The Scoop Online - November 2015

Troubleshooting Irrigation Circuits

Also Inside

The Living Landscape

Out & About Super Tuesday Noxious Weeds

MNLA FOUNDATION AT WORK FOR YOU Raising funds for scholarships and research, and promoting green industry careers

Vol: 38 No: 11 Nov 2015 T H E O F F I C I A L P U B L I C AT I O N O F T H E M I N N E S O TA N U R S E R Y & L A N D S C A P E A S S O C I AT I O N

You never know when a heavy snowfall will require an early morning and fast action.

That’s why Tri-State Bobcat offers winter-ready machines and the widest selection of snow removal attachments in the business.

We also rent all of the machines and attachments that we sell. We rent by the day, week or month and stock a huge inventory.

Authorized Bobcat Dealers

Sales ∙ Service ∙ Rentals ∙ Parts

1200 E. Highway 13 Burnsville, MN 55337

3101 Spruce St. Little Canada, MN 55117

952-894-0894

651-407-3727 www.tristatebobcat.com

Bobcat®, the Bobcat logo and the colors of the Bobcat machine are registered trademarks of Bobcat Company in the United States and various other countries. 15-B261

NEW LOCATION OPEN 588 Outpost Circle Hudson, WI 54016

715-531-0801

Volume 38 No. 11 Nov 2015

CONTENTS 19

58 24

IN THIS ISSUE 8

Events

10 From the Executive Director The MNLA Office Gets a Facelift 14 Out & About Photos from member visits and shows.

43

16 EAB: Upsurge in Activity and Cooperative Efforts Gail Nozal and Tim Power report on the momentum pushing EAB issues forward.   

19 NCROC Top Ten Annuals The North Central Research and Outreach Center offers the top ten varieties that stood out during this year’s trials.    

24 MSHS 150th Anniversary Mary Maguire Lerman takes us on a tour of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society’s history since 1866. 

38 The Living Landscape Featured Expo speaker Rick Darke aims to produce beauty, biodiversity, and functionality with minimum resources.   

43 Troubleshooting Valve Irrigation Circuits Andy Lindquist unpacks the basics of using a voltage-ohm meter to determine the condition of an irrigation system. 

55 Green Industry Careers Team Megan Buchanan reports on the activities of the GICT, which has had a busy year promoting green industry careers. 

 Landscape & Hardscape Install & Design  Garden Services & Landscape Management  Garden Centers  Growers: Nursery & Greenhouse  Irrigation & Water Management  Arborists & Tree Services  All

30 Changes to Nursery Law Keep these points in mind as you work on your nursery certificate renewal form.

35 Life Cycle Assessment Dr. Calkins presents a tool for analyzing production costs and environmental impacts.

49 Calling All Plant Lovers!

The New Plant Forum is back at Northern Green Expo and you’re invited to apply to participate.

51 Comments Needed on Noxious Weeds Tim Power lays out the recommendations of the Noxious Weed Advisory Committee and wants your feedback.

58 MNLA Shootout The annual sporting clays event brought in nearly $8,000 for green industry scholarships.

62 Northern Green Expo Speakers What will you learn about plants at the show for green industry pros? Plenty!

The Scoop, November 2015, Issue 11, is issued monthly, 12 times per year. All original works, articles or formats published in The Scoop are © Minnesota Nursery & Landscape Association, 2015, and may not be used without written permission of MNLA, 1813 Lexington Ave N., Roseville, MN 55113. Subscription price is $99 for one year, which is included with member dues. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Scoop, MNLA, 1813 Lexington Ave N., Roseville, MN 55113.

Editorial Contributions. You are invited to share your expertise and perspective. Article ideas and manuscripts should, whenever possible, reflect real and specific experiences. When submitting an article, please contact the publisher at jon@mnla.biz or 651-633-4987.

MNLA reserves the right to edit all Scoop content.

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MINNESOTA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION Successful Businesses Grow Here!

1813 Lexington Ave. N. Roseville, MN 55113 651-633-4987 • Fax: 651-633-4986 Outside the metro area, toll free: 888-886-MNLA, Fax: 888-266-4986 www.MNLA.biz • www.NorthernGreenExpo.org

MNLA MISSION: The mission of the Minnesota Nursery &

AD LIST

Volume 38 No. 11 Nov 2015

➾ S E CT I O N TITLE

A Top Notch Equipment ................................................................................... 42 All Stone Solutions ........................................................................................... 15 Aspen Equipment ............................................................................................. 11 Bullis Insurance Agency .................................................................................... 37

Landscape Association is to help members grow successful businesses.

Carlin Horticultural Supplies/ProGreen Plus ..................................................... 23

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Central Landscape Supply ................................................................................ 37

Heidi’s Lifestyle Gardens 612-366-7766 • heidi@BloomOnMN.com

Cushman Motor Co. Inc ................................................................................... 12

heidi heiland, mnla-cp, president herman roerick, vice-president

Edney Distributing Co., Inc. ............................................................................. 28

scott frampton, secretary-treasurer

Frost Services ................................................................................................... 15

Central Landscape Supply 320-252-1601 • hermanr@centrallandscape.com Landscape Renovations 651-769-0010 • sframpton@landscaperenovations.com

debbie lonnee, mnla-cp, past president

Bailey Nurseries, Inc. 651-768-3375 • debbie.lonnee@baileynursery.com

randy berg, mnla-cp

Berg’s Nursery, Landscape/Garden Center 507-433-2823 • randy@bergsnursery.com

Fury Motors ...................................................................................................... 47 Gardenworld Inc. .............................................................................................. 23 Gertens Wholesale / JRK Seed & Supply ........................................................... 2

tim malooly, cid, clia, cic

GM Fleet and Commercial ............................................................................ 3

mike mcnamara

Jeff Belzer Chevrolet ................................................................................... 32–33

Water in Motion 763-559-7771 • timm@watermotion.com Hoffman & McNamara Nursery & Landscaping 651-437-9463 • mike.mcnamara@hoffmanandmcnamara.com

Lano Equipment, Inc. ....................................................................................... 37

jeff pilla, mnla-cp

Bachman’s Inc. 612-861-7600 • jpilla@bachmans.com

nick sargent

Sargent’s Landscape Nursery, Inc. 507-289-0022 • njsargent@sargentsgardens.com

cassie larson, cae

MNLA Executive Director 651-633-4987 • cassie@mnla.biz

STAFF DIRECTORY

Minnesota Propane Association ....................................................................... 11 Northern Salt Inc .............................................................................................. 13 Out Back Nursery ............................................................................................. 15 Plaisted Companies ............................................................................................ 7

executive director:

RDO Equipment Co. ........................................................................................ 54

membership director & trade show manager:

Resultants for Business, Inc. (RFB) .................................................................... 12

Cassie Larson, CAE • cassie@mnla.biz Mary Dunn, CEM • mary@mnla.biz communications dir.: Jon Horsman, CAE • jon@mnla.biz education/cert manager: Susan Flynn • susan@mnla.biz legislative affairs manager: Tim Power • tim@mnla.biz regulatory affairs manager: Jim Calkins • jim@mnla.biz administrative asst: Gayle Anderson • gayle@mnla.biz accountant: Kris Peterson • kris@mnla.biz

foundation program coordinator:

Rock Hard Landscape Supply division of Brian’s Lawn & Landscaping, Inc. .... 48 Tri-State Bobcat, Inc. .............................................................................. 4, 23, 48 Truck Utilities & Mfg. Co. .................................................................................. 15

Megan Buchanan • megan@mnla.biz

Versa-Lok Midwest ........................................................................................... 61

Faith Jensen, Advertising Rep • faith@pierreproductions.com Betsy Pierre, Advertising Mgr • betsy@pierreproductions.com legislative affairs consultant: Doug Carnival

Walters Gardens Inc. ........................................................................................ 31

advertising sales: 952-934-2891 / 763-295-5420

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Ziegler CAT ......................................................................................... Back Cover

➾ C ALE N DAR

MNLA Event

NOV 9–13 ➾

NOV18

2015 IRRIGATION SHOW & EDUCATION CONFERENCE

➾ 20

16

Long Beach, CA

LANDSCAPE AWARDS DEADLINE 5:00 p.m.

MNLA.biz Entries in the 2016 MNLA Landscape Awards program will be accepted up until 5:00 p.m. on this day.

Irrigation.org Keep up with the wave of new technologies, best practices and innovative ideas in irrigation.

MNLA Event

MNLA Event

JAN12

NOV20 PESTICIDE RECERTIFICATION WORKSHOP

➾

CEO SYMPOSIUM: The Transformative CEO

TIES Conference Center, St. Paul

MNLA.biz

MNLA.biz This workshop meets MDA Commercial Pesticide Applicator Recertification Requirements.

This workshop offers two options for recertification: 1) Categories A (Core) and E (Turf and Ornamentals); OR 2) Categories A (Core), E (Turf and Ornamentals) and P (Vertebrate Pest).

This is the last opportunity to recertify in 2015.

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➾

Networking reception, dinner, and presentation

by Jeffrey Scott, Jeffrey Scott Consulting, Inc. This is an opportunity for CEO-level members to connect before Expo.

This year’s presenter, Jeffrey Scott, will discuss behaviors that CEO’s and managers need to power their companies to greatness. Discover the common traps you need to avoid, and how to create consistent success by adopting these transformative behaviors.

2015 MNLA seminars generously supported by John Deere Landscapes

MNLA Event

JAN12

MNLA Event

JAN12 ➾

➾

Design Track: Niche Landscape Design Minneapolis Conv Center MNLA.biz This class will provide information on a variety of niche landscape design ideas, including sessions on: therapeutic gardens, hell strip gardening, no-mow lawns, small space urban design, “know maintenance” design, and rain gardens.

Landscape Lighting Design and Advanced Control Applications (PLT Relicensure) DOLI course code #20150501

Minneapolis Conv Center MNLA.biz This class provides a total of eight hours of continuing education credits for the Power Limited Technician License, with material orientated specifically towards the landscape lighting specialist.

JAN12 ➾

Event Education ➾

JAN 13–15

Understanding Tree Needs and Problems to Maximize Value Minneapolis Conv Center MTGF.org

KEY:

MNLA Event

Maximizing the value of trees means choosing and caring for them correctly. In this workshop you will gain a better understanding of how to do that in Minnesota’s climate. Presenters will also provide the latest information on tree pest issues, including Emerald Ash Borer and Oak Wilt.

➾

NORTHERN GREEN EXPO Minneapolis Convention Center Northerngreenexpo.org Attend the premier event for green industry professionals in the northern region. Booth spaces are filling up, so contact Mary at 651-6334987 today.

All information on these and other industry events are online at MNLA.biz. november 15

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➾ F R OM THE EXECUTIVE DI R EC TO R

The MNLA Office Gets a Facelift The MNLA office recently went under the knife and received a much needed facelift.

There has long been a desire among the MNLA leadership to have a learning space (both internal and external) that belongs to the membership. The MNLA Board of Directors responded and allocated dollars to invest in the office asset.

Cassie Larson

MNLA Executive Director

Mary Dunn was stuck for several days behind a wall of furniture and postage tubes.

Jon Horsman was excited to share his office with some new co-workers, especially since they didn’t talk much.

some may recall that about five years ago, the MNLA Board of Directors considered purchasing a different building to accommodate the desire to have indoor classroom space as well as an outdoor learning lab. For many reasons, this purchase did not come to fruition, which was ultimately the right decision at the time. But last year, an idea surfaced to perhaps use the current property more efficiently. Therefore, the Board commissioned a Task Team to explore the possibilities to more resourcefully operate within the current footprint.

The Task Team worked with an architect to have plans drawn and after completing market research, including work with a realtor, recommended that the Board proceed with an office renovation. Bids were gathered, an interior designer selected, and the remodel began in June of 2015. Staff had some fun along the way, and the construction was complete in August of 2015.

What was gained as a result of this effort?

1. The MNLA office now has the capacity to hold approximately 40 attendees in a dedicated classroom space. Many seminars and courses can 10

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now be offered within the office itself resulting in cost savings to the organization and therefore to members who will be attending the classes.

2. Meeting space has been at a premium during the winter months when many committees and task teams meet to conduct the business of the Association. We now have two spaces to hold meetings simultaneously as needed because the classroom can be divided in half. And, videoconferencing was added to this space to hopefully encourage more participation by members in greater Minnesota and neighboring states.

3. Updated facilities designed to enhance staff’s work environment and productivity.

4. Lastly, but most importantly, we can bring MANY more members to a space that belongs to them. The intangible benefits of having a home base created by members for members are immeasurable.

Go Propane and SAVE!!

Up to a $2000 Incentive

• On the purchase of a new propane or dual-fueled pickup or conversion of a 2005 or newer model.

Call the MPA for details.

• • • • • •

Why Propane?

Propane is a green, clean burning alternative fuel Propane is less expensive than gasoline or diesel Propane is affordable to implement Propane is reliable Propane is produced in the United States Proane is an alternative fuel that is ready now!

For more information call the Minnesota Propane Association at 763-633-4271

➾ F RO M T H E E XE CU T I V E DIR ECT O R

Your One Tractor Solution ProPane Power Optional on the 4500Z*

The previous MNLA board room.

One Tractor, Over 30 Commercial Grade Attachments The new conference room right after construction.

Schedule a Ventrac Demo with:

Cushman Motor Company, Inc. 2909 E Franklin Ave • Minneapolis, MN (612) 333-3487 • 1-800-759-5343 www.cushmanmotorco.com

The new classroom in use during the September meeting of the Green Industry Leadership Institute.

A number of members saw the new space during the August 2015 Member Appreciation Social held at the Roseville office. Their response was positive and there was excitement about how the new space can and will be used! So, if you’re in the area, drop by and say hello. We’ll be happy to give you a tour. Or, perhaps we’ll see you in the office at our next education event or for a committee or task team meeting. However you find your way here…we’re excited to show you the new space designed with member use in mind.

P.S. The Board of Directors has already begun discussing phase 2 of the renovation which includes parking improvements as well as an outdoor lab and landscape renovation. If you have ideas, be sure to contact any board member. They would love to have your input.

CASSIE LARSON can

cassie@mnla.biz.

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be reached at:

➾ OUT & ABOUT

&

An initiative of the MNLA membership committee is to stay in touch and thank members with occasional visits and by participating at member shows.

Kevin Theis and Rick Riemer of Dundee Nursery & Landscaping Co.

Duane Ducommun and Brad Wolf of Green Valley Greenhouse with Ron Wagner, Wagner Greenhouses.

Mary Dunn with Jeff Hartman, Hartman Tree Farm.

Ben and Bailey Dubbe, Pine Products.

Peggy and Mark Sailer, Sailer’s Greenhouse.

Laura and Nik Wagner, Wagner Greenhouses.

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all stone solutions “The Natural Way” Decorative Boulders 12” - 48” Cubes Outcropping One-Man Wallstone Veneer Split Face Thin Full Bed Ledge Edging Crushed Rock

Specialty Products BUBBLERS STONE ETCHING (sand blasting) FIRE ROCK

Brad Gerlach allstonesolutions@gmail.com 651.249.4388

A Deeper Shade of Green Local Genetic Origins

TM

Native Minnesota Woody & Herbaceous (651) 438-2771 • Fax (651) 438-3816

www.outbacknursery.com

Call us first for all your native planting needs

EAB:

THE UPSURGE IN ACTIVITY AND COOPERATIVE EFFORTS Gail Nozal | MNLA Government Affairs Committee Member and Assistant Manager at S&S Tree and Horticultural Specialists Tim Power | MNLA Legislative Affairs Manager

ade Tree The Minnesota Sh ee (MnSTAC) Advisory Committ ost well held one of its m gs in late attended meetin “A Disastrous September, titled Opportunity.”

Emerald ash borer adult feeding on an ash leaf.

(Photo by: Debbie Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org.)

T

he large audience at the meeting showed the continued upsurge of energy that started in early 2015 surrounding the spread of emerald ash borer (EAB), the disaster that our loss of ash trees from EAB will cause, and current opportunities for cooperation and funding at the state level to help mitigate the disaster.

A small group of partners from the MPCA, DNR, MNLA, Rainbow Treecare and MnSTAC created a plan in January called the Minnesota Community Forestry Partnership Act that would have offered matching grant funding to communities around the state to deal with impending community forestry issues including EAB. The non-agency members of this partnership lobbied for this plan during the 2015 legislative session, including at MNLA’s Day on the Hill, but the plan never gained a legislative sponsor and so was not introduced as a bill.

At the same time, the cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis were supporting a legislative bill introduced by St. Paul’s Senator Hawj that would provide state funding to create county, city or town disaster response plans for removal and replacement of publicly-owned trees damaged or destroyed by disease or pests, giving preference to communities in counties already under EAB quarantine. The partnership group lobbied for this bill late in the session, but the bill did not make it out of committee and so was not discussed or funded in 2015. However, Sen. Hawj’s bill and a companion House bill remain “in the hopper” for 2016, the second year of the current legislative biennium, and could form the basis of future efforts.

A community forestry effort that did get funded this year was an $800,000 Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR) grant titled “Improving Community Forests Through Citizen Engagement”. LCCMR uses lottery proceeds in the Environment & Natural Resources Trust Fund to provide a long-term funding source for protection, conservation, preservation and enhancement of Minnesota’s natural resources. This three-year community forestry grant will be administered by the DNR, and will leverage citizen volunteers to help plant and to do basic maintenance for trees in their communities, including mulching, weeding and watering.

Though most community forestry initiatives in 2015 proved to be too late in the legislative session to gain traction, there is energy starting to build for renewed efforts in 2016. MnSTAC and the partnership are actively engaged in building on last year’s momentum and are seeking legislative and/or gubernatorial endorsement for state-funded community forestry initiatives in 2016. At the September

Ash killed by EAB in southeastern Michigan.

(Photo by: Joseph O’Brien, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org.)

meeting a variety of speakers presented on what neighboring states are doing to fund EAB projects, where EAB is currently in the state, updates from agencies on their outlook of support, and most importantly a call to action to encourage more advocacy of members for the coming “Disastrous Opportunity” involving EAB. Stories from Wisconsin and local areas highlighted efforts of many cities as they continue to remove trees, treat trees with insecticides, and replace trees. Some communities that have started replanting efforts reported concerns about tree shortages in the coming years with the increase in planting. While EAB certainly will be devastating to many budgets, it presents business opportunities for many groups within the green industry, allowing us to pull together with our communities to ride out the devastating wave of EAB that is upon us. Mark Abrahamson from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture reported that in the beginning of 2015 there were four counties under quarantine and by the time of this September meeting there were a total of 10 counties under quarantine. While EAB has been in Minnesota for six years we may just be starting to see the uptick of EAB populations as other states with EAB have been seeing for many years. Some have said that our colder weather could have some impact on slowing the EAB curve but it will not stop the insect from infesting more trees each year.

While many attendees have been hearing the devastating environmental and economic concerns about EAB, this was one of the first organized efforts to begin a larger effort to focus on advocacy to fund community’s efforts to prepare and manage EAB as it makes its way through Minnesota. Gail Nozal, a member of the MNLA Government Affairs Committee and MnSTAC Board Member presented tips for members to get more involved with advocacy and education with their legislators. She highlighted past efforts from the MNLA Day on the Hill and the MNLA electronic campaigns that make it easy for members to take action and contact their legislator on issues important to them and the industry. It’s possible to continue to make a difference with only a few clicks.

Look for more information as the energy and advocacy builds around EAB.

FOR GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS ISSUES you’d like to discuss, contact Tim Power at tim@mnla.biz or 651-633-4987, or Gail Nozal at gail@sstree.com or 651-451-8907.

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Join us for a full day of education prior to the Northern Green Expo.

Tuesday, January 12, 2016 Minneapolis Convention Center

More information and online registration is on Landscape www.MNLA.biz. There will be NO onsite registration. Please Lighting note that registration fees are separate from those Design and Advanced for the Northern Green Expo.

Lighting Control Applications Early bird pricing available (PLT Relicensure) until Dec. 23!

(DOLI Course Code: 20150501)

This class provides a total of eight hours of continuing education credits for the Power Limited Technician License, with material orientated specifically towards the landscape lighting specialist.

Take away greater knowledge of landscape lighting design and control applications, get updated on NEC code, and receive continuing education credits for your PLT license.

Design Track: Niche Landscape Design

Early Bird Price: Member: $129, Non-member: $149 Regular Price: Member: $159, Non-member: $179 S P O N S O R E D

B Y:

Expand your knowledge, and grow and sustain your design business. This class will provide information on a variety of niche landscape design ideas you can add to your design repertoire. Topics such as: therapeutic gardens, hell strip gardening, no-mow lawns, small space urban design, “Know Maintenance” design, and rain gardens.

Presented by industry experts, including: Dr. Jeannie Larson, Arboretum/Center for Spirituality and Healing; Evelyn J. Hadden; Jason Rathe, Field Outdoor Spaces; Peter MacDonagh, Kestrel Design Group; and Roy Diblik, Northwind Perennial Farm.

CEO Symposium: The Transformative CEO

Early Bird Price: Member: $129, Non-member: $149 Regular Price: Member: $159, Non-member: $179

Includes networking reception dinner and presentation by Jeffrey Scott, Jeffrey Scott Consulting, Inc.

The MNLA CEO Symposium has become the “place to be” on Tuesday night. This popular evening creates an opportunity for CEO-level members to connect. Jeffrey Scott will discuss behaviors that CEO’s and managers need to power their companies to greatness. Scott will touch on common traps that need to be avoided, and how to create sustainable success by adopting these transformative behaviors. Learn how to build and sustain the company of your dreams by fulfilling the leadership Trees: potential within you!

Understanding

Needs and Problems to Maximize Value

MNLA/MTGF Member-Only Event Early Bird Price: $129 Regular Price: $139

Some estimates put the value of a mature tree between $1,000 and $10,000 because the benefits of trees are so great. In this workshop you will gain a better understanding of how to choose and care for trees in Minnesota’s climate. Presenters will also provide the latest information on tree pest issues, including Emerald Ash Borer and Oak Wilt. Price: $65

MNLA/MTGF Member-Only Event | Early Bird Price: $129, Regular Price: $139

NCROC

2015 TOP TEN PERFORMING ANNUAL FLOWERS

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➾ NCR OC TOP TEN ANN UAL S

NCROC Top 10 Annual Flowers For 2015 Species Name

Variety

Gaura

‘Sparkle White’

Petunia

Supertunia® Pink Star Charm

Canna

‘South Pacific Scarlet’

Dianthus

Jolt™ Cherry

Portulaca

Mojave® Pink

Petunia

TriTunia™ Lavender

Bidens

Campfire™ Fireburst

Cosmos

‘Apollo Pink’

Lobelia

Suntory® Compact Sky Blue

Coleus scutellarioides

FlameThrower™ Chipolte

This season-long bloomer was a favorite at NCROC for its long delicate stems that support small but unique flowers. Worked well in our full sun containers and grows to be 24˝ tall.

< Gaura ‘Sparkle White’ —

This smaller flower Petunia was chosen because of its great uniformity and its ability to form a good ground cover. The unique patterning also has made it one of the more popular flowers for photographs within the NCROC flower beds.

 Petunia Supertunia® Pink Star Charm —

A

nnual flower trials are hosted at the North Central Research and Outreach (NCROC) station every year. These trials are an evaluation of specific flower varieties and how they do in a field environment. Companies such as Syngenta, Ball Floral, FloraNova, Suntory, Proven Winners and many others provide annuals for trials here on campus. We grade their flowers for such criteria as color, uniformity, uniqueness, height, spread, drought tolerance, and insect/disease resistance. This information is available through the companies we report back to as well as an annual report done for the specific varieties at NCROC. For more information please go to http://ncroc.cfans.umn.edu/research/horticulture.

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This was one of our basket winners.

This variety made a very beautiful cascading basket and seems to be very attractive to pollinators. Grow it in partial sun to full sun location.

 Portulaca Mojave® Pink —

This variety of Petunia is on the list for its uniformity and consistency in the field. Nearly every bloom is the same color and size, making for a nice display.

 Petunia TriTunia™ Lavender —

This was the only Canna in the NCROC flower beds this season. Its large leaves are brightly colored and unusual flower shape is reminiscent of tropical plants, giving it one of the highest uniqueness ratings this season.

 Canna ‘South Pacific Scarlet’—

This flower is in the top ten for its ability to resist insect and disease damage. This flower maintained its structural integrity and color throughout the entire season while being relatively flexible in its environment.

 Dianthus Jolt™ Cherry —

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➾ NCR OC TOP TEN ANN UAL S

This is another hanging basket winner. This variety did a remarkable job of cascading around its basket. Its long stemmed flowers are very bright and colorful. Placed in full sun.

< Bidens Campfire™ Fireburst —

This flower scored high in the field as well as in a container. Its large flowers attract many pollinators and is one of three Cosmos we trialed this year. It grows 2–3´ tall and should be placed in full sun.

 Cosmos ‘Apollo Pink’ —

This is one of the few shade varieties that was rated in the top ten of our flower trials.

It forms a nice colorful ground cover in partial shade but also works well in a basket.

 Lobelia Suntory® Compact Sky Blue —

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The final plant on the list is another annual for shade. This Coleus has very bright colors for a shade variety as well as consistent form in the field. Planted in full shade.

 Coleus scutellarioides Flame Thrower™ Chipotle —

HEUCHERA CASSIS PPAF

ECHINACEA CHERRY FLUFF PPAF

SEDUM XSEDORO BLUE ELF PPAF

NEW FOR 2016 ORDER NOW! online ordering now available at www.growingcolors.com 788 Hampden Ave. | St. Paul, MN 55114 800.839.2851 | info@gardenworldinc.com

➾ MS H S AN N IVERSARY

MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOC

150TH ANNIVERSAR

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CIETY CELEBRATING ITS

Mary Maguire Lerman

RY IN 2016

The Horace Greeley Challenge In 1866, the Minnesota Fruit Growers Association was formed to promote hardy fruit development in our state. This was triggered by an 1860 comment

by New York newspaper editor and politician Horace Greeley who said “I would not move to Minnesota; you cannot grow apples there.” Shout out a challenge to Minnesotans and boy oh boy do we ever respond! So, Peter Gideon and other early Minnesota breeders began the development of hardy and tasty Minnesota fruits, starting with the Wealthy apple. Fast forward 150 years and Minnesota-bred apple varieties are internationally known and grown.

Garden-in-a-box program — earning the joy of planting and caring for their own plants.

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➾ MS H S AN N IVERSARY

The 1898 annual meeting of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society.

Berry picking in a block of June-bearing Strawberry No. 3 at the Minnesota State Fruit-Breeding Farm, Excelsior, Minnesota.

Apple display at the Minnesota State Fair in the 1890s.

MSHS fruit display at the 1895 Minnesota State Fair.

MSHS: 150 Years of Accomplishment 1868–1889

MSHS began accepting garden clubs and plant societies as members. In 1907, MSHS purchased 200 acres of land near Excelsior for the fruit breeding University of Minnesota Research Center. MSHS led campaigns to establish shelter belts and windbreaks throughout rural Minnesota between 1910–1930. It also participated in critical soil and water conservation projects throughout the state.

In 1868 the Minnesota Fruit Growers Association changed its name to The Minnesota State Horticultural Society (MSHS) and what they have done over 150 years is truly amazing! In 1875, the State of Minnesota provided funding to MSHS to help establish the Minnesota Fruit Farm, which we now know as the University of Minnesota Research Center near the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. The first apple cultivars were developed to withstand Minnesota’s climate during this time period. Between 1875–1880, MSHS formed a committee to raise funds to purchase land for the State University Farm- now the St. Paul Campus of the University of Minnesota.

1890–1929

What state can claim the longest continually published horticulture magazine in the nation? Yes, it is the Minnesota Horticulturist — the publication of MSHS, first published in 1894! Just a year later, 26

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1930–1955

MSHS organized over 600 community garden clubs throughout Minnesota to help “grow gardeners” by improving their knowledge of horticulture. It also encouraged these clubs to design and plant landscape gardens in their communities. In 1931, MSHS was the first to warn Minnesotans of the advance of Dutch elm disease.

Beginning in 1943, MSHS urged its members to grow Victory Gardens to help support the war effort. These Victory Gardens in Minnesota encouraged the development of hundreds of garden clubs.

G. Victor Lowrie (right), president of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society, presents the deed to the land for the Landscape Arboretum to Dr. Morrill, president of the University, at a meeting of the University Board of Regents on February 6, 1958.

to aid with the project. In 1978, MSHS sponsored its first gardens and presented talks at the Minneapolis Home and Garden Show.

Minnesota Green was created in 1988 as an outreach program to promote community greening and gardening and to strengthen neighborhoods throughout Minnesota.

The Minnesota Horticulturist September 1958 issue.

1956–1970

MSHS, along with the efforts of the Men’s Garden Club of Minneapolis and Dr. Leon Snyder, Head of the Department of Horticultural Science, began an effort to raise the funds to establish a Landscape Arboretum near Chaska. Eventually the society raised the funds to purchase 160 acres for the establishment of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum and in 1958 turned the land over to the University of Minnesota.

Garden-in-a-Box volunteer teaches children about growing healthy food.

2000 to present

The Minnesota Horticulturist is rebranded as the Northern Gardener in an effort to reach gardeners throughout the upper Midwest. In 2004 a monthly e-newsletter began providing timely gardening tips, events and class information. In 2008, MSHS launched its premier program, Garden-in-a-Box, which has provided raised bed garden boxes along with soil and vegetable plants to families and school children throughout the Metropolitan Area and outstate Minnesota.

The program has successfully introduced gardening to over 1,200 individuals who might otherwise have not been able to garden, and is teaching kids — the future of gardening — the many benefits of growing their own healthy food.

Our Current and Future Challenge — Pollinators!

Minnesota Green promotes community greening and gardening.

1971–1999

During this period the Bicentennial Commission provided a grant to MSHS for the Heritage Tree Project. The Minnesota Horticulturist increases its months of production and added four color to its pages.

MSHS established a Garden State project dealing with environmental and beautification issues and the state legislature provided funds

MSHS began its life with a challenge and now another challenge has embraced gardeners and farmers in our state. How can we continue to produce our great food crops and ornamentals when our honey bees, native bees and butterflies are at risk? So many of our food crops depend on pollinators for production. What will we do?

MSHS has again stepped up to the plate. To celebrate its 150th anniversary, MSHS is promoting a line of pollinator perennial plants. This will help Minnesotans to provide necessary pollen and nectar for our pollinators- bees and butterflies and especially our november 15

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➾ MS H S AN N IVERSARY

To celebrate its 150th anniversary, MSHS is promoting a line of pollinator perennial plants. We are encouraging all Minnesota garden centers and nurseries to join us in this pollinator challenge!

See the HLA Snow Wing in action! https://goo.gl/ry4Rbg

www.hlasnow.com

Don’t miss your chance to enter!

You will find the link to the entry form on the home 20 16 page of www.MNLA.biz.

DEADLINE: The process is completely online; full entry rules are posted on the entry form. Each winner receives a plaque, a ticket to the MNLA Awards Gala, a crest to display in print and for posting on their website, a link to a video of their project, and other marketing materials. Submitting companies must be MNLA members who offer design, installation, bid/build, design/build, or other landscape specialty to their clients. Entries are not judged against each other; rather each entry is judged against the standards of excellence.

NOV. 18

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS:

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state butterfly, the Monarch. In spring of 2016, specially grown hardy perennials (mostly native plants) will be available for sale in market 6 paks with handles. We are encouraging all Minnesota garden centers and nurseries to join us in this pollinator challenge!

A Minnesota grower, skilled in native plant production, will grow these 6 paks and must start the special seed treatments this fall. Each pak will feature 6 different pollinator plants (each plant separately labelled), they will be well-rooted and at a good height by late May/June. Each flat will feature three 6 paks focused for a particular pollinator. Separate pollinator flats for bees, butterflies and specifically Monarch butterflies will be available. If you order all 3 pollinator flats, you will have a total of 18 different perennials for pollinators.

Order the MSHS Pollinator Garden Today

If your company wishes to market these in the spring, you must place your wholesale orders in November so that the necessary seed dormancy treatments begin in time.

To place your order, print out the pollinator flat order form at www.northerngardener.org (look for the “Pollinator Garden” button), complete and mail to our grower.

If you have specific questions, give us a call at 651-643-3601. Join us in celebrating the 150th Anniversary of MSHS by helping to provide habitat for our pollinators. is the most recent chair of MSHS, is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Department of Horticultural Science, worked for 34 years in Twin Cities public parks and enjoys volunteering in garden education since her “retirement” in 2008. You can reach Mary at magui011@umn.edu.

MARY MAGUIRE LERMAN

➾ MDA

NURSERY LAW REMEMBER CHANGES TO NURSERY LAW AS YOU COMPLETE 2016 RENEWAL FORMS

Mark Schreiber

Minnesota Department of Agriculture

for 2016 have been mailed and should be in the hands of growers and dealers certified in 2015. There are two important points to keep in mind as you consider your business venture for next year.

NURSERY CERTIFICATE RENEWAL FORMS

During the last legislative session the Nursery Law was changed and an automatic penalty imposed on firms found operating without a valid nursery certificate (OWAC).

The penalty is the amount due for the certificate.

Typically, this is $150 but some firms might need to pay $175 or even $300. If found OWAC those firms would pay either $350 or $600 ($175 + $175 or $300 × 2).

This statute revision was proposed by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, and reviewed and approved by the Minnesota Nursery and Landscape Regulatory Advisory Committee. One main reason for the change was to clearly establish within the nursery industry that operating without a valid nursery certificate is not a minor offence. It creates an unfair playing field between firms, especially smaller companies who pay for the certificate, and those selling stock illegally. Another reason behind the revision was the goal to streamline staff enforcement procedures when firms are found OWAC and create one consistent penalty in statute that is easily understood and enforceable. Simply put: a certificate will not be issued without full payment of certificate fee and penalty due. The inspector has no discretion in the matter.

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A second change, proposed by the advisory committee, requires nursery stock growers to declare all nursery stock growing acreage they manage when determining the grower fee they are responsible for. Through 2015, growers determined their fee based on acreage they wanted inspected and certified. Other acreage with nursery stock they were not going to sell from in the certificate year was not included when determining the certificate fee due.

In recent years, inspectors have encountered an increasing number of instances where nursery stock was removed from fields with unclear ownership due to the fact the land was not entered into certification.

This language revision will require growers to identify all their growing acreage, whether they sell from it or not, and determine their fee based on this assessment.

This change in statute will likely not affect many growers because the majority declare and pay for all growing acreage regardless of sales intention. But the change will allow the inspection staff to better regulate the sale of uncertified stock from “mystery” fields.

If you have questions or wish more information about these statutory changes, contact Mark Schreiber at Mark.Schreiber@state.mn.us or 651-201-6388.

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January 13–15, 2016 | Minneapolis Convention Center | www.NorthernGreenExpo.org

Campfires Gather around the fire again in 2016.

Back by popular demand! Be sure to visit Expo’s “campfire” spaces on the trade show floor.

These hubs for gathering and learning will include: demonstrations, speaker interviews, hosted discussions, and peer networking meetings with guest speakers.

Look for the complete list of Campfire sessions in the December Scoop, on www.NorthernGreenExpo.org and in the Expo app.

Be sure to include this “on-the-go” education piece in your Expo planning this year!

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➾ RE S E ARCH FOR THE R EAL WO R L D

Life Cycle Assessment A Tool for Analyzing the Production Costs and Environmental Impacts Associated with the Products and Services Offered by the Nursery and Landscape Industry

Dr. James Calkins

MNLA Foundation Research Information Director

without a doubt, human activities, including the production, distribution, and landscape management practices employed by the nursery and landscape industry, can variously impact the environment and these impacts can be positive or negative. Unfortunately, although they have commonly been driven by socioeconomic factors and have, therefore, often been unintentional, from a historical perspective, at least initially, the environmental impacts of human undertakings have more often than not been negative. As a consequence, the earth’s air, water, and soil resources have been variously impacted over time and ecosystems have been affected both locally and globally. As stewards of the environment, human beings are, however, obligated to recognize and understand these potential impacts and have an individual and collective responsibility to do their best to minimize or avoid negative environmental impacts.

Many of the human-mediated (anthropogenic) impacts on the environment are clearly understood while others are not; and some, like global warming and climate change, are the source of considerable controversy.

Regardless, the socio-economic and environmental relationships involved are often interrelated and complex and, as a result, the search for potential solutions is often elusive and frustratingly protracted in the view of those who seek action. In many cases, a focus on conservation and the efficient use of resources is an important first step, but conservation alone is rarely the ultimate solution. Instead, a multifaceted focus on long-term sustainability that sometimes results in fundamental changes to existing practices is often required.

As a consequence of concerns about global warming and climate change, consumers are increasingly interested in the environmental consequences of the products and services they choose and this environmental perspective can impact their choices. Consumer choices can also

be influenced by the cost of the products and services offered and market competition. The nursery and landscape industry is not immune to these trends.

Research indicates life cycle assessment (LCA) is a tool that growers and other members of the green industry can use to assess the costs and environmental impacts associated with specific products and services and develop strategies for reducing inputs, minimizing negative environmental impacts, managing costs, and increasing profitability. Life cycle assessment is a methodology that identifies, follows, and analyzes the factors involved in the individual and combined stages of the complete life cycle of a product or service, including everything from the procurement of raw materials to the end of the life of the product or service by defining and quantifying (or estimating) the inputs to the system and the resulting impacts for the purpose of drawing conclusions and making improvements. Specific to the nursery and landscape industry, LCA has the potential to help nursery and landscape professionals better understand the financial and environmental implications of their activities and to improve the sustainability, environmental identity, and profitability of the various sectors of the nursery and landscape industry.

In the context of global warming and climate change, the global warming potential (GWP), or carbon footprint, associated with the production of landscape plants has received increased interest from a research perspective and, together with production costs, has been variously calculated in the context of LCA for a number of landscape species. For example, the carbon footprint of producing (propagation to landscape) 5 centimeter (2 inch) caliper, field-grown, balled and burlapped (B&B) red maple (Acer rubrum ‘October Glory’), Colorado spruce (Picea pungens), and redbud (Cercis canadensis ‘Forest Pansey’) trees, and a 0.9 meter (36 inch), november 15

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➾ RE S E ARCH FOR THE R EAL WO R L D

fertilization, and soil management practices, also have the potential to be involved. This kind of information also provides the basis for analyzing and reducing the greenhouse gas emissions associated with specific production, distribution, and landscape management practices (energy use) and has the potential to help growers and landscape managers reduce production and management costs and develop methods of growing and maintaining landscape plants that are more profitable and more sustainable from an environmental perspective.

Figure 1. Eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis) is an example of a landscape species that has been studied to assess production costs and the carbon footprint associated with its production in a nursery setting; it has been suggested that this information might be used to market the environmental benefits of landscape plants, improve production efficiencies, and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental impacts associated with the production of landscape plants (Photo Credit: Jim Calkins).

field-grown, B&B Judd viburnum (Viburnum × juddii) shrub have been reported to be 8.2, 13.6, 13.71, and 3.16 kg CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent), respectfully. Similar results (2.45 kg CO2e) have also been reported for yew (Taxus × media ‘Densiformis’). In addition to the carbon footprint associated with the production of these species, these values also account for the carbon sequestered during production which is an important consideration and a factor that is especially important for woody plants. These values also do not, however, account for the carbon sequestered during the landscape life of these plants, but these calculations are sometimes also provided. For example, the reported life cycle GWP estimates for the red maple, Colorado spruce, and redbud trees (production to the end of their projected lifespan in the landscape) were also reported and were negative at -800, -431, and -63 kg CO2e, respectively. These negative values reflect carbon sequestration rather than a release of carbon to the atmosphere at this stage. It is important to note, however, that the carbon sequestered during the lifetime of landscape plants will ultimately be released as the remains of these plants decompose. In addition, these calculations do not include the myriad of other lifetime social, economic and environmental benefits associated with trees and other landscape plants including benefits related to human health and well-being, enhanced property values, stormwater management, energy conservation, and other rewards. Quantifying these relationships is possible, but would require a more detailed and comprehensive analysis.

Although production systems vary, life cycle assessment analyses generally indicate the carbon footprint associated with the production of landscape plants is minimal compared to the carbon sequestered during the life of these plants in the landscape. Not surprisingly, most of the greenhouse gas production and global warming potential associated with the production and management of landscape plants is related to energy consumption and the burning of fossil fuels, but other factors, including the types of containers and growing media used to produce container-grown plants and pest management, 36

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For additional detail and information about life cycle assessment as a tool for analyzing the costs and environmental impacts associated with the production of landscape plants and how it might apply to other nursery and landscape products and services, consult the following selected references: Hall, C.R. 2015. Carbon Footprint and Production Costs Associated with Varying the Intensity of Production Practices During Field-Grown Shrub Production. HortScience 50(3):402-407. http://hortsci.ashspublications.org/content/50/3/402.abstract (abstract only) Hall, C.R. and D.L. Ingram. 2014. Carbon Footprint and Related Production Costs of System Components for a Field-Grown Viburnum × juddii Using Life Cycle Assessment. Journal of Environmental Horticulture 32(4):175-181. http://hriresearch.theknowledgecenter.com/Publications/index.cfm?view=detail&colid=180&cid=572&mid=5947&mfid=15270&CFID=29177171&CFTOKEN=8a5976db3e72822a-4F39860FACB0-BD43-1674D4DC93873DDE (abstract only) Hall, C.R. and D. Ingram. 2014. Production Costs of Field-Grown Cercis canadensis L. ‘Forest Pansey’ Identified During Life Cycle Assessment Analysis. HortScience 49(5):622-627. http://hortsci.ashspublications. org/content/49/5/622.abstract (abstract only) Ingram, D.L. 2013. Life Cycle assessment to Study the Carbon Footprint of System Components for Colorado Blue Spruce Field Production and Landscape Use. Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science 138(1):3-11. http://journal.ashspublications.org/content/138/1/3. abstract (abstract only) Ingram, D.L. and C.R. Hall. 2013. Carbon Footprint and Related Production Cycle Costs of System Components of Field-Grown Cercis canadensis L. ‘Forest Pansey’ Using Life Cycle Assessment. Journal of Environmental Horticulture 31(3):162-168. http://hriresearch.theknowledgecenter.com/Publications/index.cfm?view=detail&colid=179&cid =567&mid=5923&mfid=15132&CFID=29177171&CFTOKEN=8a5976d b3e72822a-4F39860F-ACB0-BD43-1674D4DC93873DDE (abstract only) Ingram, D.L. 2012. Life Cycle Assessment of a Field-Grown Red Maple Tree to Estimate its Carbon Footprint Components. International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 17(4):453-462. http://link.springer.com/ article/10.1007/s11367-012-0398-7 (abstract only) Kendall, A. and E.G. McPherson. 2012. A Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Inventory of a Tree Production System. International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 17(4):444-452. http://link.springer.com/ article/10.1007%2Fs11367-011-0339-x (abstract only) Marble, S.C., S.A. Prior, G.B. Reunion, H.A. Torbert, C.H. Gilliam, and G.B. Fain. 2011. The Importance of Determining Carbon Sequestration and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Potential in Ornamental Horticulture.

HortScience 46(2):240-244. http://hortsci.ashspublications.org/content/46/2/240.full

TO COMMENT ON THIS RESEARCH UPDATE,

suggest research topics of interest, or pass along a piece of research-based information of interest to your industry colleagues, please email us at research@MNLA.biz.

2016 Model Year Exclusive Allowance. Save up to $6,550 on select GM models.

MNLA and GM Fleet & Commercial are proud to offer a money-saving partnership which will save MNLA members thousands of dollars! You will receive a credit on your purchase of up to $6,550 on select 2016 GM models. For more information, contact Mary Dunn at mary@mnla.biz.

THE LIVING LANDSCAPE: ITâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS

Recently while looking through a bathroom window I spotted a male towhee foraging in the leafy ground layer of our garden. My wife Melinda and I delight in the birds that share our home habitat, and over the years as our place has become more wooded the avian diversity has continually increased.

Rick Darke | Rick Darke, LLC

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he towhee meant a lot to me, but not because it was a new bird in our garden. My grandfather, a carpenter by trade, had a series of small Roger Tory Peterson “Birds of Our Land” prints hanging in mitered wooden frames he’d handmade. The towhee print showed a male bird foraging in woodland duff amidst violets, ferns, and Jackin-the-pulpit, and as a child it was my favorite. That same framed print is now in my office, and looking at its depiction of a scene so like many in our garden, I’m reminded of the infinite capacity of living landscapes to reveal, renew, and enlarge upon relationships.

Melinda and I both have backgrounds in ecology, yet we’ve both spent much of our careers working with designed landscapes. We’re intrigued by the global range of plants and gardens and continually find inspiration in wild habitats we encounter along our ‘necessary journeys’, to quote Emerson. My original motivation to include native plants in my own garden and those I designed for others was to build relationships with regional woods, fields, and meadows.

I know from long experience that this can be highly effective, especially when the focus is on plant associations, not simply plants as individual objects. Authentic, functional associations in the garden offer myriad glimpses into the relationships between plants, animals (including humans) and the non-living components of the larger landscape.

Whether they’re native or non-native, I’ve always been intrigued by the stories plants can tell that derive from provenance. Many of the completely ordinary plant species in our garden are of special value because we can trace them to the gardens of friends or loved ones or to places visited near and far. I grew up playing in Grover Cleveland Park in Essex County, New Jersey. Like all the county’s parks it was designed by the Olmsteds, and while conserving the northern New Jersey flora on the site they introduced silverbell trees from the Smoky Mountains and katsura trees from eastern Asia.

The silverbells planted 25 years ago in our Pennsylvania garden are beautiful and superbly adapted to our conditions, and their continual capacity to conjure early moments exploring the park landscape adds immeasurably to their role. Our garden also includes katsuras,

inspired both by the Olmsted plantings and by travels Melinda and I made to Japan. On one especially memorable hike in the mountains outside Kyoto our friends Shigeto and Ushio introduced us to a Shinto shrine amidst a population of katsuras. A few venerable trees were so large the four of us couldn’t touch hands around their trunks. The associations the silverbells and the katsuras add to our landscape are the catalysts for conversations about people, plants, and place.

Despite my enduring enthusiasm for the “green” elements of landscapes, I originally began studies as a mechanical engineer and am still fascinated by machine design and its impact on the global ecology. Not wanting to believe these two passions must remain segregated, I’ve increasingly looked for ways to introduce technological-ecological narratives into landscape design, management and interpretation. My ongoing work at Carrie Furnaces National Historic Landmark in Pittsburgh has demonstrated the potential for increasing relevance, functionality and appeal by weaving together stories of relationships between the site’s industrial history and the lush flora and fauna that has regenerated in its wake. On a more intimate and personal scale, our home garden now includes a few artifacts from automotive design history that are in place primarily to provoke conversation about the dynamic nature of the relationship between cars and the living landscape. To date I’ve determined there’s nothing more sensual than the front fender of a 1939 Dodge for illuminating the natural patterns of birch pollen after a light rain.

In her capacity as Assistant Director of the University of Delaware Botanic Garden (UDBG), Melinda has worked with Doug Tallamy, Professor in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology.

When Doug’s book Bringing Nature Home articulated the interdependency of specialist insects and indigenous plant species, Melinda and Doug collaborated on the Lepidoptera Trail at UDBG to create a living demonstration of these essential relationships. Doug and I knew each other but not well, yet Doug’s relationship with Melinda and our increasingly frequent overlap on conference programs eventually made us aware of the potential for us to collaborate on a november 15

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â&#x17E;ž T H E LIVIN G LAN DSCAPE

Balance of living populations in our garden.

Our garden.

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Pollen on 1939 Dodge fender.

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book. The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden is the result of that collaboration, and producing the book together fulfilled the promise of expanding upon our professional relationship. Doug and I have learned a great deal from each other and about the insights that come from working in a close relationship with someone whose background and training overlaps yours but is also quite distinct. We’re both photographers and highly visual people, yet because my usual focus has been on flora and Doug’s has been on fauna, we’ve observed many of the same landscapes with different and complementary vision. As our excitement with the material grew while organizing the book, we decided to include a chapter on ‘The Art of Observation’ to share our techniques and strategies for looking at living landscapes. Early in the process we knew our basic tack would be to articulate and analyze the layers found in wild landscapes — the vertical, horizontal, temporal and cultural layers — and then to describe how conserving or reprising them in designed landscapes could ensure both beauty and functionality. In the course of a few long conversations about the niches birds inhabit in tiered environments I asked Doug if he felt we could create a visual depiction of such relationships. The resulting multi-page essay, ‘Birds in Every Layer’ is perhaps my favorite among the book’s examples of interdisciplinary storytelling.

One of the challenges we recognized before we crafted our proposal to Timber Press was to produce an evenly readable book that also at times preserved our two distinct voices. I’d recently experienced an inspiring technique while working with Annik LaFarge on her book On The High Line: Exploring America’s Most Original Urban Park. Though I played mixed roles through the book involving photography, writing, and horticultural fact-checking, a few of my contributions are illustrated page spreads in my voice, and these are identified with a simple byline enhanced by page-color graphic devices. This worked so well I suggested using it as a model for Doug’s and my book, and that’s essentially what Timber’s editor and designer did. Their creative final design is a visually dramatic creative blending of our two voices and our combined voice.

Producing The Living Landscape encouraged me to reflect ever more deeply on the difference between gardens that are artful collections of living objects and those that are comprised of living relationships. At home and at work, my goal is to produce a maximum amount of beauty, biodiversity and functionality with a minimum amount of resources. The key to this is developing techniques for establishing and managing the balance of selfperpetuating populations. This process-based approach is endlessly intriguing because it is ever-changing. It relies heavily on the art of observation, directed at dynamic relationships. And this is what the living landscape is all about.

a widely published author, photographer, lecturer, and consultant focused on regional landscape design, planning, and conservation.

Rick will be presenting multiple sessions at the 2016 Northern Green Expo, including two based on topics from the book The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden.

Katsura in Japan.

RICK DARKE is

Towhee in our garden.

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TROUBLESHOOTING SINGLE AND MULTIPLE

VALVE IRRIGATION CIRCUITS This article is the first in a series of articles presenting the basic principles of using a voltageohm meter (multimeter) in determining the electrical condition of an irrigation system.

Although there are numerous respectable electrical testing devices available for irrigation system troubleshooting, a multimeter can provide specific measured values that assist you to decisively determine the type of the electrical trouble(s) that exist.

Andrew Lindquist | Owner of Links Systems, Inc.

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➾ VA LUE IRRIGATION CI R C UI TS

Expected Irrigation System’s Values 1. Whole System Expectations: “Whole system” malfunction

factors typically represent a large portion of irrigation system issues. Therefore, you will first want to verify, inspect and repair any obvious and subtle whole system issues. Those would include: physical damage due to impact/vandalism, rodents, and construction/digging; ensure adequate water volume & pressure — that the water control valve is open; system leaks are not present, etc. Your time spent verifying the whole system is time well spent.

2. Controller Expectations: Check for programming errors (a

T

his article assumes that you have a basic understanding about the types, applications, and safe use of a multimeter.

If you need a refresher, there are several good online instructional videos available- of which I would recommend the following YouTube video as a place to start: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=9IZUvTyOGAk. The Irrigation Circuit: In this article, we will be troubleshooting a simple five station (circuit) conventional irrigation system. Troubleshooting systems that use direct current (DC) valves and two-wire system will be presented in subsequent articles.

Of the five station circuits available, we will be analyzing only the first two circuits. As shown in Figure “A”, Terminal (Circuit) “1” contains one electric valve and Terminal (Circuit) “2” contains three electrical valves wired in a parallel configuration.1 Connecting these valves in a parallel configuration will cause all three valves to energize simultaneously when Terminal Circuit “2” is activated.

All valves in the system are electrically identical — each having 30 ohm of resistance and drawing 0.9 amps when activated by the irrigation controller’s 24 volt alternating current (AC) output.2 Our multimeter troubleshooting process is to establish expectation of what the electrical characteristics should be for an intact/perfect system, and then compare these expected values to the system’s actual electrical characteristics. A great advantage of using a multimeter to troubleshoot is that the resulting expected value vs. measured values will provide ideas as to the repair action(s) that may be required.

Figure “A” provides us an “as-built” (an accurate representation of the system) to reference as we troubleshoot this scenario. Having an accurate as-built is a somewhat rare but valuable troubleshooting aid.

Referencing Figure “A”, we will structure the expected vs. actual observations and reading into three steps: (1) Analyze the system as a whole (2) Analyze the controller (3) Analyze the system’s wiring and components.

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major malfunctioning contributor) and inadequate installation “failures” (especially poor wire connects). Make note of any recent storms and look for burnt/discolored wiring and circuit boards caused by lightning surges or other electrical surges. Look for sensors that might be affecting system operation- disconnect them and test separately if need be. Verify pump-start circuit. Measure controller’s power supply input (approximately 112 volts AC) and the controller’s output at each terminal. The controller’s manufacture’s specifications state that there should be 24 volts AC out of the controller’s transformer and at each terminal.

3. Circuit 1 Expectations: Circuit 1 contains one valve that, ac-

cording to manufacturer’s specifications, is expected to give a multimeter reading of 30 ohm resistance and draw 0.9 amps when energized.

Note: Sometimes you do not have the luxury of having valve electrical performance information at-hand. Therefore, if you don’t know the expected resistance values, take readings of several existing site valves (or similar valves you may have with you) and use these readings as your “expected” resistance reading.

Circuit 2 Expectations: This circuit contains three 30 ohm

valves that draw 0.9 amps (according to manufacture specifications). The circuit’s wiring will create an ohm resistance of approximately 1.0 ohm per 1000 ft. For residential systems, the resistance attributed to its short wiring lengths is negligible. Therefore, we will only be concerned with the resistance created by the three 30 ohm valves.

The parallel wiring configuration of this circuit will create an expected measured resistance of 10 ohms. What!!! …more solenoids and less resistance? That makes no sense! Well, yep, that’s correct. This takes a bit of explaining, so hang-in there.

We are measuring the resistance created in the circuit due to electrons “bumping” into each other and getting bottlenecked as its travels from terminal to common.3 When valves (solenoids) are wired in parallel, the electrical path that the electrons take down the wire have multiple paths to get from the terminal, through the solenoids, and back to the control

circuit’s common terminal. Therefore, multiple paths for electron flow mean lower resistance. Compared to Circuit 1 — which only has one wire path for the electrons, Circuit 2 has three wire paths. Therefore, the more wire paths available (and likewise, the larger the diameter of the wire), the lower the resistance of the circuit.

The reduction in resistance due to multiple wire paths, can be easily calculated, providing us an ‘expected’ resistance value. In the case of Circuit 2, three times more paths available will create one-third the resistance. Calculation wise, the expected resistance for a three valve (30 ohm each) circuit wired in a parallel configurations, calculates to 10 ohms (30 ohms divided by three). Note: If the circuit situation contained two 30 ohm valves wired in parallel, we would expect the circuit resistance to be 15 ohms (30 ohms divided by two). For a four valve circuit, we would expect 7.5 ohms (30 ohms divided by four).

Actual Observations & Readings 1. Whole System Observations: Since you are troubleshoot-

ing an irrigation system, take an initial look at the overall system… don’t just jump to conclusions (make assumptions) based upon previous site history or owner/operator advice.

It is easy to take for granted that a system malfunction is due to equipment. Quite often the malfunction is due to: “operator failure”— incorrect programming … which, as controllers become more sophisticated in their abilities, so does their proper programming process- and possible errors.

Also, verify that environmental sensors are not incorrectly overriding system operation. Look for vandalism, rodents chewing wires, site construction or digging activities. Were various “improvements” done to the system correctly? Look for post-installation add-ons. System owners and unskilled irrigation installers are notorious for installing or improving systems incorrectly. Overall, there is a whole host of ‘nonproduct and component’ trouble causing issues out there.

You will always run into a “Man, I’ve never seen this one before” issue. Don’t assume anything. In this “Figure A” scenario, our “whole system” observations checks out OK. 2. Controller: Actual reading for the controller is 24 volts AC,

which meets manufacture’s recommendations. Note that a conventional controller output can vary between 19 and 28 volts AC. If we are not getting this expected voltage, we would want to check the voltage from the controller’s power supply... expecting to have between 110 to 132 volts (with 112 volts typically the “standard” voltage). If the controller’s power supply is adequate, you need to verify the controller’s fuses, wiring and its transformer output. Safely check fuses and wring first. Then check the controller’s transformer.

Controller transformers may be located externally or internally. Additionally, the transformer may have several voltage output points/levels. Such “multi-tap’ transformers typi-

cally have one output terminal for operating the controller’s timing mechanism and another output for operating the irrigation circuits. Read the manufacture’s product sheets to determine what transformer performance is expected.

If transformer’s output is outside of specifications, replace it. (Note: Some transformers may have an internal fuse that may be malfunctioning. Hopefully you can access this internal fuse and replace it. However, many internally fused transformers are sealed, thereby prohibiting its repair.)

When replacing fuses, wires, electronic circuitry, and transformers, be sure to de-energize the controller from its power supply. Additionally, always determine what caused the damage. That is, do not just throw in new parts and turn the power on before determining (and eliminating) what caused the damage initially. Just replacing and re-energizing the system is a ‘plug and pray’ technique and is not part of any irrigation professional’s troubleshooting techniques.

3. Circuit 1: There are two electrical quantities that we would

want to measure: voltage output at the terminal and circuit’s resistance. In this case, Circuit 1’s measured voltage output at its terminal is 24 volts, which is well within the range of the manufacture’s recommendation. The resistance of the entire wiring and solenoids in this irrigation circuit measures at 30 ohms, which meets manufacture’s specifications.

Circuit 2: There are two electrical quantities that we would

want to measure: voltage output at the terminal and circuit resistance. In this case, Circuit 2’s measured voltage output at its terminal is 24 volts, which is within the range of the manufacture’s recommendation. Note that the voltage output at the terminal is not dependent upon what ‘load’ (number of solenoids) present in its wiring circuit. Measured resistance of this circuit is 10 ohms, which meets our expectations.

Now that we have completed the troubleshooting process to determine Figure A’s expected vs. measurements along with what a “perfect” System A would measure, let’s start applying this troubleshooting processes to various electrical “troubleshooting” scenarios.

In this and future articles, I will provide illustrated irrigation system electrical “trouble” scenarios, (“brain teaser” so-to-speak) for you to solve. You will have the opportunity to think through the scenario and come-up with your answer and then compare your answers to mine. Initially, you will have the advantage of already knowing what the issue is. For example, our first scenario is a cut to the system’s common wire. However, at some point, the brain teasers will become more challenging. That is, I will provide less information on the what and where of the problem — perhaps only providing you the measurement result and asking you to determine the location, cause, and methods to remedy the unsatisfactory condition.

Scenario One: A Cut to System Common Wire

Figure “B” illustrates an electrically troubled irrigation system the november 15

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➾ VA LUE IRRIGATION CI R C UI TS

USING THE INFORMATION PROVIDED AND FIGURE B, ANSWER THE FOLLOWING TEN QUESTIONS. ANSWERS CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE 49.

1. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 1 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point AA? 2. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 2 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point AA? 3. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 1 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point BB? 4. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 2 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point BB?

system having one common wire that is “commonly” attached to all valves. This malfunctioning system has five distinct cut common wire situations — at point AA or BB or CC or DD or EE. Each of the five situations are unique to that situation. That is, each situation (AA through EE) represents only one complete cut to the common wire- with the cut’s location indicated by that situation’s arrow.

For example: The cut to the common wire for the Situation “AA” is located at “Point AA”, which is near the controller — with all other cut points (BB, CC, DD, EE) not present in this situation.

Each solenoid valve creates 30 ohms of resistance and creates a 0.9 amp load.

Site Story: There has been recent digging and gopher activity in the customer’s irrigation landscape. The customer has called you, stating that they have some irrigation zones not working and there has been some recent digging in the landscape. You have not been to the site before but you do have a customer provided an “accurate” as-built.

You have correctly taken the first step and reviewed the irrigation system as a whole, verifying that any non-controller issues (power, damage, programming, sensors, lightening, etc.) are not causing any malfunctions. Additionally, you verified the accuracy of the as-built (didn’t assume it was correct) and used your multimeter to verify that there is 24 volts AC available at all controller terminals (which meet manufacture’s specifications).

The short control (field) wires for this systems does not increase ohms resistance to any appreciable degree… unless there are poor connections due to corrosion or nicked wires existing in the circuit.

For this scenario, we will ignore field wire resistance and that the wire and wire connections are perfect.4 Important Note: Since you will be measuring resistance, you will need to have no power in the circuit. You can/may/will damage your multimeter if power is present in the circuit when testing for resistance!!!

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5. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 1 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point CC? 6. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 2 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point CC? 7. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 1 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point DD? 8. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 2 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point DD? 9. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 1 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point EE? 10. What would be the Ohms resistance reading taken at the controllers Circuit Terminal 2 if there is a cut wire on the common wire located only at point EE?

Endnotes 1. Irrigation valves should be wired in a parallel, not in a series configuration. Incorrectly wiring the circuit into a series configuration will increase the resistance of the circuit. Increased circuit resistance can easily create excessive load (amount of amps drawn) when activated and can potentially cause malfunctioning valves, blown fuses, damage to the controller’s internal components and wiring.

2. The expected electrical performance of irrigation components may be obtained from its product performance sheets, an affixed label, by contacting your supplier, or through the component’s manufacturer. Controller output typically ranges from 19 to 27 volts AC. The amount of resistance created by a valve’s electric solenoid may be found by referencing the manufacture’s product information or by

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➾ VA LUE IRRIGATION CI R C UI TS

direct measurement using a multimeter. A valve’s solenoid resistance is measured in “ohms”. Generally, most 24 volt AC irrigation solenoids have between 30 to 55 ohms resistance. However, you can more accurately troubleshoot by knowing the specific expected resistance for the valves being evaluated.

3. An electrical purist would want me to properly state that in an alternating circuit, electrons actually flow from common to terminal (negative potential to positive potential) and then reverse every 60th of a second … so excuse my “conventional” explanation.

4. If there were poor connections, corrosion, or nicked wire present, a multimeter reading other than “expected” can help you to differentiate between cut wires vs. poorly connected, corroded or nicked wires. A more comprehensive presentation on analyzing the variations in expectations vs. actual readings of field wire resistance will be presented in subsequent troubleshooting articles.

a slightly higher reading due control wire. We will review control wire resistance in subsequent articles.

5. Circuit Terminal 1 — Cut at Point CC: Cut common wire location has no effect on Circuit 1. Therefore, you will have a resistance reading of 30 ohms.

6. Circuit Terminal 2 — Cut at Point CC: Cut in common wire location affects all three solenoids. Therefore an open circuit reading.

7. Circuit Terminal 1 — Cut at Point DD: Cut common wire location has no effect on Circuit 1. Therefore, you will have a resistance reading of 30 ohms.

8. Circuit Terminal 2 — Cut at Point DD: Cut common wire location does not affect the first of the three valves, but will eliminate the other two valves. Therefore, with only one effective solenoid on Circuit 2, you will read 30 ohms resistance.

9. Circuit Terminal 1 — Cut at Point EE: Cut common wire location has no effect on Circuit 1. Therefore, you will have a resistance reading of 30 ohms.

Answers to “Cut Common Wire” Scenario OOPS! You forgot to turn off the all power to the circuit you are testing and you damaged your multimeter. You think “Gee, I won’t do that again”. Now that you have a new multimeter (and spent a few more dollars on a meter that has an “energized circuit protection feature” that will prevent such damage), you’re set to go.

1. Circuit Terminal 1 — Cut at Point AA: A completely cut circuit is called an “Open”. Your multimeter reading for an open circuit would be “infinity”. Meters vary in how they represent infinity/ open circuit, so know your multimeter’s unique “open” reading.

2. Circuit Terminal 2 — Cut at Point AA: Open circuit reading-location of this cut common wire will probably cause all zones/circuits to read as being “Open.”

10. Circuit Terminal 2 — Cut at Point EE: Cut common wire location does not affect the first and second valves, but does eliminate the third valve. Therefore, with two effective solenoids on Circuit 2, you will read one half of the resistance of a single valve. Therefore your reading would be 15 ohms (½ of the 30 ohms resistance of a single valve).

ANDREW LINDQUIST, Owner of Links Systems, Inc. can be reached at alindquist@linkssystemsinc.com.

3. Circuit Terminal 1 — Cut at Point BB: Open circuit reading.

4. Circuit Terminal 2 — Cut at Point BB: Cut common wire’s location only affects Circuit 1. Therefore, the three solenoids (having 30 ohms resistance each) attached in a parallel configuration, would have an effective resistance reading of 10 ohms. You may have

CALLING ALL PLANT LOVERS! NEW PLANT FORUM BACK FOR 2016 GREEN EXPO

The Green Expo will bring back a fan favorite in January 2016 — The New Plant Forum. This exciting session is for those who are all about plants! Participants will hear about cutting edge plants introduced within the past several years. Only plants that are readily available in the trade will be presented.

So, we’re putting out a call to all MNLA members…do you have a new plant that you’d like to feature? Read on to find out how you can participate…

How do I apply to participate?

Individuals who want to participate in the New Plant Forum should complete the application which can be found online at www.NorthernGreenExpo.org. A committee of industry professionals will pick the best of the applications to be presented at the Northern Green Expo. Given time constraints, it’s possible that not all applications will be presented.

What is the application deadline?

Applications must be submitted no later than December 1, 2015.

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MNLA FOUNDATION Improving the Environment by Investing in Research and Education

1813 LEXINGTON AVE. N | ROSEVILLE, MN 55113 | 651-633-4987 | FAX 651-633-4986 | MNLA@MNLA.BIZ | WWW.MNLAFOUNDATION.COM

PARTNERS FUND

You are encouraged to participate in the Research & Education Partners Fund at one of the participating suppliers recognized below. Your voluntary donation of Âź of 1% (0.25%) on purchases of plants and other nursery, greenhouse and landscape products at these suppliers is used by the MNLA Foundation to grow a brighter future for the industry.

On an invoice totaling $1,000 at one of these suppliers, your contribution will be only $2.50.

Your individual contribution is small, but collectively these small contributions will add up to make a real difference!

Research for the Real World

Career Development & Promotion

TM

L A N D S C A P E + M A S O N RY

Scholarships

➾ G OV E RN MEN T AFFA I R S

NWAC Proposes Changes to Minnesota’s Noxious Weed Lists MNLA Comments Solicited: Minnesota’s Noxious Weed Advisory Committee (NWAC), comprised of 16 stakeholder organizations including MNLA, makes recommendations concerning noxious weeds to the Commissioner of Agriculture, who has sole authority in Minnesota to list or de-list terrestrial noxious weed species. MNLA has been an active member since NWAC’s inception, and I have represented MNLA since 2010.

Tim Power

MNLA Legislative Affairs Manager

mnla serves on minnesota’s noxious weed advisory committee (NWAC), which advises Minnesota’s Commissioner of Agriculture on recommended changes to the state’s noxious weed lists. NWAC met on September 17th and accepted the recommendations of its listing subcommittee regarding plants under subcommittee review in 2015. The next step in the listing process will be for NWAC constituencies, including MNLA, to review these recommendations and provide comments back to their NWAC representatives prior to a final 2015 voting meeting in early December, at which NWAC’s recommendations will be finalized. MNLA members who are concerned about these recommendations are urged to contact MNLA staffers Tim Power or Jim Calkins at 651-633-4987 prior to Thanksgiving to discuss their concerns.

NWAC’s 2015 recommendations, along with their 2014 recommendations, will be combined with 2016 recommendations for a triennial presentation to the Commissioner in December 2016. As a reminder, 2014 and 2015 recommendations are based on new risk assessments on species being reviewed for the first time, and 2016’s recommendations will consist of reviews of all currently-regulated terrestrial plants and other non-regulated plants that have had a risk assessment completed in the past by NWAC. This three-year cycle was suggested by the Commissioner’s office to lend some stability to Minnesota’s noxious weed lists.

NWAC’s 2015 plant of greatest concern to the nursery/landscape industry is Amur maple, a horticultural plant that has gorgeous fall color and good adaptability to compacted urban soils. Amur maple has been sold by our industry for many decades, both for tough urban settings and also for windbreaks and other uses in more natural settings. Unfortunately, Amur maple can also seed heavily, and seedlings can naturalize unless they are controlled by mowing or other cultural practices. Because of this invasive characteristic, NWAC is recommending to the Commissioner of Agriculture that Amur maple be listed as a Specially Regulated Plant, with a management plan as follows: Any person, corporation, business or other retail entity distributing Amur maple or its cultivars for sale within the state, must have information directly affixed to the plant or container packaging that it is being sold with, stating the following: “Amur maple should only be planted in areas where the seedlings will be controlled or eradicated by mowing or other means. Amur maple should not be planted closer than 100 yards from natural areas.”

This management plan for Amur maple would discourage its use in or near natural areas, including its current sale by Soil and Water Conservation Districts for use in farm windbreaks and other areas from which it might spread by seed. The goal of the management plan is to allow the use of Amur maple in the harsh november 15

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➾ G OV E RN MEN T AFFAI R S NWAC’S 2015 RECOMMENDATIONS ARE SUMMARIZED BELOW: Common Name

Genus and Species

Listing subcommittee recommendation

Common barberry

Berberis vulgaris

Prohibited Noxious Weed – Control List Photo credit: Leslie J. Mehrhoff, University of Connecticut, Bugwood.org

Purple Starthistle

Centaurea calcitrapa

Do not list Photo credit: Malcolm Storey, BioImages - Virtual Field-Guide, Bugwood.org

Iberian Starthistle

Centaurea iberica

Do not list Photo credit: Patrick Breen, Oregon State University, Bugwood.org

Squarrose Knapweed

Centaurea virgata

Do not list Photo credit: Steve Dewey, Utah State University, Bugwood.org

Japanese Hedge Parsley

Torilis japonica

Do not list Photo credit: Chris Evans, Illinois Wildlife Action Plan, Bugwood.org

Black Locust

Robinia pseudoacacia

Restricted Noxious Weed Photo credit: John Cardina, The Ohio State University, Bugwood.org

Amur Maple

Acer ginnala

Specially Regulated Photo credit: Leslie J. Mehrhoff, University of Connecticut, Bugwood.org

Bird’s-foot Trefoil

Lotus corniculatus

Do not list, but encourage education on invasiveness Photo credit: Rob Routledge, Sault College, Bugwood.org

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NWAC’S 2015 RECOMMENDATIONS ARE SUMMARIZED BELOW: Common Name

Genus and Species

Listing subcommittee recommendation

Crown Vetch

Securigera varia

Restricted Noxious Weed Photo credit: UAF Cooperative Extension University of Alaska — Fairbanks, Bugwood.org

Cow Vetch

Vicia cracca

Do not list Photo credit: Jamie Nielsen University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service, Bugwood.org

Hairy Vetch

Vicia villosa

Do not list Photo credit: John D. Byrd, Mississippi State University, Bugwood.org

Burnet saxifrage

Pimpinella saxifraga

Do not list Photo credit: Jeffrey Flory, 1854 Treaty Authority, Bugwood.org

Queen Anne’s Lace/ wild carrot

Daucus carota

Restricted Noxious Weed Photo credit: The Ohio State University, Bugwood.org

environments and heavily-altered soils of urban areas while minimizing its invasive potential.

NWAC’s recommendation to list black locust as a Restricted Noxious Weed should have minimal impact on the nursery/landscape industry, since few of these trees are sold by our industry.

Black locust can be subject to heavy infestations of locust borer, and it is often considered a better tree to see in your neighbor’s yard than in your own. It blooms at a time later than many trees, its flowers are favored by pollinators, and groves of black locust stabilize many slopes and waste areas where they occur. On the other hand, black locust suckers freely and can create almost impenetrable thickets with nasty trunk thorns where conditions are right. NWAC’s recommendation would disallow future sales, distribution and propagation of black locust, but would not require its removal from existing sites.

Another 2015 NWAC recommendation would add common barberry (Berberis vulgaris) to the Prohibited-Control noxious weed list.

Common barberry has been regulated to some degree in the U.S since World War I, when it was determined to be an alternate host

NWAC’s 2015 recommendations, along with their 2014 recommendations, will be combined with 2016 recommendations for a triennial presentation to the Commissioner in December, 2016. for wheat stem rust, and control/eradication efforts were undertaken that lasted in Minnesota until 1980. Listing as a Prohibited-Control noxious weed will ensure that efforts will continue to control this plant, though it is highly unlikely that full eradication will ever be achieved. In an interesting development, Connecticut researchers reported in 2013 that hybrid plants of common and Japanese barberry are becoming more frequently seen in Connecticut woods.

No studies have been done on the ability of these hybrids to become alternate hosts for wheat stem rust.

2015 risk assessments were completed for four leguminous forage/ erosion control ground cover species. Of the four, only crown vetch november 15

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➾ G O V E RN M E N T A F FA I RS

The 2015 legislature considered bipartisan bills in both the House and Senate to provide funding for the Noxious Weed and Invasive Species Assistance Account, an Agriculture Department account developed in 2009 as a part of the updated Noxious Weed Law. Unfortunately, no appropriations made it into the agriculture funding bills for this purpose.

SILENT AUCTION BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND: THE MNLA FOUNDATION SILENT AUCTION!

In 2015 the MNLA Foundation hosted its’ inaugural silent auction at the Northern Green Expo. With your help, over $5,000 was raised to help support the Foundation’s mission to improve the environment by investing in the future of the green industry! Funds raised from the silent auction support the MNLA Foundation scholarships, research grants and career development initiatives.

The 2016 silent auction at the Northern Green Expo promises to be bigger and better than before! Join us for bidding during your visit to the Expo; the silent auction will be near the MNLA Foundation Booth, just outside of Hall E. Items such as sporting tickets, gift certificates, craft beer baskets, jewelry, industry and non-industry specific gift baskets are all examples of the type of items that will be available for bid. Bring your checkbook and get ready to win big!

The 2016 Silent Auction will be held during the Northern Green Expo, Wednesday through Thursday, January 13 and 14 (times vary). The Silent Auction will close on Thursday, January 14.

Thank you for your support of the MNLA Foundation!

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(Securigera varia) is being recommended for addition to the noxious weed lists, on the Restricted list. In all four cases, invasiveness is offset to some degree by benefits from the use of these species. NWAC’s “Do not list” recommendations for hairy vetch, cow vetch and birds foot trefoil do not mean that the plants are not invasive, but that there may be enough benefits from use of these plants to justify their continued availability when managed appropriately.

Finally, efforts are likely to continue to garner legislative or agency funding for future noxious weed control/eradication efforts by counties. The 2015 legislature considered bipartisan bills in both the House and Senate to provide funding for the Noxious Weed and Invasive Species Assistance Account, an Agriculture Department account developed in 2009 as a part of the updated Noxious Weed Law. Unfortunately, no appropriations made it into the agriculture funding bills for this purpose.

Some Minnesota counties consider noxious weed control/eradication requirements to be unfunded mandates, and funding of this MDA account would go a long way toward stoking interest in these counties in taking on this work.

TIM POWER is MNLA’s Legislative Affairs Manager. If you have legislative affairs issues you’d like to discuss, contact Tim Power at tim@ mnla.biz or 651-633-4987.

â&#x17E;ž MNLA FOUN DATION

GREEN INDUSTRY CAREERS TEAM A YEAR OF HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE GREEN INDUSTRY CAREERS TEAM

Megan Buchanan

MNLA Foundation Program Coordinator

Xavier Porter, Instructor at the Landscape Arboretum, talks to Big Brothers Big Sisters participants at a recent event hosted by the GICT.

THE GREEN INDUSTRY CAREERS TEAM (GICT),

a volunteer task team for the MNLA Foundation, has been busy this year working on green industry careers promotion. The task team, led by Seth Midura of Natural Landscapes and Amanda Clark of Superior Outdoor Expressions, was formed to educate the public about the many opportunities in the green industry, and change attitudes towards careers in the industry. This year, the team has attended career fairs, spoke at teacher conferences, partnered with organizations for career education, along with a variety of other initiatives.

In March, the MNLA and MNLA Foundation were delighted to be featured on Kare 11â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Grow With Kare.

GICT member Jay Siedschlaw of Hennepin Technical College, and Heidi Heiland, MNLA President, were featured during a segment in which they spoke of the high demand for careers in the green industry. The story

highlighted students who were pursuing and succeeding in the Hennepin Technical College Horticulture Program.

Later this spring, members from the GICT and MNLA Executive Director, Cassie Larson, attended two career fairs, the first at the Forest Lake High School Agricultural Career Day and the second at Highland Park High School in St. Paul. These career fairs provided task team members the opportunity to share the benefits of working in the green industry and real life advice to students considering horticulture as a career.

A couple of exciting opportunities for promotion of green industry careers were presented this summer.

On July 7, 2015 Theresa Helgeson and Alisha Aasness of the University of MN, Crookston and Kurt Schrader of Twin Lakes Landscapes, attended the MN Association of Agricultural Educators summer conference. Theresa, Alisha, and Kurt, armed with MNLA Foundation brochures,

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➾ MNLA FOUN DATION

Participants in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program learn about the Japanese Garden at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum at a recent event hosted by the Green Industry Careers Team.

Green Industry Careers Team Members Seth Midura and Jay Siedschlaw, along with MNLA Member Dave Nordgaard promote green industry careers at the Forest Lake High School Ag Day!

curriculum samples, and LandLovers’ (see box) materials, traveled to Jackpot Junction to share resources offered by the MNLA Foundation, and gather feedback and information from educators.

In August, the MNLA Foundation partnered with the Big Brothers Big Sisters Program to host a career event at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. Led by GICT Member Melissa Haselhorst of Landsculpt, Inc., approximately 30 people from the Big Brothers Big Sisters program visited the Arboretum to learn more about Horticulture as a career option. “This was a perfect opportunity for the kids and their mentors; many of them had never been to the Arboretum before. The visit to the Japanese Garden was especially interesting as they learned the symbolism of each item placed in the garden.”, said Haselhorst. A very special thank you to Dave Entinger of Dave’s Mulch Store in Delano, MN for sponsoring the food for this event.

As the MNLA Program Coordinator, I support the GICT efforts by providing materials, oversight, and coordination, along with networking with interested programs and parties. In April, I was fortunate to meet with Hennepin Technical College, when their Horticulture Program hosted students from Buffalo High School.

I also toured Bailey Nurseries in July with a cohort of educators involved in a green industry careers initiative.

GICT member, Jay Siedschlaw, and MNLA Foundation Program Coordinator, Megan Buchanan attend the first ever Ag Career Day at Humboldt High School.

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As the need for skilled, reliable workers continues to rise, so does the need to provide outreach to young people and educators. The Green Industry Careers Team is committed to this challenge now and in the future. GICT team members recently attended a career fair at Humboldt High School and plan to present at Deer River

High Schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Agriculture program this fall. They also continue to meet quarterly to brainstorm and develop priorities and action steps, in addition to completing the free high school curriculum offered on the MNLA Foundation website.

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Have you recently shared the green industry career opportunity with a young person? Have you visited a school, attended a career day, or other type of sharing opportunity? If so, we would love to hear more about your experience! Please contact Megan Buchanan at megan@mnla.biz to provide details.

HELP US HELP YOU! Our members report that one of the biggest issues they experience in their business is finding and retaining employees. The Green Industry Careers Team invites you to be a part of the solution by sharing your experience and expertise to young people and educators. We are looking for members in all segments of the industry to add to our roster of volunteers for occasional school visits or other opportunities. Please contact Megan Buchanan at megan@mnla. biz to learn more.

MEGAN BUCHANAN is

the Foundation Program Coordinator and can be reached at megan@mnla.biz.

The Landlovers.org website is dedicated to dispelling myths, and providing information and resources for careers in horticulture. The product of a cohort of regional and national groups, including the MNLA, the LandLovers.org website is place were students, parents and educators can learn more about the opportunities in the green industry, including salary information, education requirements and scholarship information by state. Visit: www.landlovers.org

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➾ MNLA FOUN DATION

2015 MNLA SHOOTOUT It was a great day for the Sporting Clays event at the South St. Paul Rod and Gun Club on September 23, 2015. Over ten shooting teams came together to play games, compete in clay pigeon shooting, and take a chance at raffle items. This annual fundraising event raised nearly $8,000 for the MNLA Scholarship Fund! Thank you to everyone who joined us and supported this event!

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR FIRST PLACE TEAM:

Sam Janicki, Andy Petersen, Craig Weckman, Mike Weckman, and Steve Jones.

A team from Bachman’s took the afternoon off to raise money for MNLA Scholarships.

A team from HiWay Federal Credit Union arrive prepared to shoot.

Cindi Olson and her team from Anchor Block take a break at the Sporting Clays Event.

Feature Raffle prize winner of a $500 gift card to Cabela’s, Greg Love Stone, with sponsor Chuck Klinefelter.

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MNLA Foundation Chair, Bert Swanson attends the event.

MNLA Foundation Program Coordinator, Megan Buchanan, takes a quick moment to thank sponsors before announcing the winners and calling the raffle.

Shootout Committee Member Andy Petersen and his team of shooters.

Shootout Committee members Bill Mielke and Chuck Klinefelter and their team shoot off a few rounds during the event.

A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR SPONSORS FOR HELPING TO MAKE THIS EVENT POSSIBLE! Station Sponsors: Alta Falls & Pond Supplies Bachmans Hiway Federal Credit Union Oh’ Landscapes, LLC Touchstone Accent Lighting Waconia Tree Farms, LLC Featured Raffle Prize Chuck Klinefelter Dinner Sponsors

Lunch Sponsor GM Fleet and Commercial

Beverage Sponsor Carlin Sales

Game & Raffle Sponsors Tessman Company

Lunch & Beverage Sponsor BFG Supply Co

Equipment Demo Sponsor Fury Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram General Sponsors Instant Green Tree Planting Phillipe Bros. Landscape Material Swanson’s Nursery Consulting Town and Country Fence

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➾ ME MBER N EWS

WELCOME NEW MNLA MEMBERS! A Tree Service, Inc. Denise Volk Minneapolis, MN, 612-724-6045 Catering For All It’s Worth LLC Bryan Bachman Rochester, MN, 507-206-6727 CB Distributors, Inc. Mike Swedeen Ham Lake, MN, 763-434-0207 Dans Landscaping and Snow Removal, Inc. Dan Mike Forest Lake, MN, 651-464-6634

Guy Mueller & Associates Landscape Design Guy Mueller Minneapolis, MN, 763-218-1648 Lucky U LLC Charlie Burrows Mendota, MN, 651-366-6420 Maggie’s Concepts Maggie Berg Stillwater, MN, 651-436-7720 Minnesota Interstate Construction LLC Matthew Gordon Waubun, MN, 218-556-8015

Norblom Plumbing Jeff Norblom St. Paul, MN, 612-827-4033 Quality Services John O’Halloran South St. Paul, MN, 651-451-1641 Specialized Truck Equipment LLC Todd Skalbeck Eden Valley, MN, 320-453-3357 Tapda Enterprises Adam Schlangen New Hope, MN, 763-533-9414

IN MEMORIAM Longtime MNLA Government Affairs Consultant John Boland Passes Away

NOTICE TO MEMBERS Official Notice: Annual Meeting on January 13 at Convention Center Notice is hereby given that the annual membership meeting of the Minnesota Nursery & Landscape Association will be held at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, January 13, 2016, at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

During the annual meeting, the results of the Board of Directors election will be announced. An electronic ballot will be sent the first week in December to the primary contact provided to MNLA by each business member.

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John Boland, age 78 of St. Paul died surrounded by family on September 2, 2015. John held bachelor’s and master’s degrees from St. Thomas College, and was a teacher and varsity hockey coach at Hill-Murray High School. He served in the Minnesota House of Representatives and was appointed by Gov. Wendell Anderson to become the first chairman of the Twin Cities Metropolitan Council. Following that, he became chief of staff for Congressman Bruce Vento, before starting his lobbying firm in 1982.

Boland was MNLA’s lobbyist from 1998 through 2011 and through his expertise, contacts, professionalism, and perseverance played a vital role in the association’s government affairs success during those years. His role in securing the farm machinery sales tax exemption for our growers saved nursery and greenhouse operators millions of dollars. In 2003, Boland ensured that a requirement was put into law that required the installation of rain-sensing technology on all new landscape irrigation systems, conserving millions of gallons of water. In 2009 and 2010, Boland was instrumental in securing $2 million from the state’s Legacy Funds to help cities develop plans to prepare for the onslaught of emerald ash borer, plus secured $3 million in bonding money for grants to cities to replace diseased or infested trees.

When John retired in 2011, his long and distinguished service to the members of our association earned him the MNLA Special Service Award.

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What will you learn at the show for green industry pros?

JANUARY 13-15, 2016

MINNEAPOLIS CONVENTION CENTER

Dr. Ed Gilman

Dr. Gilman has received the prestigious Authors citation award in 1999 from the International Society of Arboriculture for his books and web sites on trees and landscape plants. He has also received the ISA educator and research awards. Dr. Gilman serves the landscape industry and allied professions with his teaching and research efforts nationwide. He is a woodworker and father of two daughters, making his home in Jacksonville, Florida with his wife of 35 years.

Developing the Highest Quality Trees in a Wholesale Tree Nursery

See advanced, detailed, modern tree production strategies based on experience of many growers and research in the last 15 years. Topics include liner and container selection, planting strategies, production pruning protocols, and root pruning and field harvesting. The emphasis on practical, hands-on strategies based on techniques proven to work will allow participants to begin producing quality shade trees tomorrow. Increase your efficiency in producing quality trees and reduce the time required to grow trees. Examples from around North America will be used to show how this can dramatically improve nursery stock quality available for urban planting projects.

Structural Pruning Young and Old Trees to Enhance Customer Service

Pruning can have a dramatic impact on how trees respond to gravity, wind, and ice storms. Combined with practical experience, our data generated from a wind machine producing up to 120 mph winds shows that structural pruning designed to reduce growth rate and weight on codominant limbs is the most effective method of minimizing damage from storms. We will show details on how trees fail and why and how to reduce or prevent it. We will teach you what to look for when evaluating trees for potential failure and how to treat these trees. You will go home with a new understanding of how and why we prune trees, and how to apply it to most real life preservation situations.

Dr. Gilman will also be doing a pruning demo at the Lakeshore Campfire on the Tradeshow Floor.

Lloyd Traven, Peace Tree Farm

Friends and fellow horticulturalists have called Lloyd a ‘mad scientist’ and ‘plant geek’ due to his passion for growing quality plants, which is matched only by his commitment to using advanced technology in concert with sustainable and organic growing techniques. Traven graduated summa cum laude from Delaware Valley College of Science & Agriculture in 1979 and attended Cornell University Graduate School in floriculture and ornamental horticulture. In the 1980s he worked in market research and special projects at Ball Seed Company developing Spark Plug, pelleted seed products, and working on the Genesis Seed project. Traven and his wife, Candy, purchased the Peace Tree Farm property in Bucks County, Pennsylvania in 1983. They have grown Peace Tree Farm from ‘the little greenhouses up on the hill’ to an established and respected operation among international horticulture. Traven is a technology guru and advocate for small growers, being among the first to successfully invest in sophisticated environmental control systems for their operation.

Bringing Awesome Every Day!

We have 10 seconds to make an impression on the customer when she looks at our stores – and she has plenty of other places to spend her money. Is there a compelling reason your garden center is earning her business? We must wrap our heads around this retail reality – the customer is seeking success, solutions, and emotional satisfaction and functionality. We need to inspire her with ideas, designs and options. She wishes she could do what we do every day with plants and outdoor rooms – leverage that! Take this walk with Lloyd Traven as he shows us how to capture

the younger generation by engaging with them in the ways they are expecting to be engaged, and become that go-to place you want to be – the one store they have to go to, the “awesome” garden center everyone looks to for the “coolest” shopping experience. The world has changed and it is no longer about pretty flowers!

M-m-m-my Begonia!

The loss of bedding Impatiens, coupled with boredom at the already mainstream replacements, has caused a malaise in consumers. What do I put in shade that is NOT a hosta? Help me, please, not another coleus!! There is hope, though, and begonias, many you’ve likely never seen before, are offering some fabulous colorful and durable alternatives for jaded gardeners, and a real opportunity for garden centers to make some good margins – and they don’t really belong at the box stores, either!! Take a look at some really new breeding, styles, types, colors and uses for begonias, and let’s go to the bank!! Sun, shade, colorful foliage, flowers, fragrance, durability, and even a chance at winter hardiness. Baskets, pots, bedding, and they are edible, too. M-m-m-my Begonia!!

That Plant is ‘Phenomenal’!! So What? NOW What?

Finding or breeding the next great plant is just a small part of the puzzle; marketing and positioning is AT LEAST as critical! Whatever the latest/greatest is, it still has to be brought to market in a very crowded playing field and stand out from everything else, or it quickly fades into a bad memory. All the effort to convince a consumer to pull out the credit card is wasted, and EVERYONE loses! PROVING the difference through trialing worldwide is a beginning, but there is simply NO EXCUSE for offering an inferior or unproven product. Follow Lloyd and see how he brought one of the hottest and best plants to market, and had to end up creating his own marketing, developing new avenues, and continuing to expand the uses and worldwide sales. Development and ASSURANCE of a secure and efficient supply chain was paramount, because nothing ticks off consumers more than having an awardwinning and heavily promoted plant be unavailable when they swarm into YOUR stores. Retailer awareness and involvement is also crucial---can’t sell a winner you don’t know exists. When the product TRULY is phenomenal, everyone wins!

Lloyd Traven will also be a featured guest at the Flower Grower Networking Group Meeting at the Backyard Campfire on the Tradeshow Floor.

Roy Diblik, Northwind Perennial Farm

Roy Diblik is co-owner of Northwind Perennial Farm located in Burlington, Wisconsin. He has been growing traditional and native perennials since 1978. His garden designs emphasize plant relationships to maintenance strategies and costs.

Diblik’s recent work includes the Louis Sullivan Arch Garden for the Modern Wing at the Art Institute of Chicago and the lakeside plantings for the new Oceanarium at the Shedd Aquarium His new book ‘The Know Maintenance Perennial Garden’ highlights his perennial gardening practice.

Perennial Plant Communities

The discussion will cover many perennial plants that can live well together, not dominating each other or in need of special cultural conditions or treatment. They live well in close knit communities and understand the health and beauty of intimacy. We will consider their youthful nurturing and adult care and overall gardening needs through time.

Roy Diblik will also speak on 'Know Maintenance' Design at the Super Tuesday Design Niche program and be a special guest of the Professional Gardening Networking Group at the Lakeshore Campfire on the Tradeshow Floor.

Register online today at www.Northern GreenExpo.org! i n f o @ N o r t h e r n G r e e n E x p o . o r g | 6 51. 6 3 3 . 4 9 8 7 Generously supported by:

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