READER POLL
Here are the reader poll results for the question posted throughout October on the Grounds Maintenance Web site, www.grounds-mag.com. Has your company,...
GREEN MATTERS
And if you think it matters to just us in the green industry, think again. Project EverGreen has released the first in a series of surveys designed to gauge consumer attitudes about green spaces, what we do to maintain them and how we do it....
Aim High
Making a profit requires a plan. Earning a profit, of course, is the result of many things: good customers, good people, hard work and, yes, luck....
FINDING ANSWERS
The apartment complex I care for has a terrible infestation of chipmunks. They have tunneled under some of the patios and around rock walls, in addition to tunneling through flowerbeds....
ON THE SURFACE
Efforts to control heat stress on bentgrass putting greens continue and researchers are helping to create a more accurate formula for reducing the stress....
CONGRESS URGED TO EXPAND NATURAL GAS SUPPLIES
As the nation continues to assist those impacted by Hurricane Katrina and begins to look at the long-term consequences of the devastating storm, the Agriculture Energy Alliance urges Congress to continue to implement policy changes needed to diversify both the types and geographic locations of the U.S. energy supplies....
SHORT CUTS
According to industry estimates, overall shipments of hand-held products (handheld blowers, backpack blowers, trimmers and chain saws) are forecast to post moderate growth during calendar year 2005, reaching 12.2 million units....
Got Customers?
Personal contact with clients reaches beyond the responsibility of just business owners and partners. For many service providers across the nation, it's a company mission, a way of differentiating yourself and a means of survival in a harsh competitive landscape....
THE IMPACT OF HURRICANE KATRINA ON BUILDING MATERIALS AND PRICES
The full extent of the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the overall economy and on the housing market is still unclear, but the number of homes destroyed by this catastrophe is larger than the losses from any previous U.S. natural disaster....
READER POLL
Here are the reader poll results for the question posted throughout September on the Grounds Maintenance Web site, www.grounds-mag.com. Does your business...
Dollars by Design
So, your long-time maintenance client asks you to bid on the installation of a new landscape element on his property. You don't want to pass up the work, but you don't want to get in over your head....
FOCUS ON: Mini Excavators
Can you dig it? Don't let their size fool you. Mini excavators offer lots of power as well as versatility for lots of tasks. And their small size allows them to go where other machines can't....
Easy on the Environment
Environmental design is no longer an elite service reserved for the privileged few. More and more people around 50 million in the United States, according to California researchers Paul Ray and Sherry Ruth Anderson--have strong environmental values....
BY ALL ESTIMATIONS
Today is payday! I still get excited on payday. You'd think the feeling would wear off after all of these years, but it hasn't....
ON SITE: Teaching Tools
Looking out at the rolling land that had been a part of his family for decades, David Pursell saw the opportunity for something special an 18-hole research and demonstration golf course that would change the way peole viewed an entire industry....
FINDING ANSWERS
POTTING PROBLEMS Q I am trying more flowerpots around my landscapes to add color in areas without flowerbeds. I have tried several different potting soils that I purchased from wholesale/retail garden centers....
WHITE-TAILED DEER DON'T LIKE BABY FORMULA
What are you going to do about the deer? You invest money and time to improve the landscape only to have it mown down at the deer's preferred browsing height: to the ground....
HOW TO: PREVENT EROSION DURING CONSTRUCTION
The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that one billion tons of topsoil are lost to erosion every year. Not only does erosion take away precious topsoil, but also clogs waterways and damages adjacent properties....
FINDING ANSWERS
MULCH MATTERS Q Most references recommend mulching around new trees. I like the look of trees surrounded by a green lawn and so have been planting trees, then laying sod over the planting area....
BIOSOLID COMPOSTS EARN HIGH MARKS
Research continues to support the idea that there is a market for biosolids. Researchers at Delaware Valley College studied the addition of municipal solid waste biosolid compost to soil prior to seeding and sodding Kentucky bluegrass....
PRODUCT PREVIEW
KENTUCKY BLUEGRASS VARIETY Burlingham Seeds introduces a new variety Dynamo Kentucky bluegrass for commercial use....
2,4-D SURVIVES 17-YEAR SCRUTINY
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently released its comprehensive assessment of the herbicide, 2,4-Dichloro-phenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), under the agency's rergistration program....
HELP WANTED
Instead of my usual ramblings you no doubt look forward to skimming each month, I would like to use this page to recognize the folks in our industry who are doing us proud....
How To: Transplant Trees
Whether you're transplanting trees with a tree spade or planting them balled-and-burlapped from the nursery, you can improve transplant success by following these tips....
The Right Stuff
I used to change the oil in my own car. I also did some of the light maintenance stuff like changing spark plugs, oil filters, air filters, etc....
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