The Landscape Contractor magazine November 2017 Digital Edition by Association Publishing Partners

MIDWEST TRADING HORTICULTURAL SUPPLIES, INC.Â® a Midwest-Orum Company

November 2017

CONTENTS

Excellence In Landscape Awards Project

FOCUS: Fall Events ILCA Inducts Four Honorary Lifetime Members 10 Four people with a long history of service Knowing Native Plants 14 Alan Branhagen offers his favorites

iLandscape 2018 Preview 24 A great way to Elevate your business

2017 ILCA Golf Outing 28 A great day with tons of fun

Women’s Networking Group Fall Event A unique program with six discussion leaders

Landscapes & Architecture 38 Queen of the Victorian Era

Four-Season Shuffle 44 Tuning up your winter containers

Committee Chair Profile 50 Ashley Marrin and Emily Stuart — Membership

Member Profile 52 B&S Landscaping, Inc. Sustainable Landscape Calendar 55 What does November have in store?

Native Intelligence Symphotrichum cordifolius — Blue Wood Aster

EN ESPAÑOL

Eleve la industria del paisajismo y su negocio iLandscape 2018 Preview

38 The Landscape Contractor November 2017

CONTENTS

DEPARTMENTS ILCA Calendar From Where I Stand President’s Message Classified Ads Advertisers Index Photo Credits ILCA Awards Program Rick Reuland Alan Branhagen Membership Committee B&S Landscapes

1, 8-9 10-13, 24-27, 28-31, 34-37 14-23 50 52

Calendar

4 5 7 59 61

NOVEMBER November 2, 2017 Annual Party Two Brothers Roundhouse Aurora, IL

Jacob Burns, CBG

November 30, 2017 Webinar— Beating Buckthorn in the Landscape

The official publication of the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association (ILCA), The Landscape Contractor is dedicated to educating, advising and informing members of this industry and furthering the goals of the Association. The Landscape Contractor carries news and features relating to landscape contracting, maintenance, design and allied interests. Publisher is not responsible for unsolicited material and reserves the right to edit any article or advertisement submitted for publication. Publication reserves right to refuse advertising not in keeping with goals of Association. WWW.ilca.net Volume 58, Number 11. The Landscape Contractor (ISSN # 0194-7257, USPS # 476-490) is published monthly for $75.00 per year by the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association, 2625 Butterfield Road, Ste. 104S, Oak Brook, IL 60523. Periodicals postage paid at Oak Brook, IL and additional mailing offices. Printed in USA. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Landscape Contractor, 2625 Butterfield Road, Ste 104S, Oak Brook, IL 60523. DISPLAY ADVERTISING SALES: Association Publishing Partners, Inc., Ph. (630) 637-8632 Fax (630) 637-8629 email: rmgi@comcast.net CLASSIFIED ADS, CIRCULATION AND SUBSCRIPTION: ILCA (630) 472-2851 Fax (630) 472-3150 PUBLISHER/EDITORIAL OFFICE: Rick Reuland, rmgi@comcast.net, Naperville, IL 60540 Ph. (630)637-8632 PRODUCT DISCLAIMER: The Illinois Landscape Contractors Association, its Board of Directors, the Magazine Committee, ILCA Staff, The Landscape Contractor and its staff, neither endorse any products nor attest to the validity of any statements made about products

ILCA Staff

Magazine Staff

Executive Director Scott Grams (630) 472-2851 sgrams@ilca.net

Rick Reuland Publisher/Advertising Sales (630) 637-8632 rmgi@comcast.net

Education Manager AnneMarie Drufke adrufke@ilca.net

Debbie Rauen Advertising Sales (817-501-2403) debbie.landscapecontractor@ yahoo.com

Events Manager Terre Houte thoute@ilca.net Office Manager Alycia O’Connor aoconnor@ilca.net Membership & Marketing Coordinator Marissa Stubler mstubler@ilca.net

v ILCA 2625 Butterfield Road Ste. 104S Oak Brook, IL 60523

November 16, 2017 Pruning Workshop Spring Valley Nature Center Schaumburg, IL

JANUARY/February January 31 - February 2, 2018 iLandscape Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Schaumburg, IL February 1, 2018 Excellence in Landscape Awards Night Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Schaumburg, IL

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January 31 — February 2, 2018

v Becke Davis Senior Writer

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at dotynu rseries.co m to rece ive our

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Feature Writer patpeltier@charter.net

Meta Levin

email ne wsle t ter

Feature Writer

dotynurseries.com

Nina Koziol

Shade TreeS • OrnamenTalS • evergreenS • ShrubS

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n.koziol@att.net Heather Prince Feature Writer

princeht@sbcglobal.net Marilyn Witney

Ryan Doty sales@dotynurseries.com

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The Landscape Contractor November 2017

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From Where I Stand — It’s November, but I don’t see many people

smiling in the landscape industry. This year, it seems like a long, slow crawl to the finish line. In broad strokes, most people I speak to just seem burnt. I know that is typical at this time in the season, but this year just seems different. There is something running deeper than mere exhaustion. I’m still waiting for the post season conversation with a member that ends in smiles and heartwarming joy. Many ILCA members I have spoken to seem embittered. They have soldiered through six long years of a recession with the promise that all would be remedied once the money spigot began to flow. Whether it was nostalgia or delusion, the pre-recession period was a golden time. Everyone whistled while they worked and greeted each morning with vigor. As the season winds down, I get to have deeper conversations with our members. They linger at committee and Board meetings and talk more readily on the phone. They acknowledge that business is good, almost too good. They are still toiling away both dreading and hoping for snow to signal the end. This has been a difficult season as weather, competition, and labor shortages have stretched landscape professionals thin. This has led to a widespread sentiment I can only label as resentment. Resentment is more than just a case of the Mondays. It is more than a bad day or series of bad days. As defined, resentment is the bitterness that occurs when we feel we have been treated unfairly. Resentment doesn’t occur in an instant. It is a culmination of negative interactions. We make the mistake of chalking resentment up to external factors when, in fact, it is an internal change in how we process daily interactions. Resentment is extremely common in professional settings. It is an ugly word that many professionals feel, but few have the courage to speak aloud. Imagine a professional walking into the boss’s office to say, “Boss, I resent you, my job, my clients, and my coworkers.” I don’t know a boss in the world who wouldn’t terminate that employee on the spot. We view those as malignant thoughts that run the risk of infecting an entire company. In reality, those words may never be spoken, but many think them daily. To pick up on resentment, you need to listen for context clues. I hear phrases from our members like, “The clients have changed. They are cheaper, more demanding, and don’t value loyalty.” “People in this industry used to come prepared to work, now they are all entitled.” “I’m just being run ragged, I can’t even go to the restroom without my phone ringing.” These are common expressions we hear all the time. On occasion, they can be chalked up to blowing off steam, but when the professional assumes something has permanently and negatively changed, resentment has arrived. As I dove deeper into resentment, I found two common themes:

1. People resent their cleints because they feel those customers don’t value them as a professional. 2. People resent their jobs because they feel their job distracts them from what they want to be doing. Let’s start with resenting clients. Anyone who interacts with clients over an extended period of time is going to encounter some duds. Yet, resentment is more than just being annoyed by a difficult client. Dealing with difficult clients is usually solved by pleasing them, finishing the job, or, in rare instances firing them. Client resentment, on the other hand, is deeper and more sinister. Client resentment results when the business believes clients have “changed.” They erroneously believe that clients, as a whole, are developing undesirable qualities that constantly create negative interactions and outcomes. Now, even the most resentful professionals won’t admit they dislike their clients. Resentment is different from disliking. Everyone has funny stories about a pain-in-the-butt client that come out after a couple of beers. Client resentment sours almost every client interaction. It is usually first seen internally but, before long, negatively impacts external client relations. Business coach Therese Skelly says the key to ending customer resentment is increasing your value as a service provider. Now, it’s not as simple as “raising prices.” That’s a great start, but not the solution to all of life’s problems. Skelly says raising one’s value has a hidden benefit. It causes professionals to want to match that increased value with increased effort. It’s like the concierge at a high end hotel. If you ask the front desk clerk at the Red Roof Inn if they could recommend Zagat-rated steakhouses, they will probably shrug or point you to a Steak & Shake. A concierge at a high end hotel pulls out a map, starts drawing circles, makes your reservation, and calls you a cab. Now, each are getting paid. The concierge understands you are paying a premium to stay at his hotel and he is matching that premium with his effort. The increased fees of the hotel increased the concierge’s level of customer appreciation and service. Skelly concludes that increasing fees isn’t just about money, it’s about convincing professionals to fall back in love with their jobs and the joy of offering premium service at a premium price. The second area of concern is when professionals feel resentment because their job prevents them from doing what they want to be doing. This doesn’t mean that all resentful employees want to quit and become stand-up comedians or rodeo clowns or shortstops for the Cubs. There are many professionals who find themselves in the wrong field and, eventually they will leave or just accept where they are. Often times, resentment is less about leaving and more about a lack of perceived flexibility. This lack of flexibility is found in two ways. The first, is when the professional cannot do what they want in their personal lives because work gets in the way. The second, is when a professional no longer can concentrate

The Antidote

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

From Where I Stand —

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on aspects of the job they like and instead are forced to continuously work on tasks they dislike. An example of this is not being able to complete a design because you spent the morning dealing with petty, preventable problems at a jobsite. In each instance, the professional grows embittered because circumstances outside of his control changed his desired course of action. Resentment borne out of a work/ life imbalance is easier to fix. I read articles all the time about locking your phone in a box when you walk in the house. How silly. Most of the time, we don’t mind checking emails or texts after work as long as we have nothing better to do (and it’s good news!). It’s when the client calls during the kid’s soccer game that the bitterness grows. Identifying what is important and defining boundaries is the solution. If there are extracurricular activities, regardless of the time of day, that are vital, make time. Draw hard lines around those dates in your calendar. Let nothing get in the way. If it means leaving early one night, but staying late the next, do it. Resentment will grow if you commit and then need to cancel that obligation. If the phone rings during that soccer game, don’t answer, under any set of circumstances. The momentary sense of relief you feel by addressing a workplace “emergency” will be immediately negated by burning resentment and guilt. The same principle rings true for the work day. If we think about how to avoid resentment at home by not allowing the tedious work “stuff” in, we avoid resentment at work by shutting the fun, exciting work stuff out. Every professional has tasks he or she likes to do. Other tasks we stare at like a dead rat lying across our to-do lists. In the movie “Office Space” there were TPS reports. In the world of association management, they are doing minutes. In landscape shops, they can range from dealing with a crusty customer to attending a HOA meeting to disciplining employees. The same rules apply: circle and underline the boring, tedious stuff and plow through it at a set time and without distractions. Immediately after it’s concluded, reward yourself. Dive into an enjoyable work task or take a walk around the parking lot. The key is tricking our brain that tedious tasks aren’t keeping us from what we enjoy, they are the necessary step before our reward. If we flit between the fun and the tedious, like so many of us do, we naturally are pulled in one direction. That pull feeds resentment. Resentment leads to crushing fear and anxiety. It feels like we are falling out of love with our professions. The longer we work, the idea of pivoting in a new direction seems like a foolish pipe dream. The good news is that resentment is reversible and completely within our control. We may be tired, burnt-out, and irritated, but all is not lost or hopeless. The sooner we can identify and ferret out resentment, the better. The alternative is grim. As the old expression goes, resentment is like taking poison, and waiting for everything else around you to die. This winter, find your antidote. It lies within.

Scott Grams October 19, 2017 The Landscape Contractor November 2017

President’s Message — “Fall has always been my favorite season. The time when everything bursts with its last beauty, as if nature had been saving up all year for the grand finale.” — Lauren Destefano

President

Lisa Fiore Don Fiore Company, Inc. (847) 234-0020 lfiore@donfiore.com

Vice-President

Tom Lupfer Lupfer Landscaping (708) 352-2765 tom@lupferlandscaping.com

This past weekend

Secretary-Treasurer

Jose Garcia Natural Creations Landscaping, Inc. (815) 724-0991 info@naturalcreationslandscaping.com

Immediate Past President

Mike Schmechtig Schmechtig Landscape Company (847) 566-1233 mschmechtig@schmechtiglandscapes.com

Directors

Mark Breier National Seed Co. (630) 963-8787 mark.breier@natseed.com Allan Jeziorski Hartman Landscape (708) 403-8433 allan@hartmanlandscape.net

Kevin Manning K & D Enterprise Landscape Management, Inc. (815) 725-0758 kmanning@kdlandscapeinc.com Scott McAdam, Jr. McAdam Landscaping, Inc. (708) 771-2299 Scottjr@mcadamlandscape.com Dean MacMorris Night Light, Inc. (630) 627-1111 dean@nightlightinc.net Ashley Rolffs Vermeer Midwest (630)820-3030 ashley.rolffs@vermeermidwest.com

Mark Utendorf Emerald Lawn Care, Inc. (847) 392-7097 marku@emeraldlawncare.com Donna Vignocchi Zych ILT Vignocchi, Inc. (847) 487-5200 dvignocchi@iltvignocchi.com

I had the chance to experience the fall color splendor in northern Michigan and this is most definitely my favorite time of year. The trees give us their last blast of colorful beauty, making us appreciate some of them even more than we have all season. For many of us this time of year is a time to be thankful for what we have achieved thus far this season and the last chance to get those last minute projects completed before the snow flies. When it comes to working in a service profession, we know our work is never done regardless of the time of year and neither is our work at ILCA. A few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to be a part of the Great Lakes Leadership Conference, hosted this year by INLA (Indiana Nursery & Landscape Association) which was a great way to network and get to learn about our counterpart state associations and how they provide value for their membership. We were in good company with representatives from Indiana, Ontario, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan. We all try to provide value to our members via education, networking and legislative assistance. It was a good feeling knowing that ILCA is right on track. On a personal level, it was also a great way to communicate with those individuals who are business owners, whether they were a contractor or supplier in related regions and learn about their struggles and successes and how they relate to my own. Most of us are feeling the labor shortage pains and working on ways to make improvements and focus on bringing new people into our profession. One very big difference we found was that the illegal operators seem to be a major issue only for the members of our organization. ILCA estimates that 40% of landscape companies in Illinois do NOT carry an active workers’ compensation policy. That creates a significant competitive advantage for those companies, drives down industry prices and can put consumers and landscape workers at risk. If this is something you are struggling with in your region of work, please be on the lookout for the Empowerment Packet that is coming out to you via email from the ILCA office. The Empowerment Packet assists legal landscape companies in identifying illegal operators and offers a simple mechanism for reporting them to the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission (IWCC). The packet offers a process for reporting violators to the regulatory agency with the authority and responsibility to help. Please call the ILCA office if you have any questions or want to learn more about how landscape professionals can help towards keeping everyone safe and on the same playing field. On a lighter note, I hope to have a beer and see many of you at the upcoming Annual Party and Member Meeting on November 2nd at the Two Brothers Roundhouse and don’t forget about the pruning workshop on November 16th at the Spring Valley Nature Center. Wishing everyone a safe and prosperous fall season!

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.” – Albert Camus

Thank you, www.ilca.net

Lisa Fiore October 18, 2017 The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Topiarius • The Borie Wood Garden at Elaine Place Chicago pergola and seating area were raised about 30 inches. As one steps up the Moving into a new building with a spectacular backyard view of an “eye-catching” utility corridor resplendent with a rat’s nest of power lines, the back of buildings staring down on you, and adjacent buildings encroaching on your views presents certain, shall we say . . . opportunities. In order to take on a site like this, we needed to partner with our client to imagine a bold and audacious new space. The client had just moved from a New England estate with a proper garden and outdoor living space into this multi-level lifestyle. Taking the site conditions for what they are, she expressed a yearning for a backyard reminiscent of her east coast home. So, we took this spacious 30’ x 36’ footprint, which also has a garage roof top, and created ‘The Borie Wood Garden at Elaine Place.’ Walk out of the home’s first floor French doors from the kitchen onto a diamond-patterned bluestone patio with a clay paver herringbone patterned “carpet” which defines the formal outdoor dining area. Taking visual cues from the building and our client’s imagination, we created a crisp version of a gracious space. The pergola and seating area rest on a raised natural stone platform surrounded by a raised u-shaped garden, all enclosed by a six-foot fence on the parapet wall. Five foot tall annual containers punctuate each wing of the garden. Going against the trend of keeping the roof deck on one level, the

expansive stairs and arrives at the seating area, the arched pergola (12 feet above the top stair level) welcomes the visitor to a central seating area with a fire table and water feature. The pergola can best be described as having a streamlined New England essence with a touch of modern crispness based on its shape and color. Lap joints construct the lower pergola framework and minimize the visual complexity of the union points. To the delight of our master craftsman, he custom-designed and built each of the seven central arches from over 18 individual pieces and hand fit them to generate the central overhead rows. The central overhead corridor of the pergola is defined by the stabilizing connecting bands and draws one’s eye to the central ox-eyed window and the latticed back wall. The window gently obscures the view of the utility corridor with its radiating, spoke pattern. The back drop screen, an eye-catching pattern, has 45 and 90 degree lattice panels that delightfully articulate around the window. As the visual experience returns to eye-level, it culminates at the formal water feature and the sound of a bubbling water fountain. The magic of the space is felt in the planting surround. The 12 foot arborvitae on the back wall, the roses, hydrangeas, and other perennials, in conjunction with the water feature transports you to an entirely different space.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

ILCA Honorary Lifetime Members By Patrice Peltier

Some people

belong to organizations and other people shape them. These are the people who have the vision, the commitment to do what has to be done and the stamina to stay the course and make it happen. This year, ILCA is recognizing the

exceptional contributions of four such people by naming them Honorary Lifetime Members. The late Bob Busch, Jim Fizzell, Julie Nicoll and Dick Price join only seven others to receive this honor.

Bob Busch Bob Busch, founder of R. Busch & Sons Landscape Contractors, lived long enough to learn he had been awarded Honorary Lifetime Membership but not long enough to be lauded at the 2017 Annual Meeting. Busch died October 1, 2017. Busch’s firm joined ILCA in 1987, and before long he was active on several committees, according to his long-time friend and ILCA Historian George Weyland. Frank Mariani served on the Education Committee with Busch. “Education was very important to him, and he always wanted to raise the bar,” recalls Frank Mariani, who served on the Education Committee with Busch. “He was the first guy to sign up to help put on a program, find speakers, do whatever was needed. It was a huge commitment of time, especially since his was a smaller firm. He didn’t have the staff and resources of larger companies.” Busch and Mariani also worked together on a committee to encourage young people to explore careers in landscape contracting. “He would travel to all these schools across the state, telling students about the kinds of jobs they could do and telling them there were classes they could take to learn more,” Mariani recalls. “Again, it was a huge commitment of his time.” Busch was also an early and active supporter of the CLT training and certification program, recalls Barbara Rosborough who served on the ILCA board with Busch. “In the early years, he was one of the program’s biggest supporters,” she says. “He had such a passion for ILCA and our industry, and he was very proud to be a member,” Rosborough adds. “He had a great heart. He would help anyone who needed it. He would be there for you.” “His word and his handshake were his bond,” Weyland remembers. “He was willing to listen to everybody.” 10

Busch was honored as Man of the Year in 1992 and served as president of the association in 1997-98. One of the things Mariani remembers about Busch’s presidency is his inclusivity. “He was extremely proud of being a Southsider, and he wanted to make sure all companies were represented by the association: big, small, North Shore, South Side, East, West. He wanted everyone included.” During Busch’s presidency, the question of ILCA merging with the nurserymen’s association surfaced. “He had a hard presidency,” Rosborough recalls. “He lost sleep over the merger question. He struggled with it because he cared so much about our industry.” “He was a terrific friend, a wonderful husband and a wonderful father—a good guy all the way around,” Mariani says. Rosborough remarked on this, too. “He had a strong, close family. I admired that,” she says. “It’s not easy to run a business and have a great family life, too.” “Right to the very end, Bob cared about ILCA as much as he cared about his own business,” Mariani stressed. “We’re going to miss him.”

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

ILCA Honorary Lifetime Members

Jim Fizzell It’s hard to imagine a time — not so long ago — when landscape contractors were scornfully referred to as “wheelbarrow operators,” when there was no organization that represented contractors throughout the state, and when those who dreamed of lifting the level of the industry met in taverns, basements and the tollway oasis to lay the foundation for what has become ILCA. It’s hard to imagine…unless you’re Jim Fizzell, one of the people who worked tirelessly to make those dreams come true. Fizzell was working as a regional horticulture adviser for the University of Illinois Extension Service when he joined with others in the late 1950s to turn the Chicago Metropolitan Landscapers Association into ILCA, serving as its first Executive Secretary in 1957. “As an educator, I wanted to teach landscape contractors how to pull themselves up by their bootstraps,” Fizzell recalls. “At the time, contractors weren’t even welcome at the programs put on by nurserymen. I wanted to take these ‘wheelbarrow operators’ and help them become sophisticated enough that they’d be acceptable to the nurserymen.” As Executive Secretary, Fizzell helped organize a Winter Short Course, a precursor to what became Mid-Am and later iLandscape. He taught many of the classes--not just in the beginning, but for years. A few years later, he again helped organize a summer picnic with exhibits and equipment demos, an event that soon blossomed into Summer Field Day. “At the time, that picnic was a major event, a feeble start to the programs ILCA runs today,” Fizzell said with a chuckle. As a student at California State Polytechnic College, Fizzell observed how effectively the California Landscape Contractors Association worked with the state legislature to represent the interests of landscape contractors. As ILCA’s Executive Secretary, Fizzell pushed the association to actively advocate on the industry’s behalf. Ever the educator, when he was no longer Executive Secretary, Fizzell continued to teach classes and enlighten members with research-based answers to their questions in his column “As I See It,” a regular part of The Landscape Contractor

for more than 14 years. Author of all or part of 38 books, Fizzell continues to write for newspapers and magazines. He also continues to offer private consulting horticulturist services. “They’ll have to nail the lid on before I quit,” Fizzell asserts. In 2011, ILCA honored Fizzell with a Special Recognition Award. The association also recognized him as Man of the Year in 1992. An active participant in turf, arboriculture and floriculture associations, Fizzell also received the Distinguished Service Award from the Chicago Carnation Growers Association, Award of Merit from the Illinois Arborist Association and the Linnaeus Award from the Chicago Horticulture Society. “It’s been a good experience watching what’s happened. There’s a lot of satisfaction in seeing ILCA grow and get more and more people involved,” Fizzell says of his more than 50 years of working with the association. “I’m proud of the people who’ve worked so hard to create an organization that is top notch, as good as they come,” Fizzell says. “There are no more ‘wheel barrow operators’.”

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Knowing Native Native Intelligence

An ongoing series to help guide landscape contr by Nina Koziol

When Alan Branhagen visited The

Morton Arboretum many years ago, he walked the prairie with its creator, the legendary Ray Schulenberg. “It remains one of the best restorations. It was a vision for my first big project—to design and landscape a new [forest preserve] district headquarters.” Native plants first captivated Branhagen as a child when he spotted Dutchman’s breeches (Dicentra cucullaria) blooming in a park. He’s now director of operations at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum and his new book, “Native Plants of the Midwest: A Comprehensive Guide to the Best 500 Species for the Garden,” (Timber Press, 440 pages, $39.95) has become a popular go-to for landscapers, designers, educators, garden centers and homeowners. Branhagen laments that the lack of diversity in planting projects and the use of “low” or “no value” non-native plants have contributed to the loss of beneficial insects. “The Dutchman’s breeches still bloom in a nearby park, but non12

native invasive bush honeysuckles and buckthorns, plus garlic mustard, and an out-of-control, in-town deer herd have seen the ranks of many native plants dwindle. It’s a clarion call to plant what supports the web of life.” He views his book as an inspirational guide, not a restoration manual. And, it includes several choice native cultivars along with his recommendations for plant care, such as when to prune so you don’t remove spring flowers. “I wanted to write it so it feels like we’re having a conversation. I’ve had a passion for these plants ever since I was a kid.” He took most of the photos and his observations about the plants are from his own personal experience working in Illinois, Missouri, Iowa and Minnesota. It’s a reference worthy of any landscape pro’s bookshelf. Here are some of Branhagen’s recommendations for underused native shrubs.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Plants

ractors in choosing native plants and cultivars Ceanothus americanus — New Jersey Tea

“It’s one of my favorites. It blooms on new wood and stays compact.” One of the few smaller upland prairie and savanna shrubs, New Jersey Tea makes a tidy low plant that’s suitable for both a naturalistic planting and a traditional landscape. “Once it’s established, it’s very long-lived and can easily be maintained by pruning in late winter or early spring.” The plant “fixes” nitrogen in root nodules, which adds nutrients to the soil. Culture: • Site: Full sun (6 hours of direct sun) to very light shade; well-drained soils. Doesn’t tolerate wet soil • Size Range: 2-4 ft. tall and wide • Blooms: Late June to early August; blooms on new wood • Hardiness: Zones 4-8 • Landscape Uses: Mixed borders, shrub borders, native plant gardens, massing, foundations • Maintenance: Low Bonus: Flowers attract a wide array of pollinators; tolerant of black walnut toxicity and dry soil

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

ILCA Honorary Lifetime Members Julie Nicoll Julie Nicoll, ILCA’s recently retired Education Manager, is quick to give credit to everyone else. It was the committees doing the work. It was the members sharing their knowledge. While both those things are true, the wide range of ILCA’s successful educational offerings had one thing in common over the last 27 years: Julie Nicoll. When Nicoll joined ILCA in 1989 as a meeting planner, the association organized Winter Seminar, the Mid-America Horticultural Trade Show, Summer Field Day and a few other programs here and there. Five title changes, three Executive Directors, and nearly 500 events later, Nicoll was working with six committees to orchestrate educational programs spanning every area of the green industry, often in two languages. Yes, it was committee members who offered ideas, used their connections and shared their expertise, but it was Nicoll who called the meetings, organized the work plans and spread sheets, followed up on the details, enrolled the attendees, schlepped the supplies and managed the registration table with a friendly smile and unflappable calm. “I enjoyed every minute of it,” Nicoll says. “It always amazed me to see how much the members need to know to do their jobs,” Nicoll says. And when members offered ideas about how to better meet those needs, Nicoll was open to them. For instance, she remembers when Catalino Mendoza, then a member of the Education Committee, suggested a class offered in Spanish for Spanish-speakers as part of the Winter Seminar education offerings. “It was so successful that the Latino Relations Committee was developed, and they created their own seminars,” Nicoll recalls. When Nicoll joined ILCA, the Winter Seminar was “four rooms of member-shared knowledge,” as Nicoll puts it. By the time she retired, the Winter Seminar and Mid-Am had morphed into a three-day education program during iLandscape featuring more than 50 speakers and requiring some 60 volunteers to keep the whole thing on track. The Design Seminar and Tour, Turf Education Day, Hardscape Illinois, Foremanship Seminar, Pruning Workshops, Summer Field Day (in the past and again when education was added), CLT training and testing days, Fall Tour, Spring Fling, Golf Outing, and Plant ID Series are among the many programs—past and present—that Nicoll shepherded. “I’ve worked with so many committee members at one time or another,” Nicoll recalls. “The number of volunteers who gave up so much of their time is amazing. I could not have done it without them. “I can think of so many members who met me at the car, helped me unload, set up, and then clean up and pack everything back in my car. Sure, it was hard work at times, but we all went home smiling because of the knowledge that was shared,” she says. 14

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

ILCA Honorary Lifetime Members Dick Price Dick Price got involved in ILCA in the early days. Working for a farm co-op, Price’s manager was Walter Vogl, ILCA’s third president. “He encouraged me to get involved, and I was elected to the board in the early 1970s,” Price recalls. Before long, Price was asked to be president, a two-year commitment in those days. “I was real green when I was asked to be president” Price admits. “(Past presidents) Denny Church and Ralph Little and Ralph’s wife, Lucille, helped me learn the ropes the first year. The second year I knew how to get things done better.” Back then, the association didn’t have much staff. “Everyone pitched in to do everything—the paper work, the phone calling,” Price recalls. Early on, Price served on the committee that put on those early summer picnics at Hub Tures Nursery, the ones that later became Summer Field Day. “This was by far my favorite committee,” Price says. As chair, it was Price’s job to line up the exhibitors. “I would get on the phone after work and call suppliers like Bork Nursery, Wilson Nursery, Art Clesen and H&E Sod, to name a few. Ninety-nine percent of the time, they said ‘yes’,” Price recalls. The Education Committee was another place Price invested a lot of time. He remembers when speakers were so unfamiliar with the work of landscape contractors that the committee had to help speakers understand the business beforehand. “We borrowed a lot from the farm industry at first. A lot of times, those people didn’t know how to apply their knowledge or their equipment to the work landscape contractors do,” Price explains, marveling at how the industry has evolved to include experts and equipment tailored to its needs. “I remember when we used to say ‘We’re professionals. Let’s dress better. Let’s think about how we present ourselves to the public,’” Price recalls. “We used to argue about the cost of sod, and now we talk about best practices,” he continues. “ILCA has made great strides in helping educate our members to be bet-

ter business people.” Honored as Man of the Year in 1998, Price remembers his ILCA years fondly. “Many of these companies were young and eager to learn. People were willing to help each other. Strong bonds have been made for life,” Price explains. “This is one of the things I love about the association, the quality people.” Price thinks it is important for ILCA to remember its early years. “We would be remiss not to mention our historian, George Weyland, and the late Joe Sidari for remembering our history—the members, our struggles and accomplishments of ILCA for the past fifty-plus years,” he says. Price says he feels ‘very humble’ to be named an Honorary Lifetime Member. “I really didn’t expect this,” he says. “ILCA is a great organization that has done so much good for our industry, has educated our people to provide a quality product and service to our customers. We can be very proud of what we’ve accomplished. I am delighted to be associated with this organization.”

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Native Intelligence — Styrax americana/Styrax americanus— American Snowbell

This is a little-known native shrub that has great potential as an ornamental. Showy, lightly fragrant white flowers appear in late spring. American snowbell’s native habitat includes wooded swamps, wet woods and along streams. “Snowbell does best in the shade canopy of trees. It’s cold hardy and easy to cultivate.” Culture: • Site: Full sun to shade; Moist soils • Size: 6-10’ tall and wide • Blooms: May-June • Hardiness: Zones 5-8 • Landscape uses: A good choice for difficult wet woody areas, flood plains and along stream banks. • Maintenance: Low Bonus: Attracts pollinators and birds

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

L O N G S H A D OW

. COM

October evening sun highlights the warm Kaffe color of our LS 6576, Birmingham Planter & Plinth at Longshadow… FABRICIA IN HORTO NOSTRO.

Native Intelligence — Rhus aromatica var. arenaria — Low Fragrant Sumac

In its native haunts, fragrant sumac often is found on sandy or gravelly soils in open oak-hickory woodlands. Its common name refers to the scent when the leaves or stems are crushed. “I do like the natural low form of the fragrant sumac. It’s been widely planted in parking lot islands across the Midwest. It’s one of the first good nectar plants in spring. The plants are tidy and have pretty foliage as well.” The popular cultivar Rhus aromatica ‘Gro-Low’ was selected from the Chicago region. Culture: • Site: Full sun to light shade; warm dry sites • Size Range: 2-4’ tall and 4-6’ wide • Blooms: Produces nectar-rich flowers in spring • Hardiness: Zones 3-9 • Landscape Uses: Makes a fine low shrub planted in mass or as a spiller over a wall; informal hedge • Maintenance: Low Bonus: Red-orange fall color with bright red fruit attractive to wildlife

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

VINTAGE PAVERS Reclaimed from the old streets of many Midwestern cities, clay street pavers and antique granite pavers have become a unique, preferred choice when design requires the elusive look of originality. Once an old street, now an exclusive driveway, reclaimed street pavers provide the look and appeal of natural design. No comparison can be made to these beautiful brick, the texture, the wear of years of weather and use from old carriages and vintage automobiles have created an exceptional patina that newly manufactured concrete pavers cannot match.

Stockyards Brick Clay Street Pavers & Antique Granite Pavers are utilized most commonly for driveways, paths, walkways and patios. Reclaimed pavers are also used in the construction of many exclusive homes as well as restaurants and country clubs. Some designers are also suggesting them for use in atrium flooring.

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872.444.5440November 2017 l www.stockyardsbrick.com

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Native Intelligence — Symphoricarpos orbiculatus — Coralberry

Coralberry is common in disturbed dry upland woods and hedgerows. “It stays low and spreads widely by ground-hugging stolons to create a thicket. Proper siting can make that problem work for us in the landscape— let it fill in and hold the ground.” Culture: • Site: full sun or light shade; moist to dry welldrained soils • Size: 3-4’ tall and wide • Blooms: Inconspicuous early spring flowers; clusters of purple-red fruits persist from early fall to January • Hardiness: Zones 2-7 • Landscape Uses: Foundation planting, massing, mixed borders, under ornamental trees, embankments, erosion control • Maintenance: Low/Medium Bonus: Birds eat the fruits in late winter; handles dry shade

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Native Intelligence — Amorpha canescens — Leadplant

A tallgrass prairie native, leadplant’s attractive graygreen foliage and purple flower spikes add a nice contrast in rock gardens as well as prairie-style borders. “It grows in almost any well-drained soil in full sun. Blooms on new wood so it can be cut to the ground in early spring. It’s nice and tidy and extremely heat and drought tolerant.” Leadplant is a woody subshrub but often dies back in winter like a perennial. Culture: • Site: Full sun (6 hours). Grows in average, dry to medium moisture, well-drained soil • Size Range: 2-4’ tall and 3-5’ wide • Blooms: June-July • Hardiness: Zones 2-9 • Landscape Uses: Native plant gardens, massing, mixed border, specimen • Maintenance: Low Bonus: Nectar source for butterflies; seeds attract birds

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Salix humilis var. tristis — Dwarf Prairie Willow

“This plant is incredibly underutilized—it can grow in dry prairies and can be used in a parking lot. It stays quite small and will bloom on new wood. The male willows have the showy catkins in the spring, like mini-pussy willows.” It’s one of the first shrubs to flower in the spring before the leaves unfurl. Branhagen recommends cutting some of the stems during the growing season so it develops new whips. The woody stems can be some shade of yellow, tan, brown, or gray. “I would like to inspire more people to grow it or “spec” it in their plans so that the growers will offer it.” Culture: • Site: Full sun (6 hours) to part sun (4-6 hours). Well-drained moist to dry-mesic conditions, and soil that is loamy, gravelly, or sandy • Size Range: 4-6’ tall and wide with a suckering habit • Blooms: Early to mid-spring • Hardiness: Zones 4-6 • Landscape Uses: Massing Maintenance: Low/Medium Bonus: Attracts pollinators

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Preview — iLandscape 2018

I t ’ a S h o w T i m e —

Advance your employees, launch your creativity, upgrade your products & services, ramp up your industry connections, grow your knowledge, and Elevate your business at the 2018 iLandscape Show January 31st through February 2nd. by Ashley Marin Elevate the landscape industry & your business We all depend on each other to grow and thrive. The Tree of Life is a great symbol of this not only in each of our businesses, but our industry as a whole. Business owners and seasoned influential professionals are the roots of the tree. They are responsible for anchoring their businesses and keeping the industry stable and strong. Managers, designers, and sales associates are the trunk of the tree. They are responsible for transporting information to the clients and labor force. The labor force is the crown of the tree which takes the information from all the other components and is responsible for implementation and interaction with clientele. Whether you are a business owner, manager, or part of the labor force, we all are crucial and need each other to elevate our businesses and our industry. That is why the iLandscape Show is not only for business owners or buyers, but also for managers, designers, landscape architects, sales associates, lawn care technicians, plantsmen, hardscape installers, students, and much more.

Elevated Education

The Education Committee continues to provide superior educational sessions that appeal to each attendee no matter what their role may be. Some educational sessions to look out for include topics such as efficient operations, goal setting, container gardening secrets, soil health, customer service & communication, installation techniques, and plant material. Spanish language educational sessions will also be available. The Keynote Speaker of the show without a doubt is very exciting this year! Talk about elevation, Animal Planet television star and tree house master, Pete Nelson, will be sharing his story with us. Pete Nelson is a high energy speaker that will help motivate and inspire us for the upcoming 2018 season.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

ELEVATE 2018

Elevated Networking Opportunities

The iLandscape show was named one of the 50 fastest growing tradeshows in the country according to Tradeshow Executive Magazine. The show continues to grow and offer a diverse group of exhibitors each and every year. We strive to connect industry professionals with the latest products and services available. The exhibitor floor allows for reconnecting and creating new business relationships. Keep an eye out for the new iLandscape website which will feature a new and improved interactive show floor plan. New exhibitors joining us this year include: Walnut Creek Nursery, New England Ladder Company LLC, Hulton Tool Company LLC, and Clean Cut Tree Care, just to name a few. Daytime and evening entertainment is always a great opportunity for networking with fellow professionals. A great lineup of musicians, food and beverage, raffles, and interactive exhibits allow for a more casual networking atmosphere. We are very excited about the Wednesday night party (continued on page 26) The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Preview — iLandscape 2018

E L E V A T E 2 0 1 8

(continued from page 25) entertainment! A local favorite will take the party to a whole new level. Be prepared to laugh, boogie, be energized, and elevated! The Future Landscape Industry Professionals Committee (FLIP) has been working hard to link students to landscape industry professionals. Students are invited to attend the iLandscape Show any day at no cost as long as they registered through their college or university. Friday February 2nd is the official student career day. Several new opportunities will be available to students such as a mentor walkabout to introduce students to top industry professionals throughout the career fair and student roundtable discussions with a diverse team of landscape professionals representing several areas of the landscape industry.

Elevated Décor and Exhibits

One of the top three drivers for show attendance is related to the gardens and décor. This year the décor will utilize much of the vertical space with intimate and open expansive gardens. Each garden will be interactive with its own experiences. There will be freedom to roam each space by gaining tiny glimpses and discovering the garden through different perspectives. There will also be an educational component to each garden for the visitor to learn about the design, the materials used to construct the garden, and the message behind building it.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

The iLandscape show is committed to continuing to evolve and encompass all levels and areas of expertise in the landscape industry. We must work together to elevate our industry and our businesses.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

ILCA Golf Outing 2017

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

More Sponsorsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; Arthur Clesen Atlas Bobcat Blu Petroleum BP Pro Cassidy Tire Earthworks Stone Feece Oil Company Gravely, an Ariens Company Brand H & E Sod Nursery Illinois Brick Company Kankakee Nursery Lafarge Martin Implement Sales Nels Johnson Tree Experts Night Light Northfield Block/Belgard Hardscapes Phoenix Irrigation Supply Phoenix Paper Products Platinum Poolcare Reflections Water Gardens/Aquatic Ecosystems RelaDyne Rental Max Rochester Concrete Products Russo Power Equipment SavATree TriNet Unilock Vermeer Midwest Weed Man Lawn Care West Side Tractor Sales

ILCA Golf Outing 2017

3rd Place â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Kyle Trippeer, Unilock; Paul Nobis, Heartland Landscape; Jay Zumbahlen,Wingren Landscape; Allan Jeziorski, Hartman Landscape

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

50/50 Winner — Jennifer Fick - Wilson Nurseries & Landscape Supply

2nd Place — Matt Sobacki, Atlas Bobcat; John Johnson, Atlas Bobcat Phil Anello, Atlas Bobcat; Robert Atwater, Apex Landscaping

1st Place — Bob Johnson Blu Petroleum; Dave Newlin, Blu Petroleum; Steve Poole, Blu Petroleum; Tom Bolas, James Martin Associates and Scott Grams, ILCA Executive Director

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Preview — iLandscape 2018

Ha llegado la Feria —

iLandscape

The illinois + wisconsin Landscape Show

Fomente el avance de sus empleados, lance su creatividad, actualice sus productos y servicios, consolide sus conexiones industriales, incremente sus conocimientos y Eleve su negocio en la Feria de Paisajismo iLandscape 2018, del 31 de enero al 2 de febrero. por Ashley Marin Eleve la industria del paisajismo y su negocio Todos dependemos unos de otros para crecer y prosperar. El Árbol de la Vida es un excelente símbolo de esto, no solamente en cada uno de nuestros negocios, sino en nuestra industria considerada en su totalidad. Los dueños de negocios y profesionales experimentados influyentes son las raíces del árbol. Tienen la responsabilidad de fortalecer sus respectivos negocios y mantener la industria estable y sólida. Gerentes, diseñadores, y asociados de ventas son el tronco del árbol. Su responsabilidad es transferir información a los clientes y a la fuerza laboral. La fuerza laboral es la corona del árbol que toma la información de todos los otros componentes y es responsable de su implementación y de la interacción con la clientela. Independientemente de que usted sea dueño de negocio, gerente o parte de la fuerza laboral, todos somos esenciales y nos necesitamos mutuamente para elevar nuestros negocios y nuestra

industria. Por eso la Feria iLandscape no es solo para dueños de negocios o compradores, sino también para gerentes, diseñadores, arquitectos paisajistas, asociados de ventas, técnicos en jardinería (cuidado de céspedes), cultivadores, instaladores de elementos sólidos en jardines, estudiantes y mucho más.

Educación elevada

El Comité de Educación continúa ofreciendo sesiones educativas superiores que atraen a cada uno de los asistentes independientemente del rol que desempeñen. Algunas de las sesiones educativas disponibles incluyen temas como operaciones eficientes, fijación de metas, secretos de la jardinería en macetas y contenedores, salud del suelo, servicio y comunicaciones con los clientes, técnicas de instalación y material vegetal. También estarán disponibles sesiones educativas en español.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

ELÉVESE

¡El conferencista inaugural de la feria este año sin duda crea altas expectativas! Hablando de elevación, Pete Nelson, estrella del programa de televisión Animal Planet y maestro-constructor de casas en árboles, compartirá su historia con nosotros. Pete Nelson es un orador con mucha energía y ayudará a motivarnos e inspirarnos para la temporada de 2018.

Oportunidades elevadas de establecimiento de contactos

La revista Tradeshow Executive Magazine incluyó la Feria iLandscape entre las 50 ferias industriales de más rápido crecimiento en el país. La feria continúa creciendo y ofrece cada año un grupo diverso de expositores. Nos esforzamos por conectar a profesionales de la industria con los productos y servicios más novedosos disponibles. El piso de exhibiciones de la feria permite la reconexión y creación de nuevas relaciones comerciales. Esté atento al nuevo sitio web de iLandscape que The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Preview — iLandscape 2018

E L E V A T E 2 0 1 8

iLandscape

The illinois + wisconsin Landscape Show

tendrá un nuevo plano interactivo mejorado del piso de exhibiciones. Entre los nuevos expositores que se nos unirán en esta feria se encuentran Walnut Creek Nursery, New England Ladder Company LLC, Hulton Tool Company LLC y Clean Cut Tree Care, por nombrar solo algunos. Las opciones de entretenimiento durante el día y la noche son siempre una estupenda oportunidad de establecer redes de contactos con colegas profesionales. Una animada variedad de músicos, comidas y bebidas, sorteos y exposiciones interactivas permiten el desarrollo de una atmósfera más informal para establecer contactos. ¡Estamos muy entusiasmados con el entretenimiento de la fiesta del miércoles por la noche! Un favorito local elevará la fiesta a un nuevo nivel. ¡Prepárese para reír, bailar, energizarse y elevarse! El Comité de Profesionales del Futuro de la Industria del Paisajismo (FLIP, por sus siglas en inglés) ha estado

trabajando arduamente para conectar a estudiantes con profesionales de la industria del paisajismo. Se invita a los estudiantes a asistir a la Feria iLandscape cualquier día sin costo alguno con la condición de que su colegio universitario o universidad se inscriba. El viernes, 2 de febrero es el día oficial de carreras para estudiantes. Estarán disponibles varias oportunidades nuevas para los estudiantes, como un recorrido con un mentor por la feria de carreras para presentarles a destacados profesionales de la industria y una mesa redonda para que los estudiantes hablen con un equipo diverso de profesionales que representan varias áreas de la industria paisajista.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Decoraciones y muestras elevadas Uno de los tres principales factores impulsores de la asistencia a la feria se relaciona con los jardines y las decoraciones. Este año, las decoraciones utilizarán gran parte del espacio vertical con jardines íntimos y amplios jardines abiertos. Cada jardín será interactivo con sus propias experiencias. Habrá libertad para deambular por cada espacio mirando los detalles y descubriendo el jardín desde diferentes perspectivas. También habrá un componente educativo en cada jardín para que los visitantes aprendan algo sobre el diseño, los materiales usados para construir el jardín y el mensaje detrás de su construcción. La Feria iLandscape tiene el compromiso de continuar evolucionando y abarcar todos los niveles y áreas de experiencia y profesionalismo de la industria del paisajismo. Debemos trabajar conjuntamente para elevar nuestra industria y nuestros negocios.

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Women’s Networking Group —

Fall Networking Event — October 5, 2017

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Premier Sponsor - SmithAmundsen Other Sponsors:

A. Block Marketing Arthur Clesen Elite Growers

Hunter Industries

LafargeHolcim/Fox River Decorative Stone Landscape Concepts Management Night Light RentalMax

Rochester Concrete Products Xylem, Ltd.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Landscapes

& Architecture

Landscapes Architecture

Timeless Landscapes: Queen of The Victorian Era

By Nina A. Koziol

n this ongoing series on landscaping for older homes, we take a look at Queen Anne houses—one of the many styles of residential architecture popular during the Victorian period from 1880 to 1910. Queen Anne style is found throughout the Midwest from densely populated cities like Chicago to suburbs, small towns and remote rural areas. The often large, sprawling homes were favored by wealthy Victorians. But working-class families often enjoyed smaller affordable versions in the form of one-story L-shaped cottages or other variations. Queen Anne houses tend to have steeply pitched, irregularly shaped roofs. They usually have a front-facing gable, patterned shingles and an asymmetrical facade. They may have a partial or full-width porch that extends along one or both side walls. Until the late-19th century, physicians actively discouraged the use of foundation plants, concerned that damp shrubbery pressing against the house invited tuberculosis. But by 1870, large houses were being built on raised foundations that were often made of locally quarried stone. That year, Frank Scott published “The Art of Beautifying Suburban Home Grounds,” which told homeowners how to make the most of their landscapes. (The town of Riverside, Illinois, was designed in 1869 as one of the first suburbs in the country.) Scott advised homeowners to soften and conceal foundations with fragrant, showy shrubs that provided delicate, sweet-smelling breezes inside and out on warm summer days. At that time, mock orange, summersweet (Clethra), lilac, viburnum and fothergilla were among the shrubs often planted under windows, at the corners of a house and flanking doorways or at the front walk.

Enter the Lawnmower

The first push-type reel lawn mowers became available in this country about 1870. “The smooth, closely shaven surface of grass is by far the most essential element of beauty on the grounds of the suburban home,” Scott wrote in his book. With more disposable cash, Victorian homeowners quickly embraced the lawn as a place for leisure activities and to 38

show off “carpet beds”—mass plantings of annuals in unusual shapes. Well-tended turf became a status symbol along with ornamental trees and shrubs such as weeping Camperdown elm and panicle hydrangeas trained as tree forms.

Meet a Rural Queen Anne

One of the more unusual Queen Anne homes is this one in Waterman, Illinois, which was built in 1902 by John Delos Roberts, a successful pioneer farmer. The house was later owned by the Kauffman family of the Ho-Ka turkey enterprise and was purchased in 1991 by the current owners. A large turkey weathervane keeps an eye on the neighborhood. “This is a late Queen Anne style house,” said Virginia McAlester, author of “A Field Guide to American Houses.” “The porch roof turret is relatively unusual and very eyecatching. It appears that the landscape may have been planned to highlight this feature.”

Fast-forward to 2017

Joel Barczak of Blumen Gardens in Sycamore worked with the current owners to create a landscape that enhanced the house. “Our approach was to be more thoughtful to the age and architecture of the house and the needs of the homeowners,” Barczak said. “Be respectful to the era of the house, and don’t clutter it up with plants that are going to hide it.” Barczak limited the number of species to create a cleaner, easier-to-maintain landscape. But he also put in some Victorian-era favorites like weeping beech (Fagus ‘Purple Fountain’). “Their garden is seasonal and soft. When I go to a home after visiting a client, I think about what the house looks like in February—evergreens, ornamental grasses, stonework, the settee, the urn as the focal point, seed heads. It’s recognizing the stonework and the bed lines during the winter months as well.” (continued on page 40)

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Landscapes

& Architecture

(continued from page 38) Lucky for him, the house had the original soil because the basement was hand dug and no top soil was removed. “Nowadays, we have a horrible gardening environment in new subdivisions. The rest of your life you’re trying to amend the soil, but we were blessed with old soil at this house.” He uses mushroom compost to “recharge” the soil, using it as a top dressing and soil conditioner. “We put in plants that have maximum value for the seasons and foliage color gives you that.” Everlow yews (Taxus x media ‘Everlow’) and boxwood were used in the front garden for winter interest. Three Heptacodium trees were also added. “Heptacodium is not an old plant, but it’s a four-season plant. I love that bark and I didn’t want something that would send leaves into the pool.” The homeowners, who enjoy gardening, were also involved with the plant selection. “To some degree we did suggest a few things like hydrangeas,” said Betsy Shapiro. “I love them, and boy did I get a lot of them.” Ornamental grasses, which were touted in Chicago’s

“Gardening” magazine in 1893, were also used on the foundation. A hop hornbeam (Ostrya) in the parkway is one of several 19th-century trees that grace the property. “For the time it was planted, using Ostrya as a street tree is very unusual,” Barczak said. “When I saw it, I thought, “wow!” I thought I’ve got to keep the quality of the plantings high. I didn’t want to come in with the Anthony Waterer spirea or potentilla.” As was typical of the Victorian era, the house is adorned in ivy. “As a preservationist, I really want to see this trimmed back a bit so it is not on the actual window frames or gutters or on other wood details where it can be damaging,” McAlester said. McAlester gave the nod to the small bed of flowers set out from the house and the pedestal birdbath. “This kind of “planting out” in a bed apart from the house was typical of the Victorian era,” she said. “Victorians recommended planting in beds that were away from the house.” Frank Scott, too, was one of the first to mention the importance of sight lines from inside the home. He wanted homeowners to be able to look across a

Plant material in the Victorian-style urns that flank the front walkway is changed with the seasons. The stone planters are in keeping with the style and material of the house.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

swath of lawn to ornamental shrubs and beds of annuals.

A Few Victorian-era Pointers

Frank Scott suggested making the main path to the front door at least 4-feet wide (5 feet is even better). He also suggested flanking the front walkway with annuals. Choose embellishments (planters, benches, arbors, fencing material, etc.) in a style, color or materials that enhance the home’s architecture. A Prairie-style or contemporary planter is not the best fit for a Queen Anne-style house. • Use urns to flank the front steps and do a seasonal rotation of plants. • Put in some fragrant shrubs around the windows. • If the homeowners enjoy colorful annuals, consider installing a “carpet bed.” Do you have an older house project that you’d like to share? Email ninakoziol@ icloud.com

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Their garden is seasonal and soft.â&#x20AC;? Miscanthus grasses, perennials and Annabelle hydrangeas soften the foundation and add winter interest.

This pergola and side-yard garden next to a wood-shingled Queen Anne home offers an attractive sight line from inside the house.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Landscapes

& Architecture

QueenAnne Schematic

Other samples of Queen Anne styles, some have been modified.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Looking for more information? Check out “A Field Guide to American Houses: The Definitive Guide to Identifying and Understanding America’s Domestic Architecture.” Virginia Savage McAlester. Knopf Publishing. 2015.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Seasonal Containers —

Four-Season Shuffle Could your clients use some extra winter interest in their landscape? Nina A. Koziol The mums and pumpkin displays are history now, but there’s still time to create great looking containers for your clients. “Most containers that we install are a four-season change out,” says Laura Gianorio of BrightView Landscape Services in Long Grove. “The containers frame the entrances to multi-use buildings, homeowner associations, corporate campuses, hospitals and hotels throughout our portfolio of clients.” Unlike plantings created for the other three seasons, winter containers require minimum maintenance when located outdoors. Gianorio takes several things into account when putting a design together. The type of property and where the containers are located are important considerations. “The next step is to determine the clients’ expectations and set the budget for the winter décor. Some clients prefer a more traditional look over mixed branches and colors.” That conversation is key to creating something that they will appreciate. As a base for their winter arrangements, the firm uses a mix of assorted greens including boxwood, branches of blue and green spruce, cedar and fir. “Our teams add interest with natural and colored birch branches, magnolia, oregonia (a green leafy filler), (continued on page 46)

A simple combination of green and blue spruce branches, eucalyptus, and curly red willow brightens this commercial entryway. Teams from BrightView Landscape Services inspect the containers after a very windy day or the first snow to see if adjustments are needed.

Formal urns decorated with a brawny collection of cedar branches, pomegranates and berries create a low-maintenance, long-lasting winter greeting at this entry.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Special Feature —

(continued from page 44) eucalyptus, various berries, artificial apples, lotus pods, pine cones, and various colorful ornaments.” The existing potting mix is used and pine fines are sometimes added. Teams inspect the containers after a very windy day or the first snow to see if adjustments are needed. “Once the soil medium is frozen, it’s difficult to make any adjustments or additions to the existing arrangement. At that point we may trim back greens that have browned out as needed.” There’s no doubt that pots, window boxes, urns and large planters decorated for winter give an emotional boost especially when the landscape typically provides little color on dull, overcast days. “We have the ability to use height, texture and color to bring attention to our clients’ and their visitors.” Always a good thing.

Enormous pots like these street planters call for big beefy designs. Red twisted willow branches, redtwig dogwood and white (painted) twigs create the height these planters need. Hefty cuttings of dark green spruce, berries and eucalyptus round out the design. The plant material is securely anchored and once the soil freezes the arrangements will stay in place until the spring plantings are installed.

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The Landscape Contractor November 2017

The two planters flanking the front door have an informal arrangement that’s taller in the back than the front. This allows the eye to move up from the trailing cedar and Colorado blue spruce to the berries, eucalyptus and birch branches.

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Special Feature Photo on the right: A trio of staggered birch branches adds vertical interest to this short container. Blue eucalyptus, spruce, magnolia leaves, dried pods, and oregonia (a green leafy filler), round out the design.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

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Committee Chair Profile —

New Membership Committee Co-Chairs Ashley Marrin and Emily Stuart by Meta L. Levin The ILCA Membership Committee is co-chaired by two women with a passion for the green industry: Ashley Marrin, a landscape architect for Bret-Mar Landscape, Inc., and Emily Stuart, is business analyst and market administrator at Landscape Hub, Inc. Together they plan to give the committee a shot in the arm, growing it and offering a menu of member benefits. “It has eight members now, but I would like to see that doubled,” says Marrin. She cites the iLandscape Experience Committee, on which she also serves. With more than 20 members, it can break down into subcommittees to tackle the myriad of issues with which it must deal. That is not the case with the current membership committee and Marrin is hoping to change that. Marrin and Stuart are in the process of creating a series of webinars that will address topics of interest to ILCA members. “We want to create added value to help increase the membership,” says Stuart. “For instance, we are planning a series of webinars that members can upload. These would have content that they would find useful.” A graduate of South Dakota State University with a BS in agriculture and a specialization in landscape architecture, with a minor in business management and equine science, Marrin’s first brush with the urge to get involved with ILCA came during the ILCA annual meeting, during which Bret-Mar was recognized for 25 years as a member. That was three years ago. She talked with Scott Grams about getting involved and he pointed her towards the membership committee. “Part of my job is getting involved in the industry,” she says. Grams initially sent her a list of committees looking for new members, highlighting the membership committee. “He thought my knowledge of marketing and business would bring value.” 50

Her experience must have been valuable, because not only did she become the committee chair, but in February 2017, the iLandscape experience committee recruited her. Marrin is no stranger to ILCA or industry Ashley Marrin

events. She grew up around BretMar, the landscape contracting company her parents own. She worked for a golf course in high school, but, as Emily Stuart a child, was always around the nursery. In addition to her landscape industry duties, Marrin is an accomplished horseback rider, who competes in the hunterjumper category. In fact, when in high school, South Dakota State University recruited her as an equestrian to compete in the NCAA, Division 1. This delighted her, since it was difficult to find a school with the academics she wanted, as well as an equestrian program. While in school, she traveled extensively to compete and “made a lot of great friends.” Now she primarily competes on the Illinois Class A Circuit. “There are a lot of horse shows in Illinois,” she says. “The judges and people are from all over the country, so I compete against some of the top people in my division.” Stuart decided she wanted to be involved in something that involved advocacy for the industry. She joined the membership committee in November 2016 and not long after that Marrin asked her to cochair it with her. “I was thrilled,” she says. The Landscape Contractor November 2017

This year, she promises, the membership committee is going to be even more active. “The tasks are fundamentally important.” she says. In addition to driving up membership in general, Stuart also is hoping to focus on increasing the number of Latino owned businesses in ILCA, because, “They are a major part of the business.” Growing up, Stuart always gravitated towards plants. While in college, she worked in a garden center. At the time, she was in a pre-med program at Northwestern University, but she soon realized that she was having much more fun with the plants, so she went to work for a landscape contractor. Initially, her landscape contracting involved much of the hard work of mowing, installation, hardscapes and seasonal clean-up. For a year she did landscape design, which came somewhat naturally, since her undergraduate work at Washington University was in painting and art history. “But horticulture is where it’s at,” she says. She collects tropical plants and is an amateur photographer, who sometimes shows her work. In addition, she works with Chicago Plant Rescue, an association of architects that diverts plants from the waste stream by finding community gardens, schools and other places that need plants, but do not have the budget for them. Stuart loves to travel; she and her partner take as many trips as they can. She also is active in a lot of women’s rights organizations in the Chicago area and is part of the Feminist Night School, an organization that educates people on current feminist issues and does advocacy and fundraising for a number of social justice projects in Chicago.

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The Landscape Contractor November 2017

New Member Profile Snapshot

B&S Landscaping, Inc. 228 Charlotte Lane Bolingbrook, IL 60440 (630) 973-3916

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by Meta Levin

Hermenegildo Benitez started out working

as a country club golf course groundskeeper. After a while he was promoted to supervisor and, although he was passionate about the work, he felt the need to do something else. So, after 16 years, he left the golf course, partnered with a friend, Labrado Sanchez, and started B&S Landscaping, Inc. Benitez and Sanchez started small, their reputation spreading through word of mouth. “Neighbors saw the kind of work that they did and they continued to pick up local customers,” says Obed Benitez, Hermenegildo’s (known as Herman) son. “It was good work. They were consistent.” Sanchez and Benitez parted ways nearly seven years ago. Not long after that, Obed Benitez, who was working toward an Associate in Business degree at the College of DuPage, became involved. “My father was old school and still doing bills and other work by hand,” he says. Benitez saw potential in his father’s business, so he began an education program, introducing his father to QuickBooks™ and other technology. “Once he saw it, he found it fascinating,” he says. So, father offered son a job. Now, nearly six years later, Benitez has taken over office work. He also meets with customers, doing sales and estimates. His father would much rather be out with the guys. “He supervises, while still being hands-on and working with his crew” says Benitez. “He likes seeing a project from start to finish.”That’s something the younger Benitez has come to appreciate, because he, too, gets a good sense of accomplishment watching as the work transforms a piece of property. The company offers a list of services, including weekly lawn service, tree and bush trimming, edging, fertilizing, weed control, aerating, de-thatching, mulching, sod, over seeding, grub control, dog waste removal, drain tile installation, custom landscape and hardscape design/installation, spring and fall clean-up, snow plowing and salt spreading. 52

“We have been growing exponentially and we have to work to keep that quality high, because that’s what allows us to keep customers coming back,” says Benitez. “It’s all from referrals.” That puts some pressure on him, because, “If the referral comes from another contractor, we have to make sure that we do a good job to make him look good.” B&S Landscaping has grown to 14 employees during the season. Manuel Iturbe has been with B&S for three years. Married to Benitez’s sister, he approached the father-son team about joining the firm. “We were impressed with him,” says Benitez. Iturbe now runs a hardscape crew and is a skilled mechanic, who helps with upkeep on the trucks. Fernando Vega serves as a foreman for the main crew. “He works hard,” says Benitez. “He does a good job keeping and making sure that things get done as they are needed.” In the last few years their customers have been asking for more modern landscaping designs. “They no longer want small pavers,” Benitez says. “Instead they like the big ones – 24 by 24 inche porcelain pavers – like something that you normally would see in a hotel.” One recent customer asked for smaller areas of grass with more paving. “It ended up looking like a checker board.” Benitez has wanted B&S Landscaping to join ILCA for a long time, before it finally happened in the spring of 2017. “To me, it’s like an achievement,” he says. He has been encouraged to get involved in the association. Benitez’s primary focus is ensuring that B&S Landscaping continues to do an exceptional job. “We are small enough to care about the details, but big enough to service any size property,” he says.

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

The Landscape Contractor 53 November 2017

Are You Getting What You’re Paying For?

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The Landscape Contractor November 2017

June 1, 2016

Illinois Landscape Contractors Association (ILCA) Sustainable Landscape Maintenance Annual Calendar

Sustainable Maintenance Guide and Calendar For the next 15 months, ILCA will be releasing a monthly excerpt from the most current version (v3.0) of its Sustainable Maintenance Guide and Calendar in The Landscape Contractor magazine. The entire 12 month calendar is available to download at no cost to ILCA members, non-profits, public agencies, and units of government. Please email information@ilca.net to request a download of the entire guide and calendar. This guide is not available to private landscape companies who are not members of the ILCA. This guide is intended to equip Illinois Landscape Contractors Association members with all the tools necessary to implement a sustainable maintenance program. It takes into account the constraints of a landscape company in regards to costs, time, equipment, personnel, and horticultural knowledge. The guide is written so any landscape company can apply these maintenance principles to almost any commercial or residential landscape and improve the positive impact on the environment without sacrificing aesthetic quality.

SUSTAINABLE MAINTENANCE CALENDAR June 1, 2016

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The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Classified Ads HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

LANDSCAPE DESIGNER/ESTIMATOR FULL-TIME POSITION

Landscape Designer/Salesperson

Dispatcher/Operations Manager

Bruss Landscaping of Wheaton is looking to add another talented Architect/Designer to our team. 2017 marks our 65th year of providing high quality residential landscape design and installation services to DuPage and eastern Kane counties. If you have a passion for residential design and sales, are self-motivated and focused on superior customer service we would like to meet you. Candidates must have earned a degree in Landscape Design/ Architecture/Horticulture. At least 3 years professional experience is preferred however we are open to recent graduates as well. Bruss is a relaxed work environment, although seasonally hectic, with a strong benefit package. Eric Bruss, ebruss@brusslandscaping.com, (630) 665-1600.

We are hiring for a Dispatcher/Operations Manager to oversee Snow operations. Applicant must have verifiable Snow and Ice management experience.

Grant & Power Landscaping, a premier contractor in the western suburbs, is looking for an experienced, creative, and efficient landscape designer to add to our talented team. Grant & Power Landscaping has been providing outstanding service to our clients for nearly 40 years. We pride ourselves in providing a high quality, full service landscaping experience. The ideal candidate has a strong knowledge of planting and hardscape design, experience using Dynascape Design and Management, Google Sketchup and Adobe Photoshop. Prior estimating experience a plus. Prefer someone with a degree in landscape design, horticulture or equivalent industry experience. Candidate will work closely with sales staff to create a custom design for their clients; render 2D and 3D, and produce accurate estimates for proposed work from working drawings. Competitive salary and benefits offered. Please visit our website at www.grantandpower.com to get to know us and see some of our award winning jobs. Contact Sarah Grabowski at 630-231-0069, or email at: sarahgrabowski@grantandpower.com Design Build Superintendent Do you have 3-5 years design build/construction or landscape maintenance experience and are ready to lead our crews as the new Design Build Superintendent at James Martin Associates (JMA)? We are looking for a remarkable individual with the passion for constructing and maintaining beautiful landscapes to join our team in Vernon Hills, IL. The right person will have the necessary skillset to effectively manage, delegate, and motivating our crews all while building the next award-winning landscape. Apply today: http://www.jamesmartinassociates.com/chicago-landscape-careers

Landscape Architect At Scott Byron & Co., located in Lake Bluff, IL we do an outstanding job of designing the landscape. We choose beautiful plants and flowers. We have incredible teams of people doing amazing things during the installation. And we provide an incredibly high level of care to each property that we maintain. But the real magic of Scott Byron & Co. is the ability to manipulate that landscape so it creates a feeling. Be a part of the magic and join our team.

Must be reliable, dependable and be able to work very long hours. Must be a self-starter and have good organizational skills. Must be able to work well with others and alone. Must have good knowledge of South Suburbs & NWI Must have basic computer skills Must have good time management skills and be able to make quick decisions under pressure Duties include: routing of job assignments, assignments of routes and equipment to Drivers and labor crews, job tracking, equipment repair work orders and make sure repairs are made in a tritely manner, Over see snow operations from start to finish, Maintain open communication with Clients and provide feedback when needed . Please list your snow & ice management experience on your resume or in your cover letter. We will not be reviewing candidates without this experience. This position is a winter only position, but could be full-time year round for the right candidate. Send resume to: info@suburbanlandscaping.net

We are currently recruiting for the following position: Landscape Architect- 3-5 years of experience and a degree in Landscape Architecture. We promote a drug-free work environment. Competitive pay, based on experience. EOE Please forward your resume and salary requirements to HRConsultants1721@gmail.com

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES JAMES MARTIN ASSOCIATES, INC. Vernon Hills, IL & Boulder, CO

James Martin Associates, Inc. is a leader in the Landscape and Snow Management industry and has been providing services to our customers for over 40 years. We are seeking candidates for the following positions:

Landscape and Snow Operations Associates

Design Build Sales

Irrigation Technicians

Seasonal Flower Purchaser Part-Time—Year Round

To be considered for any of these opportunities, please forward your resume and salary history to b.mcelroy@jamesmartinassociates.com or call Beth at 847-876-8052.

Landscape Architecture • Construction • Maintenance • Snow Management

www.jamesmartinassociates.com

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

Classified Ads HELP WANTED

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Seasonal Flower Purchaser

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James Martin Associates, Inc., located in Vernon Hills-IL, is seeking a part-time, year round, highly motivated, and experienced Seasonal Flower Purchaser. The responsibilities include purchasing seasonal plant material and plant related products for our Residential Landscape Maintenance Team. This includes spring, summer, fall and winter/holiday flowers and decor. The Flower Purchaser will also accurately job block plant material, issue purchase orders, approve invoices, coordinate deliveries and pick-ups, and manage, maintain and rotate plant inventory, and provide general support for the team. Prefer certificate or degree in horticulture or minimum 3 years’ experience with Landscape Company. Apply today: http://www.jamesmartinassociates.com/chicago-landscape-careers

Landscape Design/ Sales, Award winning landscape firm for over 45 years in the Bloomington/ Normal area is seeking an experienced professional to join our team. We are looking for an outgoing, aggressive sales person with project management experience, landscape design knowledge and outstanding customer service skills. Must have a degree in Landscape Architecture/ Horticulture or similar and a minimum of 3 years experience in a landscape design/ sales environment. Salary plus commission and benefits. Send resume and salary requirements to redwards@grieders.com All applicants will remain confidential.

PRIMARY PURPOSE OF JOB: Supervise landscape construction, renovation projects, and supervise and participate in snow removal operations. RESPONSIBILITIES will include but are not limited to; Coordinate purchasing, pick-up and delivery of materials; Training of crews/foremen, to include safety, processes, etc.; Quality control; Assist account managers in estimating projects; Process and approve crew time sheets; Oversee multiple projects; Supervise and participate in snow operations during winter months REQUIREMENTS: 3-5 years of experience in Green Industry; Maintenance/construction, including install of both soft- and hard-scapes; Driver’s License (CDL a plus); Bilingual Spanish/English required; Good communications and organization skills, e-Mail and phone skills; Computer proficiency in programs such as Excel and Word. PREFERRED: CLT or CLP a plus; Pesticide license a plus.

CLASSIFIED ADS CLOSING DATES & RATES December 2017 issue ads: November 15, 2017 January 2018 issue ads: December 10, 2017 February 2018 (iLandscape Edition) issue ads: January 5, 2018

MIDWEST CHICAGOLAND CERTIFIED ARBORIST Assist owner in daily operations, sales and client contact for an established territory. Must possess skills in identification of plants, insects, and disease. Full company benefits include company vehicle, medical, dental and life insurance. This is a salary plus commission position. Submit resume to: Vince Winkler, Winkler’s Tree & Landscaping, Inc. P.O. Box 1154, LaGrange Park, IL 60526. (708) 544-1219 or email to: info@winklerstreeservice.com.

This job description does not list all the duties of the position. Send resume to: lhermano@landscapeconcepts.com

PLEASE NOTE: “HELP WANTED” AD SALES ARE LIMITED TO ILCA MEMBER COMPANIES Magazine Cost is $5 per line Minimum charge $50 Website Cost is $12 per line Minimum charge $120 (About 6 words/line) Submit your ads online at ilca.net or call Alycia O’Connor (630) 472-2851

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES JAMES MARTIN ASSOCIATES, INC. Vernon Hills, IL & Boulder, CO

Landscape and Snow Operations Associates

Design Build Sales

Irrigation Technicians

Seasonal Flower Purchaser Part-Time—Year Round

To be considered for any of these opportunities, please forward your resume and salary history to b.mcelroy@jamesmartinassociates.com or call Beth at 847-876-8052.

Landscape Architecture • Construction • Maintenance • Snow Management

www.jamesmartinassociates.com

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

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Knowing Native Plants

Native Intelligence A Guide through the Labyrinth of Native Plants and Cultivars

by Nina Koziol

In the Midwest,

where winter temperatures can dip to -20 F and summers can produce endless heat and periods of drought, plants must be well-adapted to survive let alone thrive. Native plants — the flowers, grasses, shrubs and trees that grew in geographical regions prior to European settlement — do just that. Jacob Burns, curator of herbaceous perennials at the Chicago Botanic Garden will anchor the Native Intelligence series for the next four months.

Symphotrichum cordifolius — Blue Wood Aster “Blue wood aster is one of the delights of fall,” Burns said. “Although most asters prefer sun, this one grows in part to full sun as well as woodland shade.”

Cultivate: • • • • • • •

Site: Woodlands. Prefers moisture but will tolerate dry shade once established Size: 2-5 ft. tall, 1.5-2 ft. wide Hardiness: Zones 3-8 Bloom time: Late summer/early fall (AugustOctober) Flower Color: Pale blue to rich blue Plant Partners: Hostas, ferns, Hakonechloa, woodland phlox Native Cultivars: ‘Avondale’ is extra floriferous and slightly more compact

Bonus: Attracts butterflies, resists disease and pests

The Landscape Contractor November 2017

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