June 2010
T h e O f f i c i a l P u b l i c at i o n o f t h e T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n
Spea
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Becoming a Talkable Brand u
Learn from the mastermind behind Starbucks and Whole Foods how to get people talking about your business. pag e 16
Are Personal Poisons Killing Your Business? u
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Growing with the Flow The San Antonio River Improvements Project S ta r t i n g o n pag e 6
P lu s :
24 Drought Preparedness Meets the Smartphone 26 TNLA Legislative & Regulatory Team: Purpose & Obligation 39 Face Time: It Matters
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June 2010
Features
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Growing with the Flow
The San Antonio River Improvements Project—a $385 million effort— last year completed its Museum Reach extension, thanks to the hard work and dedication of two TNLA member companies and their extraordinary staff.
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Becoming a Talkable Brand
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Are Personal Poisons Killing Your Business?
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Drought Preparedness Meets the Smartphone
A talkable brand is one that ignites people’s passions. Learn—from the mastermind behind Starbucks and Whole Foods—how to get people talking about your business. By John Moore Don’t let the character traits that help you succeed kill your growth. By Jeffrey Hansler A free app lets consumers watch water conservation videos on their cell phones. Use these videos as an easy “value add” for your customers—and the environment. By Don C. Wilkerson, Ph.D.
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26 TNLA Legislative & Regulatory Team –
Purpose and Obligation
Find out how the TNLA Legislative & Regulatory Team spends its days protecting the Green Industry from the onslaught of potentially harmful legislation.
Columns
41 Texas Nursery & Landscape Association 7730 South IH-35 Austin, TX 78745-6698 phone: 512.280.5182 or 800.880.0343 fax: 512.280.3012 email: info@tnlaonline .org
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IPM Organic Approaches to Pest Control by Kevin Ong, Ph.D. Leadership The Value of a Good Question by Jeffrey Scott The Weird Wide Web Pay-Per-Click 101 by Steve Huskey Tradeshow Tips Face Time: It Matters Plant Talk Coral Honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens by Lisa Lennon
Departments 31 Newsbites 40 Classified Ads 42 New Members
42 Newly Certified 43 Calendar of Events 43 Advertisers Index
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TNLA G r e e n
the official publication of the Texas Nursery & Landscape Association
Pr esident’s Letter
June 2010 • Vol. XII No. 6
Dear Members
Officers Chairman of the Board
Mark Harris, TCLP, CLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Houston
A Message from Eddy D. Edmondson, President
Chairman-Elect
Robert Cartwright . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tyler
A
Immediate Past Chairman
James Wilhite, TCLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tyler
President
Eddy D. Edmondson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Austin B OAR D OF D IRECTOR S
Region I Billy Long, TCLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . San Antonio Region II James Curtice, TCLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . Houston Region III Mark Chamblee, TMCNP . . . . . . . . . . . Tyler Region IV Paul S. Tomaso, TCNP . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dallas Region V Sam Weger, TMCNP . . . . . . . . . . . Fort Worth Region VI John Smothers, TCNP . . . . . . . . . . . Lubbock Region VII Jon Klement, TCLP, TMCNP . . . . . . McAllen Region VIII Larry Best, TCNP . . . . . . . . . . . Cedar Park Supplier Director Bobby Spence . . . . . . Fort Worth Landscape Director Johnette Taylor . . . . . . . Dallas
s the weather heats up and consistently produces 90-degree days, most of us in the Texas horticulture industry are seeing the busy season in our rear view mirrors. I hope you saw business boom, and that you finish the spring season strong.
Though your busiest season is behind you, the staff here at TNLA has our busiest season just ahead. We’re finishing up the 20102011 TNLA Membership Directory & Buyers’ Guide to have ready for you at the end of the month, and we’re running full speed ahead as we prepare for Nursery/Landscape EXPO in August. If you’ve been putting off your EXPO planning, now’s the time for you to kick that into high gear, too. Visit www.nurserylandscapeexpo.org to register for the trade show (August 20-22), Education Conference (August 19), or TNLA Awards Dinner (August 19). And if you’re interested in exhibiting, we only have a few spots left, so pick your booth today, before we run out!
Grower Director April Herring, TCNP . . . Magnolia Retail Director Mark Baxmann, TMCNP . . Houston
TNLA S ta f f President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Eddy D. Edmondson Vice President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amy Graham Comptroller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jo Tucker Accounting Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jenny Garcia Communications Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Judi Hays Region Services Coordinator . . . . . . Kenny Pettitte Director, Legislative and Regulatory Affairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jim Reaves
In anticipation of EXPO, this issue of TNLA Green has several relevant articles. Our cover story is about the new Museum Reach Extension of the San Antonio Riverwalk, which opened last year. We’re proud that the companies that installed the landscape and supplied the plant material are both TNLA members, and we’ll be right next to the Riverwalk at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, so make sure you schedule in some time to visit it while you’re in San Antonio in August. Also in this issue are two articles by speakers at the EXPO Education Conference: one by Jeffrey Hansler, our keynote, on the subject of forgiveness, and the other by John Moore, a branding mastermind whose successes include Starbucks and Whole Foods. This in addition to our usual fare of features, columns, and videos.
Education Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chelsey Robles Exhibits Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amy Prenger Exhibits Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mike Yelverton
Thanks for reading, and have a great summer. m
Administrative Assistant Expo . . . . . Dena Guerrero Certification & Membership Coordinator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marisol Ybarra
Sincerely,
Office Operations Assistant . . . . Nancy E. Sollohub
T N L A G r e e n S ta f f Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Judi Hays Editorial Coordinator . . . . . . . . . . David Kassin Fried
E d dy D. E d m o n d s o n President
Art Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marie Leonard Advertising Coordinator . . . . . . . Carol Miller, TCNP
TNLA Green magazine is a member service of the Texas Nursery & Landscape Association, and is published monthly with the annual exception of a combined July/August issue. Advertising information is available from TNLA, 7730 South IH 35, Austin, Texas 78745, online at www.tnlaonline.org, or by calling 800-880-0343. TNLA office hours are weekdays, 9 AM - 5 PM CST. © 2010 Texas Nursery & Landscape Association June 2010
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M i ss i o n S tat e m e n t The Texas Nursery and Landscape Association’s mission is to enhance members’ business success through legislative/regulatory advocacy, education, networking, and promotion of professionalism.
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Growing with the Flow Just over a year ago, the San Antonio River just north of downtown was completely dry. All the water had been diverted through huge pipes, bypassing two miles of the channel that ultimately fed one of the city’s most famous landmarks. Trucks, tractors, cranes, and other construction vehicles dotted the river bed, as dozens of people installed thousands of plants, in the build-up to the grand opening of San Antonio’s most ambitious project in decades.
This was just one phase of the San Antonio River Improvements Project (SARIP), a $385 million effort to provide flood control, economic development, ecosystem restoration, and recreational improvements to the San Antonio River. Completed in May 2009, the Museum Reach extends past the Museum of Art to the Pearl Brewery and represents 1.4 miles of walkways, parks, public art, and landscaping. Local artists provided grottos and sculptures and hung fish under the highway to turn every site along the way into a truly memorable experience. Comprising roughly a fifth of the overall budget, the Museum Reach portion was paid for by the City of San Antonio, Bexar County, the San Antonio Water System, and private funding through the San Antonio River Foundation. Back in the fall of 2006, several contractors were bidding on the project, and one of them approached ISS Grounds Control—a TNLA member
The lock and dam, based on the Panama Canal concept, uses no pumps—only water pressure—to raise and lower boats the 9-foot difference between the two levels of the river.
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company—to price out the landscape and irrigation installation. ISS sent a project manager, Chris Pais, to make the Chris Pais estimate. They followed up by sending that estimate to the other companies they knew were submitting bids. When Zachry Construction Corporation was awarded the contract in May 2007, they brought ISS down to requalify the numbers and then pulled the trigger. “When we got the contract, I basically went to my boss and told him, ‘Hey, this is mine,’” Chris said, with the passion of someone whose legacy is on the line. “When you think of San Antonio, you think of three things: the Alamo, the Spurs, and the Riverwalk. I grew up here; I’ve lived here all my life. I know what the river is, and I just wanted to be part of it.”
(above) There are several water features throughout the Museum Reach, using water pumped from the river.
As ISS spent the next six months doing all the preparation required to execute an endeavor of this size, one of the challenges was figuring out how to acquire the 290 different kinds of plants they’d be responsible for installing—including some product rarely used in this area. Magnolia Gardens Nursery, a wholesale nursery/ grower and TNLA member, came to ISS with an offer to be the single point of contact for all the plant material. So rather than calling half a dozen companies to get the material, Chris could make just one phone call and get what he needed.
Everyone who worked on the Riverwalk will be able to bring their grandchildren
Or, to put it more accurately, about five calls, just to the same person.
there and boast
“I have 24 years in the industry,” says Colin Kenjura, sales consultant for Magnolia, who was Chris’s point of
that they were a part of it.
(continued on page 9)
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(continued from page 7 )
contact for the duration of the 18-month project. “I needed all 24 to get this job done.” All told it was about $250,000 in plant material—70% grown by Magnolia themselves, and the rest from specialty growers elsewhere in Texas or out of state.
Integrity Increasing the stakes was the fact that extending the May 30th, 2009, deadline was never going to be an option. Mayor Phil Hardberger’s final term in office would end on June 1st. He made it very clear he wanted the Museum Reach opening to be his sendoff party. So Zachry gave their word to the San Antonio River Authority, and ISS Grounds Control gave their word to Zachry, and Magnolia gave their word to ISS Grounds Control. Hundreds of people committed a year or more to the completion, knowing that they would stop at nothing to finish the project on time.
(above) Colin Kenjura (Sales Consultant) and Ken Trezona (Sales Manager) for Magnolia Gardens Nursery. (left) When excavating the jungle that used to be this portion of the river, the workers unearthed the ruins of a dam that dated back to 1883. Archaeologists were brought in, and the installation plan was modified to accommodate the discovery.
ISS came on site in earnest in November 2007 to start installing the irrigation, and as the deadline started to approach, the workload kept getting bigger. “For about a year it was somewhat allconsuming, for the last month it was mostly all-consuming, and for the last two weeks, it was all I did,” said Chris. Leading up to those last two weeks, ISS provided its workers with that quintessential morale booster—all the pizza they could eat—as they gathered everyone around to let them know what the next 14 days would look like. In the end, some 30 landscapers pulled 12-hour shifts, working straight through weekends and Memorial Day. Ken Trezona (sales manager for Magnolia) stopped by the site in the middle of that final push (continued on page 11)
In front of the San Antonio Museum are honeysuckle, wisteria, anacua, orchid tree blue plumbago, pride of Barbados, creeping daisy as ground cover, various grasses and yuccas, bald cyprus, and muhly grass. June 2010
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(above) These Medjool palms were the most expensive plants used in the project. Trucked in from Arizona, they cost upwards of $5,000 apiece. (left) The grotto is an artificial cave/ stalactite/stalagmite formation with waterfalls inside and outside, designed by local artist Carlos Cortez. This formation pays tribute to the natural bridge caverns just north of San Antonio, and is just one of several art installations along the extension.
(right) The Wedelia, or creeping daisy, is an aggressive ground cover that provides daisy-like blooms most of the year as it trails over the wall. It stabilizes the slope, minimizes erosion, and makes a carpet of yellow that will continue to magnify over the years. (far right) Thousands of bricks— both in clusters like these and in rows lining the bank—bear the names of individual contributors to the financing of the extension. Many of these bricks are still blank, leaving room for ongoing contributions. 10
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Purple fountain grass on a slope, with a limestone wall and Mexican feather grass on top, terraces up to street level. (continued from page 9)
and offered to take Chris and Baron Morris (general manager at ISS Grounds Control) to lunch. He remembers the pained, exhausted stare he got in response that said, “What, are you crazy?” And he thought to himself, “I have never seen Chris Pais looking like that.” Meanwhile, at every step of the way, was the support of the team. Says Chris, “I called Colin on the Friday before Memorial Day and said, ‘I’m gonna be at the site all weekend long, and I’m gonna have a list of plants I’ll need here, and I don’t know what they are yet, but I’ll need them here on Tuesday.’” The rapport Chris and Colin developed was one of the keys to the project’s success, despite the fact the two never actually met face to face. “Being able to call up one guy and know that it’s gonna get done—you can’t put a price on that.” In the entire 18 months of the project, out of 40 truckloads of plant material, ISS turned away only one truck—virtually unheard of for a project of that size.
The Legacy “I told my guys, in that last week, how proud I was of the work they’d done,” Chris said. It hadn’t hit them yet, and even a year later, a lot of the people who worked on the extension have a hard time grasping the magnitude of what they’d done. But they know it’s a big deal. Everyone who worked on the Riverwalk will be able to bring their grandchildren there and boast that they were a part of it. It’s a feather in their caps, and it’s a feather for the City of San Antonio. At the TNLA Awards Dinner in August, ISS Grounds Control will be accepting a Texas Excellence in Landscaping (TEIL) Bronze Award for the project, and that’s just the beginning of the recognition they’ll receive.
(above) The turnaround basin at the end of the extension is fed by half a dozen waterfalls, offering a scenic view as boats turn to head back downstream. (left) The large, lush foliage on this split leaf philodendron adds a tropical look and softens up some of the sharp edges of the walls.
(continued on page 13)
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(above) When the purple heart and the vinca minor fill in, there will be a great contrast in the rug-like ground covers. (left) Cardinal flowers make a great contrast against the white concrete. These perennials will grow up to about two feet and will come back every year with with showy red blooms.
Esperanza is a good Texas native flowering shrub. 12
One of the River Authority’s priorities was to replicate the feel of the original part of the Riverwalk, so they wanted to preserve as many large trees as possible.
Make sure you take the time to visit the Museum Reach this August when you’re in San Antonio for the 2010 Nursery/ Landscape EXPO! The Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center is right on the Riverwalk and only a mile from the southern end of the Museum Reach extension.
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(continued from page 11)
On May 30th, 2009, thousands of people attended the Museum Reach grand opening. The Today Show was there. The mayor made a speech. A mariachi band played. Native Americans performed ritual dances. People lined up for hours to ride on the boats that would take them up and down the river, and through the lock and dam. One person, however, was nowhere to be found. Several people invited Chris to join in the festivities, as they cracked open a postfestival beer and patted themselves on the back for a job well done. But Chris just thanked them for their invitation and opted to spend the day at home with his wife and daughter, who he’d barely seen for the last two weeks. Then he took them to Disney World.
(above) The spider lilies offer a tropical look with large leaves and interesting flowers, and are a tough perennial. (left) The blooms on this mallow hibiscus are about the size of a dinner plate. Very showy, they bloom for 9 months a year, and after a dormant winter come back in the spring.
“There’s always a moment, I guess, in any big project where you just get overwhelmed and you don’t think you can do it. And I called my wife at four o’clock the Tuesday before it opened, and she just . . .” he trailed off. “I couldn’t have done it without her.” Anyone who’s participated in a huge project is familiar with the come-down that happens when it ends. “It was so exhausting—physically, mentally, and emotionally—for a while I was questioning whether I wanted to stay in this business,” says Chris. “I’m definitely a better project manager for it. I have a much lower tolerance for excuses. Somebody says, ‘Hey we can’t get this done,’ I’m like, ‘Yes we can.’ There’s nothing you can’t do after something like this.” Meanwhile, Ken says that he gets competitors asking—mostly in jest—if they can install just one plant, so they can have one on the Riverwalk, too. (continued on page 15)
Thousands of people came to celebrate the opening of the Museum Reach on May 30th, 2009. June 2010
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A pond with some of the aquatic plants installed at the end of the project. (continued from page 13)
In the year since the opening, Tim DeVries from ISS Grounds Control has been the extension project’s site manager, responsible for the ongoing maintenance and walking the river every day. Though Cullen Coltrane, the landscape architect, selected mostly perennials that could survive extreme weather conditions, the summer drought turned into one of the wettest falls, which then turned into one of the coldest winters. So Tim and his team of about half a dozen have been cutting back and replanting material as necessary, pulling weeds, spraying Primo, and doing all the other little things that make the riverbank an ever more perfect picture of San Antonio. Through this, the San Antonio River Authority (SARA) has come to realize that the ongoing maintenance requires a little more than just coming through with a weed whacker. As of this writing ISS had a proposal in to SARA to extend their contract past the initial May 31st expiration date. Chris and Colin have now met face to face, and the two work together on every project Chris does. “Why would I go anywhere else?” These guys are just human beings, after all, with families and bosses and dreams. But they’re human beings that participated in something special; something huge that their grandchildren will proudly show their grandchildren; that will stand for ages, and bring joy to millions along the way. m
Bonus online content!
David Kassin Fried is Editorial Coordinator for TNLA Green.
View this article at www.tnlagreen.org to watch the video. Visit the homepage of the San Antonio River Improvements Project.
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Becoming a
Talkable Brand By J o h n M o o r e
Spea
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Talkable brands do not rely on expensive traditional advertising to drive sales. Instead, they tap into the inexpensive conversational power of customers as their primary advertising vehicle. These brands enjoy the benefits of word of mouth marketing to increase awareness and drive sales. Starbucks Coffee is a talkable brand. Whole Foods Market is also a talkable brand. It wasn’t by accident these two brands grew from local businesses to regional phenomena to global icons. Both brands made deliberate decisions to bake word of mouth marketing into
the bread of their business, not just one day, but every day. As a marketing manager with Starbucks in their formative growth years, and later as a marketing director with Whole Foods, I was fortunate to witness and participate in the various methods these brands used to get customers talking. Getting customers talking isn’t as difficult as you may think. The process begins by making decisions to be obvious, remarkable, and conversational.
Decide to be Obvious Talkable brands like Starbucks and Whole Foods are obvious in what they stand for. Starbucks stands for bolder, more flavorful coffee. Whole Foods stands for natural and organic groceries. By deliberately deciding to stand for
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something, these two companies are known for their unique point of view. Whole Foods Market does not sell products with artificial ingredients. The company is obvious in its stance against artificial ingredients. On its website, Whole Foods posts a long list of unacceptable ingredients it doesn’t allow in the products it sells. Walk up and down the soft drink aisle at Whole Foods and you will not see Coca-Cola, Pepsi, or Dr. Pepper, because each of those best-selling sodas is made with artificial ingredients. Instead, you will see unfamiliar brands like Izze, Maine Root, and Blue Sky. By being obvious in what it stands for, Whole Foods Market appears more original. And that’s the lesson other brands can learn—the more obvious you are, the more original you appear. Inherently, there is no recipe for originality. It’s impossible to follow a recipe to be one-of-a-kind. It is possible, however, to make deliberate decisions to be obvious, which is how to appear more original in customers’ eyes.
Decide to be Remarkable Popular marketer and author Seth Godin says, “You’re either remarkable or invisible. Make your choice.” Talkable brands decide to be remarkable by earning opinions from customers. Starbucks deliberately earns opinions from customers. Think about your first visit to Starbucks and you’ll remember being confused with their odd names
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for drink sizes and the weird language Starbucks baristas use to call out your drink order. You know what I am talking about—a tall is really a small, and a venti is an extra-large. Don’t think for a second you haven’t learned how to order your favorite drink in perfect Starbucks dialect. You have. And teaching their customers to say, “Grande Non-Fat, Extra Hot, Two Pump Vanilla, One Pump Hazelnut, No Foam Latte,” is yet another way Starbucks made itself a remarkable and talkable brand. The unique Starbucks language is polarizing. Some people love it, while others hate it. Starbucks knows its polarizing ways make the whole process of buying a common cup of coffee uncommon. So uncommon it sparks conversations with customers. To this day, Starbucks continues to make deliberate decisions to be remarkable. Just recently, the company began testing a new drink size—Trenta, a gargantuan 31-ounce cup. To remain a talkable brand, Starbucks knows it must be remarkable to get remarked about by customers.
Starbucks and Whole Foods are not using Facebook and Twitter as a broadcast channel to talk about new promotions and new products. Instead, they are using social media websites primarily as a listening channel to provide better customer service. Next time you log onto to Twitter, visit the Whole Foods Market Twitter page, and you’ll notice nine out of every ten tweets is a company response to something someone tweeted. They actively listen to what people are saying and respond to the many comments and questions people have.
Talkability in the Green Industry You can bring these same principles to your business, making you stand out and having people talk about you. Retailers may focus on native plants, or edibles, or organics, or perhaps low, low prices. Some landscapers may tout themselves as eco-friendly or sustainable, while others may focus only on the biggest, most impressive jobs. Whichever way
you slice it, these companies’ customers will talk about them because they know exactly what to say. From there, all there is to do is to join the conversation. m John Moore is a renowned marketing expert and author of Tribal Knowledge: Business Wisdom Brewed from the Grounds of Starbucks Corporate Culture. He will be speaking at the Nursery/ Landscape EXPO Education Conference on August 19, 2010.
A D D ITIONAL REA D ING u The Starbucks Experience by Joseph Michelli u Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time by Howard Schultz u Tribal Knowledge: Business Wisdom Brewed from the Grounds of Starbucks Corporate Culture by John Moore
Decide to be Conversational Customers, as we know, are a talkative bunch, and talkable brands join conversations wherever customers are talking. Keller Fay Group, a marketing research firm, estimates the typical American takes part in 125 conversations per week with friends, family, and co-workers that discuss products and services. Of those conversations, specific brands are mentioned 90 times. Today, the rising popularity of social media websites like Facebook and Twitter amplify these brand-related conversations, and both Starbucks and Whole Foods have joined these online conversations. Starbucks has 7 million fans on Facebook. Whole Foods has 1.8 million followers on Twitter.
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Bonus online content!
View this article at www.tnlagreen.org to watch the video.
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Are Personal
Killing the Growth of Your Business? by J e f f r e y H a n s l e r, C S P
Sp
eake Do you push yourself hard? Do you r worry about others getting the job done to your satisfaction? Are you critical of bad decisions—especially your own? These are the symptoms of a Type ‘A’ Personality, and while these behaviors are part of your success, they can also be a reason your business isn’t blooming as quickly as it could.
another side to that coin, which can interfere with success and growth (personal growth included). These easy to spot negative qualities are:
Owners, executives, salespeople, leaders, managers, and staff are just a few of the dedicated, hard-driving individuals pushing a business forward. It’s not just characteristic behavior; much is situational, affected by time constraints, pressure, and high visibility. Even individuals who aren’t Type ‘A’ by nature are Type ‘A’ as a necessity. There are many Type ‘A’ Personality behaviors that bode well for business: • Dedication, discipline, and focus • Competitiveness and strong achievement-orientation • Ability to work well under pressure • Optimism and assertiveness
• Impatience • Aggressiveness • Free-floating hostility • Quickness to anger • Addictive-compulsive behavior • Disconnection from others • Anti-social behavior • Self-destructive behavior These negative qualities over time may even manifest into physical attributes (tight lips, clenched jaw, tongue clicking, teeth grinding, and facial sweating) and eventually become life threatening health issues (hypertension, high blood pressure, heart disease, and social isolation). So what is that one ingredient that they need to remember to avoid this downward spiral? It’s simple: forgiveness.
And these qualities will serve them as long as they remember that there’s
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“What?!” you say. “How can that be the issue? That’s crazy!” Well, before you discount what you’ve just read, read a little further. A long time ago, Little Johnny came home with a C on his report card. Mommy and Daddy didn’t say much, they just gave him that disappointed look and didn’t talk much about it. Johnny got the message. He should have had an A. Now if Johnny had said “Okay, I got a C, I could have done better, and I will,” no problem. But if Johnny started thinking “Bad Johnny!” for getting a C, that’s the sign of a problem starting. Jump forward a few years, and Johnny’s an A student in high school, but in one class he gets a B. If that B takes up a majority of his thinking, well now we do have a problem. You see, Johnny is losing his ability to forgive himself for not meeting his own expectations, and as a result he’s beginning to focus on the negative aspects of himself and others. Now in 2009, Johnny’s worked hard to build his business. He always pushes forward. He takes great pride in what he’s done. At the beginning of the year,
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Poisons he took out a loan to invest in the business and expand, and WHAM the economy takes a hit. Now Johnny’s scrambling, and he has to lay off some of his people, and he’s moving money around to pay bills. He’s working harder than ever. If Johnny says, “Okay, we took a hit, let’s work through this, make tough decisions, and press forward,” then no problem. But if all those years of not forgiving himself have been piling up, then this could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
Forgiveness Is Divine The inability to forgive yourself or others is a chronic problem in business. It becomes a mental habit delivered by that internal and disapproving voice in your head, and it becomes such a familiar part of your make-up that you don’t even notice it by the time it has become a critical situation. This is single-handedly the most contributing factor to all those negative traits of driven people. It is selfpunishment, and if the blockage is not released, then those emotions start working against the efforts done to build the business up. What’s more, if you can’t forgive yourself, you can’t forgive others, and that’s a serious problem, because the likelihood of someone unintentionally hurting you is directly proportional to the length of time you’ve been in relationship with them. Thus, your most valuable relationships, where you and they have the most investment, are the ones most at risk. And this inability to forgive is like a fungus that digs in and spreads to every facet of your business and your life.
June 2010
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Take the Directed Communication™ Quick Sales Quiz
You see it on the news too often— incomprehensibly self-destructive behavior by otherwise seemingly intelligent individuals. Why they trash everything they’ve worked so hard to gain is because on some level they feel they don’t deserve success. They are “bad,” carrying around that huge sack of “unforgivables.”
1. If a prospect says “Can we meet at 2:45 today?” what’s your best response?
Forgiving for Good
4. During cold calls, if someone says, “I’m sorry we don’t give out that information here?” what do you say?
Okay, so you’re not in the same boat as them, you’re far from self destructive, but what if just a little bit of that is going on in your psyche? Couldn’t it be just enough to make you have to work harder? Always be short of your objective? Never having the security of an abundance of people around to
2. If you can’t meet at 2:45, what do you say then? 3. If a prospect says, “Yes, that sound’s interesting can you send me information?” your best response is:
5. When you are told “We don’t have the budget for that,” how do you respond? u Click here to take the quiz.
(continued on page 20)
Bonus online content!
View this article at www.tnlagreen.org to watch the video.
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support you? Maybe just having more stress than you need? Being just a little quick tempered with your most valuable assets: your staff and customers? Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a simple, straightforward solution to clear out the cobwebs of the past and move forward with a nurturing psyche? Well, fortunately there is. TNLA Half Island ad DJ
4/13/10
While a great deal of research has been done on the value of forgiveness in a variety of situations, Dr. Fred Luskin, author of Forgive for Good, has put forth in nine steps what I believe to be the best practical guideline to process forgiveness for yourself and others: (Note: Forgive for Good is directed more toward personal than business application, so I’ve included business references in brackets.) 5:31 PM
Page 1
1. Know exactly how you feel about what happened and be able to articulate what about the situation is not OK. [This might be a situation that did not work out as expected, like putting your business into debt to expand just before the economy stalled.] Then, tell a trusted couple of people about your experience. 2. Make a commitment to yourself to do what you have to do to feel better. Forgiveness is for you and not for anyone else. [This means take appropriate actions to make the best of the situation practically and emotionally.] 3. Forgiveness does not necessarily mean reconciliation with the person that hurt you, or condoning of their action. [This includes your yelling at someone or criticizing someone for a choice they made or action they took.] What you are after is to find peace. Forgiveness can be defined as the “peace and understanding that come from blaming that which has hurt you less, taking the life experience less personally, and changing your grievance story.” [Your grievance story is the tale you tell, and it should be a tale that gives you back your power. For example, it’s not, “I took out a loan and crippled the business, how stupid could I be!” It’s “I took out a loan and the economy has created a critical situation, and I am going to work through it and make the hard short-term decisions to be in a position for growth in the near and distant future.”]
Darden Jones Regional Sales Manager dardenjones@summitplastic.com Cell: 972.809.0946
Ph: 800.814.3496 • Fx: 330.633.9738 www.summitplastic.com • sales@summitplastic.com
5. At the moment you feel upset, practice a simple stress management technique to soothe your body’s
© 2009 Summit Plastic Co.
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4. Get the right perspective on what is happening. Recognize that your primary distress is coming from the hurt feelings [anger at someone else, frustration, blind rage], thoughts, and physical upset you are suffering now, not what offended you or hurt you two minutes or ten years ago. Forgiveness helps to heal those hurt feelings.
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The likelihood of someone unintentionally hurting you is directly proportional to the length of time you’ve been in relationship with them. flight or fight response. [In his book, Dr. Luskin makes several excellent recommendations; the simplest one is to breathe through the “panic” moment, and he describes in detail how to do it.] 6. Give up expecting things from other people, or your life, that they do not choose to give you. Recognize the “unenforceable rules” you have for your health or how you or other people must behave. [As much as you’d like to believe it, you can’t control the economy or even how your customers interact with your staff.] Remind yourself that you can hope for health, love, peace and prosperity and work hard to get them.
7. Put your energy into looking for another way to get your positive goals met than through the experience that has hurt you. Instead of mentally replaying your hurt seek out new ways to get what you want. 8. Remember that a life well lived is your best revenge. Instead of focusing on your wounded feelings, and thereby giving the person who caused you pain power over you [by being angry or disappointed at them], learn to look for the love, beauty and kindness around you. Forgiveness is about personal power.
Add i t i o n a l R e a d i n g u Sell Little Red Hen! Sell! by Jeffrey Hansler u Forgive for Good by Fred Luskin (Paperback 2001) u Helping Clients Forgive: An Empirical Guide for Resolving Anger and Restoring Hope by Robert D. Enright and Richard P. Fitzgibbons (Hardcover 2000) u Forgiving Yourself: A Step-By-Step Guide to Making Peace With Your Mistakes and Getting on With Your Life by Beverly Flanigan (Paperback 1997) u The Self-Forgiveness Handbook: A Practical and Empowering Guide by Thom Rutledge (Paperback 1997) u Forgive to Life Workbook: How Forgiveness Can Save Your Life by Dick Tibbits and Steve Halliday (Paperback 2006)
9. Amend your grievance story to remind you of the heroic choice to forgive. Why did I write this article? Because the practice of forgiveness will lead to greater self-confidence, strengthen relationships, and influence our attitude, which will put our business growth into high gear. It will also place you in a mental position to be able to learn and grow. And right now, I’m hearing a great deal of “they should’ve done this” or “I should’ve done this” in the executive and the sales ranks, which is slowing down the recovery they should be experiencing. But that’s okay because we can forgive them, get on with our nine steps, and hope they join in. m Jeffrey Hansler is a professional speaker, educator, and consultant, and the author of Sell Little Red Hen! Sell! He will be speaking at the Nursery/Landscape EXPO Education Conference on August 19, 2010.
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Attention: Advertisers Q. What can you do to maximize your presence at EXPO? A. Advertise in the Nursery/Landscape EXPO Program! Audi en c e : Buyers and all exhibiting companies participating in the annual Nursery/ Landscape EXPO (representing 43 states and 13 foreign countries)
C i r c u l at i o n : 9000 Green Industry Professionals
Value: 4 Used by everyone at EXPO. 4 Increases your exposure. 4 Brings traffic to your booth. 4 Attendees keep the program and
use it throughout the year.
Order Your Ad Today Call 800-880-0343 or e-mail advertising@tnlaonline.org Deadline June 15, 2010
Nursery/Landscape EXPO Program Advertising width height
TNLA NonMember Member
Full page
7 1/2”
10”
$1925
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2/3 page
4 5/8”
9 1/2”
$1750
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1/2 page island
4 5/8”
7”
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1/2 horizontal
7”
4 5/8”
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3 3/8”
9 1/2”
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4 5/8”
4 5/8”
$1265
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3 3/8”
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3 3/8”
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$1111
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2 1/8”
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$1018
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Inside cover
$2368
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$2553
$2678
MECHANICAL REQUIREMENTS: Trim size - 8 1/2 x 11 inches Bleed size - 8 3/4 x 11 1/4 inches PRINTING/BINDING: Offset, sheet fed, perfect bound. MATERIAL REQUIREMENTS: Ad artwork must be supplied in electronic file format. PDF files are preferred. Resolution must be 300 dpi. Use CMYK color settings. TNLA uses Mac-based Adobe software. If file is too large to email, please call 800.880.0343 for FTP instructions.
All above ads are color pricing. Subtract $700 for black & white ads. Company Name____________________________________________ TNLA Member:
PYes PNo
Member #:_ ____________________
Billing Address _ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ City_ ___________________________________________________ State__________ Zip_ ____________________________________ Phone___________________________________________________ Fax___________________________________________________ Email __________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Contact Name: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________
ADVERTISING ORDER Insertion: Size: Rate: Caption: Contract Total: EXPO Program 2010 _ ___________ _______________ ________________________________________ _____________________
P
CONTRACT ACCEPTANCE TERMS • Discounted rates only apply to current TNLA members. Ads are non-commissionable. Signed contracts must be received on or before closing date of June 15, 2010. Cancellations after June 15, 2010 are charged at 100%. Net due within 30 days of invoice. 1.5% interest applies after 30 days. • Advertiser agrees to supply Publisher with artwork according to rate card specifications, otherwise additional charges may apply to convert or modify files. Unless Advertiser provides instructions and/or artwork by June 15, 2010 deadline, Publisher will pick-up most recent ad artwork. • The Advertiser will indemnify and hold the Publisher harmless from and against any claims or suits for libel, violation of rights of privacy, plagiarism, trademark, patent, and copyright infringements (including the text and photographs within the advertisements) and other claims based on the contents or subject matter of such publication.Venue for any cause of action hereunder shall be in Travis County, Texas. Please sign and return to TNLA by fax to 512-280-3012 or by email to: advertising@tnlaonline.org • Advertiser agrees to all regulations stated in the current rate card. Advertisers billed at special contract rates based on frequency, but who fail to fulfill the contract, will be billed at the Publisher’s sole discretion for the difference to reflect the rate that is actually earned.
Ordered by (please print)____________________________________________________________________________________________ Signature________________________________________________________________ Date_ ___________________________________
TNLA G r e e n
Drought Preparedness
Meets the Smartphone by D o n C . W i l k e r s o n , P h . D.
Some people say that we are never more than 7 days away from a drought. I guess that’s a bit of an exaggeration—but there’s probably more truth to that statement than we care to think about. What’s strange about this recurring weather pattern is that we always seem to be caught a little off-guard by the lack of rainfall during June–September. I suppose many of us have a short-term memory when it comes to drought. One group that doesn’t forget is the many state and local agencies/municipalities that control water supplies. These folks continue to clamp down on landscape irrigation during periods of peak demand. Many water restrictions put in place to deal with limited supplies were not rolled back once the drought ended— representing a more proactive approach to water management.
Our recent droughts have revealed just how closely the Green Industry is linked to consumer access to landscape irrigation water. The minute water restrictions are put in place, we begin feeling it at the cash register. To paraphrase one of my favorite movies, “They go—we go.” That’s why it is critical to work with consumers and home owners to help them conserve,
Despite our best efforts, information isn’t always getting to consumers. That’s where you can help. 24
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preserve, and protect our most valuable natural resource. Texas AgriLife Extension Service’s EarthKind® program offers a wide range of educational information focusing on landscape water conservation and related topics. Recently we’ve placed some of our most useful educational information into a special Drought Preparedness website to help us prepare “just in case” we face another dry year. Despite our best efforts, this information isn’t always getting into the hands of consumers that need it most. That’s where you can help. We invite you to share these publications and brochures with your clients and customers. We’ve even come up with a new way of delivering this information—using the latest technology.
Water Conservation and the Smart Phone: Microsoft Tag is a great new tool for linking almost anything (publications, brochures, print ads, plant labels, business cards, etc.) to online information. Here’s how it works: 1. Download the free Tag reader app on to your web-enabled camera phone, using this link: http://www.microsoft. com/tag/content/download/.
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2. “Snap” or scan a Tag image, and you will instantly be directed to a website, video, review, schedule, contact information, social network, or other online content. We’ve created Tags that link to 6 new YouTube videos (each around 2-3 minutes), focusing on key landscape water conservation topics. Feel free to use this information in any creative way(s) you can come up with. You can also use the videos in a more conventional application, linking it to newsletters, blogs, emails, etc. In cooperation with TNLA, we at the Texas AgriLife Extension are working toward drought preparedness by providing consumers with information on a variety of techniques to preserve and protect our valuable natural resources. We invite you to become a part of this important effort. m Don C. Wilkerson is Professor & Extension Specialist, Department of Horticultural Sciences for the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension.
Give These Free Water Conservation Videos to Your Customers A new series of videos can educate consumers on water conservation, right where they are. Just go to the TNLA website to copy and print these 6 bar codes. Blow them up to distribute on signs/posters around your store, or include them in your promotional/marketing materials, along with an explanation for use. Customers with iPhones or other smartphones can scan the UPC code to watch these 2-3 minute videos.
u Click here to download the UPC codes.
Bonus online content!
View this article at www.tnlagreen.org to watch the video.
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TNLA Legislative & Regul
Purpose and Obligation by J i m R e av e s
Within the purview of the TNLA mission statement, we are charged with enhancing members’ success. Legislative & Regulatory Affairs is one of the most critical components of a successful association or business. On a daily basis, or hour by hour during a legislative session, actions by the legislature or a state agency can and will have an impact on your business, many of them negative. I am not saying all these ideas are meant to be a direct intended attack on us, but the legislature and state agencies sometimes do not understand the unintended consequences of the bills they’re introducing. It’s our job to educate and—often—stop them. The people on your TNLA Legislative & Regulatory Team have knowledge of common business practices, an understanding of the legislative and regulatory process, and good working relationships with other industry leaders, elected officials, and their staff.
Overview
TNLA is made up of four different industry segments which include growers, landscape contractors, green suppliers,
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and retail nurseries and garden centers. TNLA staff has to be mindful to represent all segments. At times this means not taking a position on an issue if it helps one segment and hurts another; or we stay neutral if our membership is split on the issue. Our industry is number two in all row crops in the state and ranks fourth in all agriculture behind cattle, cotton, and poultry (which includes the chicken and the egg). Texas A&M University states that our industry contributes over $14.1 billion in economic impact to the State of Texas annually. Here are some issues your TNLA staff monitors and interacts with during the legislative session and the interim: air quality, property taxes, franchise taxes, sales tax, irrigation, landscape ordinances, drought management plans, water rights, private property rights, labor laws, healthcare, noxious and invasive plants, pest management, fertilizer, immigration, career & technology education, right to design landscapes, plant lists, quarantines, and many others. TNLA partners with other groups on common issues both here in Texas and in Washington, D.C. Here are a few of them: American Nursery and Landscape Association, Irrigation Association (Eddy Edmonson, President of TNLA, serves
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atory Team on their Board of Directors), Professional Landcare Network, Texas Employers for Immigration Reform (I am a founding member and serve on their board), Texas Turf Irrigation Association (I serve on their Board of Directors), Texas Society of Association Executives (I serve on the Governmental Affairs Committee), Nursery Landscape Executives of North America (TNLA Vice President Amy Graham serves on their Board of Directors), Texas Association of Business, and upwards of 60 agriculture groups here in Texas. These unofficial TNLA partnerships are crucial to our success, because we can tap into their resources and vice versa.
Legislative Session
Many of you may wonder exactly what we do on a daily basis, and that really depends on the year. In odd-numbered years, the Texas Legislature meets for 140 days starting the second Tuesday in January. Within the legislative session, the 31 members of the Texas Senate and 150 members of the Texas House file upwards of 7,000 pieces of legislation. These bills are referred to one of the 20 standing Senate committees or 37 House committees. Your TNLA staff searches the legislative database every morning for certain keywords that could affect the Green Industry. Among the 40-50 keywords are: • horticulture • landscape • irrigation • invasive species • outdoor lighting • contractors • retail If our search finds legislation that has a hit on a keyword, we read the bill and determine if it is positive or negative for our industry. If positive, we look to see if we can make the bill more beneficial to us and support it, and if negative we try to amend or defeat the measure.
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Case Study: HB 2088
In 2009, the keyword “invasive” brought HB 2088 to our attention. The original version of HB 2088 stated that all nursery/floral certificate holders shall (“shall” is a very strong word in legislation and the Texas Statute, requiring state agencies, lawyers, individuals, and businesses to follow the verbiage following it) place a sign in their business that reads: DO YOU KNOW YOU HAVE MANY LANDSCAPING CHOICES? SOME PLANTS, ALTHOUGH LEGAL TO BUY AND SELL, MAY HAVE NEGATIVE EFFECTS ON NATIVE
Some of the best advice I ever received was from an aide to the Governor while working at the legislature: “No matter how well you plan and implement a strategy to get a bill passed, and no matter how far you have gotten the bill through the legislative process, no matter how great the piece of legislation is, there is always the chance that unforeseen more powerful people will defeat you. You may never know where it came from or why it was done, but they are out there and it will drive you crazy not knowing who they are and why you lost.”
WILDLIFE AND ECOSYSTEMS. FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT PLANTS THAT ARE BENEFICIAL TO OUR TEXAS WILDLIFE AND HABITAT AS WELL AS INVASIVE EXOTIC PLANTS, PLEASE VISIT THE TEXAS PARKS AND WILDLIFE DEPARTMENT’S WEBSITE AT (insert
appropriate Internet website address). TNLA represents members who deal with both native and non-native plants, so we opposed this bill, which would have forced businesses in our industry to post a sign favoring one variety of plants over another. The website would have directed people to a list of “Plants to Avoid,” many of which have never been scientifically deemed invasive. One of those plants (the wax leaf ligustrum) is worth $150 million wholesale for our industry annually. To this day, we do not know what process was used to add plants to this list. Had the bill passed, our retailers would be selling these plants while effectively telling the public not to buy them. Your TNLA staff made an appointment with the author of this legislation and her staff to explain why this legislation
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was not good for our industry. We asked that she amend the bill by removing the word “shall” and replacing it with the word “may.” This would have basically gutted the bill, allowing us to continue to operate as usual, while the legislator could still take credit for passing the watered-down bill. (These sorts of compromises are common—often, a legislator authors a bill to satisfy a particular supporter, but does not have strong feelings about it. In this instance, as we would soon find out, that was not the case.) Our meeting took place the day before HB 2088 was scheduled for a hearing in the House Cultural, Recreation and Tourism committee, in which the author of the bill serves as Vice-Chairman. She stated her office would have an answer to our request the morning before the hearing, but the call never came. After three visits to her office the day of the hearing, her staff notified me that TNLA should just testify against the bill. This was a smart move on their part, because on such short notice we were unable to get any of our members to the hearing to testify.
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ur
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(continued from page 27)
I ultimately testified before the Committee to make the case against it. Two weeks later, HB 2088 passed out of the committee over our objections and was sent to the House Calendars Committee, which puts legislation on the agenda for full debate on the House floor. Within the Calendars Committee TNLA has many friends, to whom the Texas Nursery & Landscape Association – Political Action Committee (TNLAPAC) contributes. I spent countless hours visiting the members and staff of this Committee to lobby them not to set HB 2088 for full debate on the House floor. I was able to convince several legislators to tag (unofficially hold up a piece of legislation from being set on the agenda for a week) this legislation. So many people tagged HB 2088 that we were able to hold it up for six weeks, passing the deadline for it to be set for full debate. Thus, HB 2088 died a slow death at the hands of your TNLA Legislative & Regulatory Affairs Team. Throughout the process, the author made attempts to amend the language of HB 2088 into three other pieces of legislation, but we succeeded in stopping them at every turn. In the next legislative session, we predict multiple bills of this sort being filed, and once again we will be there defending the Green Industry.
may implement these new laws in ways that change the meaning of what was intended by the author of the bill and the lawyers who drafted the legislation. In 1999, when I was Chief Committee Clerk of the House Committee on Public Safety, I helped pass a bill that was never actually implemented by the Department of Public Safety. In the next session, another law passed that nullified our original bill. This is why TNLA monitors and interacts with state agencies, so that the correct intent of the legislation is rightfully implemented in our favor. The agencies we work with most are: Texas Department of Agriculture; Texas Water Development Board; Texas Commission on Environmental Quality; Texas Parks & Wildlife Department; and Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. Between each legislative session, the Speaker of the House and Lt. Governor issue a list of things for each chamber of the legislature to study and review before the next legislative session. The legislator requesting an item to be studied usually gets to write the report to the legislature, which gives them momentum when trying to pass related legislation the next session. TNLA staff closely monitors these charges,
attends the hearings, and interjects our comments when necessary. During this interim, TNLA staff was responsible for stopping one member of the legislature from getting his idea studied, surrounding an issue we did not want people talking about. We did this by lobbying the Speaker’s office and the Chair of the committee that would be studying the issue. The member has no idea that TNLA is responsible for getting it stopped.
TNLA-PAC
With all this being said, I would now like to draw your attention to one of the (continued on page 36)
HB 2088 is only one of the many pieces of legislation that we were engaged with last session. Internally we tracked upwards of 200 pieces of legislation, and through the Texas Agriculture Council we tracked roughly 700–800 bills.
Interim & Regulatory Activities
When the legislature is not in session, TNLA staff spends the majority of its time monitoring the implementation of legislation by state agencies. Here the process gets even more confusing. When legislation is passed, no matter what it is, there are many interested parties, elected officials, and lawyers who interpret the meaning of the legislation in different ways. The lawyers at state agencies
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A Marriage Of Strengths
A MARRIAGE OF STRENGTHS
In February 2009, FX Luminaire was acquired by Hunter Industries. With similar foundations in forward-looking product innovations, reliability, and superior customer service, both companies have come together in an obvious marriage of tradition and reinvention. Combining forces with Hunter will allow FX to bring resource-efficient landscape components, such as the LED-based Lumineux, to its customers with a distributor and sales support network that will continue to define the industry. The future of FX Luminaire looks bright! For more information, visit: www.hunterindustries.com/strengths or www.fxl.com/strengths
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TNLA Green Ad
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Newsbites ANLA Launches New Online Job Service The American Nursery & Landscape Association (ANLA) launched its interactive ANLA Job Board last month. With its focus on Green Industry companies, the ANLA Job Board offers its members, and the Green Industry at large, an easy-to-use and highly targeted resource for online employment connections. For additional information, contact ANLA Director of Member Services Amanda Flynn.
u See the ANLA Job Board
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) April 7 released a new form
u Visit TNLA’s Job Link
Congratulations to Cynthia McKenney Cynthia McKenney, Ed.D. , Associate Professor in the Department of Plant and Soil Science at Texas Tech’s College of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources, was recently promoted to full professor. She is only the third female in the history of the college to attain this academic rank. Cynthia has been a strong supporter of TNLA, and we wish her our most heartfelt congratulations.
Grandma’s Yellow Rose Selected as Texas Superstar® Every year , the AgriLife Extension designates certain “Texas Superstars”—plants that are both attractive and perform well in the state of Texas. Grandma’s Yellow rose is the newest Texas Superstar selection, one of five that will be announced for 2010. Grandma’s Yellow Rose is aptly named because it is tough, beautiful, and low-maintenance, producing regular blooms through three seasons and requiring very little in the way of pest management. For information on the history and characteristics of Grandma’s Yellow Rose, visit PLANTanswers. Texas Superstar is a registered trademark owned by Texas AgriLife Research.
u Click here for more on
Grandma’s Yellow Rose.
June 2010
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IRS Issues New Payroll Tax Exemption Form
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that will help corporate and nonprofit employers claim the special payroll tax exemption for new hires created by the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act. HIRE includes a $13 billion payroll tax exemption for corporate and nonprofit employers that hire workers who have previously been unemployed for at least 60 days. Companies and nonprofits also get an additional general business tax credit of up to $1,000 for every new worker retained on the payroll for at least a year. The law also provides additional tax breaks for equipment purchasing. Here’s how it works: A company that hires someone who has previously been unemployed for at least 60 days will be exempt from paying the 6.2% Social Security payroll tax between the hire date and the end of the year. The employee must start work after Feb. 3, 2010, and before Jan. 1, 2011, though only wages paid after March 19, 2010 will qualify for (continued on page 40)
Correction May 2010, p 13: In the TNLA Leader Profile, Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center was the first LEED Platinum Certified project in Texas, not the U.S., as the article stated.
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4 0 5 . 2 3 3 . 2 0 0 0 W W W. D F T R E E S . C O M A R C A D I A , O K
DEEP FORK
TREE FARM
DF7X4.62503.20.09.indd 4
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Inte g r ated Pest Mana gement
Organic Approaches to Pest Control: Expectation and Limitation by Kevin Ong, Ph.D.
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any of us are already using organic approaches to managing pest and disease, though not to the degrees that would lead to organic certification. In the simplest sense, the organic approach is going all natural and excluding synthetic materials in your production/growing system.
Kevin Ong is an Extension Plant Pathologist and directs the Texas Plant Disease Diagnostic Lab at Texas A&M in College Station.
When looking at organic pest or disease control products, solutions can fall into two broad categories: biologicals and natural products/byproducts. Biological refers to living agents. Examples include parasitoid wasps—used to manage some insect problems—and beneficial fungi Trichoderma spp.—used to manage root rots. Typically these agents work in competition against the pest/pathogen or they have the ability to parasitize the pest/pathogen. Natural products or byproducts are things that can be found in nature or produced by a biological agent. For example, neem oil, which is found in some pesticidal products, is produced from fruit and seeds of the neem tree. Other examples include copper sulfate (best known for being in Bordeaux Mixture), which is a naturally occurring mineral, and
spinosad, which is an insecticidal compound produced by a soil-inhabiting bacterium. To know if using these approaches may be good for your production system, it is best to understand the benefits and limitations that each product might impose. In general, biologicals are viewed as a means of suppressing pest or pathogen population. Given the right conditions, a particular biological agent may be very effective in suppressing the target pest or pathogen. However, biological agents are not something that you might want to use after detecting a problem. Why? 1. Biological agents are living things and need to get established to be effective. 2. Conditions must exist to allow the biological agent to thrive and have the ability to do its job. 3. Reaction time is slower, as time is needed for establishment and growth of the biological agent. 4. Pest or pathogen getting a head start can result in higher population, which can render the biological agent ineffective. It is best to use biologicals in a deliberate, preventative production plan, where they are released prior to any onset of problems. Natural products or byproducts are natural chemicals, and usage is similar to how we would use conventional pesticide. Reaction time is almost always more rapid than the time needed for a biological to get established. A characteristic of natural products/ byproducts that is both a benefit and a limitation is its low residual nature. This means it does not persist long in nature (potentially safer) but that translates to (continued on page 38)
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Promote Professionalism and Good Gardening
The Best of Texas L a ndscap e G u id e 2n d Edition
Photos, culture, water conservation tips, certification promotion, and more, to distribute or sell to your customers.
Buy online at www.tnlaonline.org or call TNLA at 800.880.0343 to order. All revenues from sale of the Best of Texas Landscape Guide go to support programs of the Texas Nursery & Landscape Association.
Low Technology... High Intelligence
Cycle Stop Valves ALL NEW
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Constant Pressure Pump Control R
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June 2010
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Leader ship
The Value of a Good Question by Jeffrey Scott
Questions are a powerful tool in a leader’s tool belt.
T Jeffrey Scott is an author, speaker, and green-industry consultant. He facilitates peer groups for landscape professionals who want to transform and profitably grow their business. To learn how industry peer groups can accelerate your business growth in any economy, visit GetTheLeadersEdge.com.
wo different clients approached me this week with “How much should I pay a new salesperson? Field manager?” I had no pat answer for them; I didn’t know their specific job markets. So I replied: “Ask them what they want to earn.” The answer may sound overly simple, but then that’s point. One contractor was interviewing two different people for a job. He asked them what they wanted. One wanted about $30,000, and one wanted closer to $40,000. Was the cheaper person a better deal? Maybe not. Was the more expensive person worth the extra money? It depends. But offering $35,000 means you might be overpaying for one guy and missing out on a more valuable candidate. Just ask. Quite often, when we are stuck trying to solve a problem, we are afraid to ask for help. We don’t want to look dumb. Children ask a lot of questions, ad nausea. But adults are conditioned to look smart and have all the answers. Too bad.
$150 gift certificate Do you have a management issue you are struggling with? Are you looking for ways to grow your business, and make it more profitable, and possibly put more money in your pocket? Just ask me. If you have never worked with me before, you are eligible for a free one-on-one call, where we will work for a half hour on issues important to you and the growth of your business. Email me for details, at Jeff@JeffreyScott.biz. Limited to first 5 responses.
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One of my clients has made it his goal to become the expert on employee motivation. He has developed a technique for involving his employees and asking their opinions on what can make his company a “great place to work.” This applies to your home life too. What would make your spouse happier with you? What do your kids want to do more of (with you)? Just ask.
Asking Better Questions Asking questions is easy when you practice it. Learning to ask the right questions is the key! As a leader, it is important to develop your “question asking” muscle in yourself and your people. When we get together in the peer groups that I facilitate for Green Industry professionals, we use questions as the preferred method for helping each other. When a member puts an issue to the group to solve, we don’t jump on the issue with quick opinions and suggestions. Rather, we help the member think through his or her issue. We offer inquisitive questions, from different angles. We ask questions to look past the symptoms and explore the deeper issues. I have found that it is too easy, and usually wrong, when I jump on someone’s stated problem with a knee-jerk response. But if I take the time to find the right questions to ask, I will usually get to the underlying issue. At your next team meeting, try putting an issue on the table that needs solving, and only let your staff ask you questions. Let people ask questions one at a time, and keep the answers short. See how many questions you can get out and answered within a 10 minute period. You will be astounded by the results. This is a muscle that everyone needs to develop, in order to grow as a leader, and in order to grow your business. m
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Professional Landscaping and Grower Supplies
greatest tools TNLA has at its disposal, the TNLA-PAC. TNLA-PAC helps promote and protect businesses in the nursery/landscape industry from harmful legislation and over-regulation. TNLA-PAC uses the monies it collects by contributing to the political campaigns of those who are friendly to our issues. These contributions do not buy votes, but they do help our industry obtain better access to the political process. The money, along with the relationships I have formed during my tenure at the Capitol and through TNLA, is what allowed us to defeat HB 2088 and countless other potentially harmful measures, making TNLA-PAC crucial to your business and the entire Green Industry. In the 2010 Primary Election and Runoffs, TNLA-PAC contributed just over $15,000 to our friends, and we were very successful. For the 2010 November Elections we plan to spend between $60,000 and $70,000 to help elect or reelect people who support us in our time of need. Your TNLA Legislative & Regulatory Affairs Team’s purpose is to help protect your business, and we are obligated to do it in the most professional manner possible. m
BWI is a distributor of lawn, garden and horticultural products to garden centers, farm and feed stores, hardware stores, grocery stores, regional multi-store outlets, greenhouse growers, nursery growers, landscapers, lawn companies, and other related outlets.
Jim Reaves is TNLA’s Director of Legislative & Regulatory Affairs.
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BWI Dallas
800.752.6632
BWI Schulenburg 800.460.9713
www.bwicompanies.com
BWI Texarkana 800.442.8443
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T he Weir d W ide Web
Pay-Per-Click 101 by Steve Huskey
L Steve Huskey is an Internet Marketing Consultant with ReachLocal, the world’s largest online marketing firm that specializes in capturing local business. If this seems overwhelming and you would like a free consultation, click here or call 512.590.5957.
ord Harold Samuel was the man who coined the phrase “Location, location, location.” He was referring to what was then Britain’s biggest-ever property deal.
Today, this phrase could refer to your position on a Search Engine Results Page. If you have a good location on Google, Yahoo!, or Bing, you are much more likely to be found. When was the last time you went to the third page of Google for a simple purchase? Case in point. There’s a secret for showing up on the front page in weeks, rather than months: Sponsored Links, a.k.a. Search Engine Marketing, Pay-PerClick, or Google’s AdWords. For the purpose of clarity, I will refer to Google’s AdWords in this article. Since Google represents roughly 55% of the local search market, it is a great place to start. Once you master that, going to Yahoo! and Bing will put you in front of another 35–40% of local searchers. The best thing about Pay-Per-Click is that it’s a direct point of sale advertising method. Whereas traditional forms of advertising— radio, TV, direct mail, and billboards—rely on long-term brand awareness and getting people to remember your name, they’re less effective at funneling customers toward a purchase. Even if people remember the ad, they often forget the name of the company, which defeats the whole purpose of the ad to begin with. When people search online, however, they are often in a buying mindset. Someone who takes the initiative to search for Leaky Sprinkler Repair is far more likely to need that service than someone who hears the ad on the radio. And if you show up #1 when people search for that in your area, guess who’s the first one getting the call?
When people search online, they are often in a buying mindset. June 2010
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The other great advantage to Pay-Per-Click is cost. Often, AdWords is the least expensive way to market to customers, letting you set limits as high as you like or as little as a dollar a day. And you get immediate feedback—if you’re paying close attention, you can figure out which keywords produce “tire-kickers” (people who look, but don’t buy) and which ones produce buyers, and then adjust your campaign accordingly. So are ready to get started? Go to www. Google.com/AdWords and create your AdWords account. If you already have a Google account for your company then you can log in using that. (Don’t use a personal account unless you want the company tied to the individual.) The single most important thing to consider when looking at your AdWords campaign is quality. Google compensates relevant advertising with a higher position on the page. Ideally, campaigns should focus on specific products or areas of the business. Your AdWords account consists of three levels: account, campaign, and ad group. Just like campaigns, ad groups should have a common theme. Focusing each ad group on a single product or service you offer will make it simple to create more focused, effective keywords and ads. For example, a garden center could have a campaign with the theme of “Roses”; an ad group in that campaign might be “Climbing Roses.”
Keyword Lists Excuse the pun, but keywords are the roots of your campaign. They set the advertising process in motion. If potential customers are searching for your product or service, then choosing the right keywords will help them find you more quickly.
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( IPM continued from page 33)
less protection time for the plants. The good news is that there are formulations that incorporate “organic” surfactants, which help in the residual effects of the natural product.
Additional Resources u Considerations for Purchasing and Releasing Biological Control Products
© 2009
Texas Mutual Insurance Company
Whether you are using biologicals or natural products, please realize that these are pesticides. The thinking that natural-based products are safer may not always be true, and one should read labels carefully to understand possible
side-effects. If you are planning to pursue Organic certification, consider having a comprehensive plan for pest/ pathogen management. Utilize the OMRI listing to ensure that you are using products that have been approved for organic production. m
( Weird Wide Web continued from page 37)
According to Google’s own literature, you should start by listing all relevant keywords for a campaign: roses, climbing roses, climbing rose, fragrant climbing roses, rose plants, buy bush roses, rose bush, rose bushes, best roses, bush rose sale, shrub roses, luxury red bush roses, hardy climbing roses, cheap roses, climbing rose varieties, rambling roses, spring roses . . . you get the idea. Each of these is a different keyword, and you can see how coming up with a list of several hundred keywords will be tedious, but easy enough with a little effort. Using the “broad match” option will trigger derivative keywords and help you learn which keywords are working on which search engine. (For example, if your keyword is “Sage,” it will trigger your ad on searches such as Cherry Sage, Texas Sage, or Mexican Bush Sage.) Next split your keywords into your themed ad groups, with relevant ad texts. The keyword tool, within Google, can be used to provide suggestions for new keywords.
You’re great at growing green stuff – what about saving it? With workers’ comp group discount programs, it’s easier than you think. The Texas Green Industry group discount program, through Texas Mutual Insurance Company, gives growers, nurseries and landscape contractors lower premiums and the potential to earn individual and group dividends. And with the workers’ comp health care network, eligible businesses save an additional 12% annually. That’s real savings to help you grow a strong business.
The TGI workers’ compensation group discount program is endorsed by TNLA. Call your agent or Hotchkiss Insurance Agency at (866)959-2525. Dividends are based on performance and are not guaranteed. Texas Mutual Insurance Co. has services for non-English speakers available upon request.
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You will also need to create a text ad. Try to use your keywords in this ad. Google says, “For the best results put your top performing keyword into the headline of your ad.” You also want to have a strong call to action. This tells potential customers what action you want them to take when they get to your site: Buy Now or Call Today. You will want to include prices and special offers. This is not the place to tell us what makes your product or service different from your competitors. This is an avenue to get consumers to your website. Lastly, users should be directed to the page on your website that is most relevant to each ad. You don’t have to have a location on a corner of a busy intersection to be successful anymore. In just one week, you can have a great location online. It will connect you with people who took the time to type in words that are relevant to your business and reach them at a time when they are more likely to purchase from you. Be realistic about what you want to achieve. Rome wasn’t built in a day. m
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Tr adeshow Tips
Face Time: It Matters How do you build relationships, exchange information, and grow your business? Empower the human connection!
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t’s time for an about-face about face time.
“Face time. It Matters.” is a grassroots industry campaign theme designed to promote the benefits of meeting face-toface. Lately, it seems we’ve all been faced with faceless meetings, conference calls, and webinars. A recent national survey that featured in-depth interviews and focus groups consisting of corporate and association executives and business travelers revealed that: • Face-to-face meetings build trust and relationships
• Both education and training are more effective in a live setting • Live meetings actually save time and money • Live meetings facilitate problem-solving through a more effective exchange of ideas • Face-to-face meetings provide the human connection that empowers business and volunteer relationships • Face-to-face meetings create jobs and power the economy Collectively as a group, we need to share the message with our colleagues that face time does matter! We have a perfect opportunity for all Green Industry professionals to unite face-to-face, under one roof, at the Nursery/Landscape EXPO, the South Central United States’ largest gathering of nursery and landscape professionals. Spread the word and share this information with your peers, because let’s face it—an online meeting has nothing on a handshake or a fist bump. m
Additional Resources u Face Time. It Matters. u Nursery/Landscape EXPO u Study: The Return on Investment of U.S. Business Travel
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( Newsbites continued from page 31)
Classified Ads For the latest job listings visit our online job link. Crew Lead Wanted Growing 3-year old Houston design/build firm seeks Crew Lead to oversee crew to create/ maintain landscapes. Includes plants, rock, cement, lighting, and irrigation installation, as well as mow-n-blow, prune/trim, and material application. Plan, coordinate, assign daily activities; give training and instructions to crew; HS Diploma; Three years landscape experience; Leadership experience a plus; Bilingual preferred; CDL, Irrigator’s, Technical or Chemical Applicator licenses are a plus Seasonal – Hourly Project Work; Potential to Become Fulltime/Salary as Firm Grows/Expands; Contact: Alicia@landescapedesigns.com or call 281-861-7110
the exemption. (Credits for the period from March 19, 2010 to the end of the quarter will be applied to the secondquarter payroll taxes.) The law does not specify a minimum number of employee hours, which means that part-time and full-time employees both qualify. (Contractors do not qualify, nor do contractors “shifted over” to full-employment status.) The law also does not specify a maximum dollar value of the credit, though other elements in the tax code would cap the value at $6,621 per employee. In addition, the company is entitled to a $1,000 credit (or 6.2% of wages paid, whichever is less) for every employee hired under this program that is retained for a full year. The credit will apply only if the employee stays for at least 52 consecutive weeks—if he leaves or is fired after 50 weeks, the employer will not be entitled to this credit. (Note: If the new employee is filling a position for someone who was laid off—rather than who left voluntarily or was fired for cause—this credit may not be taken.) Finally, the HIRE act allows companies to write off up to $250,000 in capital expenditures rather than depreciating these costs over time. The equipment must be purchased in 2010. The HIRE Act increases a company’s cash flow immediately, because the tax will never be collected.
u Read more about the HIRE Act. u Download the Employee
Affidavit: IRS Form W-11
u Download the Employer’s
Quarterly Federal Tax Return: IRS Form 941
TDA Enhances Inspections for Citrus Greening Disease Thousands of crops have been lost citrus greening since it was first detected in 2005. Infected plants may not show symptoms for several months, so nationwide emphasis on early detection is being increased, including here in Texas.
u Read the TDA Press Release.
Garden Writers Survey A recent survey from the Garden Writers Association shows some interesting results: • 54% of home gardeners are purchasing their plants at garden centers and local, independent stores—up 8 percentage points from last year. 37% are shopping at big box stores. • Only 19% of respondents shop primarily for low prices, compared to 46% for high quality. • 32% said that a well-educated sales staff was a primary factor in where and what they buy. • 66% of respondents are growing their own vegetables this year.
u Read the complete 2010 Early Spring Gardening Trends Research Report. u Promote your well-educated
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staff with TNLA Certification.
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Plant Talk
Coral Honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens by Lisa Lennon
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he coral honeysuckle is a great native vine that is highly adapted to most areas of Texas. It is indigenous to East Texas, where it grows along stream banks and woody thickets. Unlike its exotic cousin, Japanese honeysuckle (L. japonica), coral honeysuckle is much better behaved and will not spread out of control.
Interesting Tidbits There is a native white honeysuckle (L. albiflora), called Texas honeysuckle, which is native over much of the Edwards Plateau as well as North Texas and Trans-Pecos Texas. Like the coral honeysuckle, white honeysuckle is non-aggressive and typically grows as a white-flowering bush with vine-like branches.
It climbs by twining and trailing, but it needs some support to get established on a trellis or fence. It can be also be used as a thick groundcover. The stems turn from red to green and with maturity fade to a peeling texture. Considered “semi-evergreen” in most of Texas, it sometimes blooms during mild winters, as well as throughout the growing season. Flowers are showy, tubular-shaped, red outside, and yellow inside giving way to clusters of red juicy berries that mature in September to October, enjoyed by songbirds. The blooms attract pollinating ruby-throated hummingbirds and butterflies, making it an
all-around wildlife plant that should be used more in the landscape. Coral honeysuckle grows best in locations receiving morning sun and afternoon shade; the roots should be protected from afternoon heat/ sun. Pruning is usually not necessary, though it can be lightly pruned in winter to encourage more flowers. Coral honeysuckle is virtually pest and disease free. Aphids may occasionally infest the leaves, but are easily dislodged using high-pressure water. The vine does not require regular fertilization; in fact too much nitrogen will produce foliage at the expense of blooms. Propagation is usually by seed or softwood cuttings. Many cultivars are commercially available: Superba (red-coral, with scarlet flowers and broadly oval leaves), Dreer’s Everlasting (bright scarlet), John Clayton (vivid yellow flowers); and Magnifica (late-flowering with large, bright red blooms). m
The Japanese honeysuckle (L. joponica) can be detrimental to a landscape, as it chokes out native vegetation and is virtually impossible to eliminate once it has become established in these areas.
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New Members
TNLA Leader Profile
Welcome
TNLA would like to welcome its new members. If you would like to become a member, or if you have any questions or concerns about your current membership, please contact us at 800.880.0343. Visit www.tnlaonline.org to learn about the benefits of becoming a part of TNLA.
REGION I
Student Heather S. Hardee Palo Alto College 4254 Desertview Dr San Antonio, TX 78210
REGION II
Landscape Manley Lawn & Landscape Paul Manley 9140 Hwy 6 N #515 Houston, TX 77095
Irrigation, Landscape Designer, Grounds Maintenance, Landscape Contractor
REGION IV
Grower Sunbelt Trees, LLC Watie Hall PO Box 832406 Richardson, TX 75080 Trees
R e g i o n VIII
Saxon Becnel and Sons Citrus Nursery Ricky Becnel 4995 FM 105 Orange, TX 77630 www.saxonbecnelandsons.com
Landscape DickPeterson.com Dick Peterson 13745 Shady Ridge Ln Manor, TX 78653 www.dickpeterson.com Landscape Designer
Retail Parco Ace Hardware Jason Millegan 2950 Williams Dr Georgetown, TX 78628
Gateway Farms LLC David Hajos PO Box 475 High Springs, FL 32655 www.gatewayfarms.net
Sandy Schutze, Region VIII Chairman
Duck Lake Trees & Shrubs Bud Klein 4112 FM 539 Floresville, TX 78114 www.dukelakeonline.com
Sometimes called “Sandy Loam,” thanks to her expertise in soil and compost, Sandy Schutze (pronounced SHOOT-see) is a sharp-shooter who loves to sell.
Trees, Woody Ornamentals
Nursery/Garden Center
OUT OF S TATE
Out of State Grower L & H Enterprises of Lowgap NC, Inc. Kenneth Lowe PO Box 25 Lowgap, NC 27024 www.landh-boxwood.com www.landh-enterprises.com
Viduccis Garden Walter Panfil 532 NW Mercantile Pl #112 Port Saint Lucie, FL 34986 www.viduccis.com
Trees, Wholesaler
REGION V
Retail Dowell Ace Hardware Belle Dowell 1491 W South Loop Stephenville, TX 76401 Nursery/Garden Center
Tadala’s Nursery, Inc. Laura Pradilla 18900 SW 63 St SW Ranches, FL 33332 www.tadalas.com
Tropicals, Woody Ornamentals, Wholesaler
newly certified individuals Gary Cook, TCNP
Elizabeth Pappenfort, TCLP
Calloway’s Nursery #105, Dallas, TX
Southern Botanical, Inc., Dallas, TX
Kevin Shelton, TCLP
Daneil Zipperlen, TCNP
University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, Belton, TX
Calloway’s Nursery #124, Keller, TX
Nikki Brown, TCLP
Monique K. Darwin, TCNP
Grass is Greener…Landscape, Inc. San Antonio, TX
Calloway’s Nursery #121, McKinney, TX
Melissa Crist, TCNP Keith Hardware & Nursery Company Lorena, TX
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Anne Wise, TCNP Calloway’s Nursery #124, Southlake, TX
Elam Washington, TCLP Grass is Greener…Landscape, Inc. San Antonio, TX
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Growing up in a military family, she travelled the world as a child, before eventually settling in McAllen. She attended UT-Pan American and then UT Austin, and has lived in the capital since 1972, working her way up the corporate ladder in various architecture and engineering firms. She first became involved with TNLA in 2000 while working at Custom Stone Supply, where she once answered the question “What’s your favorite rock?” with “Diamonds, of course!” She also worked for J-V Dirt & Loam specializing in erosion control, and she is now a Garden-Ville/Texas Organic Products sales representative for amended soils, mulches, and composts. Sandy is on the Compost Advisory Council’s Steering Committee and promotes recycling services for GardenVille’s parent company, Texas Disposal Systems. In 2005, she received the AIA Austin’s President’s Award and is now a columnist for Austin Lifestyle Magazine.
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June 2010
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June Region Meeting Schedule
Calendar
Region I San Antonio Area Tuesday, June 8 at Sandy Oaks Olive Orchard
Region II Houston Area Saturday, June 26, family fun day at Moody Gardens
Region III East Texas No June meeting
Region IV Dallas Area Tuesday, June 8, Texas Rangers game at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington
Region V North Central Texas Tuesday, June 15 at Happy Hills Farm
Region VI West Texas No June meeting
June 2010 1 1 2-5
TNLA Education & Research Foundation Scholarship applications due. TNLA Young Leader Award nominations due. 5th Lone Star Regional Native Plant Conference in Nacogdoches. Up to 10 TNLA Certification CEUs available. 15 Advertising Deadline for 2010 Nursery/Landscape EXPO Program. 23 9th Annual Dallas Arboretum Plant Trials Field Day. 24 Nursery and Greenhouse Professional Field Day at the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Overton. TNLA Certification CEUs available.
July 2010 5 TNLA offices closed. 10 ANLA 2010 Landscape Operations Tour and OFA Short Course in Columbus, OH.
August 2010 19 Nursery/Landscape EXPO Education Conference & TNLA Awards Dinner. 20-22 Nursery/Landscape EXPO Trade Show, San Antonio, TX.
For an up-to-date calendar of events, go to
www.tnlaonline.org.
Region Vii
You can now add region event photos to the TNLA region web pages. Even from your mobile phone!
South Texas No June meeting
Region VIII Central Texas Tuesday, June 8 at the LCRA For meeting times and additional information, please visit your regional homepage by clicking on your region above.
Advertisers Index
Download media kit or email: advertising@tnlaonline.org
June 2010
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Arborbrace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BWI Companies, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Creative:Interactive, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cycle Stop Valves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Deep Fork Tree Farm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dig Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ewing Irrigation Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FX Luminaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Garden-Ville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Horizon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Robert Kershaw, Fowler Law Firm . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Living Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 New Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 OHP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Propane Council of Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Quietaire Corp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 40 Submatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Summit Plastic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Texas Mutual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
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