iLandscape Games in the Gardens

8:00 AM – 9:15 AM

Designing for Curb Appeal

Vallari Talapatra, Eco Scapes, Inc.

Utopia CD This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s We’re used to creating the backyard “oasis”. What about the front yard that makes the neighbors rubber neck as they drive by? Over the last ten years, Vallari has conducted workshops that discuss some of the common issues and challenges that homeowners face. And she’s bringing that feedback to you! We’ll learn how to design site specific front yards that use both hardscape and plants, while honoring the architecture. After all, getting the most functionality from the front yards is something that all of us strive for!

Making Landscapes that Matter

Scott Beuerlein, Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden

Utopia AB This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s This session takes you on a fascinating horticultural journey. Scott connects evolution, art, genetics, natural history, food, wine and more with landscapes that make us feel more comfortable, happy and secure. He will make the case that green spaces and the plants that create them fulfill basic human needs, not wants, and clearly shines light on the elements that matter the most.

Groundcovers: Great Alternatives to Turf Grass

Kathy Jentz, Washington Gardener Magazine

Nirvana BC This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s Groundcovers are low-growing plants that serve many different purposes in the landscape from limiting weed growth to stabilizing slopes to adding texture to your garden. Kathy Jentz, author of the forthcoming book, “Groundcover Revolution,” will cover several of these beautiful, hard-working plants and the best kinds to use for specific situations.

Onboarding New Employees: Welcome to the Team, Now Grab a Shovel!

Kevin Battistoni, Hunter / FX

Nirvana A This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s Finding the right employees is one of the most difficult challenges that companies are faced with today. You must hyper-focus on your onboarding processes and company culture during hiring, or else all the time you’ve spent finding those new team members will be wasted. During this presentation, Kevin will share strategic insights from green industry business owners, managers, and trainers who’ve built their companies through years of trial and error. From interviewing and onboarding to incentives and career path planning, you will learn proven tactics utilized by industry leaders today to successfully scale their workforces.

Wowing Your Clients With Exceptional Service Every Step of the Way

Lauren Howell, Stuber Land Design

Euphoria This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s We all know that keeping a client is better than having to find a new one. Taking care of our clients by providing exceptional service is a big part of keeping them! But what does good customer service look like these days? How can I deliver better service than my competitors? How do I keep my team excited about taking care of our clients? We will look at many aspects of providing customer service - from our office staff to our frontline crews and everyone in between.

9:45 AM – 11:00 AM

Winning the Talent War

Neal Glatt, GrowTheBench.com

Utopia CD This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s Are you ready to start winning the talent war? In this session, Neal will help you get the recruiting and retention edge by discussing a modern approach to hiring. Attendees will learn what today’s workforce really wants in a job, how to write compelling job postings, how to leverage the latest recruiting technology, where to find workers, how to keep your best employees, and how to get the best from every worker. Attracting people to work in the green industry has never been more difficult than today. Yet, proven strategies leveraged by landscapers around the country do exist. This session will give you the tools you need to effectively recruit and engage today’s workers.

Bad Ass Trees for Piss Poor Places

Scott Beuerlein, Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden

Utopia AB This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s We put trees in some pretty difficult places, and then we ask a lot of them. This session will list some of the toughest trees for tough urban conditions. It will also discuss the importance of developing a broader list for the purpose of diversity and why we shouldn’t always rely on the toughest of the tough.

The Pros at Home: From the Tropics to the Woodland

Nina Koziol, The Landscape Contractor Magazine Additional Presenters: Bob Hursthouse, Hursthouse; Dan Biernacki, Ted’s Greenhouse

Nirvana BC This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s The personal gardens of Bob Hursthouse and Dan Biernacki couldn’t be more different. One is a tropical paradise, the other a northwoods-inspired getaway. Both gardens have been featured in ILCA’s Gardens of the Pros series. See how an awardwinning landscape architect and a long-time nursery owner shape their own outdoor spaces with unique plants. Discover their design choices based on how they want to spend time in their own home landscapes.

How Landscape Trees are Propagated and Why this is Important to You

Kris Bachtell, The Morton Arboretum

Nirvana A There are various methods used to produce landscape trees, and each method is important to understand so that you know what you are handling when maintaining a specific tree. Through demonstrations, Kris will show you how to recognize how a tree was started and how this can help you to provide the best care possible.

Quick and Easy Landscape Planting Design techniques for Crew Leaders

Lauren Howell, Stuber Land Design

Euphoria This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s With everyone wearing multiple hats these days we find Crew Leaders and other field staff needing to create and sketch up quick designs on the fly many times. But how do you know where to put what to create a pleasing plant installation for your clients? Come join us for an overview of landscape design basics and learn how to put these methods together to create planting plans that work and look great! The Landscape Contractor January 2023

1:30 PM – 2:45 PM

Plants, Placement, Perfect! Creating Inspiring Containers

Marianne Willburn, Author

Utopia CD If you’re staring at that cluttered jumble of pots in the basement and wondering what you can do with them this year that won’t have you yawning before you even start, let Marianne help you create something that goes beyond the tired and traditional annual combos and boring, predictable placement. Utilize edibles and perennials, discover tropical treasures, consider adding the magical element of water, and learn what to look for when grouping plants for a successful container that thrives.

Creating Organizational Culture

Mark O’Brien, Stantec

Utopia AB This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s Every company has its own unique personality. The unique personality of an organization is referred to as its culture. In groups of people who work together, organizational culture is an invisible but powerful force that influences the behavior of the members of that group. This presentation discusses how company culture is built and how it can effect the performance of a business good and bad. Who within the organization has the biggest effect on culture and how can they build positive attitudes and a highly functioning team. We will go into depth about what are the building blocks to create a positive culture that will attract and retain quality people.

Plants for Solutions

Allan Armitage, University of Georgia

Nirvana BC Who is kidding who? No one walks into a hardware store and asks for a delicate and dainty, pineapple-sage socket wrench. They present a problem and ask for tools that provide solutions. People who purchase plants are no different. Customers, wholesalers, installers, and designers want plants that are native, plants that deer don’t eat, plants for fragrance. etc. They want solutions. Of course, we all want to know what cultivars are the next great thing, but let’s use our plant knowledge to plainly and clearly address the landscape challenges of our customers. Let’s concentrate on Solution Gardening..

Tree Risk Assessment - How to and Why

Kris Bachtell, The Morton Arboretum

Nirvana A This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s Trees, particularly large specimens, are an important component of a quality landscape environment. These trees have been proven to be valuable for their environmental function as well as their positive impact to human health. To provide these functions trees need to be observed and assessed on a routine basis to make sure they are strong and resistant to structure failure. This presentation will cover the basics of tree health and structure assessment to help ensure your trees will provide the positive services we desire.

Integrating Design Technology for Water Conscious Landscapes

Eric Gilbey, Vectorworks

Euphoria This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s Designing landscapes with sustainability in mind is no longer a matter of preference but one of meeting jurisdictional requirements. As site designers increasingly lean on design software, online resources, and other digital tools to make their current design workflows easier, these can offer additional assists to help meet the new expectations in water-efficient irrigation and on-site water management. With the help of GIS integrations, plant databases and smart 2D/3D object design, creatively managing water in your proposed landscape design can be at your fingertips. The Landscape Contractor January 2023

8:00 AM – 9:15 AM

Reimagining an Urban Frank Lloyd Wright Landscape

Tony Gomez-Phillips, Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center

Nirvana A This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s Monona Terrace horticulturist Tony Gomez-Phillips discusses the process of redesigning Madison’s downtown convention center’s landscape on the belief that the benefit of Frank Lloyd Wright’s strong organic architecture is the ability to pursue the “wildness” of the gardens and their interpretation of the site. Partnering sustainable plantings with Frank Lloyd Wright’s design principles, learn how designed lines and forms engage the prairie plant palette to connect people with what the architect envisioned as an inviting and beautiful community destination.

State of the Green Industry

Kevin Battistoni, Hunter / FX

Nirvana BC This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s The 2022 Green Industry survey results are shared here for the first time! Once again, over 1,600 industry professionals have participated in the annual survey, providing critical measurables on all areas of concern ranging from wages to profitability and the outlook for 2023. Expanding the survey results will share relevant economic data from new construction to disposable personal income. In addition, the audience will have an opportunity to anonymously participate (via text message) in a similar industry survey with real-time results, leaving you with an accurate temperature reading on how your company lines up against the rest of the industry.

Gardens of the Pros: Prairie Two Ways

Nina Koziol, The Landscape Contractor magazine Additional Presenters: Dean MacMorris, Night Light, Inc.; Jack Pizzo, The Pizzo Group

Utopia AB This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s The fascinating home landscapes of Dean MacMorris and Jack Pizzo were featured in the Gardens of the Pros series in ILCA’s magazine, “The Landscape Contractor.” Both rural properties feature prairies but each site is quite different. One includes a Civil War-era house, barn, outbuildings, borders and containers filled with colorful annuals. The other features a new house surrounded by more than 40 acres of restored prairie. And both properties illustrate how two green industry pros approach design at their homes based on their own needs and preferences. Discover how they plant and maintain these sweeping properties.

Why Do Trees Fail? Summary of Concerns from Industry Professionals

Melissa Custic, Chicago Region Trees Initiative/The Morton Arboretum

Utopia CD This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s The Chicago Region Trees Initiative, including Green Industry partners, is focused on improving the health and longevity of urban trees. In December 2022, a roundtable forum was held with members of the green industry, including growers, contractors, designers, and foresters to identify and address the hurdles to tree health throughout a tree’s life. This session, will report out the outcomes of that meeting and on causes and solutions to tree stressors to improve canopy cover and longevity. including urban tree stressors including stock with poor root architecture, improper planting techniques, poor site assessment and remediation, and ineffective maintenance practices. Understanding and improving the process from growing trees to planting and caring for trees can improve the health and longevity of urban trees.

Estimating Jobs for Profit and Growth

Weston Zimmerman, SynkedUP

Euphoria This session has been approved by LA CES for 1.25 CEU’s Overhead is the #1 profit killer. Learn to solve that problem in your estimating to ensure that every proposal is priced for profit. Weston will cover common pitfalls that sabotage your profits when quoting jobs. Wrap it up with learning how to job cost to ensure you are on track and achieving your goals for growth. 37