supporters and contributors to the association and industry, this year’s winner is a role model and mentor to hundreds. He has served on countless committees, boards, chapter and sector groups and task forces. Hank Gelderman exemplifies professionalism and integrity, and his Hank Gelderman strong faith and caring

the show and a separate stage were dedicated to this. A few years ago, LO was doing some soul searching trying to determine its place in the grand scheme of things. One of the members said something along the lines that when LO is important to me in my community, then it is relevant. Well, GR, Quinte West shows that to be true. During the AGM’s “I like us” slide show highlighting the important events of 2008, Tammy and Dan of Quinte Footcare Clinic were up on the big screen accepting the Commercial Beautification Award. Our area has more than 50 accredited members of LO (through the Upper Canada Chapter) not counting those who are allied members of the trade. LO is relevant to us (you and me) and it is to our benefit that we actively seek out those members when the occasion calls. Do I, personally, agree with all of the stances that LO takes? No, I don’t. This is a big industry with many perspectives and ideologies represented, which of course can make for some vigorous meetings. However, as you might have worked out, I truly believe it to be a proper trades association that will only bring benefits to us all.

B&B Landscape Evergreens   

8-14’

nature are a blessing for those fortunate enough to know him. The Trillium Award is reserved for candidates who, through innovation, introduce a product, service, program or activity that has made a considerable impact and provided substantial benefits to our industry and to society. This year’s recipient was Donald Ziraldo for Donald Ziraldo the Vineland Research and Innovation Centre, which focuses on accelerating and commercializing research and innovation to enhance prosperity for the public and industry.

Maple Ridge Evergreens Posen, Michigan

(989) 356-4807

HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009 19

Co-owner of Willowbrook Nurseries passes away Jocelyn Catherine (Voortman) Langendoen, who with her husband John started Willowbrook Nurseries in 1979, passed away after a battle with cancer on Jan. 22, in her 53rd year at the Welland General Hospital. Jocelyn’s position as secretary-treasurer of the company was instrumental to its success. Jocelyn and John could be found together at many industry functions all across North America. She was the loving wife of John for 33 years and beloved mother of Christopher (Tiffany) Langendoen, Darryl Robert

Langendoen and Bradley Jon Langendoen and grandmother of Mackenzie, Cole, Brady, and Bo Daniel. Jocelyn Langendoen made friends wherever she went and all miss her humour, wit and the loving and caring heart she had for others. Her walk throughout her entire life was with the Lord and she never doubted that her earthly reward would be in heaven with her risen Savior, Jesus Christ. Langendoen was involved in many ministry opportunities in the North American Christian Reformed Church denomination and in the local com-

munity. Since early September 2008, the family kept a blog on Jocelyn’s progress, www.jocelynlangendoen.blogspot.com for all to follow along. Donations can be made to Rose City Kids (www.rosecitykids. com/) a children’s ministry program in Welland, Ont., which Jocelyn helped start and/or to Christian Reformed World Missions (http://www.crcna.org/pages/crwm.cfm) where Jocelyn served as a board member.

Passionate horticulturist passes

Corrections

Career horticulturist and long-time Landscape Ontario member Melanie Karleen Hicks passed away on Feb. 15, at the age of 40. Hicks was an independent sales representative for Leo Gentry Wholesale Nursery of Damascus, Ore., in the Ontario and Quebec territory. She was formerly employed by Kato’s Nursery, Abbotsford, B.C., Kobes Nursery, Bowmanville, Ont., Angelo’s Garden

In the Feb. 15, edition of Horticulture Review, the article on Congress 2009 informed readers that Beth Edney was the designers’ conference organizer, when in fact it was Tony Lombardi. As well, the list of sponsors of Congress 2009 should have included Chrysler Canada.

Centre, Concord, Ont. and PAO Horticultural, Hornby, Ont. She is remembered for her exuberant and infectious personality and passion for horticulture. The funeral took place on Sat., Feb. 28. A memorial gathering in her honour was held on Sun., Mar. 8th, in the Garden Hall at the Toronto Botanical Garden.

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20 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - MaRCH 15, 2009

Stellar line-up of speakers at Growers Short Course Over 180 nursery growers turned up at the Royal Botanical Gardens on Feb 11, for LO’s annual Growers Short Course. The audience listened to 17 presentations during the day-long event, as the job of growing plants becomes more technical and more demanding each year. This year’s featured speaker was Dr. Hannah Mathers of the Vineland Research and Innovation Centre. Mathers made two presentations, one on Site Preparation for Field Nurseries and the other covered Sustainable Nursery Production. Acknowledging that the issue of sustainability has several definitions, Mathers focused her talk on promoting more environment friendly substrates, using cover crops “the backbone of any

cropping system that seeks to be sustainable,” using fewer mineral fertilizers, reducing nutrient leachates, as well as applying fewer and safer pesticides. Research articles by Mathers can be found at www.basicgreen.osu.edu, under ‘Articles’ then click on ‘Out and About.’ Other speakers included Philip Careless of the University of Guelph on an interesting biosurveillance technique to detect the presence of emerald ash borers before symptoms become apparent in trees, Theo Blom, also of the U. of G., discussing managing irrigation water with high salts and Donna Speranzini on Great Lakes water quality and nurseries. Short presentations by 16 other speakers rounded out the day, finishing up

with the popular Growers’ Good Idea Sessions. At lunch, OMAFRA’s Jen Llewellyn thanked Dr. Glen Lumis for his work organizing and arranging the speaker list for the Short Course for the last 30 years. Dr. Lumis is stepping down as the primary organizer of the Short Course. The LO Growers Group extends its thanks to Gro-Bark for sponsoring the Short Course, as well as the companies that set up exhibit booths at the event: Agrium Advanced Technologies, ASB Greenworld, BioFert, Engage Agro Corp. and Plant Products. Mark your calendars for next year’s Growers Short Course, on Feb. 10, at the Royal Botanical Gardens.

Failing health claims industry pioneer Minimum wage to go up 75 cents Ruth Berchtold, 79, passed away on Feb. 24 For over 40 years, Ruth Berchtold was a A 75-cent per hour increase in Ontario’s minimum wage will continue as planned at the end of March, despite the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) urging the province to cancel the increase, because of the poor condition of the economy. Labour Minister Peter Fonseca says the government consulted businesses before implementing a schedule to increase the minimum wage each year. The labour minister is quoted as saying, the Liberal government felt that was the fair way to proceed after the Conservatives froze the minimum wage for nine years. “The increase of the minimum wage is one of the cornerstones of the government’s poverty reduction strategy,” said Fonseca. “It will help those vulnerable workers in Ontario make a little bit more money and help them out with their quality of life.” The CFIB had asked the government to scrap the plan to boost the minimum wage to $9.50 an hour on March 31. “The last thing small companies need is another increase in the cost of doing business,” said CFIB’s Ontario Director Satinder Chera. Ontario has one of the highest minimum wages in Canada, which is second only to Nunavut. Since 2004, the provincial government has increased the minimum wage by 28 per cent. “If the government is serious about wanting to improve the standard of living for those earning the lowest wages, they could increase the amount that workers can earn tax free. Letting people keep more of their money would be much more effective and wouldn’t compromise small business’s ability to grow and create jobs,” concluded Chera.

at Brampton Civic Hospital in the company of her loving family, after a courageous yearlong battle with failing health. Growing up in Switzerland, the eldest of six children, she married John Berchtold in 1954. Embracing his dream, she left friends and family to join him in Canada to start a new life. They settled in the Brampton area. With good friend and partner Alfred Knecht, the Berchtolds built Knecht & Berchtold, an internationally recognized landscape design and site furnishings company.

valued member of St. Paul’s United Church, in Brampton. In keeping with the spirit of the UCW, she lived generously, and gave joyfully. Retirement freed her to devote more time to her growing family and interests. Her grandchildren were her pride and joy. John and Ruth Berchtold were married for over 50 years. They had three children and seven grandchildren. The funeral was held on Mar. 2 at St. Paul’s United. A private cremation followed. Memories and condolences may be made online to ruth.berchtold@wardfh.com.

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Major report is released on economic profile of Ontario turfgrass industry A new 148 page report on the Ontario turfgrass industry reveals some impressive numbers for the lawncare sector. Those attending the annual Ontario Turfgrass Symposium on Feb. 18, at the University of Guelph, heard principal researcher Dr. Glenn Fox announce the completion of the Economic Profile of the Ontario Turfgrass Industry. He explained the ins and outs of compiling the report to the nearly 300 people in attendance. The Ontario turfgrass industry consists of golf courses, municipal parks, sod farms, lawncare companies and sports fields. Prior to this project, the most recent economic profile of the Ontario turfgrass industry was conducted for 1982. The Ontario Turfgrass Research Foundation commissioned the latest study, by the research team, consisting of Professors Glenn Fox, Katerina Jordan, and Eric Lyons and Research Associate Kate Tsiplova, Turfgrass is a $2.61 billion industry The Ontario turfgrass industry’s total gross revenue was $2.61 billion in 2007. Of that total, lawncare companies in Ontario earned $1.26 billion in 2007 from providing turfgrass maintenance services, making this sector the largest. About 70.9 per cent of lawn care companies’ revenue was attributed to services provided to Ontario households, approximately $891 million. “In comparison, the total Ontario farm value of grains and oilseeds was $2.34 billion in 2007,” said Fox. The calculated gross sales of turfgrass services and productions was $392 million in 1982. According to the survey, the total revenue from sod farms was $108 million, while

the gross revenue of Ontario golf courses in 2007 was $1.25 billion. “We estimated that sod farms, golf courses, households, municipalities, universities and the Ontario Ministry of Transportation maintained 390,000 acres of turfgrass in 2007. Ontario households had the largest share of the total area by maintaining 122,000 acres in 2007. Ontario golf courses had the second largest share with 98,600 acres and Ontario municipalities maintained 93,200 acres of turfgrass,” said Fox. Lawncare largest employer Employment numbers also reveal the lawncare sector’s dominance. The entire Ontario turfgrass industry employed nearly 33,000 year round full-time equivalent employees in 2007, with lawncare companies having the most employees in the turfgrass industry with just less than 21,000 year round full-time equivalent employees. The most common type of employees was seasonal full-time. The industry also employed a significant number of students. The Ontario turfgrass industry spent $360 million on equipment. In comparison, in 1982 the Ontario turfgrass industry spent $497 million on turfgrass maintenance, including equipment purchases. In 2006, an average Ontario household spent $10.40 and $36.61 on pesticides and fertilizer/soils/soil conditioners, respectively. Province-wide, Ontario households spent $49.3 and $173 million on pesticides and fertilizer/soils/soil conditioners, respectively. The survey shows that all industry segments had a positive outlook on the future of their turfgrass operations. Respondents indicated that they expect the size of their turf-

22 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009

grass operation to either increase somewhat or remain stable over the next five to ten years. A member of the audience later observed that the figures could be quite different if the survey was conducted this year. “The Cosmetic Pesticides Ban Act impacts the turfgrass industry considerably, with lawncare companies being affected the most. We found that lawn care respondents identified pesticide use policies and public perception of the turfgrass industry as having a negative effect on the future growth of their turfgrass operations,” states the report. Only lawncare professionals indicated that they view pesticide policies as having a negative effect on the expansion of their turfgrass operation. “The Act affects all residential, industrial, commercial and institution properties including parks, school yards, cemeteries and rights-of-way. Considering that 70.9 per cent of an average lawn company’s customers are residential properties that use pesticides for cosmetic purposes, lawncare companies are likely to be affected most by this ban. Only some lawn care companies mentioned that there are future business opportunities in the form of alternative pest control measures and other turf maintenance solutions that could capitalize on the sustainability trend. Fox stated, “The purpose of this study was to develop an economic profile of the Ontario turfgrass industry and to identify strategic policy and research issues that face the industry. The lack of recent studies on the economic profile of the Ontario turfgrass industry was the motivation behind this research. We developed and distributed surveys to such industry segments, as golf courses, sod farms, parks and recreation facilities, and lawncare companies. We used Statistics Canada data and other secondary data sources for households, sod farms, provincial roads and highways and seed companies. “Contraction factors for the Ontario turfgrass industry included pesticide regulations, water use policies, cost of inputs, and availability of qualified labour. Opportunities for expansion included population growth and urbanization, retirement trends, and new turfgrass species and varieties,” said Fox. The entire 148 page report may be viewed on the Landscape Ontario website at www.horttrades.com. Click on the News menu, and the turfgrass report is listed there.

Study shows landscaping is great investment Recently LO’s first vice-president Tom Intven, president of Canadale Nurseries in St. Thomas, attended the ANLA Management Clinic in Louisville, Kentucky. During the clinic, he sat in on a session presented by Dr. Charlie Hall, ‘Adaptation and Survival Strategies in Turbulent Times.’ Hall grew up in the nursery business in North Carolina and went on to become an economist specializing in the green industry. He regularly pontificates his thoughts and theories on his blog – ellisonchair.blogspot.com – entitled Making Cents of Green Industry Economics. Part of his presentation was on a study by a multi-state research committee regarding the effects that landscaping has on the perceived value of homes. “There is great information here for all sectors of our industry, especially landscape contractors, garden centres and growers. Let’s not miss this opportunity to tell our potential customers that their investment in plants and landscaping has great return on investment. In fact, landscaping is the BEST investment in home improvement for increasing the value (and size) over time; better than any other type of renovation,” says Intven. Hall’s basic premise is that we should be shouting to all of our customers and potential customers the tremendous positive effects that sophisticated landscaping adds to the value of homes. Studies have shown that landscaping yields as much as $4 return for every $1 invested. “He also told us his personal experience of how investing in landscaping paid off big for him. He recently had to move, and bought the book How to Sell Your House in Five Days. One of the suggestions in the book was to invest in colour landscaping in the foundation planting for increased curb appeal,” said Intven. Hall went

NISCO: THE LANDSCAPE INDUSTRY LEASE SPECIALISTS Committed to professionalism

out and bought $400 worth of annuals and perennials, increased the size of his beds in front of his home, making them more curvilinear, and planted them in a big impact design. Everyone who came to visit his home commented on how beautiful his landscaping was. He sold his home on day five. Upon returning home, Intven logged on to Hall’s blog and found the article, Value of Landscaping. With permission from Dr. Hall, we reprint some of the article: “…now is the time for the industry to promote the value that landscaping provides in increasing perceived real estate values. A recent study by the S-1021 multi-state research committee provided key findings regarding the effects that landscape design sophistication, plant size, and diversity of plant material has on consumer perceptions of home value. “Design sophistication accounted for 42 per cent of the value added to the home, so clearly doing more than foundation plantings yields a greater return. Plant size accounted for 36 per cent of the value added to the home, so larger plantings translate into greater value. Diverse plant material accounted for 22 per cent of the value added to the home, so it appears that having many large numbers of different plants was not as important. “Adding one or two island beds (increasing design sophistication) can alone add two per cent to the perceived value of the home. Although a small investment (less than $250), colourful annuals and perennials added nearly $1,000 to home value; returning 400 per cent on the investment. “Moving from the least valued landscape to the most valued landscape, perceived home value increased, on average 8.6 per cent across all states included in the study.

“A landscape is a good investment, yielding a greater than $1 return in home value for every $1 invested in the landscape. Landscapes are one of the only home improvements that increase in value (and size) over time. Other renovations (e.g. bathroom, kitchen) typically yield less of a return than the amount invested. Clearly, installing more than foundation plantings yields a greater return for consumers. Curvilinear beds are effective design elements in adding value to the home.”

One-day format success for OPA The Ontario Parks Association (OPA) celebrated its 53rd annual Explorations trade show and conference on Feb. 4, at the Hamilton Convention Centre. Bill Slute, OPA president, and Fred Eisenberger, the mayor of Hamilton, welcomed attendees to the show. Both men were pleased to note that over 31 municipalities had sent staff to the show. Slute explained that show organizers tried a new one-day format this year, explaining that due to municipal cutbacks, many organizations couldn’t afford to send staff to a show for two days. The seminars were well received by all attendees anxious to gather information and share knowledge about operating public spaces with the realities of a new economy and lack of pest control products. The most popular seminar was the session on Bill 64, the Cosmetic Pesticides Ban Act 2008, although there were more questions raised than answers provided.

Nisco National Leasing has the vehicle you need: • • • • •

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An associate member of Landscape Ontario

Laura Catalano is available to find the right equipment for your job — just call

1-888-634-9559 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009 23

CFIA confirms emerald ash borer present in the City of Hamilton The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) announced on Feb. 27 that it has confirmed the presence of the emerald ash borer (EAB) in the City of Hamilton. The infested trees are located in the Upper Wentworth Street and Concession Street area. The CFIA says it will carry out increased surveying of trees in the area to determine the extent of the infestation. Affected property own-

ers will be notified. Regulatory measures to control the spread of this pest will be based on information obtained through the surveys. Although there have been numerous finds of this pest in Ontario and one location in Quebec, the CFIA continues to work with its partners and stakeholders towards the goal of slowing its spread. The CFIA continues to emphasize that the

Report calls landscaping a growing industry A U.S. marketing firm, SBI (Specialists in Business Information), issued a report in December that states, “In residential and commercial markets, responsible landscaping is viewed as a financially and environmentally sound investment. The market is expected to grow 10 per cent in the next five years.” Increased awareness in both the public and private sectors of environmental issues is a major driver of landscape installations, making landscaping a source of aesthetic, ecological, and financial benefits. Expected growth areas include green landscape designs and installations that can reduce costs of heating, cooling, electric and water costs by

as much as 50 per cent. Green roofs are seeing increased residential demand. The ‘nesting’ and ‘staycation’ trends that evolved in the aftermath of 9/11 have resurged following the housing downturn. The growing trend of xeriscaping, a gardening approach that utilizes native vegetation, conserves water and is low-maintenance, is also mentioned in the report. “Landscape services is a growing industry with a lot of buzz about it right now,” said Shelley Carr, associate publisher for SBI. “The need for professionals to meet the demand in the next five years and all the opportunities in this market makes this an exciting industry to grow with.”

key challenge to limit the spread of this beetle is to get people to stop moving infested wood materials such as logs, branches, nursery stock, and chips to non-infested locations.

EAB area may expand The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is proposing to establish two large regulated areas within the province to combat the increasing number of EAB findings throughout Ontario. The first area is in the southwestern Ontario counties of Middlesex, Elgin and Lambton that will be added to the already regulated counties of Chatham-Kent and Essex. The proposed ministerial order will allow for movement of ash products among joining (contiguous) counties. As previous quarantine areas were established independently, movement between joined counties was prohibited. The second large quarantine area will include much of the GTA, including Halton, Peel, Durham, York and the City of Toronto. Again, ash products will be able to move freely within, but not out of, this regulated area. At press time, officials said the recommendation would be presented to the minister during the last week of February. It was not clear when the quarantine regulations would go into effect.

Program helps growers conserve energy Ag Energy Services, a division of Ag Energy Co-operative, has announced a new full-service conservation and efficiency program aimed to help growers, farmers and producers improve sustainability through energy improvement and management. It is estimated that the program could save around $80 million for the agriculture sector through reductions in energy use and improved energy efficiency. The program has four major modules: • Energy analysis and auditing – to understand the customer’s energy use, benchmark performance and identify the improvements • Energy action plans – to align energy conservation and improvement projects into the business plans of the customer, arrange fi nancing and secure government conservation incentives • Implementation – to ensure equipment

upgrades and operational changes are implemented according to customer’s needs and government certifi cations • Carbon Management – will provide a potential revenue stream back to the customers through the sale or trading of carbon credits where customers reduce their carbon footprint “We are very excited about this program,” says Mike Bouk, executive director of Ag Energy Co-operative. “The economic challenges we all face hit agriculture especially hard. This program will help farmers capture a portion of the $80 million by energy cost reductions or avoided costs and improve their own sustainability.” The program allows customers to implement the full program of all four modules or have the modules customized one at a time to suit their needs. In either case, Ag Energy Services handles the headaches and collaborates with the customer

24 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - MaRCH 15, 2009

to ensure they are pleased with the results. Initially the program will help greenhouses and will continue to roll out across Ontario to every sector of agriculture over the next year. Funding for this project was provided in part by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s (AAFC) Advancing Agriculture and Agri-Food Program through the Agricultural Adaptation Council’s CanAdvance Program, and also in part by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). Ag Energy Services is a division of Ag Energy Co-operative offering a full range of energy and environmental management programs. This division will help the Ontario agricultural and agri-food sector develop strategies to optimize energy costs. For more information contact Chris Hanlon at Ag Energy Services, in Guelph, at 866-8188828, ext. 242, e-mail chanlon@agenergy.coop.

Oakridge part of environmental award-winning team

Crib walls used logs that were recovered from the city’s forestry department.

An LO member, Oakridge Landscape Contractors of Hannon, near Hamilton, was an important part of the team that won the Ontario Public Works Association’s Environment Award. The award was presented to the City of Hamilton for its Chedoke Creek Remediation Project. President of Oakridge Landscape Contractors, Herman Ciardullo feels this type of government project is a great opportunity for growth that members of the industry should investigate. “As markets change and the economy potentially shrinks, it is important to think outside of the standard box that we landscapers often find ourselves living within. There is more to our industry than high-end pavers, square cut flagstone and ornamental trees and shrubs. There are all kinds of new and exciting avenues that we

should be exploring.” Early in 2007 Oakridge was invited to participate in the Chedoke Creek Remediation Project as a sub trade to Rankin Construction. “Our team quickly jumped on the opportunity to work on the project. It was a great chance to expand our horizons further into the green infrastructure industry. As owners, we have recognized that even during a slow economy, infrastructure work typically continues as governments pour funds into these types of projects,” says Ciardullo. Calling the project especially interesting, Ciardullo explains that the City of Hamilton decided to use a bio-engineering approach rather than the standard concrete approach. He feels the city used this approach because of the project’s

natural characteristics, the costs and lifespan, and most of all a much lower carbon footprint in comparison to concrete. The project is located in Hamilton, along the west side of Highway 403, between King Street and Cootes Paradise. The objective was to control leachate from nearby closed landfill site and to realign the creek which was eroding land towards the highway. Oakridge’s initial objective was the installation of bank stabilization structures and re-vegetation of the east bank along the creek. Ciardullo explains, “This involved a construction of live crib walls, using logs that were recovered from the city’s forestry department. As the walls were constructed, they were back-filled with a special matrix of soil and stone.” He explains that this mixture helped stabilize the wall, yet provided a good growth medium for the live willow and dogwood cuttings that were planted within the crib. “Our second objective was the installation of seven log vanes. Log vanes were installed in order to enhance fish habitat, as well as to attract various types of birds and other animal species to the creek side,” said Ciardullo. The final stage of Oakridge’s participation included the supply and installation of various types of erosion control mats and seed along the roadways that lend access to the creek as well as in the flatter creek areas. “We at Oakridge Landscape Contractors are very proud of our contribution in completing the work. More importantly, we are pleased that we have recognized the importance of this growing market and have had success within it,” said Herman Ciardullo.

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HORTICULTURE REVIEW - MaRCH 15, 2009 25

LEGAL ISSUES

Risk management during an economic downturn: Part One By Rob Kennaley McLauchlin & Associates

s we move into uncertain economic times, contractors, subcontractors and suppliers should reassess how they manage the risk that someone above them in the construction chain may not be able to pay his bills. We know from experience that during a recession, many a good company can get seriously hurt when it lets debtors become too far extended and are unable to collect what is owed Rob Kennaley to them. As is the case with most risk management strategies, we should start with the form of contracts and subcontracts we enter into. First, the payment provisions need to be spelled out in detail. If there is any ambiguity or vagueness about when you will be paid, the other side may argue (perhaps correctly) that you are not entitled to be paid until the end of the job. Your contracts and subcontracts should also specify how, and when, you will be paid for extra work. Again, in the absence of such provisions, you might not get paid until the end of the job. Finally, it is best to negotiate monthly progress payments, if possible. By doing so, you can limit the amount of time and materials you will have invested in the project at any given time. In any event, reasonable progress payments are important in these times. Second, you should ensure that you are contractually entitled to at least stop work in the event that you have not been paid your progress payments, when due. If you do not, you may be expected to keep working while the dispute over non-payment is worked out. Third, depending on your point of view, you might either utilize, or try to avoid, “pay when paid” or “pay if paid” clauses. These transfer the risk of non-payment by someone further up the chain to the subcontractor actually performing the work. Essentially, the contractor uses the clause to say to a subcontractor: “You will be paid if, and when, I get paid.” Subcontractors, of course, will want to avoid the clause, while contractors might want to utilize them. Subcontractors, who cannot avoid

the clause, should at least ensure that they have the right to stop work if they are not paid (see above). Fourth, if you have control over the terms of your contract or subcontract, you may want to specify the interest that will be charged on overdue accounts. You should ensure that the interest rate is stated as an annual rate, or it may not be enforceable.

“You should ensure that you are contractually entitled to at least stop work in the event that you have not been paid your progress payments.” Know exactly who owes you Contractors, subcontractors and suppliers should also take care to ensure that they know with whom they are contracting. If you think you are dealing with a corporation, the full corporate name needs to be determined. If it is not, you may not actually know who owes you the money. In the residential context, it is suggested that if you are working for a husband and wife, both should have their names on the contract. It is common, for example, for the husband to want the contract in his name because the wife owns the house. Similarly, contractors may want to perform title searches to ensure that they are actually contracting with someone who owns the property. If, for example, you are contracting with someone who only leases the property (this is common in a commercial context), you will for all intents and purposes lose some of the leverage established by the Construction Lien Act. In addition, in some circumstances you may want to make the contract or subcontract conditional upon a satisfactory credit evaluation. Whether or not you perform credit evaluations may depend on the circumstances of the particular case. As an example, you may determine that the owner you are contracting with is a corporation without assets, and/or does not own the land, therefore prompting you to ask that the

26 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009

contract be guaranteed by a principal of the company, or by another company with assets. Timely invoices important As the project progresses, it is critically important in this economic climate that you not let the person who owes you funds get too far behind. This involves, of course, timely invoicing for progress payments and for extras on your part. It is all too common for contractors and subcontractors to get so preoccupied with performing the work, that their accounting gets behind and before they know it they have not issued invoices for an unacceptable period of time. In this economic climate, if a client requests an extra, you need an immediate approval not only with respect to the work, but also with respect to the price of the work. Again, it is all too common for extras to be performed before the price is finalized and then, at the end of the job when the person you are working for has run out of money, he or she is suddenly objecting to the cost. In these times, contractors and subcontractors are encouraged not to perform extra work until they have agreements on the scope of that work, on its price and on when they will be paid for it. Payment, of course, should be on the next progress invoice (see above). We will offer further comments on risk management in this economic climate next month. For the time being, however, contractors, subcontractors and suppliers are encouraged to keep their ears to the ground as work progresses. If you sense there may be a problem with payment, you need to take steps to manage the risk of non-payment immediately. Options you can take in this regard will be discussed next month, but in the meantime if you sense a problem you should contact someone familiar with collection issues. In this climate, the risk of insolvency above you in the construction chain can be catastrophic. Robert Kennaley of McLauchlin & Associates is a former landscape design- build contractor and an honorary member of Landscape Ontario. He can be reached at 416-368-2555 or at kennaley@mclauchlin.ca. This material is for information purposes and is not intended to provide legal advice. Readers who have concerns about any particular circumstance are encouraged to seek independent legal advice in that regard.

Horticulture Review’s

Special Employment Section EXEL CONTRACTING INC. Established commercial landscape construction, maintenance and snow removal company servicing Eastern Ontario, requires: • Forepersons • Lead Hands • Labourers • Equipment Operators

BURLINGTON AREA LANDSCAPE CONSTRUCTION PROJECT LEADER and LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE LEAD POSITION Both are full-time, salaried placements with benefits. GARDEN MAINTENANCE Calling all horticultural grads: Our gardener/designer needs an assistant to help with all aspects of residential garden planning and maintenance. LANDSCAPE CONSTRUCTION ASSISTANT and LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE - ENTRY LEVEL Seasonal employment which can lead to full-time positions. We fully support and promote further education/training through Landscape Ontario. FULL JOB DESCRIPTIONS at www.grievehome.com Contact: Phone: 905-336-0088 Fax: 905-336-6344 E-mail: office@grievehome.com

Fax resume to 613-831-2794 or e-mail ian@exelcontracting.ca

DenBok

Landscaping & Design Ltd. Burlington-based company hiring for the following positions:

Landscape Construction Foreperson Landscape Construction Labourers Landscape Maintenance Labourers Competitive wages/benefits. Wages will reflect experience and knowledge. We look forward to welcoming you to our team. For further details please call (905) 336-3476 Fax resume to (905) 689-2199 E-mail to info@denbok.com

Leading Industry Association requires a hard working Summer Student with a background in Horticulture Located in Milton Ontario, Landscape Ontario Horticultural Trades Association is an active leader in the promotion and advancement of the horticulture industry. We are looking for a summer student with experience in horticulture to plant and maintain the various plant beds on our extensive property. Other duties will include clean up and organization of our many indoor storage areas. Working independently, this position offers lots of variety and split time between outdoor industry work and indoor general maintenance tasks. Experience operating a trimmer, chainsaw, leaf blower and other small power tools as well as a skid steer and forklift are definite assets. Some heavy lifting required. Approx. 30-40 hours per week from mid-April to end of August. Rate: $14/hour dependant on qualifications. Please send your resume and references to: Robert Ellidge, Property Manager, Landscape Ontario 7856 Fifth Line South, RR 4, Milton, ON L9T 2X8 Fax: (905) 875-0183 No phone calls please. Deadline for submissions March 20, 2009. Selected candidates will be contacted for an interview.

HORTICULTURE REVIEW - SPECIALHORTICULTURE EMPLOYMENT SECTION REVIEW --March MARCH15, 15,2009 2009 27 27

CLASSIFIED ADS BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

EQUIPMENT

SELL YOUR MAINTENANCE COMPANY Established landscape company interested in buying a small or medium-sized landscape comapany with interior or exterior maintenance contracts. Please fax info to: (416) 757-3845

Hydroseeders and Bark Blowers New and Used All Types of Mulches, Soil Guard (BFM), Erosion Control Blankets, Tackifiers Call Peter 1-888-298-9911 www.fibramulch.com

NURSERY STOCK PERENNIALS Large assortment of perennials, ground covers and native plants. Price - Variety list available. FRANK SCHENK PERENNIALS 663 River Road (Belfountain), Caledon, ON L7K 0E5 Tel: (519) 927-5415 Fax: (519) 927-9084 GROUND COVERS UNLIMITED Your Ontario source for ornamental and native ground covers. Call, fax, or write for the 2009 Catalogue and planting guide. GROUND COVERS UNLIMITED 1045 Porter Road, P.O. Box 190 Bethany, ON L0A 1A0 Tel: (705) 277-3005 Fax: (705) 277-9213

BOWIE HYDROMULCHERS (New and Used) FLEXTERRA FGM HYDROBLANKETS BFM F4 NETTLESS ECB MULCH IT P.O. Box 100, Putnam, ON N0L 2B0 Tel: (519) 425-0342 • Fax: (519) 425-4195 www.mulchit.on.ca Used Lerio 15, 20 & 25 gal pots $4.50 each Fax requests to: (905) 898-0360 Tel: (905) 898-6856 Attention: Frank Matos

SERVICES AND SUPPLIES

EQUIPMENT CORE AERATOR Ryan Lawnaire 28: Aerating width 28”, 24,000 ft2/Hr., 7.9 Kawasaki engine, well maintained with extra set of tines. Asking $3,500. Call Bob at (613) 349-6805

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING INFORMATION

All classified ads must be pre-paid by VISA or Mastercard. Rates: $42.00 (GST included) per column inch Min. order $42.00. 10% discount on 6 consecutive insertions of the same ad. Annual rates available. Box Numbers: Additional $10. Deadlines: 20th day of the month prior to issue date. (eg: June issue deadline is May 20th). Space is limited to a first come, first served basis. To advertise: E-mail your ad to Robert at classifieds@ landscapeontario.com or fax to (905) 875-0183. Online advertising: Website only ads are available for $42.00 (GST included). Website ads are posted for 30 days and are limited to 325 words.

TREE TRANSPLANTING Transplanting trees up to 9” truck diameter with 10,000 lb. rootball. 44”, 80” & 90” spades to move trees with and can basket up to 90” 100 acres of trees to choose from. BOTANIX OXFORD INSTA-SHADE RR # 2, Burgessville ON N0J 1C0 Tel: (519) 424-2180 • Fax: (519) 424-2420 Toll Free: 1-800-387-0246 Contact Jan Veldhuizen E-mail: botoxfor@oxford.net www.botanixois.on.ca

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Salivan Landscape Ltd. is a well established firm providing exterior and interior maintenance, architecture and construction of the highest caliber to the G.T.A. for over 80 years. Our impeccable attention to detail and uncompromising quality of work is our trademark in the industry. Our clients are national and international corporations, major retail developments and many of Toronto’s most prestigious condominiums and private residences. We are looking for quality people to join our team long term. Landscape Foreperson “2 Positions Available” Requirements: Must possess ability to implement project onsite from start to finish. Valid class G license. AZ or DZ ‘a plus’. Proficient in on-site layout, construction surveying and grading. General knowledge of landscape construction techniques and materials.Strong supervisory skills and site management. Landscape Labourers and Skilled Labourers in: Tree planting Machine operators Water truck driver Concrete finishing and forming experience. General knowledge of landscape construction techniques and materials. Interlock and precast wall installers. Top wages commensurate with experience and ability. Fax or e-mail resume to: Fax: (416) 321-8315 E-mail: construction.salivan@bellnet.ca

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES PROJECT MANAGER LANDSCAPE CONSTRUCTION/ DESIGNER Heritage Stoneworks is a well established firm providing. Landscape Design/Construction in the KW area. Skills and Experience: * Landscape Construction experience * Project Management * Estimating * Marketing and Sales * Landscape Design with experience in Dynascape * Supervisory/Management PLEASE SUBMIT RESUME TO info@heritagestone.ca

advertising

28 HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009

works!

HELP WANTED • Landscape Manager • Assistant Garden Centre Manager • Nursery Manager Landscaping Milton, Oakville and Mississauga since 1953. 6750 Trafalgar Road Milton Ontario Ph: (905) 878-1105 Fax: (905) 875-2060 ONTARIO LANDSCAPING LIMITED Experienced landscape labourers required to perform manual work. To assist in cultivating, digging and planting of trees. Labourer hourly rate $15.00. Also required driver – class A licence, Z certificate and mobile crane operator 0-8. Driver hourly rate $17.50. Seasonal employment starting April 1/09 to Nov 30/09. Job Site Keswick, Ont. Fax resume to (905) 898-0360 or call (905) 898-6856

ADVERTISER’S INDEX EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

COMPANY

PAGE

PHONE

WEBSITE

Braun Nursery Ltd............................................. 7,14......... 905-648-1911........................... www.braungroup.com Brock Aggregates Inc. (G & L Group)................10.......... 416-798-7050..................www.brockaggregates.com Connon Nurseries / NVK Holdings Ltd...............32.......... 905-628-0112...................www.connonnurseries.com

INDUSTRY LEADER IN NORTH OAKVILLE HAS THE FOLLOWING OPPORTUNITIES: Landscape Construction Foreman Construction and landscape company experience in residential/commercial construction. Construction skills: rock gardens, decks, fieldstone paths, stone garden walls, fences, ornamental ponds and waterfalls, interlocking brick, poured concrete/natural flagstone paving and walls, pre-cast concrete paving and walls, grading and planting experience. Machine operator experience (both heavy and light). Ability to motivate, organize and guide a small group of workers. Landscape Construction Technician Working knowledge of all aspects of landscape construction including: Pre-cast concrete pavers and walls, natural flagstone pavers and walls, retaining wall construction, machine operator experience (both heavy and light), carpentry skills an asset, must have valid driver’s license including Motor Vehicle Record with resume. D class is an asset. Year round employment Horticulture Foreperson High degree of Horticultural skill and knowledge. Related Certification is an asset. Demonstrated supervisory and communication skills, ability to physically participate in day-to-day planting and maintenance. Demonstrated knowledge of trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals, ability to arrange and maintain plant materials according to best cultural practices. Ability to identify insects, weeds and diseases and recommend appropriate treatment. A positive, friendly manner to provide excellent customer service and keep employees motivated. Valid driver’s license is a must (D class is an asset). Landscape Maintenance Technician Demonstrated knowledge of trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals. Ability to apply best cultural practices. Experience with various lawn care equipment. Capable of outdoor/physical labour with great attention to details. Must have valid driver’s license. (Class D an asset). Year round employment.

Country View Nurseries......................................22.......... 519-424-9696............... countryview@execulink.com Dutchmaster Nurseries Ltd..................................3........... 905-683-8211.......... www.dutchmasternurseries.com Hillen Nursery Inc.............................................16-17.......519-264-9057 HortProtect (CNLA).............................................25.......... 888-446-3499............................www.hortprotect.com Kemptville College (Univ. of Guelph)..................20.......... 613-258-8336..............www.kemptvillec.uoguelph.ca Landscape Safety................................................2........... 877-482-2323...................www.landscapesafety.com Mankar Ontario Inc...............................................8........... 647-309-7826.................................... www.mankar.ca Maple Ridge Evergreens....................................19..........989-356-4807 MS Sprayers.........................................................7........... 819-474-1910................................www.msspray.com NewRoads National Leasing..............................30.......... 866-414-8151................. www.newroadsleasing.com Nisco National Leasing.......................................23.......... 888-634-9559...............lcatalano@niscocanada.com Riverbend Farms (Ontario) Ltd...........................21.......... 519-765-2130......... riverbendfarms@amtelecom.net Sheehan’s Truck Centre.....................................24.......... 800-254-2859.................... info@sheehanstruck.com Sheridan Nurseries.............................................29.......... 416-798-7970................www.sheridannurseries.com Sipkens Nurseries Ltd.........................................12.......... 866-843-0438................. www.sipkensnurseries.com Stam Nurseries....................................................13.......... 519-424-3350......................www.stamnurseries.com Stonemen’s Valley Inc.........................................15.......... 905-841-8400..................www.stonemensvalley.com Uxbridge Nurseries Ltd........................................6........... 877-655-3379................www.uxbridgenurseries.com V. Kraus Nurseries Ltd........................................31.......... 905-689-4022.....................www.krausnurseries.com Winkelmolen Nursery Ltd....................................18.......... 519-647-3912.........................www.winkelmolen.com Zander Sod Co Ltd..............................................12.......... 877-727-2100............................www.zandersod.com

Your Boxwood

Specialist!

Seasonal Planting Help Positions are available April to December in our seasonal planting department. A positive, friendly personality, team oriented approach, solid work ethic and the ability and enjoyment of outdoor/physical labor are basic requirements. Knowledge of annuals, perennials and plant care are valuable assets. Please forward your resume to: Attention: Randy Price E-mail: admin@intland.ca Fax: (905) 876-0400 Mail: International Landscaping Inc. 1114 Lower Base Line Hornby (Milton), ON L0P 1E0 We thank you for your interest in our company. Only those selected for an interview will be contacted!

Nursery Sales RR #4 – 12302 10th Line, Georgetown, Ontario L7G 4S7 Tel: 416-798-7970 Fax: 905-873-9591 E-mail: sales@sheridannurseries.com

HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009 29

PROSPERITY PARTNERS

These times, they are a’changin’ By Jacki Hart CLP Prosperity Partners program manager

t can be frustrating at times living in the shadow of the American Dream. To be blunt, in this instance, whenever major economic changes are afoot south of the border, we are engulfed by the same cloud. On the other hand, it is at a time of great change, like now, that can also be a blessing. If you listened to Barack Obama’s inaugural speech, you may have noticed that he is Jacki Hart aligned with the strong leadership initiatives that we share here at home, especially in the Prosperity Partnership program. While President Obama is busy mending the fabric of American society – interweaving the threads of co-operation, support and common benefit into everyday lives,

so are we. In his speech, President Obama talked about the shift that is taking place and the transfer of power from the old generation to the new generation. He is right. As we near 2012, and the Mayan calendar predictions for polarity alignment, and readiness for change, we are riding an ever steeper curve of change. Relevant to the past several thousand, even hundred years, change in the next five to ten years will be at lightning speed. It will include ideologies, methodologies, balances of power and influence, infrastructure, attitudes, preferences and opinions. We are all in an incredible era – and we are in it TOGETHER as Prosperity Partners. According to Obama: “The nation cannot prosper when it favours only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity. On the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart……not out of charity but because it is the surest route to our common good.” The Prosperity Partnership program was founded on these principles. And we are walking our talk. This month’s feature is on owner Mark Fisher. The Escarpment Company was founded in 2006 by Mark Fisher. Along with his brother Todd, he operated a lawn maintenance and pruning company for six years. Mark then spent several years as an account manager in corporate sales and marketing roles in Toronto. He has attended 20 professional development courses at Landscape Ontario and plans to begin his CLP studies this fall. He has taken both Prosperity Partnership seminars, and isn’t at all nervous about this year in his business. Services offered: landscape design build and organic lawn care in Milton and surrounding area. The company has eight employees at peak season. What is your company vision ultimately creating? Last year, after taking the first Prosperity Partnership, we incorporated the five pillars

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into our mission statement and company vision: “To lead conservation through green landscaping and to provide high quality and highly detailed work. The team has a common goal working with regular and new customers who notice the details and can appreciate the value in what is being created. The Escarpment Company must be financially responsible to remain profitable in order to provide sustainability. Ecologically friendly products are selected that aid in the balance, restoration and conservation of Milton’s Niagara Escarpment and the surrounding area.” What are the core values that are non-negotiable in your everyday business dealings? Customer service, professionalism, respect, communication, quality, being our best and hard work. What keeps you awake at night most often? Competing against companies that don’t follow proper business practices. Often companies engage in destructive business practices, unbeknownst to them. They are simply doing things the way they have always been done, because that is how they were taught. Times have changed and business has changed with it. In order to stay ahead of the curve (or above water for that matter), it is better for everybody, if able to make the commitment, to really step back, take a look at your business and raise the level of your business with direction through Prosperity Partnerships.

Mark Fisher, founder of The Escarpment Company

What stuck with you the most from the Prosperity Partners introductory seminar? There are five pillars that we can use to help navigate our way through our businesses’ growth and development. There are common factors (Best Practices) that the most successful landscape companies in Ontario have implemented across the five pillars. This allows for profitable and sustainable growth, which ultimately benefits your company, clients and the horticultural community.

job descriptions for members of team my background training in this prosperity I will continue to quote realistically, pillar, as my first priority this winter was to using quality materials and skilled employees help develop my business. It is going really to provide a benchmark for detail and cus- well…….. tomer service in the industry After taking the Best Practices workshop, To find out about the next Prosperity Partners I am just now beginning to recognize that my seminars near you, go to www.horttrades. strength is in sales and marketing, as well as com/prospart, or e-mail Jacki at my corporate background. The Prosperity prosperity@landscapeontario.com. Partners KrausAD_EN_5x7oV2 seminar taught copy.pdf me how 17/09/08 to leverage 16:36:02

How have you been able to apply what you learned to improve your business? The most valuable lesson that I learned was the idea of stages of a business. Understanding that businesses are dynamic and that the amount of time that is devoted to each of the five pillars is related to where the company is in the business cycle. For example, a start-up will have an owner/operator performing many hands-on roles, while a company that is in a profitable growth stage will have the owner focusing on strategic initiatives of the business rather than performing daily tasks in the business. This has helped me manage my time better and become more efficient and productive by focusing on what is most important for our business, as we grow and develop. Prosperity Partnership helps us focus on the areas that we need to develop and more importantly provides a proven road map with Best Practices and resources to help us achieve our goals. Prosperity Partnerships allow The Escarpment Company to get a clear view of where we are in relation to the five pillars. It has helped us prioritize our goals and served as a roadmap for our business development. Our success as a company is greatly attributed to the direction of Landscape Ontario’s professional development program. I found that the Prosperity Partnership program helps identify areas of development that will benefit your company and then provides the courses to achieve those goals. C

What are your next steps to improve your business, and did the program help you to clarify what they are? I will put together process maps for our operations and determine where there are areas to reduce waste, and create a strategic plan and HORTICULTURE REVIEW - March 15, 2009 31

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