Landscape Ontario - September

September 2017 horttrades.com

GREEN

TEAM Shawn Gallaugher and Jeremy Feenstra strike the architect-contractor balance Page 4

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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE A memorable summer once again

By Paul Brydges LO President

T

his summer that is now gone reminds me of a song growing up by the band The Cars, called Magic. The song begins, “Summer, it turns me upside down. Summer, summer, summer, it’s like a merry go round.”

I think we all can agree with the weather being so unpredictable, that this year, like many others, has been unpredictable and unique. Fortunately, it seems for most, if not all of our everexpanding team, this was also one of the busiest summers in history. Not just because everyone is behind due to the weather, but also because we are seeing many more, and substantially larger projects, coming in the door. With a solid economy running through the bulk of the country, clients are happy to plan new projects and implement larger por-

September, 2017 • Volume 35, No. 8 horttrades.com Landscape Ontario’s mandate is to be the leader in representing, promoting and fostering a favourable environment for the advancement of the horticultural profession in Ontario.

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tions at a time. It also seems as though more clients are in an age bracket where they are trained as a specialist in a particular area and don’t quite understand many of the complexities of what goes into a major project. This is a great thing when it comes to selling design and construction services, since the client likely has no idea how to implement the work themselves, but it also creates some challenges. How do we explain to clients what hourly rates are required in order to make a fair wage for ourselves and our staff?

Minimun wage hike

With the new minimum wage requirements quickly sneaking up on all of us, it is going to be even more critical for us to educate each and every client about what it costs us to conduct our business in the same way we have always done.

It has taken many years to shake the 1980s prices that seemed to prevail for interlock well into the mid-2010s. Now we are going to have to specify and budget for possibly an additional 15 per cent to cover the effects of wage increases in pro-

Editor Robert Ellidge rellidge@landscapeontario.com, 647-722-5645 Assistant editor Scott Barber sbarber@landscapeontario.com, 647-478-3171 Multimedia designer/IT coordinator Mike Wasilewski mikew@landscapeontario.com, 647-723-5343 Sales manager Steve Moyer stevemoyer@landscapeontario.com, 416-848-0708 Integrated solutions representative Greg Sumsion gsumsion@landscapeontario.com, 647-722-6977 Communications coordinator Angela Lindsay alindsay@landscapeontario.com, 647-723-5305 Accountant Joe Sabatino jsabatino@landscapeontario.com, 647-724-8585 Publisher Lee Ann Knudsen CLM lak@landscapeontario.com, 416-848-7557 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO STAFF Darryl Bond, Amy Buchanan, Kim Burton, Rachel Cerelli, Tony DiGiovanni CHT, Denis Flanagan CLD, J. Alex Gibson, Meghan Greaves, Sally Harvey CLT CLM, Heather MacRae, Kristen McIntyre CHT CEM, Kathy McLean, Linda Nodello, Kathleen Pugliese, Ian Service, Myscha Stafford, Tom Somerville, David Turnbull, Martha Walsh, Cassandra Wiesner

duction of product as well as installation.

There have been many excited emails to LO home office and myself about what the association is going to do about this increase. The best course of action we feel we can take, is to make government aware of our grave concerns with the speed at which this is being brought forth. We do not disagree with everyone earning a fair wage. Many of our sector groups don’t fall into the minimum wage earner category. Several of our core groups do. This is a very challenging question that is being put forth to us. We have an advocacy group that lobbies for both agriculture and landscape that has the strongest voice to help us through this. We have also been reaching out, wherever possible, to ensure our collective voices are being heard.

With only a few weeks left until fall, LO meetings will start up once again and we will reconvene to discuss the trials and tribulations of yet another unique year.

Summer, you have truly turned us upside down.

Paul Brydges may be reached at paulbrydges.la@sympatico.ca.

4 6 8 9 21 22 24 28 29 34 34

FEATURES RELATIONSHIP BENEFITS MINIMUM WAGE INCREASE

LETTER TO THE EDITOR ASSOCIATION NEWS EVENTS NEW MEMBERS INDUSTRY NEWS CELEBRATING CANADA 150 COLUMNS AD INDEX CLASSIFIEDS

Views expressed are those of the writer concerned. Landscape Ontario assumes no responsibility for the validity or correctness of any opinions or references made by the author. Copyright 2017, reproduction or the use of whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited. Published 11x per year. Rates and deadlines are available on request. Subscription price: $43.51 per year (HST included).

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mates,” Gallaugher explains. “It is unique, in that we are two separate companies; I am not creating drawings and having him put in a bid, we are working together right from the beginning of the process.”

It allows you “to take the design to another level” he explains, and it helps head off potential challenges or changes to the plans during the construction phase.

It’s a more efficient process, Feenstra says, and it makes the cost-estimating more accurate as well.

“I don’t know why everybody doesn’t use a landscape architect,” Feenstra said.

“Landscaping can be and should be a big investment to improve the value of homes.

You don’t leave your house to be designed by a contractor. Working with an architect pushes you out of your comfort zone to build different styles and features, rather than sticking with what you are comfortable with.”

Shawn Gallaugher and Jeremy Feenstra on the job this summer in Huntsville, Ont.

Benefits of a great relationship

By Scott Barber

Over the last decade, landscape architect Shawn Gallaugher and landscape contractor Jeremy Feenstra have worked together on over 50 projects throughout the Greater Toronto Area and the Muskoka Region.

Their longstanding, symbiotic partnership has spawned incredible outdoor spaces, as well as many valuable lessons on the benefits of a strong contractor-architect relationship.

Their journey began at Canada Blooms nearly 20 years ago, where the two were volunteering. Feenstra, just 14 years old at the time, made an impression on Gallaugher.

“I was impressed with how hard he worked,” Gallaugher remembers. “His work ethic really stood out at the time.”

Fast forward 10 years, and Feenstra was starting out with his Elmira, Ont.-based contracting, greenhouse and retail garden centre business, Floristerra.

“We connected again about a decade later and Jeremy told me he was just getting started with a construction business,” Gallaugher recalls. “At that time, I was also getting my landscape design business going, and I was able to refer him to some projects.”

The pair of Landscape Ontario members have collaborated consistently ever since, and have developed a connection

4 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

that results in stellar customer service and exceptional work.

All in the planning

“I get Jeremy’s input during the design process, and it is particularly valuable when it comes to implementation and cost esti-

Different personalities work together

Why do the two work so well together? It comes down to mutual respect and trust.

“We both value each other’s input and each other’s work,” Gallaugher says.

“We’ve learned how to build new things together, so each time we embark on something unique or different, it’s easy to figure out because we’ve gone through that process before.”

Feenstra agrees,“I think we have personalities that work,” he said. “Shawn is a great, kind person and quite flexible. He

The pair designed and built this beautiful backyard landscape in Toronto’s Leaside neighbourhood.

has a vision and is open to what works when getting down to the build and what doesn’t. On my side, being a stubborn Dutchman takes a back seat and I like to listen to what he has to say and try to interpret his vision the best I can.”

They’ve also mastered the art of the trilateral client relationship.

“We’ve also had shared experiences working with different clients,” Gallaugher says. “So we have grown and developed professional ethics, and we have learned how to balance the client relationship as a team. It’s actually really nice to have two people in those meetings with clients because we both get a chance to learn what the client is looking for and that way we can keep each other on track during each phase of the project.”

Solving problems together

Once a project is underway, Feenstra and Gallaugher solve problems together, ensuring elements of the design emerge as intended. They also tweak things where necessary, to stay under budget or to overcome logistical challenges.

“We discuss things and make sure we are on the same page,” Feenstra said.

“Both parties are necessary for a good

e

Overlooking Lake Muskoka, this cottage landscape provides gorgeous views and ample seating space.

product. It’s no different than a home build where you have the general contractor and then the subs: everyone does what they’re good at and work together to achieve the end product.”

After finishing up a massive, three-year, multi-stage project in Huntsville, Ont., this summer, the pair are ready for their next

big challenge. “There are challenges, of course,” Feenstra explains. “But it’s really no different than dealing with anymore else, be it your employees or your clients; you come to an understanding of each other’s strengths and weaknesses, respect each other, and work towards your common goals.”

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Landscape profession prepares for minimum wage increase On Jan. 1, 2018, the minimum wage for workers in Ontario will rise to $14 per hour. Ontario premier, Kathleen Wynne officially announced the increase of $2.40 per hour during a press conference back on May 29, exactly one year before the province’s next general election. A second $1 increase is also planned a year later on Jan. 1, 2019.

At the same time, the reigning Liberal government also announced major changes to the province’s outdated labour laws, including Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) and Labour Relations Act, 1995, in order to update employment law due to a changing workforce and global economy.

These changes are a direct result of a report released in May called the Changing Workplaces Review. Now known as Bill 148, the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017, also proposes changes to oncall pay, overtime pay, holiday pay, sick days and vacation pay to name a few.

Impact on business and clients

Landscape Ontario member, Jay Murray, owner of TLC Professional Landscaping in London, Ont., has spent a great deal of time figuring out the impact of the Act on business. Murray says he needs to give clients on contract some indication of how costs will change and has created a

6 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

scenario using an average 10-employee ground maintenance company.

The bottom line: a nearly 24 per cent increase in labour costs in 2018 with an additional 18 per cent increase in 2019 (primarily for operators with on-call employees).

Murray says with labour costs typically making up 40 to 60 per cent of revenue, that translates into increases of about 12 per cent this year and nine per cent the following year that will be passed on to clients. For a complete breakdown of Murray’s numbers, see the Letter to the Editor, on page 8 of this issue.

Temporary foreign workers

Michael Tilaart is the owner of Dutchmaster Nurseries, which produces a large variety of trees and plants at it’s 1,000 acre property in Pickering, Ont. With over 120 employees during peak season, including 60 temporary foreign workers, Tilaart says the proposed labour law reforms could have a significant impact on his labour costs.

“The one thing that I think is just absolutely wrong is the time frame in which they are pushing this through,” he said. “I’d have no problem with a minimum wage increase if it was done over a five or a seven year period. I think the minimum wage should go up, but not as quick as it is.”

It could be especially problematic for business owners in the grower sectors, which rely on participation in the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, he added.

“When it comes to the offshore program, the workers are thrilled with the amount of money they are making. And when you do the true costs, they are already making more than minimum wage, because they are being provided accommodation, transportation and a variety of other benefits.”

Tilaart also raised the issue of CPP, WSIB and EI as examples of how the sudden rise of minimum wage will impact employers.

“People fail to realize that WSIP, the government pension plan and EI are all percentage based,” he explained. “When you factor each of those benefits in, it generally works out to an additional 13-16 per cent per employee. So when you look at a $2.40 raise, it actually costs the company quite a bit more than that.”

Karl Stensson, owner of Sheridan Nurseries, a grower and retail operation based in Georgetown, Ont., echoes Tilaarts concerns.

Stensson said the additional 13 per cent for things like benefits and EI works out to another 25 cents per hour at $14 and 35 cents more per hour at $15.

For just over 100 workers on their farm, wages and benefits could cost more than $4,000 additional per day.

Stensson said another major issue is

BY THE NUMBERS • Half of the workers in the province who earn less than $15 per hour are between the ages of 25 and 64, and the majority are women.

• Statistics Canada says 9.2 per cent of workers in Ontario (540,000 people), currently earn the minimum wage of $11.40 per hour.

• 30 per cent of workers in the province earn less than $15 per hour.

• Alberta became the first province to pass a $15 minimum wage (in Sept. 2016) which goes into effect Oct. 2018.

The increase to minimum wage will also add pressure to raise wages for staff who will earn just over the new, higher rate.

that such a huge increase now brings minimum wage earners to almost the same level of pay as more senior staff.

“We haven’t even worked into our schedules what that is going to cost us,” Stensson said, but feels something will need to be done.

Stensson said he doubts any business can absorb the increase and will basically have two choices in order to maintain their margins: increase prices or cut staff.

“When it’s all said and done, we have decided our prices need to go up at least three per cent to cover the minimum wage increase and probably another two per cent to account for inflation,” Stensson explained.

Sheridan is already well into the process of working on budgets and pricing for next year and now considerations will need to be made regarding the wage increase.

“To do it so fast is absolutely ridiculous,” Stensson says, adding it would be much easier to plan for if phased in over a much longer time frame.

More than wages changing

In addition to the minimum wage increase, many other changes under Bill 148 will have an impact. Changes are coming to overtime and holiday pay, sick days, vacation pay and on-call pay.

Brian Tester helps run TNT Property Maintenance with his parents in Kitchener, Ont. Tester is cornered that the on-call and three-hour daily minimum requirements could devastate snow and ice contractors. “What happens if you have your team ready for a major event and it doesn’t happen?” He wondered. “The company doesn’t make anything, but they still have to pay their whole staff. It could be a real long winter if you had a number of those types of scenarios.”

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Challenges ahead

Stensson, like a lot of business owners, questions the objectives of the government and wonders if employees will actually benefit from the change. He said many business owners agree the solution is to raise prices to cover costs.

“In the long run, there may be more money out there for the minimum wage earner, however, they will have to pay more for what they are buying,” Stensson said.

For Murray, Tilaart, Stensson, Tester and other business owners in Ontario, they also need to factor in rising hydro rates, a poor Canadian dollar and the implications the minimum wage increase will have on the goods and services they purchase from suppliers.

Read more about this topic on page 8

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LETTER TO THE EDITOR RE: Fair Workplaces and Better Jobs Act, Ontario The recent proposals under Bill 148, also know in Ontario as the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017, has presented the landscape services industry with major changes to our costs. As a business with long-term contracts, we need to give our clients some indication of how this will affect their costs. We have spent much time discussing and analyzing the effects, and here is what we have come up with.

Let’s look at a 10-employee, grounds maintenance company to illustrate the impact of the changes. Labour cost for a typical landscape maintenance company is about 40 to 60 per cent of revenue. We will use 50 per cent for our model.

Minimum wage increase

The most obvious change to Ontario workplace law is the minimum wage rising from $11.40 per hour to $14 on Jan. 1, 2018, with plans for a second increase to $15 on Jan. 1, 2019. This is a 32 per cent increase.

Landscape Ontario’s recent wage surveys showed employees currently earn $14 to $20 per hour on average in Ontario. With minimum wage going up $3.60 an hour, there will likely be upward pressure on other wages. It’s hard to pinpoint the exact increase, and all of it might not be immediate, but it seems reasonable to project average wages increasing $1.50 to $2.50 per hour.

A $2 per hour increase adds 12 per cent to labour costs. The bulk of this impact will be felt in 2018, with maybe a quarter of the impact in year two when the last dollar increase kicks in. So a nine per cent increase in year one and a three per cent in year two.

Without this increase, a technician now making $15.50 an hour (36 per cent more than current minimum wage), would only make three per cent more than minimum wage once set at $15.

On-call pay

New rules around on-call employees will greatly affect the cost of winter workers.

In 2019, it will be mandatory to pay a person three hours per day for being on-call, if they have not been called in. Let’s say your region gets 25 snow or ice events a year from late-November to the end of April.

Let’s say over these 17 weeks (119 days),

8 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

that it does snow on 25 days, so for the other 94 it does not. Those 10 employees need to be paid three hours per day for 94 days, a total of 282 hours.

Adding 282 more hours of on-call pay is another 15 per cent increase in wage costs over a full work year. Interestingly, the government suggests in their bulletin that one way to negotiate around this rule is to have a “Collective Agreement” with your employees. I read that as a union which is another story in itself.

eration here for the new on-call rules, this alone is about a 2.75 per cent increase.

Overtime and holiday pay

In summary, if all proposed changes are passed, here is the impact on payroll for a 10-employee company:

The government names “special industry rules” that probably refers to the landscape gardening exemption in the Employment Standards Act (ESA). Losing these exemptions could affecting overtime pay and holiday pay.

Some landscape companies currently pay overtime voluntarily, but most do not.

Because of the seasonality of the industry and the fluctuating weather, we need to “make hay while the sun shines.” We work long hours, often 55 a week or more. If you were not paying overtime on the 11 hours over 44 hours that an employee works, and now have to pay a 50 per cent premium, that’s equivalent to 5.5 extra hours paid on 55 (50 per cent premium times 11 hours).

That’s a 10 per cent increase in wages.

Two paid sick days

If you have to pay two extra, eight hour days (let’s presume these occur in the summer), it will add another 1.25 per cent to your costs.

Statutory holiday pay

There are currently nine statutory paid holidays in Ontario. The government has promised a simpler calculation method than currently exists. Currently, if you only work part-time, you only get statutory pay based on the average hours worked in a fiveday week. In winter, during a layoff period, where your employee might only work 12-15 hours a week, they might only get paid about three hours of stat pay for each of Christmas, New Year’s, Boxing Day, Family Day (12 hours). For the other five holidays, they would get paid a full eight hours (40 hours total), which amounts to 52 hours in extra pay a year. With no consid-

Three-weeks vacation after five years

Most of us would consider ourselves lucky to have a five-year employee. If our 10-employee company has three employees in this class, that would add a 0.6 per cent increase to payroll (Two per cent more on a third of your payroll).

What it could cost

Change 2018 2019 Min. wage increase to $14 9% Min. wage increase to $15 3% Three hours on-call (2019) 15% Overtime at 44 hours 10% Two paid sick days 1.25% Holiday pay 2.75% Vacation pay (5+ years) 0.6% Total 23.6% 18% In our example, the contractor has a 50 per cent labour cost. Year one he has to charge his clients 50 per cent of the increase, or 12 per cent more, and in year two another 50 per cent, or nine per cent more. Simply multiply your labour cost percentage by the 24 per cent and 18 per cent and you have the impact on your client.

Our businesses will vary from one another.

Maybe you only work 40-45 hours a week now, or maybe you have a way around the three-hour rule, or maybe you pay so much more than the new minimum wage that you won’t feel upward pressure on your wages when the minimum jumps. For most of us, we and our customers could feel the full impact of these changes, and need to start planning for them now.

On the bright side, perhaps these wage increases are just what our industry needs to bring pay equity with other industries and improve the lamentably poor availability of labour in our industry. Maybe what we have seen so long as cost advantages were actually hindrances to our success.

Jay Murray is owner of TLC Professional Landscaping in London, Ont.

ASSOCIATION NEWS

Chapter members attended the official opening of the garden on July 10.

Chapter unveils rehabilitation garden at Hamilton General Members of Landscape Ontario’s Golden Horseshoe Chapter board were on hand July 10, at Hamilton Health Sciences’ Hamilton General Hospital (HGH) and Population Health Research Institute (PHRI) to unveil a new community vegetable garden built in partnership with Hamilton Victory Gardens.

“We are so thrilled about the new community garden,” says Kathie Elstone,

therapeutic recreationist at the Regional Rehabilitation Centre. “Whether our patients are gardeners or not, regardless of the rehabilitation required, we’ll be able to use the garden to help with recovery.

Since gardening is a functional activity, it can encourage a patient in a wheelchair to stand or a patient with a prosthetic leg practice their balance. These are just some of the many benefits.”

At the opening ceremony, chapter board members; Tim Rivard, Tim Cruickshanks, Chris Utter and Lee Rozon, were joined by LO executive director, Tony DiGiovanni, to present a cheque for $7,500 to Hamilton Victory Gardens.

Hamilton Victory Gardens is a not-forprofit group of community volunteers who assisted with the building of the garden and provided a planting plan. They will harvest the fresh produce from the garden and supply it to local food banks and meal programs.

Golden Horseshoe Chapter member, Ciccarelli Contractors was also involved in the project, donating a crew of six for about a week and a half to fix grades and to fit irrigation within the site, and to meet accessibility standards for the garden.

Dwayne Sterling, project manager at Ciccarelli, says as the year round property maintenance contractor for the hospital, they were approached by Hamilton General’s Ann Higgins for ideas and help with the project. Sterling says already being familiar with the site “made everything run very smoothly to get the project done on time and on schedule.”

Ciccarelli also donated plant material and planters and says his stone supplier gave him preferential pricing for materials used in the garden. A large stone with the Landscape Ontario Green for Life logo was placed on the edge of the garden to mark the contribution by the LO chapter and its members.

The garden consists of 11 raised beds at various heights to accommodate those working from a wheel chair or standing.

PHRI has set up volunteer sessions for campus staff to ensure the regular maintenance is performed.

Staff are very excited about producing food that will be provided to the local community as well as using the garden to promote teamwork and engage staff, all while providing innovative therapy for rehabilitation patients.

LO MEMBERS HELP TO GREEN WESTPORT HARBOUR

The raised beds at various heights provide access for patients in wheelchairs or with walking aids.

On June 30, Landscape Ontario members helped to transform Fetch Murphy Way in Westport Harbour into a temporary park for the day to promote the importance of outdoor, unstructured play.

The Village of Westport, Ont. is proud to be one of 10 communities chosen

by Come Alive Outside to host a Green Street Challenge in 2017.

Rain did not deter over 150 people who attended the event between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. A free barbecue lunch was also provided by the Westport

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ASSOCIATION NEWS

Volunteers lay sod on Fetch Murphy Way in preparation for the Westport Green Street Challenge.

Firefighter’s Association. The event was planned by volunteer members of the Westport Harbour Advisory Committee, with tremendous support from Landscape Ontario members and government offi-

cials. Speakers at the opening ceremony included; Steve Clark, MPP Leeds-Grenville; Mayor Robin Jones; Councillor Mark Parliament; Brett Jeacle of Manderley Turf Products; Sarah Walker, Executive

Director, Come Alive Outside and a representative from Cub Cadet. Event participants were able to enjoy unstructured play throughout the day and mix their own smoothies on the Healthy Kids Community Challenge smoothie bike while also enjoying the beautiful waterfront in Westport Harbour.

Manderley Turf Products generously donated 4,500 sq. ft. of sod and GunnDuncan Landscaping provided a crew to remove the sod from Fetch Murphy Way and re-lay it on a property on Main Street, creating a green space along the waterfront. This event would not have been possible without the tremendous support of these two companies. Other sponsors included Herlehy Home Building Services, Kudrinko’s Country Grocer, the Westport Firefighter’s Association, MAVEN Marketing & Communications, the Village of Westport, Come Alive Outside Canada, and many volunteers who worked tirelessly throughout the day to make the event a huge success.

The Green Street Challenge creates an opportunity for children and families to play outside and enjoy the many benefits community green spaces have to offer.

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MPP Steve Clark makes a smoothie on the Healthy Kids Community Challenge smoothie bike.

on the rise, time spent outside getting active and connecting to nature has never been so important! The Green Street Challenge is a way for communities to make a statement and celebrate outdoor play and green spaces as essential ingredients to the wellbeing of our society.

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Landscape Ontario, in partnership with the Town of Oakville and LO member, Greenius Training Systems, has developed a best practices training video for those operating leaf blowers in residential areas.

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ASSOCIATION NEWS

Raffle ticket sales helped raise over $10,000 for CHEO.

OTTAWA CHAPTER RAISES OVER $10,000 FOR CHEO

Landscape Ontario’s Ottawa Chapter held their annual charity golf tournament at The Meadows Golf and Country Club, in Gloucester, Ont., on July 27. Presented

by Geosynthetic Systems, tournament proceeds benefit the Children’s Hospital Eastern Ontario foundation (CHEO).

Blue, sunny skies and a slight wind made it the perfect day for the 86 registered golfers who came out to support this worthy cause.

Tournament organizers had a fundraising goal of $6,620 for this year’s event, which would realize a milestone of $30,000 raised by Ottawa Chapter mem-

bers for CHEO since 2013. Golf committee members Chris Urquhart, Randi Lee Bell and Steve Montcalm, worked diligently to ensure everything went smoothly throughout the day. In the event of inclement weather, each golfer was given a windbreaker upon check-in, as a thank you for participating in this year’s tournament.

The day began with fun team photos with the CHEO Bear mascot and the putting challenge, sponsored by Sontrac Equipment. Golfers were treated to a great barbecue lunch, sponsored by B&T MacFarlane, that consisted of burgers, hot dog and salads, before heading out on the course.

All sponsorships were sold out prior

to the tournament this year — a first in recent history for the Ottawa Chapter.

This year, new sponsorships included; Best Foursome Score at a Mystery Hole, sponsored by Greely Sand and Gravel; a Lemonade Stand, sponsored by Bradley’s Commercial Insurance; and a specialty coupon booklet with proceeds directly donated to CHEO. Cohen and Cohen Natural Stone were the exclusive golf cart sponsor. Premium hole sponsors included: Manderley Turf Products, Vanden Bussche Irrigation and Equipment, Unilock, Plant Products, Mosquito Buzz by Nutrilawn, Turfgrass Canada, and Surgenor Truck Centre. Additional hole sponsors included: Geosynthetic Systems, Yates Sprinklers, Manotick Tree Movers, Permacon - an Oldcastle Company, Draglam Salt and Hort Protect Insurance.

Dinner, sponsored by Gifford Associates, included both sirloin and chicken breast buffet. Many attendees commented on how much they appreciated the choices for the meal.

Women’s and Men’s Closest to the Pin, sponsored by Malmberg Truck Trailer, were Randi Lee Bell, and Gerry Chenier respectively. Women’s and Men’s Longest Drive, sponsored by KOTT Group, were Trish Ferguson and Patrick Yates respectively. Closest to the sprinkler head, sponsored by Vanden Bussche Irrigation and Equipment was Marty Kleiss. The Most Honest Foursome was awarded to the team from Gifford Associates, and Best Foursome was a tie between Team Permacon and Team Go Mobile.

The success of the event would not have happened if not for the tremendous

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IN MEMORIAM — WRAY WILLIAMS

It is with great sadness that Mark Williams has announced the passing of his father, Wray Williams of Williams Nurseries in Leamington, Ont. At 90 years, Wray Williams passed away, peacefully on Aug. 5, 2017 at the Sun Parlor Home. Wray was the devoted entrepreneur of Williams Nurseries. He was a life member of St. Michael’s Knights of Columbus and a founding member of Landscape Ontario Windsor Chapter (LOWC).

Beloved husband of Delores, dear father Loralee Smith (Al), Rob Williams (Shirley), Mark Williams (Susan), Paul Williams (Kathy). Loving Papa of Jennifer (Randy), Amy (Terry), Andrew, Brad (Kim), Michael (Samantha), Nicole (Alex), Miranda (Michael), Eric (Vanessa), Matthew, Jonathan, Jordan, Phillip and Great Papa of 22 great grandchildren. Dear brother of June Scratch, the late Belva Hill, the late Bill Williams, and the late Jack Williams.

Memorial donations may be made to Alzheimer Society, St. Michael’s Building Fund or the Sun Parlor Home Auxiliary.

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ASSOCIATION NEWS GARDEN GROVE WINS MAJOR AWARDS AT MONTREAL SYMPOSIUM

David Lammers (left) with the Excellence in Business Award, joined by his brother, Paul Lammers, with the Safety Award.

Landscape Ontario member, Garden Grove Landscape Management of Waterdown, Ont., received two major awards at the recent Snow and Ice Management Association’s (SIMA) annual symposium in Montreal.

Garden Grove received the Excellence in Business Award and the SIMA Safety Award on June 23.

The Excellence in Business honour is awarded to a SIMA member business judged on business practices, professional relationships and personal experiences.

“This year’s winner of the Excellence in Business Award strives to provide superior snow and ice management with a focus on safety, quality and value, while also driving snow industry innovation and creating an unparalleled client experience,” said SIMA presi-

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dent Justin Gamester. “For more than 25 years, the company has achieved steady growth and become widely recognized as an industry leader with the philosophy of consistency, accessibility, reliability and expertise.”

Garden Grove president David Lammers said, “Our goal is to continually raise the bar in every aspect of providing the best possible services to our clients.”

During the presentation of the Safety Award, Gamester said, “Winners of this award must undergo a rigorous reporting process that takes into consideration training, established safety plans, incident reports, accident claims and more.”

“Garden Grove is vitally interested in providing a safe and healthy environment and will take every reasonable precaution to protect our employees, customers and visitors from harm,” Lammers said at the award presentation. “We are committed to providing a strong safety program that protects our staff, our customer’s property and the public from accidents, injuries or illness.”

The company’s service region extends throughout the Golden Horseshoe, the Greater Toronto Area, and now Guelph, Cambridge and Kitchener-Waterloo.

AURA WINS ENTREPRENEUR AWARD IN NIAGARA

Landscape Ontario member, Scott Duff, owner of Aura Landscaping in St. Catharines, Ont., was awarded the Agricultural, Horticultural and Environmental Entrepreneur Award by the selection committee of the Niagara Entrepreneur of the Year Awards (NEYA).

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Scott Duff (left) receives his award from a representative from Grant Thornton LLP.

Duff had previously been nominated and was presented with the award during a ceremony earlier this year. In addition, Duff received an official letter of congratulations from Vance Badawey, M.P. for Niagara Centre.

The Agricultural, Horticultural and Environmental award nominees embody the spirit of entrepreneurship, demonstrating success while either making a positive impact on Niagara’s agriculture and/or horticulture industry or have demonstrated entrepreneurial success with a product, service and/or system that has made a positive impact on the environment.

During his acceptance speech, Duff citied the many challenges and negativity he faced in his younger years and described how that fueled his dreams of success. Duff challenged everyone in the room “to make your own definition of success and wealth; and then share it with others.”

The NEYA program celebrates and honours the entrepreneurial spirit, successes and accomplishment of Niagara’s best and brightest business leaders.

Through hard work, determination, creativity and resourcefulness, recipients have established new ventures or lead existing ones into renewed growth.

Congratulations Scott!

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ASSOCIATION NEWS

International Landscaping received two National Awards of Excellence.

LO MEMBERS WIN NATIONAL AWARDS IN 2017

Two Landscape Ontario members were among the winners announced at the 14th annual National Awards of Landscape Excellence ceremony held in Olds, Alta., on Aug. 16.

Garden Grove Landscaping of Waterdown, Ont., was awarded the National Award of Excellence in Commercial Construction, and International Landscaping of Milton, Ont., won National Awards of Landscape Excellence for both Residential Construction and Residential Maintenance.

Nearly 100 people attended the prestigious event to celebrate the 2017 win-

ners, whose projects demonstrate the best-of-the-best in landscape horticulture.

Each province nominates winners from provincial awards of excellence competitions who are then juried for the National Awards.

Held at the Olds College Alumni Centre, attendees had a chance to connect with the entire Canadian Nursery Landscape Association (CNLA) Board of Directors, while visiting one of the top horticultural colleges in Canada.

Other winners from across the country included: Airo Landscape Design of St. John’s, Nfld., for Landscape Design; Surface Pro Services of Calgary, Alta., for

Commercial Maintenance and Green Haven Garden Centre of Lethbridge, Alta., for Outstanding Retail Achievement.

The Green for Life awards recognize significant contributions made to the ornamental horticulture sector by an individual, corporation, or community.

The Green for Life Distinction Award was presented to John van Roessel of JVR Landscape in Calgary, Alta., in recognition of his lifetime achievement in the horticulture industry, as well as the lasting legacy he will leave.

Caterpillar was presented with the Green for Life Industry Award for the significant contributions it has made, not only to CNLA and the provincial associations, but to the industry and environment. Sherrie Williams, Product Application Specialist for Caterpillar Building Construction Products, accepted the award.

The final award of the evening, the CNLA President’s Award, is not presented every year. It is only awarded to a member who, in the opinion of the Executive Committee, has demonstrated beyond question, a sustained personal commitment that has contributed beneficially to the enhancement of the industry at a national or international level. This year, the prestigious award was presented to Michael Murray, president of Murray’s Garden Centre and Horticultural Services, Portugal Cove, N.L. Murray has served the profession for many years as a business owner and volunteer. Murray is a Past President of CNLA, and has also served as the Environment Chair, Landscape NL representative, Human Resources Chair

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and currently sits as the Government Relations Chair. His years of service have been invaluable to the industry on a local, national and global scale.

Next year’s ceremony will take place in St. Andrews, N.B.

ENTER AWARDS BY OCT. 1

The season is still in full swing, so before you totally lose track of time, there’s one more thing you have to do — enter your best projects into Landscape Ontario’s Construction, Maintenance and Design Awards of Excellence program.

Winning an LO Award of Excellence is a great marketing tool for your company and a great way to validate your skills, expertise and professionalism and set you apart from your competition. Recognition from your peers and other industry professionals can also improve staff retention and boost employee morale.

Entries in the construction, maintenance and design programs are being accepted until Oct. 1. Don’t wait until the deadline; take photos and start the online entry process now. Retouched photos will not be accepted. It is imperative to submit your entries by the deadline as all entries must then be processed, judged and winners’ information prepared for the greatest awards show of the year!

“The Heat is On” is the theme for this year’s awards ceremony where winners will be announced on Jan 9, 2018. The ceremony is presented by G&L Group, with supporting sponsors Connon Nurseries CBV Holdings and Dynascape.

Visit LOawards.com to submit entries and to find entry guidelines and categories for each program. A username and

password are required if you have not already created one with Landscape Ontario. Once logged in, you can work on your entries as your schedule allows, and continue working on them next time you login — as long as they are completed by Oct. 1. Entries are not officially submitted until payment information is entered.

When you login, you will need: • Contact information for person entering on behalf of company.

• Good images of the project; .jpg format, minimum of six and maximum of 15.

• A point form project summary describing the project objectives, plus any quirks or conditions imposed by the property owner, conservation authority, etc.

• You will need to print an Authorization Signatures form signed by the client/ property owner.

• Credit card for payments.

If you require assistance or have questions, contact Amy Buchanan at the LO home office at 1-800-265-5656, ext. 2329 or email amy@LandscapeOntario.com.

New member wins equipment from Makita

Ray’s Tree Service had no idea back in January 2017 that inquiring about, and joining would result in an awesome prize. Now a member of LO’s Georgian Lakelands Chapter, the company was drawn at random from those who applied for LO membership at Congress 2017, up until the end of January. LO’s membership team delivered over $1,000 worth of equipment donated by Makita Canada during a visit to Tiny Township, Ont., in early July.

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ASSOCIATION NEWS

Trial garden manager Rodger Tschanz leads a tour of the Milton site.

NEW PLANTS ON DISPLAY AT ANNUAL OPEN HOUSE

Over 60 industry professionals got their first look at hundreds of new plant cultivars at the annual Trial Garden Open House at Landscape Ontario and the Guelph Turf-

grass Institute (GTI) on Aug. 17.

They day began with a series of informative guest speakers at Landscape Ontario. Bob Reeves, president of Root Rescue Environmental Products gave an update on mycorrhizal research.

Shawn Murdy from the City of Guelph talked about invasive plants, such as Giant Hogweed, and the health hazard it poses to gardeners, animals and those working in the field.

Sheridan Nurseries presented some emerging trends for 2018, including the growing popularity of pollinator plants and succulents.

Ontario Parks Association (OPA) president, Jay Todd presented an award to representatives from the City of Welland for their entry in the Municipal Floral Display Competition. This year’s competition had a Canada 150 theme.

After the guest speakers, University of Guelph trial garden manager, Rodger Tschanz, led a guided tour of the various garden beds around the LO property.

Attendees were armed with a flag to vote for their favourite new plant. Results are: Helianthus ‘Sunfinity’(top annual), Echinacea ‘Sombrero Alsa Red’ (top perennial), Rosa ‘Easy Does It’ (top rose and overall favourite), Tuff Stuff Hydrangea (top hydrangea).

As visitors headed out for the afternoon tour at GTI, they were each given a Canadian Shield rose, courtesy of Vineland Research and Innovation Centre and J.C. Bakker and Sons. The GTI site boasts over

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and his students have contributed to this year’s trial. Thanks also to David Turnbull, LO property manager, Mike Wasilewski and Lillian Jojart for helping to make the gardens look spectacular this year.

GROWERS GROUP HIRES JEANINE WEST

LO property manager David Turnbull helps part-time employee Lillian Jojart to tally up votes.

400 annuals and perennials, a container trial, cutflower trial and All American Selections judging trial.

Landscape Ontario would like to thank Rodger Tschanz for organizing a fantastic line up of speakers, and for the work he

Landscape Ontario is pleased to announce the addition of Jeanine West as Grower Technical Analyst.

West has nearly 20 years of experience in horticulture, holding a doctorate in plant physiology and a Master’s degree in freshwater biology. She continued her career as a successful senior manager at an ornamental nursery for nearly 10 years, before starting her own consulting company.

Over the last five years, West has supported LO’s Nursery Growers’ Sector Group with a number of initiatives, including phytosanitary certification, invasive species, pesticide regulations, and environmental issues.

West has the dedication and skills necessary to watch for, and respond, to new issues that are important to LO members. West has also built strong relationships with stakeholders, regulatory government agencies and researchers

that can provide direction and build partnerships through new challenges.

LO members will now benefit from having a dedicated person to manage provincial/ local issues on behalf of the group, while reporting directly to the Nursery Growers’ Group.

Jeanine can be reached by email at jwest@landscapeontario.com or by phone at 1-705-796-8812.

NATHAN HELDER NAMED PRESIDENT OF CONDOMINIUM GROUP

Congratulations to LO member, Nathan Helder, president of Gelderman Landscape Services, on being named president of the Golden Horseshoe Chapter of the Canadian Condominium Institute (CCI).

The theme during Helder’s two-year term as president is, “Grassroots Leads to Relevancy.” Helder stated in his President’s Message, “GHC-CCI began as a grassroots organization focused on educating unit owners and condo directors. In

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ASSOCIATION NEWS the age of change, whether it’s the New Condo Act, chapter boundaries, new board directors or new registered condos, we need to be relevant for all members and ready to embrace the future.”

The Golden Horseshoe Chapter of CCI has been actively promoting condominium living in the Golden Horseshoe area for 30 years, providing members with a variety of valuable services. Members include condominium corporations, unit owners, professionals and trades throughout the Golden Horseshoe and surrounding area.

Helder is also the president of Southbrook Consulting and is currently serving the first of two years as Show Committee Chair for Landscape Ontario.

Battle on the ball diamonds

Landscape Ontario’s Toronto Chapter held their annual baseball tournament at Richmond Green ball diamonds in Richmond Hill, Ont., Aug. 20. The seven teams had a lot of fun while battling it out for top honours. Congratulations to Legendary Royals, first place winners over Arbordale Landscaping in the final. The semi-final saw the team from Lawrence Park Complete Lawn Care triumph over the team Permacon.

Shaping future initiatives and projects Monday January 8, 2018 A full-day event, with keynote speakers, lunch and closing reception.

Held in conjunction with Congress ’18.

Visit LOcongress.com for complete details.

REGISTRATION FEES : $140 for members and $190 non-members, before Dec. 15 $190 for members and $270 non-members, after Dec. 15 Admission to Congress 2018 Trade Show and Tailgate Party is included with registration.

An initiative of the Landscape Ontario Designer Sector Group.

Presented by

20 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

EVENTS

Full details and registration information for all events can be found online at horttrades.com/events or at specific chapter or sector pages.

Sept. 16

Sept. 22

Oct. 1

Sutton Creek Golf Club, Essex Shot gun start at 9 a.m., followed by a steak dinner and great prizes.

Galer Equipment, Dundas The 11 a.m. meeting will focus on the latest techniques for snow management. A barbecue lunch is included.

LO members have until midnight to enter projects in the Construction, Maintenance and Design programs via LOawards.com.

Bob Girard Memorial Golf Tournament

Sept. 17-22

IGCA Congress

Niagara Falls Garden retailers have the opportunity to network with peers from 20 countries while touring garden centres. Wine tasting, a harbor cruise and closing gala evening. Visit igcacanada2017.ca.

Sept. 20

LO Hardscape Golf Tournament

Granite Ridge Golf Club, Milton Don’t miss the wildest golf tournament in the profession. Help LO’s Hardscape Committee to raise money for educational events.

Sept. 21

Waterloo Chapter Golf Tournament Conestoga Golf and Conference Centre, Conestogo A great day of golf, networking, food, prizes and more.

Golden Horseshoe Chapter Meeting

Awards of Excellence entry deadline

Sept. 28

Oct. 21

Landscape Ontario, Milton See new products, equipment and technology, plus a full conference led by experts in the snow removal business at this popular event produced

by LO’s Snow and Ice Sector Group.

Details at snowposium.ca.

Landscape Ontario, Milton Register four weeks prior to the event and save $50. Order study manuals or register at landscapeindustrycertifiedtechnician.ca or contact CNLA at 1-888-446-3499.

Snowposium

Landscape Industry Certification

Oct. 22

National Tree Day

Highway of Heroes Living Tribute Run for Remembrance

Sept. 28-29

Nov. 1-2

Quality Inn, Bracebridge This two-day event will focus on leadership training: focusing on people and profit.

Visit horttrades.com/p2p.

Landscape Ontario, Milton Learn how to build/install and maintain aesthetically pleasing, water-efficient landscapes. Details at horttrades.com/fusion.

Sept. 27

Share your passion for trees and the many benefits they provide. Visit treecanada.ca/en/ programs/national-tree-day.

Peer to Peer Network Muskoka Summit

Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon Join the HOHLT running team and help to raise money for worthy causes.

Fusion Landscape Professional program

Register now for...

SEPTEMBER 28, 2017 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO MILTON, ON

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LANDSCAPE ONTARIO

SNOW AND ICE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE AND EXPO Brought to you by SN && I CIEC E COGM MU I TPT E E SOW N OW RO

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NEW MEMBERS DURHAM John Sims Concrete Construction Candice Greer 364 Fieldside Rd Lindsay, ON K9V 4R4 Tel: 705-324-1818 Membership Type: Associate

GEORGIAN LAKELANDS ARG Rentals Inc

Giovanni Argento 2-1B - 885 Regent St Sudbury, ON P3E 5M4 Tel: 705-522-9444 Membership Type: Chapter Associate

Bradric Exteriors

Colin Blanchard 12 Huron St PO Box 10 Minesing, ON L0L 1Y0 Tel: 705-734-8445 Membership Type: Associate

C2C Contracting

Warren Haist 46 Silver Creek Dr Collingwood, ON L9Y 4W9 Tel: 705-718-5610 Membership Type: Chapter Associate

D.W. Tuck Construction Services Inc Dennis Tuck 3 - 494 Veterans Dr Barrie, ON L4N 9J5 Tel: 705-721-5768 Membership Type: Active

Kubota North

Robert Rothdeutsch 1302 Golden Beach Rd Bracebridge, ON P1L 1W8 Tel: 705-706-2869 Membership Type: Active

Landmark Landscaping & Design

Morewood Sand & Gravel

W.F. Rothdeutsch

Trouble-Shooting Services Ltd

TORONTO

Mike Villano 101 - 130 Elm St Sudbury, ON P3C 1T6 Tel: 705-673-7015 Membership Type: Associate Wiliam Rothdeutsch 301 Ecclestone Dr Bracebridge, ON P1L 1X2 Tel: 705-801-5792 Membership Type: Active

Mary Lou Ciancone 300 - 611 Tradewind Dr Ancaster, ON L9G 4V5 Tel: 905-531-9300 Membership Type: Active

Scott Beaumont 2172 Centre Rd Campbellville, ON L0P 1B Tel: 905-659-1323 Membership Type: Associate

Frank Dagenais 1110 County Rd 7 Russell, ON K4R 1E5 Tel: 613-223-1939 Membership Type: Chapter Associate

ATD Contracting Services Inc

GOLDEN HORSESHOE

LONDON

Joe Aragona 2 - 2170 Speers Rd Oakville, ON L6L 2X8 Tel: 905-827-5700 Membership Type: Active

Amber Valley Landscape Co

Bravo Property Care & Services

Acorn Landscape Supply Inc

Anchor Construction

R.V.M. Trucking Inc

BHC Carpentry Inc

Mark Moroz 1044 No.1 Side Rd Burlington, ON L7P 0R8 Tel: 905-339-9675 Membership Type: Active

Trevor Shepherd 27 McKnight Ave Waterdown, ON L0R 2H1 Tel: 289-828-3044 Membership Type: Active

Craneway Equipment Limited

Emily Archer 4 - 477 Ofield Rd S Flamborough, ON L9H 5E2 Tel: 905-630-0331 Membership Type: Chapter Associate

Careys Asphalt Paving (925592 Ontario Inc)

David Jackson 1677 Winhara Rd Gravenhurst, ON P1P 1R1 Tel: 705-645-1175 Membership Type: Chapter Associate

Rambob’s Barging

Villano Construction Limited

Chris Carey 1688 Safari Rd Cambridge, ON N1R 5S2 Tel: 905-659-7036 Membership Type: Chapter Associate

J&S Performance & Distribution Ltd Scott Ruttan 901 East West Line, RR 2 Niagara on the Lake, ON L0S 1J0 Tel: 905-468-9735 Membership Type: Associate

Scott McGuire 1457 South Wenige Dr London, ON N5X 4M9 Tel: 226-977-4641 Membership Type: Interim

Ron Van Manen 793140 Hanmer Line PO Box 1120 Norwich, ON N0J 1P0 Tel: 519-468-2744 Membership Type: Chapter Associate

OTTAWA J.P. Millar & Sons Inc

John Millar 6395 Springhill Rd Osgoode, ON K0A 2W0 Tel: 613-761-0004 Membership Type: Active

Living Green Landscaping Inc Lindsey Ross 12541 River Rd Winchester, ON K0C 2K0 Tel: 613-229-6511 Membership Type: Interim

Greg Richard 1030 Industry St Oakville, ON L6K 2G1 Tel: 905-808-7645 Membership Type: Associate Barry Hobbs 24 Washington Ave Oakville, ON L6K 1W6 Tel: 905-599-2422 Membership Type: Active

BlueLine Rental

Bryce Taylor 276 Horner Ave Toronto, ON M8Z 0A9 Tel: 647-206-6600 Membership Type: Associate

Harper Turf Equipment

Jessica Reber 151 East Hwy 160 Harper, KS 67058 Tel: 620-896-7381 Membership Type: Associate

LDD Services Inc

Fabio DiCresce 378 Mcjannett Ave Milton, ON L9T 7T8 Tel: 905-336-3111 Membership Type: Associate

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22 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

Lafarge Canada

WATERLOO

Natasha Lacasse 110 - 140 Renfrew Dr Markham, ON L3R 6B3 Tel: 705-730-8410 Membership Type: Associate

Ag Energy Co-operative Ltd Michelle Vieira 2 - 45 Speedvale Ave E Guelph, ON N1H 1J2 Tel: 519-763-3026 Membership Type: Associate

LandVision Contracting Ltd Danny Ricciuto 156 Milestone Cres Aurora, ON L4G 3M2 Tel: 647-210-8607 Membership Type: Active

Alex Clarmo

Alex Clarmo 525747 Grey Rd 30, RR 4 Markdale, ON N0C 1H0 Tel: 519-986-3629 Membership Type: Associate

Meridian Electric Ltd

Michael Condren 1 - 295 Alliance Rd Milton, ON L9T 4W8 Tel: 905-876-8777 Membership Type: Chapter Associate

Dozr Inc

Kelly Garrett 318 Duke St W Kitchener, ON N2H 3Y1 Tel: 844-218-3697 Membership Type: Associate

MultiOne Equipment

Doug Campbell 3031 E. Cherry St Springfield, MO 65809 Tel: 855-968-5841 Membership Type: Associate

Elements Hardscaping Inc Nolan Ingram 5416 Silvercreek Pkwy Guelph, ON N1K 0C8 Tel: 519-803-3714 Membership Type: Active

Ronspar Construction Ltd Penny Spina 117 Gilley Rd Toronto, ON M3K 1L8 Tel: 416-805-1061 Membership Type: Active

Ikonik

John Lorito 300 - 22 King St S Waterloo, ON N2J 1N8 Tel: 866-819-6308 Membership Type: Associate

Scottish Gas Group Inc

Peter Hardie 21 - 585 Middlefield Rd Toronto, ON M1V 4Y5 Tel: 416-412-4424 Membership Type: Associate

Jeff Maillette Property Maintenance (2435413 Ontario Inc) Jeff Maillette 539 Wissler Rd Waterloo, ON N2K 3Y9 Tel: 519-588-2580 Membership Type: Active

Worldwide Stone

Pankaj Jaim 7714 Martin Grove Rd Woodbridge, ON L4L 2C4 Tel: 905-453-1460 Membership Type: Associate

L&R Contracting (2396246 ON Inc) Larry Randall 906 Highway 52 Lynden, ON L0R 1T0 Tel: 905-978-0975 Membership Type: Active

UPPER CANADA Outside In Contractor Services

WD Tait Enterprises Ltd

Paul Brearley 44 Stanley Park Dr Belleville, ON K8N 4N2 Tel: 613-922-6591 Membership Type: Interim

Terry Dunford Excavating Limited Terry Dunford 2696 Fifteenth Line Lakefield, ON K0L 2H0 Tel: 705-652-0888 Membership Type: Chapter Associate

Dean Tait 174406 County Rd 25 Grand Valley, ON L9W 0L9 Tel: 519-928-5204 Membership Type: Active

WINDSOR Jaws Yardscapes (1965510 Ontario Ltd) Jack Wolters 1018 Puce Rd Essex, ON N8M 2X7 Tel: 519-818-2958 Membership Type: Active

Trevor Webb Properties Trevor Webb 2744 Hiscocks Rd Gananoque, ON K7G 2V4 Tel: 613-328-8750 Membership Type: Interim

Keep in touch with LANDSCAPE

Monday January 8, 2018

A full day event including keynote speakers, lunch, supplier showcase and prizes.

Landscape Ontario’s Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Symposium has been a uniquely respected event since 1965.

Attendees will earn 6 CECs from the IPM Council of Canada.

Held in conjunction with Congress ’18.

Visit LOcongress.com for complete details.

REGISTRATION FEE: $120 per ticket until December 15. $160 per ticket after December 15.

Admission to Congress ’18 Trade Show Exhibits and the Tailgate Party is included in registration prices. The Congress Conference and other special events are a separate fee.

Net proceeds from the IPM Symposium are donated to lawn care research or a suitable alternative.

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Join our discussion forum

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Brian Sipkens presents his heated irrigation system.

Tour highlights innovative water management practices On July 26, 60 members and non-memas acid injection systems, evapotransbers of the International Plant Propapiration and recapture ponds. The pregator Society (IPPS) Eastern Region senters discussed how they carried out enjoyed a day of seminars and tours that these changes and how they overcame highlighted irrigation with a focus on the the challenges associated with improving implementation of the evapotranspiration crop quality while reducing costs. model.

Before lunch, guest speaker Lindsay Over the past few Day of Saunders Brothers Nursery in Piney River, years, Ontario growers have adjusted VA., highlighted the preventative measures they their water management practices to help have taken against Boxwood Blight — a serious adapt to the changing climate and to their Boxwood fungal disease ever-changing water that has become more needs. The day began prevalent in the northern at Warwick Community states. Currently, there is Centre in Watford, Ont. no cure for the disease, where morning seminars but there are many preventative measures that touched on several practices and how they’ve growers can implement. been implemented in Following lunch, the the workplace. Presentours started at Sipkens tations were made by Nurseries in Wyoming, several individuals in all Ont. The family-owned aspects of the industry and operated nursery and that covered topics such Cucumbers getting ready to ship. garden centre specializes

24 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

in perennials for the wholesale market.

Attendees looked at production firsthand and toured both the perennial greenhouses and the garden centre. Currently, Sipkens has great success using heated water in their greenhouse to help wake dormant plants during cooler weather.

The second tour stop was to Roelands Plant Farms in Lambton Shores, Ont., where attendees witnessed a state-ofthe-art vegetable propagation facility.

Having expanded to 12 acres of enclosed greenhouse space, Roelands’ has adopted a high-standard of hygiene and optimum growing conditions via UV sterilization of irrigation water, infloor heating, flood floors and height adjustable grow pipes. Biosecurity is also of major importance to help prevent contamination of their peppers, cucumbers and grafted tomatoes.

The final tour stop, Hillen Nursery in Mt. Brydges, Ont., is a family-owned and operated nursery since 1983. Hillen’s production includes: ornamental grasses, vines, evergreens, perennials, flowering shrubs and container grown ornamental and shade trees. At Hillen, guests had the privilege to tour themselves around the impressive 300-acre site or follow a guided tour. Hillen’s equipment was also on display, including a new potting machine and other equipment that play an important role in their production.

Thanks to the many generous sponsors of this successful event: Gro-Bark (Ontario), Hillen Nursery, Fafard, Kam’s Grower Supply, Plant Products, Profile Products, ICl Specialty Fertilizers, ACROBATic Controls, Bloom ‘n Nursery, and Haviland Plastic Products. Thanks also to Landscape Ontario and to dedicated IPPS members who organized the event, including: Bart Brusse, Brian Sipkens, Keith Osborne and Stephanie West.

— Stephanie West

PROGRAM HELPS STUDENTS TO BUILD NEW OUTDOOR GARDEN

After four months of hard work, 15 students engaged in an experiential learning opportunity and held a ribbon cutting ceremony in Guelph, Ont., on June 9, to celebrate the completion of their environmental design initiative. Offered through Youth Fusion, the students, supported by their teacher Mr. Chaves, and a Youth Fusion coordinator, Laura Armstrong hired from Guelph University, worked countless hours a week to transform an unused outdoor space into a beautiful Japanese Garden. Students handled everything from tree planting to landscaping and were mentored throughout

pur•pose the reason Congress exists

con•gress

kong-gris\noun

The Canadian face-to-face event like no other for Green Industry Professionals.

Congress ’18

JANUARY 9, 10 & 11, 2018

TORONTO CONGRESS CENTRE, TORONTO, ONTARIO

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Students accompany Liz Sandals, MPP Guelph at a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the new garden.

the process by Armstrong, as well as local Landscape Architect, Paul Brydges, who currently serves as president of Landscape Ontario.

Youth Fusion’s Founder and President, Gabriel Bran Lopez notes, “It’s remarkable what these students have been able to accomplish since our launch in February. The passion demonstrated throughout this process is clearly reflected in the quality of their work. We are very proud that our

model allows for students to feel engaged in their own learning, discover career paths and pursue their passions.”

The Honourable Liz Sandals, MPP for Guelph attended the event commented, “Congratulations to all of the students involved, the local teachers who guided them through this process, and Youth Fusion who delivered the experiential project. I had the opportunity to speak directly with the students involved and they had

a tremendous sense of pride in having completed their Japanese Garden. As a graduate of [Guelph Collegiate Vocational Institute] GCVI, I am glad to see students fully engaged and reflecting about the future of their community.”

Brydges also has a connection with GCVI — his son began attending the school last year and Brydges was already volunteering at the school to assist with an environmental design class.

Brydges brought some real world lessons to the project on things like budget, scheduling and elements of the students’ design that were most practical to implement. Brydges said he had “a lot of fun” working with the students at both GCVI and at another school in Fergus, Ont. “It really excited me to see a lot of students now are more interested in the environment and who really want to make a difference with what they so,” Brydges said.

“At the end of it, the students were really happy; that way my primary goal.”

Youth Fusion is an award-winning charity dedicated to lowering school dropout rates. By creating ties between the schools and the community, at-risk students are involved in innovative and meaningful educational projects that foster learning, develop skills and social integration. The organization hires post-secondary students and recent graduates as project coordinators, to implement projects that engage youth in learning both inside and outside the classroom. Project coordinators gain valuable practical experience to complement their studies and discover new career-related interests. Youth Fusion has over 10 different project areas: robotics, environmental design, music, cinema, healthy living, leadership, digital and visual arts, fashion design, entrepreneurship, video game creation, and science and technology, among others.

CONGRESS ’18 PRE-SHOW EDUCATION ANNOUNCED

Congress ’18, the Canadian face-to-face event for green industry professionals, will run Jan. 9-11, 2018 at the Toronto Congress Centre, with the educational component starting the day prior to the show on Jan. 8.

Dubbed Warm-Up Monday, education is the focus of the day, with something of interest for all green professionals. The Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Symposium, in partnership with Lawn Life, features a full-day of technical sessions that will qualify attendees for continuing education credits (CECs) from the IPM Council of Canada. The symposium includes a keynote speaker, sponsored by JB&D Com-

26 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

Health Canada has published the final re-evaluation decision on glyphosate. Following a rigorous science-based assessment, Health Canada has determined that when used according to the label, products containing glyphosate are not a concern to human health and the environment.

Glyphosate, marketed under brand names such as Roundup and Vision, is a common herbicide used to control weeds. It is registered for use in a wide variety of settings, including agriculture, forestry, and home gardens. Glyphosate is used both commercially and by homeowners.

Based on this re-evaluation, Health Canada will continue the registration of products that contain glyphosate, but will require updates to the product labels to help provide additional protection to humans and the environment. By April 2019, manufacturers will be required to ensure all commercial labels on pesticides containing glyphosate include the following: • A statement indicating that re-entry into the sprayed areas should be restricted to 12 hours after application in agricultural areas where glyphosate products were used.

• A statement indicating the product is to be applied only when the potential to spread to areas of human activity, such as houses, cottages, schools and recreational areas, is minimal.

• Instructions for spray buffer zones to protect non-targeted areas and aquatic habitats from unintended exposure.

• Precautionary statements to reduce the potential for runoff of glyphosate into aquatic areas.

For individuals using any pesticides, Health Canada advises to: • Use only pesticides approved in Canada, which can be identified by the Pest Control Product or PCP registration number on the main portion of the label.

• Be familiar with the proper handling and application procedures.

• Always read the label carefully to make sure you are choosing the right product for the right situation, and follow all safety precautions on the label carefully.

Health Canada will continue to monitor research on potential impacts of glyphosate products and will work closely with interna-

LAWN CARE CERTIFICATION EXAM

The Lawn Care Technician exam is the most recent addition to the Certified Landscape Technician (CLT) designation. Administered by the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association (CNLA), it is the only exam under the CLT umbrella that does not require a practical component. It consists of 100 multiple choice questions that are directly linked to all aspects of lawn care. The exam focuses on turfgrass, weed, pest and disease identification, application techniques, pest control strategies and basic sales and customer communications, just to name a few.

Because the exam is written only, it can be accommodated at any time that works best for a challenger’s schedule. Each province will host a written test opportunity each month. The Lawn Care Technician designation is great if you are working toward company accreditation, as it requires a certain ratio of your staff must have CLT status. If your company provides lawn care services, this designation is a great way to get staff certified without the need for a practical component.

To learn more, or to download a registration form, visit gfl.me/ h3sA for a link to the website. If you have questions, the Professional Development staff at the CNLA office are available at 1-888-446-3499.

the heat is on

celebrating achievement in

construction, maintenance and design

J

HEALTH CANADA APPROVES GLYPHOSATE

tional counterparts on evidence-based approaches to pesticide regulations.

If you have any questions about a pesticide, the latest detailed instructions, first aid statements and warnings on the label can be accessed using Health Canada’s Pesticide Label Search app available for free download from the App Store, Google play or Amazon apps.

LOa ULY 1STSUBMIT wa TO OCTEONTRIE rd BER 1S s.c ST: om

pany, and displays for delegates to learn more about new products, trends and technology in the world of IPM. The Landscape Designer Conference on Jan. 8 is a must-attend event for designers. This full-day conference includes morning refreshments, lunch, and informative sessions; all held at the newlyrenovated Delta Hotels Toronto Airport (formerly the International Plaza Hotel). Presented in partnership with DynaSCAPE, presenter Aprille Janes will look at utilizing personality types to sell designs, and Ellen Ecker Ogden will share her expertise on edibles. James Garfield Thompson will inspire attendees with his uncanny ability to replicate nature. Prepared to be wowed! Event partners will be located in the lobby throughout the day, showcasing the latest products and technologies to delegates. The day will conclude with the ever-popular networking reception.

Also in the hotel, Landscape Ontario`s Peer-to-peer Network will host a full-day interactive workshop on Jan. 8. Designed with the over-burdened business owner in mind, this workshop will help you attain any goals for being more successful in 2018. Through instructor Jacki Hart, CLP, delegates will learn tools, creativity and support to find helpful solutions and take a fresh approache to common problems faced by business owners.

More information on Congress ’18 will be announced over the coming months. For full session and event details and registration, visit LOcongress.com or email kristen@landscapeontario.com.

WWW.HORTTRADES.COM 27

2

1

LO members celebrate Canada 150 1. University of Guelph held a special event on June 19 to celebrate Garden Days and Canada’s milestone birthday. Called “Celebrating Canada 150 in the Garden,” the event featured free garden tours of city and university gardens, including Riverside Park’s Floral Clock, the Arboretum’s World of Trees and the Conservatory Gardens at the university where a ceremonial tree planting also took place.

2. Manderley Turf Products in Ottawa, Ont., took part in a very unique project in the nation’s capital.

Manderley’s crew invaded the Alexandrea Peace Bridge between Ottawa and Gatineau, Que., at 3 a.m. on July 2 and installed 2,000 sq. ft. on the pedestrian walkway of the bridge.

That day, 2,500 people took part in the first ever interprovincial Picnic on the Bridge over four staged sittings.

The event was supported by 280 volunteers and had beautiful weather for most of the day.

Manderley removed the sod from the bridge where it was then donated to Habitat for Humanity and Ottawa Community Housing projects across the city.

3. Clintar Landscape Management (Mississauga West and Milton) are planting 150 juvenile native maple fêtes (ranging from three to five feet in height) on their clients properties as a free gift to celebrate 150 years of Canada. Clients can choose to plant the tree themselves, or have Clintar plant it for them free of charge. Tree planting began in mid-August.

Pictured here are Clintar employees, Ashley Amaral and Jenelle Hamouth.

4. A.M.A. Plastics in Kingsville, Ont., began planning for Canada’s sesquicentennial last fall by planting 2,000 bulbs, including 1,000 Canada 150 tulips at their hydropnics facility.

The bulbs began flowering in spring and staff were excited to see the new Canada 150 Tulip bulbs flowering.

A.M.A. had so much fun preparing the beds and planting the bulbs, they also decided to include a keepsake for staff to mark the special planting day. Each staff member was give a commemorative 2017 Spirit of Canada $3 pur silver coin from the Royal Candian Mint.

A.M.A. staff look forward to seeing the bulbs flower again next spring.

28 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

3

4

EXECUTIVE DESK In praise of living landscapes of carbon dioxide equivalent to that produced by driving an average car for 26,000 miles. A 50 by 50 foot lawn produces enough oxygen for a family of four to breathe for one year.

Tony DiGiovanni CHT LO Executive Director

M

ost of us appreciate green space for its visual appeal and the space it creates for us to stroll, run, play with the kids or walk the dog.

Bruce Cockburn wrote, “when you stare at too much concrete, you forget the earth is alive.”

This is so easy to do in our urban environments. Living landscapes improve our lives in so many ways. It is worth spending a little time to appreciate the benefits.

Green space provides economic, environmental, recreational, health, life-style, aesthetic, community, therapeutic and spiritual benefits.

Energy savings

Lawns, gardens and trees are also natural air conditioners. Studies have shown an average size, healthy front lawn has the cooling effect of 70 tons of air conditioning — enough for 16 average homes.

In the winter, well-placed trees and shrubs can reduce energy costs by blocking cold winds and acting as insulation.

The energy savings due to the climate control benefits of living landscapes are measurable and substantial. The reduction of the “heat island’ effect in our cities is another huge benefit.

Health benefits

Lawns gardens and trees trap dust particles, filtering the air we breathe. This is especially important in urban areas and close to highways. It has been estimated a busy road with 25,000 vehicles traveling on it daily will generate about nine kilograms of tire dust per kilometre.

Where does this dust go? Living landscapes will trap some of it before it gets into our lungs.

Scientific Reports says people who live in neighbourhoods with a higher density of trees report significantly higher health perception and significantly less cardio-metabolic conditions. A Toronto

Environmental benefits

Lawns, gardens and trees are picturesque, but they also provide huge environmental benefits. Plants are ultimately responsible for life. They capture and use carbon dioxide and other pollutants, cleaning our air and producing oxygen for us to breathe. Remember high school botany? Carbon dioxide acts as a fertilizer for plants. Photosynthesis in green plants uses the sun’s energy to convert carbon dioxide into oxygen. One acre of trees annually consumes the amount

Star summary of the study says people who live on a tree-lined block are less likely to report conditions such as high blood pressure, obesity, heart disease and diabetes, and that having 10 more trees on your block are akin to a $10,000 salary increase, moving to a neighbourhood with a $10,000 higher median income, or being seven years younger.

Economic benefits

There are also significant economic benefits to our living landscapes. Healthy lawns and gardens can increase property values by 15 to 20 per cent. Ask a real estate agent how much easier it is to sell a home surrounded by lush vegetation.

Property managers will tell you that wellmaintained landscapes increase tenant satisfaction and lower vacancy rates.

As Toronto Island residents can attest, flooding in urban areas is a serious problem. Storm water can routinely overwhelm pipes and catch basins. Lawns, gardens, trees, swales and rain gardens help by acting as a sponge and slowing the water down, reducing the burden on storm water sewers.

So, next time you are out for a stroll or walking the dog, spare a moment of appreciation for the trees, turf and flowers. You might breathe easier knowing the living landscape you help to create is providing all of us with cleaner air, mitigating climate change, cooling us in summer, warming us in winter, increasing property values and making our communities healthier and more liveable for generations to come.

Tony DiGiovanni may be reached at tony@landscapeontario.com.

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PUBLIC RELATIONS On the road again

By Denis Flanagan CLD Manager of Membership and Public Relations

J

ust like the lines from that famous Willie Nelson song, On the Road Again, July and August are good months to hit the road and spread the Landscape Ontario membership message. Below are just a few of the places we appeared this summer.

Member appreciation days

Staff from LO’s membership department visited several members on their job sites in the Midland area. Some sites have specific challenges due to their waterfront location and dealing with local planning authorities. It was great to meet members on their own turf instead of just seeing them once a year at Congress. It’s also a delight to actually meet the members’ clients and we presented each with a certificate thanking them for hiring a professional member of LO. Member days also took place at Stonemen’s Valley, and SiteOne Landscape Supply.

Parkwood Estates

In our last issue, we covered the story of how LO’s Durham Chapter was involved in partially funding the donation of over $28,000 worth of new Husqvarna equipment to help with the grounds maintenance of Parkwood Estates in Oshawa, celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. As a follow up, Husqvarna decided to shoot a promotional video at Parkwood and flew in their national sales manager from South Carolina to spend two days filming and interviewing several of our members in action. When the video is released, we will share it via the LO website.

tour local gardens. This year’s convention had an interesting water garden tour and a visit to the Toronto Botanical Garden, where a serviceberry was planted during a ceremony celebrating the 2017 convention. As usual, Landscape Ontario donated the tree and we look forward to contributing again next year when the convention takes place in the beautiful Kingston, Ont. area.

Zoomer Radio

When Charlie Dobbin goes on vacation, I stand in for her on the garden show on Zoomer Radio AM740. This year, Charlie went off to the Yukon and had no access to the Internet or a cellphone, which was great, because that allowed the show’s hosts, Frank Proctor and me, to have lots of goodhearted fun at Charlie’s expense without her hearing us. The live phonein show gets lots of calls from all over the province and some from the Buffalo area.

The hot (or should I say ‘cool’) topics this year were of course problems resulting from the wet weather, attacks by hordes of ants and Japanese beetles and lawn care problems. These common issues were a great segue for Frank to ask me about the LO website and the types of services our members provide. I guess Charlie likes to travel, because they have asked me to fillin again on Sept. 2, which will be a great time to promote fall planting.

The Weather Network

Because all our businesses are so affected by the weather, it’s always great to be close to the source on all weather information.

The Weather Network has started a new series of short, informational videos. Titled, The Myth Busters, we were invited to participate in some lawn care segments to set the record straight and dispel some of the myths about proper lawn care. Healthy lawns is one of the most popular topics on landscapeontario.com and in less than a month, the two segments on the Weather Network website received over 150,000 hits combined.

Ottawa Chapter

LO editor Rob Ellidge and I go on a road trip to Ottawa each summer (Willie Nelson playing on the radio the whole way, of course!). We stopped for lunch in picturesque Perth, Ont., to visit an outstanding waterfront redevelopment project. Located on the Tay River, the project features a drystone bridge and wall. The design of the area and stone were supplied by LO members, Terrascapes Landscape & Design and The Upper Canada Stone Company respectively. We also participated in the annual Ottawa Chapter Golf Tournament, visited some LO members and took in the MosaïCanada150 event at Jacques-Cartier Park in Gatineau, Que. This amazing collection of living sculptures represents all provinces as well as some displays from other countries. It’s a world-class event that will continue until Oct. 15. If you can find the time, it’s definitely well worth the visit.

Denis Flanagan can be reached at dflanagan@landscapeontario.com or at 905-875-1805, ext. 2303.

OHA convention

Each summer, the Ontario Horticultural Association (OHA) hosts a convention in one of its districts. Held this year in Markham, the event was attended by hundreds of keen gardeners from across the province to network, attend seminars and

LO members are helping to transform the waterfront in Perth, Ont.

30 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

MEMBERSHIP Five reasons why you should attend a chapter meeting this season

to your feedback to help shape the future of the chapter. They rely on your input for meeting topics, locations and industry challenges. Each Provincial Board Rep on the chapter board can also share your feedback with LO’s Provincial Board of Directors. By having your say at a chapter meeting, you are influencing the future direction of the profession across Ontario.

Attend a chapter event

By Myscha Burton Membership and Chapter Coordinator

I

n a world of instant connectivity across continents, there is an increasing value on things that are local. We rely on local news and mediums of communication for specific areas and things like The 100-Mile Diet and a greater awareness of our changing environment has created a whole new movement towards locally produced foods and goods. Human nature drives people to stay connected with their local community.

This local focus was implemented by Landscape Ontario at its inception, with the formation of local chapters. LO now has nine regional chapters that offer many opportunities to promote your business, share ideas, learn from others, help to build local relevance, improve communities and strengthen relationships between green professionals.

My colleagues and I in LO’s membership department talk a lot about chapter meetings. We send out a lot of emails about why you should attend a chapter meeting. Chapter meetings are the best, not-so-secret way of getting something out of your annual LO membership. Below are the top five, too-good-to-argue-with reasons why you and your staff should attend a local chapter meeting this year.

Meetings in your own backyard

Some chapters have fixed meeting spots, others move around within the chapter boundaries in order to even out travel times and provide an opportunity for more remote areas. Your chapters bring dynamic speakers, safety trainers and lunch or dinner right to your doorstep. If your doorstep is a bit further away, we are exploring options to have meetings live-streamed so you can still gain access to an informative presentation and chapter business.

Connect with local suppliers

Chapter meetings allow you to connect with local members and suppliers. This is your chance to discuss business challenges that are specific to your region. By-law changes, economic conditions and weather affect everyone. Why not meet with a group of professionals who all need to adapt to those changes and present ideas or hear possible solutions that will benefit all members in your community? Plus, connecting with local dealers and retailers who can provide you with the tools necessary to do your work will contribute to your success.

Business still works best face-to-face. Local suppliers have a reputation to uphold and word (bad news) usually travels fast, so chances are, dealing locally, you may get great service, great reliability and maybe even a great price.

Experts will help to improve your business

Chapter meeting topics are current and will give you need-to-know information and training. LO’s chapters continue to research the latest trends and topics to feature at meetings. You have access to experts on marketing, customer service, business insurance, labour laws, safety, design, and more. Presenters are often local to your area and can help your business to thrive or reach the next level.

Meetings are free

Most chapter meetings are free! As a member, you and your staff are invited to attend any chapter meeting across the province.

Some chapters hold lunch or early afternoon meetings, some hold meeting in the evening. A lunch or dinner are sometimes included (sometimes for a nominal fee), and meeting times and places are determined by what works best for the most people.

Have your voice heard

Many members participate in chapter meetings, and even on their chapter board, to have their voice heard. Meet dedicated volunteers that make up your chapter board at local meetings. These individuals want

Waterloo chapter kicked-off the 2017-2018 meeting season on Sept. 6 with a focus on user-friendly social media. Upcoming events include golf tournaments by LO’s Hardscape Committee, Waterloo, London and Windsor Chapters, and the Georgian Lakelands Chapter’s putting challenge.

Just like chapter meetings, these events offer a chance to connect with the LO community, as well as offer great team working opportunities for your staff. For a full list of upcoming chapter meetings please visit the new and improved horttrades.com.

Send us your questions

Looking ahead to next month, I am asking LO members for help. In one of my favourite magazines, they have a column called, “Ask the Judge.” The column gives readers a chance to send in questions to a reputable horse show judge who offers advice to prepare them for the show ring. I would like to do something similar. If you have a question about your LO member benefits, chapter meetings, cost-savings, or training, I invite you to “Ask your membership team” and send me your question to be answered in a future issue of this magazine.

Myscha Burton can be reached at myscha@landscapeontario.com or 1-800-265-5656 ext.2333.

SEND US YOUR

QUESTIONS Have a question about your LO member benefits, chapter meetings, cost-savings, or training?

Ask your membership team.

Send Myscha your question to be answered in a future issue of LO magazine. myscha@landscapeontario.com

WWW.HORTTRADES.COM 31

UNDERGROUND WORLD Small investment with enormous returns

By Terry Murphy CLM

S

ometimes there are opportunities right before our eyes, but we can’t see them. There are small investments with the potential for huge returns that we don’t take advantage of. One such opportunity is a membership in the Ontario Regional Common Ground Alliance (ORCGA).

A membership is low cost, has many benefits, and more importantly, can be used as a selling tool to increase your business.

Value

What do you think is the main reason why a consumer will buy from a particular landscape, fencing or excavating contractor?

They may have picked your name from the Internet, found you in a special directory, or asked for a referral from an industry specific organization or a friend. They will probably get quotes from two or three companies, but what will convince them to give your company the work? I have often said the more accreditations you and your company can show a client, the more likely they are to choose your firm. The more an individual or company can show their expertise, the more credibility they can establish.

That credibility can give you the advantage.

Simply telling a customer you are certified and that your company belongs to Landscape Ontario and the ORCGA shows your company is professional, cares about their workers and their safety and is more likely to perform to industry standards better than your competitors who may not belong to any associations.

Connect with your industry

When I worked at Landscape Ontario, I asked many contractors why they joined an association like LO. The common responses were for networking, personal association with other industry professionals and the opportunity to become a more professional company. Other reasons

included access for employees to participate in training and education courses, participating in safety programs, and taking advantage of a range of benefits that are provided. LO’s annual trade show, Congress, connects suppliers and service companies, many of whom are exposed to the association for the first time at the event.

The ORCGA holds an annual three-day Symposium each February that is similar to Congress; it gets people together who can learn and grow from each other.

Getting people together is the key reason why members join an association.

When a problem arises, belonging to an association provides many opportunities for free help; whether from the association staff or programs, or from the extensive group of members.

Connect with your customers

The ORCGA consists of 24 major companies or associations such as Bell, Union Gas, Hydro One, Enbridge Gas, Ontario One Call, Rogers Communications, and many more. Some have thousands of employees. The ORCGA’s goal is for contractors and the public to follow the law and call for locates and dig safely. Explaining the goals of the ORCGA to a potential customer can help to establish your expertise and your commitment to safety and to protecting the vital underground infrastructure we all rely upon.

more safely, pay attention to industry standards and offer an assurance and peace of mind they will deliver a better product or service. Most potential clients will rely on referrals and on your ability to convince them you are the right person for their job.

An ORCGA membership can not only separate you from your competition, it can also demonstrate your commitment to obtaining locates and following best practices established by the excavating industry. In addition, your membership also helps to support (and show you support), the overall ORCGA objectives.

Conclusion

I represent Landscape Ontario as a member of the ORCGA Board of Directors. I have been on the board now for 12 years and understand the value it delivers to our green industry profession. I believe it is a great organization and one that you should consider joining.

ORCGA membership can be used as a selling tool to establish credibility with potential clients and help to set you apart from your competition. It provides important networking opportunities and helps to educate everyone on safety.

For information on ORCGA membership, or to join, please contact Jennifer Parent or Kim Sheppard at 1-866-446-4493. It may be the best telephone call you make this week and result in substantial returns for your company.

For comments, questions or suggestions, please contact Terry Murphy at tvmurphy@ca.inter.net.

Cost of ORCGA membership

ORCGA membership costs are tied to the number of employees in your firm. On average, most landscape and fencing firms have fewer than 10 employees. The cost for firms with fewer than 20 employees is $125 annually. Joining in September will cost $40 as more than two thirds of the year has passed. If being a member of the ORCGA helps you to win one job over the course of a year, isn’t that one of the best investments you can make? It is a no brainer!

Use membership as a selling tool

Smart contractors use their memberships to further their brand and to explain to customers they are more professional, work

32 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

CALL BEFORE YOU DIG Locate pipes and utility lines at no cost Call anytime 1-800-400-2255 Submit a request online on1call.com

PROSPERITY PARTNERS

a kayak, canoe or SUP up the Muskoka River to the South Falls, rent a fat bike and hit the trails across the road or play a round of golf at Muskoka Highlands.

Downtown Muskoka offers unique shopping and great bars. Details for signing up will follow your registration.

Day two workshop: Painlessly manage your profit and cashflow

Lead your business and your people Peer To Peer Network Muskoka Summit

By Jacki Hart CLM Prosperity Partners Program Manager

A

t Congress 2017, a great group of Landscape Ontario Peer to Peer Network business owners put their heads together and decided to include a two-day, Peer to Peer Network business summit as a part of our Prosperity Partners program this year. The group asked for workshops on financial management and building leaders (profitability and people). Now is the time to register for this action-packed, affordable, Peer to Peer Network event being held in Bracebridge, Ont., Sept. 28-29. Here is what we will cover over the two days:

Day one workshop: Leadership is easier than you think

Leadership specialist Patti Hanrath, Principal at Kinergyleadership.ca, is back by popular demand after appearing in our January workshop. Patti will work with us to focus on how to take both your leadership skills and your ‘right-fit’ team members to

the next level.

This will be a day of insight and cool tools to identify your best opportunities for leadership improvement. We will look at “perspective” and how your thinking, and that of your team, affects everything in your business. We will dive deep into various elements of your business, giving you a broader understanding of your leadership effectiveness. You will leave with an outline for raising the bar.

Patti will also teach you how to unlock and open doors that would otherwise remain closed, through the power of asking great questions. The quality of a question determines the quality of the answer, and a great question is only as valuable as your ability to become a better listener.

Patti will help you to design a Personal Growth Plan that will enable you and your team to break through to new levels as leaders in your business. Throughout this jam-packed day, you will also map your leadership path and that of your team. You will be given the tools to take your leadership effectiveness to the next level.

We will end the afternoon workshop earlier than normal, so we can all go out and have some fun! There will be lots to activities to choose from to get out and enjoy Muskoka. Walk across the street and rent

Day two of the summit will feature my consulting colleague and financial analyst, Eric Daly, Managing Partner at CashyLake.com.

Together, we will focus on what you should be measuring, when, and how to use metrics to increase profit, drive right-fit sales, and identify where you need to improve your team efficiencies.

You will learn some rules-of-thumb on how you should be performing in specific areas such as net profit ratios, gross profit at the cost of goods line, patterns of sales growth and considerations that drive deciding how best to pay yourself (the blend of salary, bonus, dividends).

Knowing that seasonal cash flow can be an issue for our members, Eric will introduce you to his 13-week cash flow model and you will leave the workshop understanding how you can build one for your company and update it every week. After this workshop, you will return to your office feeling more comfortable with a whole bunch of financial reports that may currently confuse you or be about as interesting as having root canal surgery.

Financial numbers and results come after all the real work you and your people have done in your business. Eric will help you to understand how to connect your efforts to your financial results.

Yes, making money can be fun!

Without a doubt, the two most common challenges I work on with my coaching clients are leadership and managing from financial reports. Don’t miss this great networking session, working elbow to elbow with your peers in break-out sessions that will allow you to improve your skills and share ideas, challenges and solutions.

If you’re an LO member business owner, and not yet a member of the Peer to Peer Network, email info.peertopeer@ landscapeontario.com to join — it’s a free benefit.

Register today for the Muskoka Summit at horttrades.com/p2p. Space is limited, as are hotel rooms in the conference hotel.

Jacki Hart may be contacted at info.peertopeer@landscapeontario.com.

WWW.HORTTRADES.COM 33

Invest

in our future ohtf.ca

Donate today — give a gift to the future. horttrades.com/OHTF

CLASSIFIEDS All classified ads must be pre-paid by credit card. Rates: $50.85 (HST included) per column inch Min. order $50.85. 15% discount on ads run for entire calendar year. Box Numbers: Additional $10.

Confidentiality ensured. Deadlines: 20th day of the month prior to issue date. (eg: June issue deadline is May 20th). January deadline is Dec. 10. Space is limited to a first come, first served basis.

To advertise: E-mail your name, phone number and ad to Robert at classifieds@landscapeontario. com. Online advertising: Website only ads are available for $67.80 (HST included) for Associaton members and $90.40 HST included for non-members. Website ads are posted for 31 days. View ads online at www.horttrades.com/classifieds. Post employment ads for free at landscape.jobs.

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

LOOKING FOR A NEW CHALLENGE? WANT TO OWN YOUR OWN COMPANY? Successful Muskoka landscape construction company, ($1.75M in sales) is looking for a specific individual. This person is entrepreneurial, honest, with landscape design capabilities or experience. Must possess a clean driver’s license and have a good credit rating. Individual will also have demonstrated team leadership ability. This position requires working at any time of the day, meeting clients and interacting with employees, including weekends.

knowledge of: landscape design, sales, horticulture, hardscape installation, and how to make the business end of things work.

Growth opportunities exist specifically in the landscape maintenance field. Irrigation and lighting are also possibilities for growth.

This would be a year round salaried position, shadowing the owner for a number of years as you get to know the clientele and employees.

You would be expected to work as a landscape construction foreperson as time allows, make your own sales, hire employees, and finish your own projects.

Salary $50,000-$80,000 negotiable depending on experience. Only those selected for interviews will be contacted.

Please reply with your resume to classifieds@landscapeontario.com and include Box #2017-06 in subject line.

Your confidentiality is assured, as we expect ours to be.

Our successful partnership will eventually lead to ownership of the company, owner financed. A 10 per cent equity position by you is expected.

We offer an exclusive client list, 29 years of experience in the Muskoka market, and well-known, established brand. We offer a five-part training experience, many of which you will have prior > Continued

ADVERTISERS Arborjet Inc.

www.arborjet.com

781-935-9070

Page 29

www.ajgcanada.com

905-948-2672

Page 15

www.braungroup.com

800-246-6984

Page 23

www.citybuick.com

416-751-5920

Page 2

Connon Nurseries/CBV Holdings Inc.

www.connon.ca

905-689-7433

Page 11

Connon Nurseries/NVK Holdings Inc

www.connonnurseries.com

905-628-0112

Page 36

Arthur J. Gallagher Canada Limited Braun Nursery Limited City Buick Pontiac Cadillac Ltd

Contractors Rental Supply

www.crsrents.ca

844-822-1111

Page 15

Expressway Hino Waterloo

www.expresswaytrucks.com

800-558-7364

Page 18

G & L Group (Draglam Salt)

www.draglamsalt.com

888-907-7258

Page 19

www.gogps.com

866-964-6477

Page 19

GoGPS Great Lakes Wood Products Inc. Greenlife - Ottawa Wholesale Nursery

Canadian Landscape Standard

The benchmark standard for industry stakeholders

To purchase, visit csla-aapc.ca/standard

Halton Autolease Inc. Holt Industrial by MTB MFG John Deere Dealers Kobes Nurseries Inc.

www.glwp.ca

877-266-0636

Page 13

www.greenlifenursery.ca

613-692-3047

Page 13

www.haltonautolease.com

877-837-5674

Page 16

www.holtindustrial.com

844-444-4658

Page 26

www.johndeere.ca

Page 35

www.kobesnurseries.com

905-263-8814

Page 17

Legends Landscape Supply Inc.

www.landscapestore.ca

905-336-3369

Page 12

M Putzer Nursery

www.putzernursery.com

905-878-7226

Page 7

www.metalpless.com

866-362-1688

Page 5

www.millgroveperennials.ca

905-689-1749

Page 14

Metal Pless Inc. Millgrove Perennials Inc. Newroads National Leasing Potters Road Nursery Inc. Sipkens Nurseries Ltd. South Oakville Chrysler Fiat Stam Nurseries

34 LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017

www.newroadsleasing.com

416-587-1021

Page 14

www.pottersroadnursery.com

519-688-0437

Page 10

www.sipkensnurseries.com

866-843-0438

Page 22

www.southoakvillechrysler.com

905-845-6653

Page 10

www.stamnurseries.com

519-424-3350

Page 18

Well made and affordably priced.

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WWW.HORTTRADES.COM 35

36  LANDSCAPE ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2017