Pro Grow News WINTER.23 DIGITAL EDITION

pro grow news WINTER 2023

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Celebrate the Season Translating the New Naturalism Appreciating Winterscapes

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pro grow news Winter 2023

contents

Features

10 Celebrate the Season

14 Translating New Naturalism to Urban Spaces

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The Natural Beauty of a Winterscape

Departments 6 President’s Message 34 Plant for Success —

Salvia rosmarinus — Rosemary On the cover — A country road lined with pines

after a fresh snow.

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pro grow news Winter 2023

committees

board PRESIDENT Chris O’Brien, MCH Howard Designs, Inc. Tel: (617) 244-7269

EDUCATION & RESEARCH COMMITTEE Deborah Trickett, MCH — Board Liaison The Captured Gardens (781) 329-9698

VICE PRESIDENT Kerry Preston, MCH Wisteria & Rose, Inc. (617) 522-3843

FINANCIAL COMMITTEE (FINCOM)

SECRETARY/TREASURER David Vetelino, MCH Vetelino Lanscape Inc. Tel: (781) 826-0004 PAST PRESIDENT Peter Mezitt, MCH Weston Nurseries, Inc. Tel: (508) 435-3414

Steve Corrigan, MCH — Chair Mountain View Landscapes & Lawncare, Inc. Tel: (413) 536-7555 Chuck Baker, MCH — Vice Chair Strictly Pruning Tel: (508) 429-7189

Deborah Trickett, MCH The Captured Garden Steve Davis, MCH Bigelow Nurseries, Inc Justin Mortensen Farm Credit East Patrick Parent Mahoney’s Garden Centers

Corinne Jean, MCH — Chair Wisteria & Rose (617) 522-3843 Advisor: Jack Elicone, MCH

John R. Elicone Consulting MEMBESHIP COMMITTEE David Ahronian, MCH - Chair Ahronian Landscape & Design, Inc. (508) 429-3844

GOVERNMENT RELATIONS COMMITTEE Peter Mezitt, MCH Weston Nurseries, Inc. Tel: (508) 435-3414

PUBLICATIONS:

HISTORY COMMITTEE

DIRECTORS

MASSACHUSETTS CERTIFIED HORTICULTURIST BOARD (MCH)

Editor in Chief: Rena Sumner Advisors: Ron Kujawski, Rick Reuland, Trevor Smith, Beverly Sturtevant

Philip Boucher, MCH — Chair Elysian Garden Designs Tel: (508) 695-9630

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Skott Rebello, MCH — Vice Chair Harborside P.S. Tel: (508) 994-9208

Rena M. Sumner Tel: (413) 369-4731 mnlaoffice@aol.com

MARKETING COMMITTEE Justin Mortensen - Chair Farm Credit East Tel.: (508) 946-4455

LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR John V. Fernandes Attorney at Law

David Anderson Mayer Tree Service

pro grow news Massachusetts Nursery & Landscape Association P.O. Box 387 Conway, MA 01341 mnlaoffice@aol.com www.mnla.com www.PlantSomethingMA.org www.mnlafoundation.org

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ProGrowNews is published quarterly by the Massachusetts Nursery & Landscape Association (MNLA), P.O. Box 387, Conway, MA 01341, tel. (413) 369-4731.

Articles do not necessarily reflect the view or position of MNLA. Editorial coverage or permission to advertise does not constitute endorsement of the company covered or of an advertiser’s products or services, nor does ProGrowNews make any claims or guarantees as to the accuracy or validity of the advertiser’s offer. (c) 2014 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in print or electronically without the express written permission of the MNLA.

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President’s Message

The Future Looks Bright

By Chris O’Brien, MCH

T

he cold season offers an opportunity to consider some of the long-term issues affecting the horticulture industry generally and our businesses specifically.

Unusual, extreme weather patterns make it clear that the climate is changing and is affecting horticulture.

There are calls for the green industry to move away from equipment powered by internal combustion engines to batterypowered equipment. Some municipalities are enacting rules requiring the changeover. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued a revised plant hardiness zone map that shows warm zones extending more northerly based on weather observations. Plants that previously would not grow reliably in each location may now be viable. More worrisome is that some invasive plants may now be a threat where they did not exist previously. Ditto for many pests.

Each of these changes presents problems and opportunities.

Some can be addressed by a business reshaping their services to address specific issues. Other problems require the green industry to respond with a united voice to seek resolution through legislative or regulatory actions.

A good example of the latter is an early USDA proposal to prohibit the transport of boxwood plants out of Massachusetts because the boxwood tree moth (BTM) has been discovered in a single county in the state. The ban is designed to limit the spread of BTM to neighboring states. That objective is desirable, but a question arises: How do we prevent the spread to other counties within Massachusetts? Other states

have implemented county-by-county transport bans. MNLA members are seeking a similar solution to try to limit the further spread of BTM in the state. Discussions with the state are proceeding and are a good example of our association working on behalf of the entire industry.

This is my last President’s Message as I will be stepping down at the Annual Meeting. It has been a privilege to work with MNLA’s officers, members, and staff on so many distinct aspects of our business. The organization will be in incredibly capable hands with the incoming officers. Please offer them your support and assistance whenever possible.

On another note, my wife, Karen Howard, and I traveled to Turkey recently. We saw two interesting horticultural ideas that may provide new business opportunities.

Chris O’Brien, MCH Howard Garden Designs MNLA President New Styles in Topiary

Boat Landscaping

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Celebrate the Season — A Career Affirming Essay

By Trevor Smith

W

hen are you aware of the seasons? Is it when you find yourself shaking off the chill as you jump in the car in the morning? Or maybe the warmth of the spring sun on your face as you step out to run errands? For many of us, the climate-controlled, car-to-home lifestyle we live in limits our awareness of the season in terms of only the weather.

For gardeners and lovers of the natural world, the season is more often experienced through the unique gifts each changing season brings. The newly fallen snow resting atop a branch or perennial left to stand, the crocus in bloom, and the shoots pushing through the soil…this is how we experience winter and spring.

Some of my favorite realizations about the natural world are once-in-a-lifetime moments. This epiphany changed my life dramatically, so please permit me a moment of poetic romanticism. In my classes, I have recently been using the example of a leaf I came across at first frost. That leaf, from a small red maple, was the only one of its kind; just like a snow-

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flake, no two leaves are alike. Trees produce billions of leaves each year, so many that in the tiniest, yet measurable, fraction of a percentage, they affect the rate at which the earth spins.

When the leaves drop in the northern hemisphere in autumn, the sheer weight of the leaves now closer to the surface causes the earth to spin faster.

But I digress…back to my leaf nestled in the grass encased in frost — a frost of ice crystals that will never form the same way again. As I stood in the chill of predawn, I studied every intricacy, knowing that this moment was mine alone and would never be repeated. This same uniqueness holds true every time you see a leaf fall in autumn: You are likely the only one to see that one-of-a-kind leaf fall to earth on its once-in-a-lifetime journey.

To design with this reverence is to set the stage for moments like this. Design and plant so that many of these unique seasonal moments are front and center and don’t slip by unnoticed.

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Plant like no one is watching. I say this with the full intent of playing on the meaning of the famous phrase. To dance like no one is watching implies letting go of inhibition, feeling the music, and moving in celebration of life without caring how one may look. To plant like no one is watching is to celebrate the Earth, the landscape, the plants and rocks, and our connection to them. Allow the season to flow through you like music and express without regard to the rules. This concept is what I teach my students in my regenerative design course: Plant like no one is watching.

WINTER

In designing a landscape, I begin with winter and work my way back through the seasons. I begin with static elements like stone, the bones of the Earth. In a snowy landscape, even a simple mounded form can serve as a wonderful sculpture, so I start there and consider its role as a vignette and in the overall vista. Consider the evergreens: Beyond the obvious color in an otherwise stark landscape, how do they play as a backdrop to snow-tufted slender forms in the foreground? How do the skeletal shapes of the woody plant forms relate to each other and the design as a whole? Do the structures stand alone or lead your eye from one to the next?

What will those structures look like on a canvas of snow? Did I include finer details like seed pods and exfoliating bark for the close observer? The winter landscape needs to be presented both through the window of a toasty home and to the nature observer venturing out to survey the landscape once the snow subsides.

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FALL

When placing trees and shrubs, I next consider their fall color. Do I want a pocket of red, or do I want to add a splash of yellow? What will the slanting rays of the morning or evening sun look like coming through this tree or shrub?

Have I provided any berries for the birds?

Here again, I consider the evergreen as a backdrop. Will that dark green accentuate the color or form of a finer-leaved plant?

Will it provide a resting place for the eye amid nature’s grand finale? When designing perennials, I consider seed heads and stalks of plants past bloom like rudbeckia, echinacea, penstemon, and grasses. How do these add contrast and interest? These are seeds for birds, and the stalks are winter cover for my pollinators. Do I have late-season blooms for migrating insects and those preparing to hibernate?

SUMMER

Summer gardens always look beautiful, even poorly designed ones. In summer, I focus on the static pieces of the landscape: the stones and evergreens. I like to mask stone either entirely or partially, taking it from view so that when it returns in late autumn and winter, it will be discovered all over again and appreciated. The evergreens I use provide contrast and backdrop to the flowers and leaves of the perennials, changing their appearance from autumn to winter. Here too amidst the carnival of color that is the summer garden, the evergreen gives respite for the eye.

SPRING

The garden in spring is the most appreciated. Eyes starved for color scan the landscape, searching for signs that winter’s veil has finally lifted. Through bulbs and ephemerals, I look to get life and color into the landscape as early as the warming spring sun will allow. I am conscious of the overwintering pollinators awakening from winter slumber ravenous. I also provide early blooms for pollen and nectar, providing a healthy start for the new generation within the garden. These early players set the stage for the more robust characters to take the lead as spring progresses. I like to create vignettes in the spring garden, creating moments and snapshots for the eager observer investigating the garden’s progress. Between the vignettes, I plant in mass. Spring’s blooms are so delicate and fleeting that they will often go unnoticed from afar should weather or schedule not permit time to linger in the garden.

As garden creators, be a part of nature. Allow yourselves to get swept up in the song of the season. Through your choices and actions, create gardens and landscapes that speak to the essence of each season, both in beauty and in bounty, providing for the larger ecosystem. Then with winter’s quiet upon you, sit and reflect on all that was and allow the joy of being a part of it all to keep you warm until spring arrives once again.

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Translating New Naturalism to Urban Spaces

by Heather Prince

O

n a breezy summer day, tall prairie grasses wave at passersby, goldfinches zip and zing among the first seedheads, and butterflies dip and weave among the flowers. Layers of matrix plantings create a powerful floral display woven through with thoughtfully placed shrubs and trees. In late fall, the complex textures of dried perennials and grasses create a densely textured tapestry filled with frosty edges and snowcatchers. Is this possible in a small urban site? Certainly, with deep plant knowledge and a willingness to eschew some traditional garden conventions, naturalistic landscapes can enrich and delight urban dwellers. We spoke with Kelly Norris, award-winning author and plantsman, about the unique characteristics of creating and managing New Naturalism landscapes on a small scale in the built environment.

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Scaling for Smaller Spaces Urban sites have their own ecology, it just might not look like a traditional prairie, savannah, or woodland. There are plants, insects, birds, and animals already there from the cracks in the sidewalk to the slim stretch of parkway to the concrete planters filled with honey locust trees. “We need to dispel the notion that you can’t do naturalistic ecological plantings in small spaces,” said Norris. “I think people often have a preconceived idea of what these landscapes will look like, and then you just cut it down to size. I think we have to step back and think about how the plants are interacting with the place, and their environment. They are part of an ecological fabric, whether we like it, or understand it, or not.”

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instead of acres as you might find in traditional ecological restoration. Those hell strips, curb cut beds, and parking lot planters have considerable edge effects making them prone to environmental disturbance. “The smaller the space gets, the greater the odds that change will occur due to chance alone,” says Norris. “A smaller space often has greater edge surface area compared to its core area.” Norris defines an edge area as about 18 to 24 inches into a bed from the defined hardscape, although this varies with shape. Here is where the tempo changes from high disturbance to the central area of the planting bed that is more likely to receive minimal pressures from human activity.

Planting beds in an urban setting can receive many types of disturbance from people walking on plants to unhoused populations using the area, dog waste, trash removal activities, snow removal and salt pressures, to single-use festivals, demonstrations, and parades. The edge is a tricky place for plants to live, much less thrive. “Minimizing disturbance is one thing but living with it is usually the more viable prospect,” observed Norris. “Plants perceive persistent disturbance as stress over the long-term, requiring plant choices that can adapt their biomass accordingly.”

Managing Urban Ecological Spaces Norris founded The Public Horticulture Company to specialize in urban ecological landscape management. One recent project, Cowles Commons in downtown Des Moines, presents a good case study of all the myriad variables at play in urban sites. Norris took over the site after 8 years of conventional site maintenance, high traffic usage, and a significant unhoused population led to a need to revisit and revise the plantings. “We have taken some nominal steps to try to

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reduce disturbance,” reports Norris. “A small thing like little rope lines that you can see through, but imply a barrier, have helped alleviate compaction from foot traffic.” Revisiting the plant palette, which had included a hedge of mixed switchgrass cultivars, was necessary as it provided a sheltering place to pitch a tent. Thinning the grasses alleviated that disturbance, but there remains a legacy of a deep seed bank of switchgrass in the beds that requires regular editing when it pops up in random places. The former company’s undynamic maintenance calendar created an ideal environment for tough weed species like burdock, thistle, and nuisance goldenrod that often went unattended between routine maintenance intervals.

“We tried to preserve as much drama and theater as possible in the plantings,” says Norris. “And then we choreographed for a continual floral display. Managing the flower show is an important element of the stewardship, whether that’s through additions or editing. The challenge of managing beds with a mow strategy only, which is how a lot of public spaces have to do it because you can’t burn, is that mowing favors grasses in a mixed planting of prairie origins.

It’s going to favor the accumulation of grass biomass because grasses have evolved to be browsed. We’re trying to be mindful of preserving enough niche and gaps so that the forbs can continue to have a home, with the opportunity to develop and play out over time.”

For a naturalistic design to be effective over time, Norris abides by change. These designs are fluid not static.

Management needs and inputs will be reduced as the plants knit together and develop, but the first three years are crucial to keep weeds at bay and aggressive species edited. “If you create a design that has enough diversity in it, and then

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allow it to evolve and change perhaps both in composition and in structure, you’re working with its ecology instead of against,” explains Norris. “What we’re trying to do so often in public spaces, like Cowles Commons, is to really create a more inherently viable ecological model that we can then gesturally intervene with in a horticultural fashion. We’re not trying to control one plant and how it looks in its little fixture of space as much as we are trying to kind of regulate its participation in the whole system.”

Know the Plants, Craft the Experience However, Norris pushes back at creating a list or recipe of plants that survive disturbance or are long blooming. “There are just too many variables from site to site. It’s more about developing plant knowledge for yourself and your employees plus, a willingness to try things and being comfortable with some plant failure.” As you design these areas, there are additional issues than the typical site

assessments that include sun, soil, and moisture. See the sidebar for questions to ask and elements to consider as you build your plant palette.

As restoration science has progressed in recent decades, we are discovering more about how these ecologies function over time. Some cherished assumptions about plant communities are being set aside as we begin to navigate the new realities of climate change. Norris has found building plant knowledge to be fundamental for successful naturalistic designs and management. In 2023, he launched the New Naturalism Academy with two six-week cohorts teaching the basic concepts and practices of this style of planting to both gardeners and professionals. He plans to expand his education offerings in 2024 to a two-part model with an introductory course in winter and a more advanced experience in autumn. “Information, abundant and accessible as it may be, isn’t knowledge.

In the Academy, our job is not to dump a lot of information on people. Our

job is to help folks build knowledge by empowering and informing the experiences they have in practice.” There are a huge range of educational experiences available through not only professional associations, but state extension services, botanical gardens and arboreta, and community colleges.

The value of nurturing knowledge in yourself and your team bears out as the popularity of naturalistic gardens only grows. Clients can tell when companies are equipped to manage these spaces, and many are willing to pay a premium for that knowledge. Norris has found that each completed project leads to more, from public to commercial, to residential. As tastes change towards ecological designs, having a team of craftspeople with deep plant knowledge and flexible skills creates opportunity. “It’s not just a design style,” says Norris. “It’s a strategy for how to engage with landscapes that is more resource-conscious and responsive.”

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Questions and Thoughts As you pull together a plant list for a project, these are some of elements that Norris feels are important to examine. They will inform your choices and perhaps avoid some plant failures as a project develops.

1.

2.

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Light. Beyond sunlight, what are other sources of light in the area? Look at the reflective materials around the space including glass, metal, and white surfaces. Norris recommends the Sun Seeker app for tracking how the sun moves seasonally in an area. How is it lighted at night?

Will night lighting affect the photoperiodism of your plant choices?

Roots. Since disturbance is a given, how do your plant choices root? Are they grasses that build biomass bulk? Do the perennials spread by rhizomes? Are there succulents with leaves that will root if the stems are stepped on? Are there tubers the rats might eat? Will there be plants with crowns that require peace and quiet to settle for the next five or ten years?

3.

Heat. In built spaces, heat from pavement is a significant factor, not only for temperature, but dryness. Does the space capture heat in summer or winter? Can you push a zone? Will your plant choices tolerate drought?

4.

Traffic. Does your space include a road? There are mandated requirements for height when it comes to vehicular traffic sight lines. Make sure your plant palette has depth in low-growing plants and you know the shape and size of those sight lines.

5.

Place. What is the history of the place? Was it forest, prairie, lake shore, or hills? Naturalistic design looks back at the history of a place and uses those textures to evoke connectedness.

6.

Soil. Do a soil test in multiple areas. This will help determine where sidewalk salt tends to linger, where the neighborhood dogs like to go, any past waste dumping, and more. Soil testing can give you direction to narrow down the plant list to tolerant choices. Think about species that offer phytoremediation properties as well.

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7.

Edges. Determine your ratio of core areas to edges. Plot out where you can have plants that take longer to establish at the beginning. Keep in mind humans tend to like their edges tidy, so the space reads as a garden.

8.

Time. How long will the planting likely be in place? Is there time enough for trees to get established? Will slow-moving grasses like prairie dropseed be given enough time to root in or will faster growing species be ideal?

9.

People. Are people traversing the space? Will they make their own shortcuts? Will they stand in the plantings for photos and selfies? Is it on a parade

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10. Animals. If you plant it, they will come. Should there be an interpretation plan for the insects, birds, and critters that will be attracted to the green space? Are there opportunities for animals to build homes and will that cause problems (think red-winged blackbirds dive-bombing the humans during nesting season)?

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A Tribute to the Quiet Season

The Natural Beauty of a Winterscape

by Heather Prince

T

he low silvery light of winter catches on the architectural twists of trees, lingers in the curling corners of dried leaves, and paints pastels across the sky at sunrise and sunset. Ice crystals refocus our gaze on the delicate structures of dried flowers. Snow gives us a brilliant blank canvas to imagine the bubbling laughter of spring flowers and the soundless roar of summer. It’s the quiet season in the Midwest where the subtleties of plants step into the foreground and provide small moments of intimacy where we can stop, notice, and be seduced again and again.

Creating four-season landscapes is never easy, but perhaps it is most challenging in winter when the color palette shrinks, and the emphasis shifts to form over flower. As blossoms fade, bed lines reappear, hardscapes grab attention, and the elegant forms of trees and evergreens step from the shadows. This is an opportunity to consider plants for their architecture, their resilience to snow cover, and the simple pleasures of bark and berries.

Artful Architecture

We are privileged to care for and plant more trees. From the broad branches of pre-settlement oaks to the delicate burgundy twigs of Japanese maples, our woody plants offer artful architecture in the winter landscape. The corrugated bark of hackberry, sugar maple, and honey locust offer opportunities for frost and snow to cling and etch timeless patterns. Once their sheltering leaves have fallen away, the

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scaffold branches, sturdy trunks, and reaching twigs of trees provide charcoal sketches on a snowy day.

As you consider the winter aspects of a design, especially with mature trees at play, take some time to figure out how the low, more northern seasonal sun will throw shadows. There’s magic in the interlaced patterns of trees on snow that can stop us in our tracks or beckon us to boots and gloves for a snowy explore. What views ease into the foreground once branches are bare? Can you borrow the neighbor’s pergola or the park’s rolling lawns?

Ornamental trees whose scale is similar to our own hold their mysteries of form and function secret until foliage falls. Only in winter can we examine the wiry undercarriage of a weeping redbud or katsura. We can admire the nested cage of a lilac standard or the ballerina form of serviceberry reaching to pirouette. How do you highlight these small wonders in your designs?

A thoughtful up light brings them to life in the long cold nights. Clever placement near paths allows clients the opportunity to study their pencil-sketched twigs.

And then evergreens step out onto the winter stage.

Overshadowed during the growing season by brilliant perennial flowers or the flashy fall colors of deciduous neighbors, their myriad colors and textures come to the foreground.

From the swaying dance of Norway spruce boughs to the funky false cypress, there is a deep palette of winter color to offset our inevitable browns and whites. Many evergreens

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A Tribute to the Quiet Season

change their feathers in winter offering us intriguing textures to take advantage of.

Techny arborvitaes become almost a dark purple-green, a perfect foil for the red stems of dogwood. Many golden arborvitaes turn shades of orange to startle the neighbors and delight the discerning client. Explore the frosted plum of the blue Chamaecyparis that can pair with the almost plastic shiny green of holly and yew.

Striking Stems

How magnificent is bark? We are spoiled with a richness of bark textures that contrast with snow and frost to stand out in the winter landscape. The splashed paint of sycamore, Stewartia, and Parrotia magically appear once their skirts of leaves have fallen to enchant us on a brilliant January day. The puzzle-piece mosaic of lacebark elm begs to be examined.

Fiery paperbark maple catches and holds the sun. We are so head over heels for birch bark that we can find it everywhere in winter from the trees in our backyards

Ź Ź Ź Ź Ź

Rhododendrons Pieris Azaleas Perennials Nature’s Classics

to cut poles in porch pots to rustic candlesticks on the mantel.

Shrubs offer us endless possibilities in bark. The ubiquitous red twig dogwood hides its light under a cloak of leaves, only to surprise us each winter anew.

Place them thoughtfully against dark backgrounds or backlit to showcase their brilliant red, coral, yellow, burgundy, or acid green. Thank goodness dogwood shrubs benefit from regular thinning so we may enjoy their crayon-colored twigs in arrangements! Think about intertwining them with sturdy hydrangea and grasses so their candy stems are layered with dried blossoms and windswept foliage.

If weary of dogwood, there are many other shrubs to work into designs for winter color. Coral bark willow is a flame lit at sunset when sufficient given space.

Oakleaf hydrangea and ninebark are shaggy and peeling. Seven son flower’s stark peeling creamy bark is drama with evergreen accompaniment. Kerria and Itea create sprawling bounding arcs of green stems to surprise the eye when allowed their natural shape.

Snowcatching Blossoms “A plant is only worth growing if it looks good when it’s dead.

– Piet Oudolf

MEDFORD NURSERY

NORTHERN NURSERIES INC.

A DIVISION OF THE ROBERT BAKER COMPANIES

WHOLESALE HORTICULTURAL DISTRIBUTION CENTERS

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Evergreens

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Grass Seed and Fertilizers

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NorthernNurseries.com

560-A Eayrestown-Red Lion Rd. Lumberton, NJ 04048

1320 Mountain Rd. West Suffield, CT 06093 • (860)-668-5225

(609)-267-8100

67 Pinkham Rd. Barrington, NH 03825 • (603)-868-7172

Toll Free: 800-443-3314

115 Cordell Rd. Schenectady, NY 12304 • (518)-382-1600

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GROWING FOR OVER 40 YEARS P: 207-499-2994 F: 207-499-2912 sales@piersonnurseries.com • www.piersonnurseries.com Mailing Address: 24 Buzzell Rd, Biddeford ME 04005 Physical Address: 291 Waterhouse Rd, Dayton ME 04005 Office Address: 313 Waterhouse Rd, Dayton ME 04005

Current availability is posted on our website (PW: pni2024 in the new year) Contact our office to be added to the weekly availability email list.

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A Tribute to the Quiet Season Summer memories can hold snow so beautifully. From the dense mopheads of hydrangeas to the cheerful polka dots of echinacea and rudbeckia seedheads, there are myriad textures in dried flowers.

Hydrangeas leap to mind as snowcatchers, but also hold their own against the textures of bark and evergreen foliage.

Think about adding them to indoor arrangements and outdoor swags, porch pots, and wreaths. They add a lovely rustic floral touch and hold up to whatever weather winter throws at us.

Seek out perennials that hold their forms when dried, as Oudolf urges. Look at our prairies and savannas for inspiration in asters, goldenrod, prairie dock, mountain mint, milkweed pods, coreopsis, and many many more. Newly frosted,

dried calyxes, sepals, and seedheads whisper to us of the heat of July. Magical in ice, we are captivated by their delicate architecture that still stands after months of weather. Who can resist the white gnome hats of snow on echinacea? Think about leaving these sumptuous textures up in beds and borders to create a winter fairyland while providing essential habitat to a myriad of wildlife.

The flock of cardinals stopping by the hedge on a snowy afternoon may signal a lost loved one checking in or simply offer us a dash of needed crimson in our quieter winter landscapes. Not only do berries provide food for birds, they also bring new colors and textures to our

snowy scenes.

Red berries abound from the muchstoried holly and winterberry, to viburnum, crabapple, hawthorn, cotoneaster, Eastern wahoo, yew, and rose hips. These small scarlet moments become more impactful with careful placement against walls and fences or with the softened textures of grasses. Take advantage of crabapples bred for a heavy berry set to provide clients with months of winter color and tasty treats for birds and animals come early spring. Red berries also say holidaytime for us, and sprigs can be harvested for use in decorations indoors and out.

There’s more than just red berries to intrigue us from the purple haws of blackhaw viburnum to the deep blue of Virginia creeper. Try Aronia for clusters

PEOPLE

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Your Prides Corner team is focused every day on making your life easier and your business more successful

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for humans and animals. However, the Chinese junipers offer a long-lasting four-season magic with their bountiful blue fruits that ripen the second year. You’ll always have berries from the frosted green first-year clusters to mature berries snatched away by cedar waxwings and cardinals.

If you have a stubborn hot, dry, sunny site, a juniper’s winged branchlets and abundant fruit may bring your client myriad moments of color and texture.

As many of us catch a breath this winter after the hurry and scurry of the growing season, I ask you to cultivate pauses. Look for those breathless moments of cold splendor with layer upon layer of texture. Remember to work in the subtle pleasures of winter, even if it’s viewed from a cozy window tucked under a quilt. Give your clients the gifts of winterscaping where they can stop and notice and be charmed again and again by Mother Nature’s quiet surprises.

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Advertiser Index Acorn Tree and Landscape .......................... 35

MARKETPLACE

American National ...........................................7 Amherst Nurseries .........................................32 Ballard Truck Center ......................................25 Bigelow Nursery ............................................31 Cavicchio Landscape Supplies, Inc. ............11 Connecticut Mulch Distributors, Inc.............23 Farm Credit East ...........................................31 Griffin ...............................................................15 Ideal Concrete Block ........................................2 Medford Nursery ...........................................28 Milton Cat .......................................................13 Notheast Hardscape Expo ............................27

Before you go — A final taste of winter.

New England Regional Turfgrass ...................9 New England Wetland Plants .......................24 Northeast Nursery ........................................36 Northern Nurseries .......................................28 OESCO..............................................................20 Pierson Nurseries, Inc. ..................................29 Prides Corner Farm ........................................30 Pro Bark ...........................................................21 Read Custom Soils ........................................29 Service First Processing ...........................16-17 Sylvan Nursery ...............................................25 Vermont Mulch ...............................................24 We Find Plants ................................................19 Weston Nurseries .............................................5

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Special Announcement

pro grow news Committment to Qualtiy

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reflection of MNLA and its position in the industry. Its purpose is to promote the environmental well-being of the state as well as the highest levels of business ethics within the profession.

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2024 brings renewed commitment to quality for pro|grow|news readers and advertisers will see: • larger issues • enhanced enhanced content • larger pictures • more features • greater variety • focused issue content • on-time delivery • deadlines you can count on • seasonal content and ads delivered on time

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My Favorite Plant

Salvia rosmarinus — Rosemary

by Matt Sullican, MCH, Lawrence Academy

Reasons This Plant Shines

Rosemary is best used for cooking purposes. It has a very aromatic smell works really well with meats and vegetables. The secret to using it successfully is to keep it in a pot so you can bring it indoors for the winter. If you do that, you can keep it for years. My plant is six years old. I primarily use this plant for culinary purposes.

Facts and Features

Rosemary has blueish purple flowers that bloom in late spring early summer. Rosemary is native to the Mediterranean region.

Rosemary is not something that is typically found in the landscape. I have seen it a few times in landscapes but not often.

Plant Culture

Salvia rosmarinus — Rosemary Plant type: Annual Size: 1-3 ft tall, 2-4 ft wide Growth rate: Average Soil: Average Exposure: Requires around six hour of sun light Zone: 5–8

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"ĔĠģğ 5ģĖĖ Ēğĕ -ĒğĕĤĔĒġĖ %ĖĤĚĘğ Ēğĕ $ĠğĤĥģĦĔĥĚĠğ 0ėėĖģĚğĘ -ĒģĘĖ 5ģĖĖ 5ģĒğĤġĝĒğĥĚğĘ

7JTJU PVS NBUVSF TQFDJNFO USFF GBSN 0WFS NBUVSF USFFT UP JOTUBOUMZ FTUBCMJTI ZPVS MBOETDBQF 3FMPDBUF ZPVS NBUVSF QMBOU NBUFSJBM DSFBUF JOTUBOU TIBEF QSJWBDZ BOE CFBVUZ 8F PGGFS B XJEF TFMFDUJPO PG NBUVSF TQFDJNFO USFFT +BQBOFTF .BQMF %PHXPPE #FFDI 4VHBS .BQMF 4QSVDF FUD t ." $FSUJmFE "SCPSJTU t 0XOFS 0QFSBUFE t )PSUJDVMUVSBM $POTVMUBOU t 1MBOUJOH 1MBOT " MFBEFS JO /FX &OHMBOE JO MBSHF USFF BOE TISVC USBOTQMBOUJOH

)BSWBSE ." t 5FM t 'BY t BDPSOUSFF!BPM DPN Harvard, MA • Tel: 978.635.0409 • Fax: 978.635.9840 • acorntree@me.com

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Northeast Nursery Pro Divisions

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For 38 Years, Northeast Nursery has supplied landscapers and homeowners with the finest bulk goods, plant materials, and gardening supplies that the industry has to offer. With unparalleled product selection and industry-leading expertise, our team is poised to help with your next landscaping project.

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A Late Season Tribute to Fall

Photos by: Trevor Smith and Rick Reuland

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In Memoriam Neil Van Sloun Neil J. Van Sloun, 90, of Dartmouth, Massachusetts, formerly of Westport, passed away on Friday, October 6, 2023.

He was the husband of the late Sylvia A.M. (Maxwell) Van Sloun.

Van Sloun was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the son of the late Joseph and Anna (Lass) Van Sloun. He served his country in the U.S. Navy from 1952–1955.

He completed a master’s degree in horticulture at Montana State University in 1958 and went on to a successful career in the nursery business.

Van Sloun was the co-founder and owner of Sylvan Nursery in Westport. He visited the nursery and checked on the day’s sales up until the last month of his life. He is a past president of the New England Nursery Association, past president of the Massachusetts Nursery and Landscape Association, and

Ź Ź Ź Ź Ź

Rhododendrons Pieris Azaleas Perennials Nature’s Classics

past governor of the American Nurseryman’s Association.

Survivors include his brother, Dennis L. Van Sloun (Doloris) of Minnesota; two nieces, Amy Van Sloun (Kent Johnson) and Nancy Van Sloun (Paul Barnard); and his nephew, Joseph Van Sloun (Benita Bjorgo). He is also survived by his family at Sylvan Nursery and many good friends Van Sloun enjoyed giving to others and touched many lives over the years at Sylvan Nursery and through the Van Sloun Foundation. The Van Sloun Foundation, which hasestablished in 1991 in Massachusetts by Neil and Sue Van Sloun, provides grants to more than 35 organizations annually. The Foundation supports established and developing charities in veterinary and medical sciences, botanical and horticultural development, land conservation, and education.

MEDFORD NURSERY

NORTHERN NURSERIES INC.

A DIVISION OF THE ROBERT BAKER COMPANIES

WHOLESALE HORTICULTURAL DISTRIBUTION CENTERS

Ź Ź Ź Ź Ź

Flowering Shrubs

Ź

Premier Supplier of Green Goods

Evergreens

Ź

Grasses

Grass Seed and Fertilizers

Ź

Hydroseeding Materials

Ź

Extensive Selection of Stone Products

Ź Ź

Landscape Lighting

Proven Sales Team Branded Partnerships

Roses

OVE R 40 0 AC R E S o f Q u a l i ty P la n t s

Ź

Knowledgeable Technical Support

Ź

Professional Customer Service

Ź Ź

Reliable Availability

Ź

Spyder Delivery Available

Timely Delivery Service

Turf & Nursery Sales Specialists

We h ave THE L AR GEST SELECTION of N urser y Sto ck an d H or ti c ul tural Sup p l i es i n th e N or th east!

Thank you for growing with us!

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NorthernNurseries.com

560-A Eayrestown-Red Lion Rd. Lumberton, NJ 04048

1320 Mountain Rd. West Suffield, CT 06093 • (860)-668-5225

(609)-267-8100

67 Pinkham Rd. Barrington, NH 03825 • (603)-868-7172

Toll Free: 800-443-3314

115 Cordell Rd. Schenectady, NY 12304 • (518)-382-1600

www.mnla.com

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Safety Sense

SAFELY OPERATE RIDE-ON AND LARGE EQUIPMENT

S

erious or fatal accidents in the landscape industry often involve ride-on and other types of large machines: mowers, skid-steer loaders, compact excavators, trenchers, compact utility loaders, and woodchippers. Rollover, struckby, caught-between, and pulled-into accidents are among the most common.

Such accidents can be prevented when company leaders provide well-maintained machines equipped with working safety devices and when employees follow safety guidelines, use caution, and are alert to the presence of fellow workers, other machines, and their surroundings in general.

The following checklists can help leaders and employees along those paths.

Note: All machine models are different, and this information is not a substitute for reading operating manuals for the particular machines your company uses. This information is meant to supplement specific information contained in those manuals. Additional precautions are necessary, and some instructions might not apply, depending on the equipment and attachments.

CHECKLIST FOR SUPERVISORS • Remember you are responsible for properly training employees to operate each machine they use. Since operation varies by manufacturer and model, employees must receive specific training for each particular machine they use.

• Ensure employees read operating manuals and safety

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decals attached to machines. If an employee can’t read the manual, have someone explain the safety messages and ensure the employee understands. For employees who speak little or no English, provide training in their native languages. Federal OSHA requires you to ensure employees understand training in safe work practices and hazards.

• Provide workers with and make sure they wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) given the types of machinery they are operating or working near.

• Don’t allow employees operating woodchippers to wear jewelry, loose clothing, gloves with cuffs, or tree-climbing equipment that could get caught in the machines.

• Make sure machines are maintained properly and safety guards and mechanisms remain in place. This includes systems that shut off ride-on trenchers when weight is not detected in the seat.

• Provide machines equipped with TOPS (tip-over protective structure) or ROPS (roll-over protective structure) and seat belts whenever possible.

• Replace any ROPS/TOPS subjected to a rollover or damage. Do not attempt to repair it as welding, drilling, cutting, or adding to the structure could weaken it.

• Make careful determinations regarding the operation of

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machines on slopes. Before allowing an employee to use any machine on a slope, determine whether the operation can be performed safely.

• Closely supervise new hires and those new to operating particular machines. Ensure they follow safety training.

•

Always wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) given the types of machinery you are operating or working near.

• Train employees to be aware of machine load capacities. They should know these capacities change when they operate on slopes. Make sure they have access to and can correctly interpret rated lift-capacity charts for applicable machines.

• When an employee engages in unsafe work practices, take immediate corrective action. This could include refresher instruction and/ or disciplinary measures.

•

Inspect each machine according to your training and/or the machine’s operating manual before you operate it. Bring any problems to your supervisor’s attention.

• Hold refresher training. Routinely and as related situations arise, supervisors and crew members should review general safety procedures regarding operating equipment as well as manufacturers’ manuals that deal with this topic. Reinforce training through regular safety talks.

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CREW MEMBER GUIDELINES: •

Do not operate a machine until you have been properly trained.

You should receive training specific to the particular model you will be operating and fully understand this training.

RESOURCES

For specific guidelines and checklists on compact excavators, trenchers, compact utility loaders, skid-steer loaders, and woodchippers, visit https://www. landscapeprofessionals.org//LP/Safety/ Ride_On.aspx.

For additional safety information, visit https://www.landscapeprofessionals. org/LP/Safety/LP/Safety_NALP.aspx

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Tree Talk

By Dave Anderson

A

re you looking for good people? That’s a rhetorical question, obviously — who isn’t? Another great recruiting tool and, by extension, a retention tool is to put on an open house at your business.

Set a date and advertise well in advance. Post flyers with your agenda on your website, social media, and LinkedIn. Reach out to your local high schools, colleges, and industry professionals — especially local agriculture and tech schools. Tchukki Andersen, staff arborist at the Tree Care Association, was gracious enough to come to both of ours. If you don’t already have a strong relationship with local

schools, this gives you a great reason to develop one. Teachers love these events because they know their students love these opportunities to meet industry professionals and be involved in tangible learning.

Involve your key people. Ask your best people to be involved, especially your younger people who are more relatable to students. This allows your guests to relate to your staff because they can see how their career track could be similar.

“I was really impressed by Gear Guru at Professional Tree Care. All the climbing equipment he showed me was really cool,” said a happy high school student and hard worker.

Translation: I want to work here and learn from her.

Set up learning stations and a live demonstration. The learning stations could be chain saw maintenance, plant identification, plant health care, knots, and climbing gear, etc. A demonstration could be rigging or pruning — do what you

Gear and Knot Demonstration by Andrew Keenan and Zac Gadourey

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are best at. Obviously, safety is the most important thing so make sure everyone has PPE or, better yet, keep your guests at a safe distance. By picking your best and brightest people to run these stations, you allow them to feel important, recognized, and respected Supply swag. Students love swag. Plus, if you hand out T-shirts or hats, you have a walking-talking billboard to advocate for you. Have plenty of job applications and a signup sheet so you can follow up with people. Be sure someone is responsible for following up and reaching out to say thanks for coming. You can also add them to an email or text list so you can stay in touch and add value by sending them your electronic newsletter. This keeps your brand and website on their radar. If they don’t need a job now, they may someday.

Be sure to have enough staff on hand to make everyone who shows up feel welcomed, engaged, and important. You don’t want to do an open house if people wander through and no one speaks with them.

An open house is another tool in the recruiting and retention tool kit. Yes, it is a big investment, but if done well, it can provide you with great young help immediately because it creates a lot of good PR. The teachers and industry leaders you invite will be impressed and grateful for your efforts.

When our company has held an open house, the tangible and less tangible benefits have been phenomenal.

David M. Anderson has over 30 years of experience in horticulture, client service, and public relations. He works for Mayer Tree Service. He is a Massachusetts Certified Arborist, Certified Landscape Professional, and a Certified Tree Care Safety Professional. David was the chairman of the Massachusetts Certified Arborist Board for three years and is currently a board member of the Massachusetts Nursery and Landscape Association. He has authored several articles for trade publications and frequently gives presentations to garden clubs, trade organizations, and students on a variety of topics. In the last several years, he has become more involved in and passionate about employee engagement.

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Open House Saturday 2/11/23 9:30-1:00 9 Scotts Way Essex MA 9:30 Coffee and snacks 10:00 Sennebogen demonstration 11:00-12:00 Information Stations • Plant Identification • Decay Fungi of Trees • Knot’s you should know • Common Insects and Diseases in our area 12:00 Visit Mayer Power Company

Example of an agenda to post and email as a save the date card

Students from Norfolk Agriculture High School, Walpole, Massachusetts, Showing off Their Mayer Shirts

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