Every so often someone floats the idea (no pun intended) to send water from the Great Lakes to the arid Southwest. I'm not sure just how serious these discussions ever get, but just the suggestion always get an immediate reaction from state and regional politicos. They say "no way."
How likely is Great Lakes water to end up in bathtubs of Phoenix and Las Vegas? Probably not that likely, at least not in this generation. Apart from the cost of moving the water (and cost is probably the big issue as it always is), the Great Lakes are controlled by joint U.S./Canadian commission.
If the Southwest can't expect a significant new source of fresh water, what's going to do as its population continues to swell? Well, it would seem that it would have to do the best it can with the water that it has.
Could it be that some of us will be looking at our water bills the same way we look at our home heating bills and the gas pump when we fill up. In horror. — Ron Hall
Wednesday, February 01, 2006
Saturday, January 28, 2006
Shaken not stirred
Where's the snow? Where's the ice?
All of us here in the Great Lakes are wondering . . . what's up with the weather?
While I'm not complaining about a January that averaged 12 F. above normal and, in my neighorhood, just a dusting or two of snow, if all my snow plow jobs were "by push" I might be thinking that next year I would be lining up some seasonal contracts, too. You know,the kind where you get paid a certain amount whether it snows or not. It's like snow plow insurance for property owners.
The only other people singing the blues in my neighborhood about this winter's unseasonably warm temperatures are the ice fishing guides. Their little shanties haven't moved from their yards.
I got to thinking about all of this this morning over coffee in my favorite Burger King when I saw a Chevy S-10 pulling a 16-foot Starcraft through the drive-thru. I can't recall ever seeing an open boat on Lake Erie in January before. Hope the three fishermen in that truck stay close to shore. That water is still mighty cold. — Ron Hall
All of us here in the Great Lakes are wondering . . . what's up with the weather?
While I'm not complaining about a January that averaged 12 F. above normal and, in my neighorhood, just a dusting or two of snow, if all my snow plow jobs were "by push" I might be thinking that next year I would be lining up some seasonal contracts, too. You know,the kind where you get paid a certain amount whether it snows or not. It's like snow plow insurance for property owners.
The only other people singing the blues in my neighborhood about this winter's unseasonably warm temperatures are the ice fishing guides. Their little shanties haven't moved from their yards.
I got to thinking about all of this this morning over coffee in my favorite Burger King when I saw a Chevy S-10 pulling a 16-foot Starcraft through the drive-thru. I can't recall ever seeing an open boat on Lake Erie in January before. Hope the three fishermen in that truck stay close to shore. That water is still mighty cold. — Ron Hall
Friday, January 27, 2006
Point and counterpoint
Took some time off this past week to do a little fishing in south Florida, visit a kid brother and attend the Sports Turf Managers Association Conference in Orlando. This is one cool group of guys and gals that don't get near enough credit for what they do. Money? Heck, most of them know they aren't going to make squat going into this gig. But they love what they do.
To the point, though.
Two of the educational sessiosn at the conference couldn't have presented the pesticide issue in more different lights. The first was by Chip Osborne. He's in charge of all the parks and city properties in Marblehead, MA, which prohibits the use of chemical pesticides. Osborne is a veteran horticulturist and he made no apologies as he layed out his "organic" program. There might have been 100 or so grounds managers in the audience.
The following day Erica Santella, Florida regional manager for TruGreen, gave an equally compelling presentation on the pesticide issue, this one focused on how grounds managers can communicate effectively with the press. Unfortunately, her presentation was going head to head with the long-anticipated roll out of the STMA's Synthetic Turf report, so she found herself presenting to just four people, myself included.
They say that "timing is everything." Maybe or maybe not. What a shame her presentation didn't follow Chip's. — Ron Hall
To the point, though.
Two of the educational sessiosn at the conference couldn't have presented the pesticide issue in more different lights. The first was by Chip Osborne. He's in charge of all the parks and city properties in Marblehead, MA, which prohibits the use of chemical pesticides. Osborne is a veteran horticulturist and he made no apologies as he layed out his "organic" program. There might have been 100 or so grounds managers in the audience.
The following day Erica Santella, Florida regional manager for TruGreen, gave an equally compelling presentation on the pesticide issue, this one focused on how grounds managers can communicate effectively with the press. Unfortunately, her presentation was going head to head with the long-anticipated roll out of the STMA's Synthetic Turf report, so she found herself presenting to just four people, myself included.
They say that "timing is everything." Maybe or maybe not. What a shame her presentation didn't follow Chip's. — Ron Hall
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Pretty is as pretty does
I just read a column in a Florida newspaper asking for entries in an "Ugliest Subdivision Contest." One of the criteria was that the subdivision had to have terrible landscaping. So I got to thinking about what constitutes terrible landscaping. Is it puny trees? No trees at all? Brown grass? No grass at all? Often I see new housing divisions (sometimes filled with million-dollar homes) that have no landscaping at all. They might have lawns, but zero trees. What's the reasoning there? Sure, once the owners move in they can hire professionals to plant color, and shrubs and install patios and pathways, but these neighborhoods never have trees, and the new owners rarely plant them, unless they're small ornamentals.
These places contrast sharply with the older neighborhoods in my area where century-old homes sit on tree-filled lots on wide streets that used to accomodate streetcars going downtown. These houses themselves are worth a lot less money-wise than the brand-new ones, but the total package is a lot more aesthetic in my opinion. Why? Because of the big trees and the natural landscaping. I'm sure many of those homeowners complain about roots from the old trees pushing up their lawns, and squirrels moving the foundation of the old house, but I can't help but thing they'd still prefer their lots to the brand-new neighborhoods with no landscaping. — Stephanie Ricca
These places contrast sharply with the older neighborhoods in my area where century-old homes sit on tree-filled lots on wide streets that used to accomodate streetcars going downtown. These houses themselves are worth a lot less money-wise than the brand-new ones, but the total package is a lot more aesthetic in my opinion. Why? Because of the big trees and the natural landscaping. I'm sure many of those homeowners complain about roots from the old trees pushing up their lawns, and squirrels moving the foundation of the old house, but I can't help but thing they'd still prefer their lots to the brand-new neighborhoods with no landscaping. — Stephanie Ricca
Monday, January 09, 2006
Those wonderful, flashy LED billboards
A former boss once advised me — "Never try to solve a simple problem with a complicated solution." In that spirit I offer the following observations concerning landscape and lawn care advertising.
Most landscape and lawn service company owners know that getting new customers is a numbers game. Assuming the services they offer are comparable to the market, their prices are in line, etc., the amount of new business they acquire from year to year will depend on the number of qualified contacts they make and pursue. For lawn care in particular the time-tested way to attact new leads is through direct mail pieces, telephone solicitations and door hangers. Put out X number of messages and get Y number of responses and a somewhat predictable number of new customers. Simple, right?
But, some of us prefer the more creative (i.e. more complicated) solution to the advertising challenge, If you have an adventuresome side, consider flashing your message on one of the the new electronic billboards. These electronic marvels come in two flavors — roadside and mobile.
I saw my first LED roadside billboard a couple of weeks ago on Woodville Road in Toledo, Ohio. It's colorful, high-definition and eye-catching. It has the ability to change messages instantaneously, from what I understand, so it can fit the message to the season or time of day even.
But hey, that ain't nothing, as they say.
Some LED billboards installed along busy highways in the San Francisco Bay area can actually profile commuters. They pick up which radio stations people are listening to and then tailor an eyecatching message on the billboards to that particular demographic slice of America. Say, most of the commuters are listening to ESPN for the weekend's football happenings, then the billboards might flash advertising for a popular beer.
Another advertising option are traveling EDS billboards. These box trucks have LED messages on three sides of the box. Apparently, you buy advertising space on the truck and the driver then cruises busy highways with the bright LED message alerting everybody on that particular highway of your service. Or, the truck parked at a busy intersection or location and everybody that passes there gets a load of your message.
Sure, direct mail and door hangers work . . . but why rely upon the tried and true (even it is a bit worn about the edges) when you can strike off boldly in another direction? — Ron Hall
Most landscape and lawn service company owners know that getting new customers is a numbers game. Assuming the services they offer are comparable to the market, their prices are in line, etc., the amount of new business they acquire from year to year will depend on the number of qualified contacts they make and pursue. For lawn care in particular the time-tested way to attact new leads is through direct mail pieces, telephone solicitations and door hangers. Put out X number of messages and get Y number of responses and a somewhat predictable number of new customers. Simple, right?
But, some of us prefer the more creative (i.e. more complicated) solution to the advertising challenge, If you have an adventuresome side, consider flashing your message on one of the the new electronic billboards. These electronic marvels come in two flavors — roadside and mobile.
I saw my first LED roadside billboard a couple of weeks ago on Woodville Road in Toledo, Ohio. It's colorful, high-definition and eye-catching. It has the ability to change messages instantaneously, from what I understand, so it can fit the message to the season or time of day even.
But hey, that ain't nothing, as they say.
Some LED billboards installed along busy highways in the San Francisco Bay area can actually profile commuters. They pick up which radio stations people are listening to and then tailor an eyecatching message on the billboards to that particular demographic slice of America. Say, most of the commuters are listening to ESPN for the weekend's football happenings, then the billboards might flash advertising for a popular beer.
Another advertising option are traveling EDS billboards. These box trucks have LED messages on three sides of the box. Apparently, you buy advertising space on the truck and the driver then cruises busy highways with the bright LED message alerting everybody on that particular highway of your service. Or, the truck parked at a busy intersection or location and everybody that passes there gets a load of your message.
Sure, direct mail and door hangers work . . . but why rely upon the tried and true (even it is a bit worn about the edges) when you can strike off boldly in another direction? — Ron Hall
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Random Science, Non-Landscaping News
Here are a couple science stories I've been looking at this morning on the Web that probably will have no impact whatsoever on your life as a landscaper, but may be kind of interesting anyway.
Some whale species sing in different dialects depending on where they're from, a new study in the journal BioScience shows. Blue whales off the Pacific Northwest sound different than blue whales in the western Pacific Ocean, and these sound different than those living off Antarctica. And they all sound different than the blue whales living near Chile.
These findings could forever change the way we look at Star Trek IV.
In other news, researchers at a Missouri university have identified the largest known prime number.. The number that the team found is 9.1 million digits long. It is a Mersenne prime known as M30402457 — that's 2 to the 30,402,457th power minus 1.
"We're super excited," said Steven Boone, a chemistry professor. "We've been looking for such a number for a long time."
What's frightening is that I don't think he's kidding. I hope that the study was at least partially federally funded, so that I could have the pleasure of knowing that I particiated in some small way, and that my tax dollars are being used on such a worthy cause.
And I know you are all wondering, is there a global cooling problem on Pluto? Could it be the setting of The Day After Tomorrow II: Dennis Quaid in Space? Possibly, as Earth-bound astronomers taking Pluto's temperature have confirmed suspicions that the planet is colder than it should be. It's thought that the planet's lower temperature is the result of interactions between its icy surface and thin nitrogen atmosphere.
One scientist explained planets like Venus and Earth experience a natural greenhouse effect, where sunlight energy striking the surface is absorbed and used to heat the surface. On Pluto, the opposite happens. Pluto is a dynamic example of what we might call an anti-greenhouse effect, explained one scientist.
Maybe I shouldn't joke about these studies. Maybe they truly will have a practical application to our daily lives sometime within the next 2 to the 30,402,457th power minus 1 years. Then again, those scientists probably don't see what the big deal is when we have a new zero-turn mower or variety of grass seed. To each his own, I always say. Though I can't help but wonder what that phrase would sound like if I were a whale. — Mike Seuffert
Some whale species sing in different dialects depending on where they're from, a new study in the journal BioScience shows. Blue whales off the Pacific Northwest sound different than blue whales in the western Pacific Ocean, and these sound different than those living off Antarctica. And they all sound different than the blue whales living near Chile.
These findings could forever change the way we look at Star Trek IV.
In other news, researchers at a Missouri university have identified the largest known prime number.. The number that the team found is 9.1 million digits long. It is a Mersenne prime known as M30402457 — that's 2 to the 30,402,457th power minus 1.
"We're super excited," said Steven Boone, a chemistry professor. "We've been looking for such a number for a long time."
What's frightening is that I don't think he's kidding. I hope that the study was at least partially federally funded, so that I could have the pleasure of knowing that I particiated in some small way, and that my tax dollars are being used on such a worthy cause.
And I know you are all wondering, is there a global cooling problem on Pluto? Could it be the setting of The Day After Tomorrow II: Dennis Quaid in Space? Possibly, as Earth-bound astronomers taking Pluto's temperature have confirmed suspicions that the planet is colder than it should be. It's thought that the planet's lower temperature is the result of interactions between its icy surface and thin nitrogen atmosphere.
One scientist explained planets like Venus and Earth experience a natural greenhouse effect, where sunlight energy striking the surface is absorbed and used to heat the surface. On Pluto, the opposite happens. Pluto is a dynamic example of what we might call an anti-greenhouse effect, explained one scientist.
Maybe I shouldn't joke about these studies. Maybe they truly will have a practical application to our daily lives sometime within the next 2 to the 30,402,457th power minus 1 years. Then again, those scientists probably don't see what the big deal is when we have a new zero-turn mower or variety of grass seed. To each his own, I always say. Though I can't help but wonder what that phrase would sound like if I were a whale. — Mike Seuffert
Sunday, January 01, 2006
Companies getting tough on smoking
With the new year comes new resolutions. I suspect "Stop Smoking" tops a lot of lists.
Some of my local landscape friends are getting tough with their smoking policies. Or more correctly "no smoking" policies. They tell me that they've forbidden their employees to smoke on customers' properties. They say it looks bad to clients, and they feel that it leads to too many "smoke breaks" during the day.
One owner friends has even put little "no smoking" placards on the dashboards of his three company pickups. A former smoker himself, he says he now hates the smell of stale tobacco and got tired of seeing ashtrays filled with butts.
More employers, given the choice, are going to hire non-smokers over smokers, especially if they're footing most of their employees' health care costs.
It would be interesting to find out what percentage of landscape/lawn service company owners have policies on tobacco use on company time. We'll survey our readers and see what kind of response we get. — Ron Hall
Some of my local landscape friends are getting tough with their smoking policies. Or more correctly "no smoking" policies. They tell me that they've forbidden their employees to smoke on customers' properties. They say it looks bad to clients, and they feel that it leads to too many "smoke breaks" during the day.
One owner friends has even put little "no smoking" placards on the dashboards of his three company pickups. A former smoker himself, he says he now hates the smell of stale tobacco and got tired of seeing ashtrays filled with butts.
More employers, given the choice, are going to hire non-smokers over smokers, especially if they're footing most of their employees' health care costs.
It would be interesting to find out what percentage of landscape/lawn service company owners have policies on tobacco use on company time. We'll survey our readers and see what kind of response we get. — Ron Hall
Friday, December 30, 2005
Symbiot says Adios to Erie operation
What's going on at Symbiot? Word comes that John Allen, who ran its landscape operations out of the Erie, PA, control central he built a couple of years ago, left Symbiot on Dec. 15. Then, a couple of weeks later, Matthew Glover, Symbiot's senior VP of national accounts, confirms that the Utah-based mega-service provider is closing down the Erie operation entirely. He reportedly told Jim Martin a reporter with Erie Times Newspaper that Symbiot is streamlining operations, reducing operations in the process. The Erie operation will be shut down sometime in the first quarter of '06
To find out how the move is being seen in Erie, PA, go to www.GoErie.com. Type in "Snow-removal" in the search box. You will have to register (it's free) but, until we can get more info, this is a pretty good look at the situation. — Ron Hall
To find out how the move is being seen in Erie, PA, go to www.GoErie.com. Type in "Snow-removal" in the search box. You will have to register (it's free) but, until we can get more info, this is a pretty good look at the situation. — Ron Hall
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
This is no holiday treat
The Capital One television Christmas "No Hassles" credit cards pitch was an inane assault upon consumers' intelligence. Almost makes me glad Christmas has passed. Where's the humor in snarky David Spade's "No" as in "no blackout dates" to his co-workers in a corporate cube farm? Sarcastic. Smug. Capital One, and Spade, reached a new slithering low with its Christmas 60-seconder that had that annoying punk tossing "bonuses" to subordinates, including the moron behind the reins of a sleigh who (cue the predictable climax that's apparently supposed to be humorous but is cruel) gets dragged, screaming and whimpering, behind a team of dogs. Enough, enough, puleeeese. — Ron Hall
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Christmas parties, why just once a year?
Tis the season . . . for Christmas parties. We had ours this past Monday night. A nice little affair. Trays of those fancy tiny snack things. A lot of us wore Hawaiian shirts (I own a dozen) and leis in spite of an outside temperature of 100 below zero. Alas, I couldn't hang around long. Having a long trip home, I sucked down my two free drinks, got to know a couple of my colleagues a little bit better and headed west.
Then, on a city bus heading for a park and ride, I heard about a REAL Christmast party. Turns out the guy sitting in the seat behind me had a terminal case of cellphoneitis. By the time I stepped off the bus, a trip of about 20 minutes, I knew more about this guy than I did about some of my in-laws. In fact, everybody on the bus, which was about half full, found out more about this character than they really wanted to know.
But the good stuff involved his company's Christmas party, held that afternoon. As he told it, he and a group of co-workers chipped in a total of $210, which they offered to a colleague if he would eat a "a case" of chocolate, or as he described it, "about 90 little bottles of chocolate" that the office staff had received as a gift from a client.
It seems the chocolate lover got about two thirds through the case, or about 60 "little bottles of chocolate" before . . . well, you can guess the rest. It wasn't pretty, and I'm talking about the bus guy's description of the event.
What is it about Christmas parties that prompts us to do these things? — Ron Hall
Then, on a city bus heading for a park and ride, I heard about a REAL Christmast party. Turns out the guy sitting in the seat behind me had a terminal case of cellphoneitis. By the time I stepped off the bus, a trip of about 20 minutes, I knew more about this guy than I did about some of my in-laws. In fact, everybody on the bus, which was about half full, found out more about this character than they really wanted to know.
But the good stuff involved his company's Christmas party, held that afternoon. As he told it, he and a group of co-workers chipped in a total of $210, which they offered to a colleague if he would eat a "a case" of chocolate, or as he described it, "about 90 little bottles of chocolate" that the office staff had received as a gift from a client.
It seems the chocolate lover got about two thirds through the case, or about 60 "little bottles of chocolate" before . . . well, you can guess the rest. It wasn't pretty, and I'm talking about the bus guy's description of the event.
What is it about Christmas parties that prompts us to do these things? — Ron Hall
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Callback times: How long is too long?
I never realize how important friendly, helpful customer service is until I'm on the receiving end of the frustrating, not-so-helpful kind. And around this time of year, 'tis the season. It gets tough when we're trying to get so much done in order to take a day or two off and I'm guilty too — I'll ignore e-mails and not answer phone voicemail messages until I get my other work under control.
But as a magazine editor, I'm in the service business so I've got to return the e-mails and the messages. It's not like I'm a government employee who can just let everything go to voicemail, haha.
I thought about this last week when I was trying to secure a Christmas "gift" for my dad, who had serious surgery this year and really doesn't need to spend his whole winter shoveling the driveway. I got a referral for a local landscape and snow removal company and called. Several times. I understand that this is the busy season for snow removal services and that many companies have a voicemail system for their calls.
But I never got a call back. I called three times, leaving detailed information and I never heard a peep. Now it's been longer than a week, and I'm really soured by the company's lack of a callback. Yes, I got a great referral and have heard nothing but good things about the techs, the pricing, and so on.
But if they never call me back, I'm not going to take the time to chase them down anymore. Next!
— Stephanie Ricca
But as a magazine editor, I'm in the service business so I've got to return the e-mails and the messages. It's not like I'm a government employee who can just let everything go to voicemail, haha.
I thought about this last week when I was trying to secure a Christmas "gift" for my dad, who had serious surgery this year and really doesn't need to spend his whole winter shoveling the driveway. I got a referral for a local landscape and snow removal company and called. Several times. I understand that this is the busy season for snow removal services and that many companies have a voicemail system for their calls.
But I never got a call back. I called three times, leaving detailed information and I never heard a peep. Now it's been longer than a week, and I'm really soured by the company's lack of a callback. Yes, I got a great referral and have heard nothing but good things about the techs, the pricing, and so on.
But if they never call me back, I'm not going to take the time to chase them down anymore. Next!
— Stephanie Ricca
Friday, December 16, 2005
This is a problem? Let's lighten up folks
Having been ticketed myself for such heinous crimes as parking too far from the curb in front of my home, leaving my car parked on the street for more than 48 hours without moving it, partially blocking a sidewalk after pulling my car into my driveway, I symphatize with the TruGreen service guy in Brooksville, FL, who is breaking the law, technically, for parking his truck in the street to do lawn services.
Cops there say they generally don't enforce the law unless somebody complains. Complains?
Yea, that's the reason why I've gotten so many parking tickets over the years, a neighbor who doesn't have anything better to do than play traffic cop on our street. Hey pal, go play with your petunias.
What say we give these home service people a break. What else are they going to do with their trucks, drive them up into homeowners' yards?
Here's the link to the article. — Ron Hall
Cops there say they generally don't enforce the law unless somebody complains. Complains?
Yea, that's the reason why I've gotten so many parking tickets over the years, a neighbor who doesn't have anything better to do than play traffic cop on our street. Hey pal, go play with your petunias.
What say we give these home service people a break. What else are they going to do with their trucks, drive them up into homeowners' yards?
Here's the link to the article. — Ron Hall
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
Scotts tells smokers quit or hit the road
The Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. is getting tough on employees who smoke, reported the Associated Press on Monday, Dec. 12. They're giving them until this coming October to give up the cowboy killers or find another job. The company wants to reduce its health care costs. It reportedly pays 75% of employees' health insurance. Scotts employs about 6,000 people and recorded sales of $2.3 billion in its last fiscal year. The company says it can fire smokers legally in 21 states, the AP reported.
"Why would we admit someone into this environment when they're passing risk along to everyone else? Our view is we shouldn't and we won't," James Hagedorn, the company's chairman said in the AP news report. -- Ron Hall
"Why would we admit someone into this environment when they're passing risk along to everyone else? Our view is we shouldn't and we won't," James Hagedorn, the company's chairman said in the AP news report. -- Ron Hall
Monday, December 12, 2005
The next generation
Last week, Ron Hall and I were fortunate to attend the Ohio Sports Turf Managers Association's (OSTMA) annual meeting held over lunch during the Ohio Turf Conference in Columbus. While we were standing around chatting before lunch, a gaggle of gangly young men in very new suits and ties clumped into the room together. It was a beautiful sight, these thin young men in their uncreased suits and carefully knotted ties. They were turf students who had each earned a scholarship or award from the OSTMA. To some, a $500 scholarship to help a 19-year-old attend the national Sports Turf Managers Association conference in Orlando next January might seem like small potatoes. But it isn't. A trip to the national show at just this stage of their training opens up a whole new world of opportunity for students. The OSTMA members, by their generosity and hard work, showed all of us the true meaning of professionalism. You see, it was a year of dynamic growth and reorganization for OSTMA, and thanks to the dedication of its members, the association has come through it stronger than ever. If you are lucky enough to have the chance to be involved with a class act regional or local professional organization like the OSTMA, seize the opportunity. By working together, Green Industry professionals can have fun, advance their own careers and contribute to the growth of the next generation. Congratulations to OSTMA and its honorees. -- Lynne Brakeman
Thinking beyond IPM
Want to see what the future of lawn care might look like? Check out this Web site.
This is the Web site of an ambitious project known as the Urban Landscape Ecology Program. It is the brainchild of Dr. Parwinder Grewal an entomologist and associate professor at The Ohio State University. He and a sizable number of colleagues (researchers, academics AND industry figures) are delving deeply into the role of lawn and landscape care in today's urban communities, and how it can be made sustainable. What you'll learn from this Web site will surprise you. — Ron Hall
This is the Web site of an ambitious project known as the Urban Landscape Ecology Program. It is the brainchild of Dr. Parwinder Grewal an entomologist and associate professor at The Ohio State University. He and a sizable number of colleagues (researchers, academics AND industry figures) are delving deeply into the role of lawn and landscape care in today's urban communities, and how it can be made sustainable. What you'll learn from this Web site will surprise you. — Ron Hall
Friday, December 09, 2005
Snow, snow everywhere
I've never seen so many snow pushing people (or maybe I never paid much attention before), but this morning I saw trucks of every size, shape and color pushing snow after last night's storm. The snow swept up from the Ohio River Valley, starting about 7 p.m., dumped its load and scooted on out to the Northeast. We got about six inches in my small Lake Erie community. It was the third snow event of the season. Hey, It's not even winter yet, not by the calendar anyway!
Stopping in at my favorite local coffee stop before sunrise this morning, I asked the manager. a friendly young lady, if she was happy with the job her snowplow guy was doing. She says with a shrug: "Yea, he does a pretty good job." She says she gets to work just before 5 a.m. and he's usually there and pushing snow when she arrives.
Grateful for the restaurant's warmth and the hot black coffee in the bitterly cold predawn, I looked out over the empty lot, cleared of its snow, and count about 30 parking spaces. The restaurant sits on about a half acre of property, I'm guessing. The manager tells me her "snowplow guy" charges $50 every time he pushes out the lot.
On an adjacent property, another restaurant, I see a F-250 with a plow, but it's parked. What's surely a young lady dressed up like an Eskimo is pushing a broadcast spreader back and forth, lengthwise, across that lot. I suppose that she knows that she can attach a small spreader to the back of her pickup and save a lot of walking. But maybe she doesn't mind walking. And she doesn't seem to be in any hurry. It could be her last job of the morning, or her only job. Who knows? — Ron Hall
Stopping in at my favorite local coffee stop before sunrise this morning, I asked the manager. a friendly young lady, if she was happy with the job her snowplow guy was doing. She says with a shrug: "Yea, he does a pretty good job." She says she gets to work just before 5 a.m. and he's usually there and pushing snow when she arrives.
Grateful for the restaurant's warmth and the hot black coffee in the bitterly cold predawn, I looked out over the empty lot, cleared of its snow, and count about 30 parking spaces. The restaurant sits on about a half acre of property, I'm guessing. The manager tells me her "snowplow guy" charges $50 every time he pushes out the lot.
On an adjacent property, another restaurant, I see a F-250 with a plow, but it's parked. What's surely a young lady dressed up like an Eskimo is pushing a broadcast spreader back and forth, lengthwise, across that lot. I suppose that she knows that she can attach a small spreader to the back of her pickup and save a lot of walking. But maybe she doesn't mind walking. And she doesn't seem to be in any hurry. It could be her last job of the morning, or her only job. Who knows? — Ron Hall
The flying lawnmower
This is sure to be a hit at next year's EXPO and GIE shows: the flying lawnmower.
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Children and lawnmowers don't mix
Just in case you need a reminder why using child labor in the Green Industry is a bad idea: See story here. — Mike Seuffert
EAB coming to Cleveland?
Just as the editorial offices of Landscape Management have just completed a move to downtown Cleveland, it looks like we're being followed closely by the emerald ash borer. According to an article from the Associated Press: "The emerald ash borer beetle, which has destroyed millions of ash trees in Michigan and northwest Ohio, has been found in Lorain County, State Agriculture Department officials said.
That is the farthest east the voracious Asian insect had been found and puts it closer to Cleveland, where, like in many cities, ash trees are popular street trees."
Lorain County is just east of Cleveland's Cuyahoga County. Thousands of people commute between the counties every day. It wouldn't be difficult for the EAB to hitch a ride. Just when we were getting comfortable here, too. — Mike Seuffert
That is the farthest east the voracious Asian insect had been found and puts it closer to Cleveland, where, like in many cities, ash trees are popular street trees."
Lorain County is just east of Cleveland's Cuyahoga County. Thousands of people commute between the counties every day. It wouldn't be difficult for the EAB to hitch a ride. Just when we were getting comfortable here, too. — Mike Seuffert
Monday, December 05, 2005
Calling planet earth
The Chapel Hill News in North Carolina reported recently that 34 people there signed a petition asking the city to quit using herbicides and to severely curtail the use of insecticides on city property. The leader of the petition drive said she would not let her daugher go to town parks anymore in spite of the "integrated pest management" program it instituted in 1999.
When the question arose as to whether it would be wise not to spray a wasp nest near a city park, a local official offered this alternative — take a watermelon about 50 feet away and smash it open. Then dump five pounds of sugar on it."
"The bugs'll come. You haven't killed a thing, but it solves your problem," he was quoted as saying in the news report. — Ron Hall
When the question arose as to whether it would be wise not to spray a wasp nest near a city park, a local official offered this alternative — take a watermelon about 50 feet away and smash it open. Then dump five pounds of sugar on it."
"The bugs'll come. You haven't killed a thing, but it solves your problem," he was quoted as saying in the news report. — Ron Hall
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