One of the toughest tasks in landscaping is estimating jobs for bids.

“It’s one of the biggest challenges for small businesses,” says Tony Bass, landscaper-turned-consultant and co-author of The E-Myth Landscape Contractor: Why Most Landscape Companies Don’t Work and What to Do About It (prodigybusinessbooks.com).

Statistics show that out of every five jobs, a typical contractor loses money on one, breaks even on one, makes about the expected profit on two and hits a financial home run on one.

“So if you do 50 jobs a year, that’s 10 bad jobs a year,” he explains. “If you can take those 10 bad jobs and replace them with good jobs, you’ll double your profit.” Here’s how you do it.

1: Develop an accurate general operating budget.

Profitable estimating begins with an accurate blueprint of how much it costs annually to operate your company. Review expenditures from previous years and/or use budget software to produce an accurate spending picture.

2: Account for overhead recovery.

Determine how much to mark up costs of services to recover overhead costs (administrative, fuel, etc.) and make a profit. “If you don’t recoup overhead costs, there’s not even $1 of profit in a job,” Bass says. Most smaller businesses underestimate overhead costs.

3: Develop a plan.

After listening closely to and writing down what a client wants, create a step-by-step plan and specifications for the project. Consult with vendors, subcontractors, equipment suppliers and employees to get ideas about the best way to do the job. Later, this plan and job specifications/measurements become a blueprint for your employees.

4: Estimate the cost of materials.

This is a straightforward cost to pin down. Examples: How many cubic yards of mulch are required? Accuracy here depends directly on the plan and project specifications you develop in Step Three.

5: Estimate subcontractor costs.

“This is the easiest part of the equation,” Bass says. Ask the subs to take a look at the project specifications and add their quote to your costs.

6: Use a production rate-based formula to estimate equipment costs.

It’s critical to know how much work each piece of equipment can produce in an hour. Example: How much turf can one of your mowers cut per hour?

If you don’t know, make a list of your equipment and perform time-and-motion studies on a variety of jobs.

7: Use production-rate data to estimate labor costs.

Just as with equipment, you need to know how much work employees can do in an hour with various tasks. Perform studies to obtain accurate data.

8: Submit a bid.

“Focus all of your energy and effort on getting the right price — the price that’s right for your company and right for your customer,” Bass says. Accurate estimating prepares and protects your bidding process.

9: Create a sales process to seal the deal.

“You must have a process for dealing with price objections that are sure to come,” Bass says. “You’re going to have to become a better salesperson and improve your overcoming-objections skills.” Example: Point out things that differentiate your company from competitors, such as certified employees, more on-the-job experience or newer equipment less prone to breakdowns.

10: You win! Now comes job-costing analysis.

Compare your estimate to the actual costs. “The most profitable companies spend as much or more time focusing on job costing than any other part of their business,” Bass says. “They know if they don’t keep good records of different tasks and how much time each requires, they’re not going to get better.”

Bob’s Outdoor Power Equipment in Vestavia Hills, Alabama, has been selling and servicing all types of landscape equipment for 25 years. Owner, Daryl Carr, estimates 90 percent of the repair problems that come into his shop are gas-related issues. Ethanol is frequently the suspected culprit.

“On a two-stroke, it’s more of an issue than with a four-stroke engine,” he says. “In the smaller two-strokes, you’ve got flexible diaphragms pumping the fuel. When a diaphragm hardens up with ethanol, it doesn’t do its job.”

One of the biggest problems with ethanol is it is hydrophilic – it attracts water. The longer ethanol sits in your tanks, the more moisture it absorbs out of the atmosphere.

Most experts say after two months of sitting idle, the E10 fuel in a chainsaw, trimmer or other small engine will likely be too wet to start.

Here’s how to prevent damage:

1 Use a quality fuel additive designed to combat ethanol.

2 Don’t purchase more gasoline than you can use in two months.

3 Use a test kit to check to be certain the ethanol content is 10 percent or less.

4 Check with marinas about purchasing ethanol-free gasoline.

5 Run engines completely out of gas if you plan to store them for more than two months.

6 If an engine has been idle for more than two months, replace old fuel with fresh before cranking it.

7 Purchase cans of ethanol-free fuel pre-mixed with oil from a small engine servicing dealer.

8 Store fuel and equipment in a dry place.

The demands of combining landscape and nursery businesses

By Carolyn Mason

It begins with a logical question: Why should I pay a wholesale distributor or plant broker for my landscape plants and trees when I could grow them myself?

After all, most landscapers are good with plants, soil and maintenance, and already have a built-in customer base: their clients.

How hard could it be?

“Plenty hard,” says Tony Avent, owner of Plant Delights Nursery in Raleigh, North Carolina, and author of So You Want to Start a Nursery, considered the bible of nursery owner wannabes.

“Just because you like to grow plants doesn’t mean it’s a good reason to start a nursery. It’s like saying you like to cook, so you should start a restaurant.”

He’s seen both sides of the equation – landscapers who add a nursery to supply their landscape business and nursery owners who figure they ought to get into the landscape business.

“While landscaping is by far the most profitable, most folks who try both tend to either go bankrupt or end up in the nursery business,” Avent says.

Seeds of Change

Landscapers wanting to start a nursery usually start as landscapers who are unable to get the plants, quality or sizes they desire from nearby nurseries, he says. The nursery’s first function is to supply their landscaping business. Once the landscapers realize they can’t predict demand any better than the nurseries they were buying from, they start wholesaling their surplus, and the rest, as they say, is a slippery slope.

The nursery business, like the landscape business, ebbs and flows with the housing market, and its profitability is dependent on the economic health of the area. However, there are exceptions.

Successful owners wearing dual hats describe their experience as positive but not something they take on lightly. For some, their nursery business has weathered the recession better than the landscape side. For others, it’s a cautionary tale of taking on more than you can handle.

If you are interested in starting a nursery business in conjunction with your landscape one, the most important advice from those in the field is to research the industry, develop a business plan and view the decision as if you were starting a brand new business.

Trial and Error

For some owners, the dual business emerged through trial and error during several generations.

One such owner is Paul Kjeldbjerg, founder of Poul’s Landscaping and Nursery, a nursery, landscape design and construction firm in Long Grove, Illinois. Kjeldbjerg started the landscape company in 1966 and added a nursery business in 1986. Today, his two sons run the business – Dan operates the financial and construction side, and Alan oversees the 165-acre wholesale nursery and retail garden center business.

“It’s like saying you like to cook, so you should start a restaurant.”

They operate under the family umbrella but run separate companies. Alan, who has a degree in horticulture, says the nursery provides the landscape business with nearly 60 percent of materials and perennials and 100 percent of trees and evergreens.

“Customers have the advantage of being able to walk in, pick out their plants and trees and be part of the process from beginning to end,” he says.

Kjeldbjerg’s nursery business accounts for about 20 percent of the overall company profits, but Alan says the contributions go deeper than a spreadsheet might show. The companies complement each other in marketing and brand awareness, and they often share labor pools during off-season.

Royal Landscape (shown above and below) has nursery and lanscaping services but has focused more on the former in response to the slow economy.

Like Kjeldbjerg, some established landscape/nursery business owners say they enjoy the synchronicity of running an operation from the ground up. Connie and Steve Emerson own Royal Landscape in Gotha, Florida, and operate a nursery that sells wholesale and retail, a retail garden center and full-service landscape business. The three branches of the business, wholesale/retail/landscape are easily tweaked depending on the economy, buying trends and changing business models. Connie says they are trimming back their landscape side while riding out the economic downturn but have the luxury of being able to expand the nursery side.

The Emersons have operated both the nursery and landscape business since 1997 but have started focusing on the nursery in response to the slow economy and the high costs of fuel and labor, which hit the landscape side of the business harder. The nursery now accounts for 50 percent of their business and continues to expand, Connie says. They grow on 46 acres and sell wholesale to other landscapers and through their retail garden center, along with supplying their landscape business.

“Growing, landscape and retail are definitely three different animals, and while I can wear any of the hats, I mostly focus on the nursery side,” she says.

Connie says she meets landscapers all of the time who say they want to get into the growing business. “It’s not something you just jump into,” she advises.

“Most people don’t consider complex requirements such expertise in chemicals, pest control, government regulations, irrigation, diseases, water shortages and restrictions and the balancing act of anticipating demand, ordering supplies and managing a labor force,” she says.

“Add all of the required expensive start-up equipment such as loaders, Bobcats, tractors and then the property and laying of irrigation lines and you have a hugely complex operation.”

“You have to fight weeds, disease, competition and figure out how to manage the inventory.”

Bobby Franz would agree. Franz, owner of Franz Landscaping and Nursery in Hamilton, Indiana, says his family-owned company started as a nursery and then added landscaping. He now runs the dual businesses separately. [Read about his hardscaping services, page 15.] While he enjoys the nursery side, he says it is always a battle. “You have to fight weeds, disease, competition and figure out how to manage the inventory. Our business model has evolved over 50 years with constant refiguring of all three sides – growing, retail and landscape.”

The big-box stores loom over the business, but Franz says his customers are different. “The difference between the people who come to our nursery and those who go to a big-box store is like the difference between going to a fast-food joint versus a steak restaurant,” he says. “Two different experiences, and you are willing to pay more for the higher quality product and service.”

Landscaper to Grower

One landscaper turned grower, Claire Butler, says she dropped the landscaping side when she became more interested in growing. Butler started Meadowlark Nursery in her backyard in Redwood City, California, to supply hard-to-find perennials for her landscape installations. In 1989, she moved the nursery to its present location in Northern California.

“It’s a full-time job, and the idea that you can grow plants on the side or grow unusual plants that are hard to find in a wholesale nursery sounds good in theory, but there’s usually a reason the plants are hard to find,” she says. “Either they are hard to grow, hard to find, difficult to grow in containers or are prone to diseases.”

Butler grows on speculation, which is challenging during economic hard times. “You are better off buying your plants from an established wholesaler instead of investing money and time in something so uncertain,” she says. She still does design and installation for some customers but prefers to focus solely on her nursery business.

The No-Grow Option

There are many different combinations of retail/wholesale nursery and landscape, but Steve Tilleraas, owner of Tilleraas Landscape & Nursery in Great Falls, Montana, says he’s got the best of all the worlds. He operates a landscape business and garden center but doesn’t grow any of the products he sells in the garden center. “I buy everything wholesale,” Tilleraas says. “The retail shop brings in customers for both the landscaping and the garden center, and I can count on being fully stocked for both.”

Still Want to Grow?

If you are not daunted by the considerable start-up expenses, such as purchasing land, building, materials and equipment costs, your next move is to step up the learning curve. Check with your local college, university or extension service about horticulture and nursery management courses, read everything you can about the industry and take the time to develop a comprehensive business plan.

“I know it sounds like I’ve described the headaches more than the joy of owning a nursery,” Connie says. But despite the challenges, she says she loves going to work at the nursery and interacting with customers.

“Unlike the demands of a big landscaping contract, I feel we control our destiny in the nursery business.”

Growing Your Nursery’s Identity

Problem: How do I set my business apart from the competition?

Solution: Marketing-savvy nursery owners look for a niche to promote their nursery. Connie and Steve Emerson, owners of Royal Landscape Nursery in Gotha, Florida, plan to open an animal farm on their nursery site this year that includes sheep, cows, chickens and goats. Connie says it’s a good fit for their family-friendly atmosphere and adds to the pastoral ambiance you don’t get in a giant box store.

Steve Tilleraas, owner of Tilleraas Landscape & Nursery in Big Sky, Montana, hosts an annual pumpkin patch at his garden center and says the event is now drawing a second generation of kids.

Nursery Business Prospectus Checklist

First, decide what type of nursery you want to operate:

• Landscape nurseries, which grow plants for retail sales and for in-house landscape service

• Retail nurseries, which include small nurseries and garden centers that grow plants on limited acreage for strictly retail sales to homeowners and landscape contractors

• Wholesale nurseries, which include contract propagators, contract growers, growers and distributors (re-wholesalers) of nursery stock for wholesale to other nurserymen, landscape contractors and retail outlets

Consider these factors before meeting with the bank.

• Size of operation

• Location

• Type of operation (products to sell)

• Assets

• Cost of equipment and employees (number and type)

• Market (source and dependability)

• Estimated returns

Source: Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service and American Association of Nurserymen,1250 I Street NW Suite 500, Washington DC 20006

Ryan

A new “Additional Resources” section provides an assortment of turf care information for professionals and their customers, and the site offers a “Seed Calculator” on the “Overseeder” page.

Ryan has added more images, key feature callouts, interactive product demos, videos, detailed product specifications and new accessories information. A new online form for requesting a free product catalog also allows visitors to view the Ryan catalog immediately in digital format or download the catalog in PDF format.

Check out the site at ryanturf.com.

Gojo will also give away 15 prize packs – one awarded each week – that include a 24-can cooler and Gojo products like the new Bojo cherry gel with Pumice hand cleaner and Gojo scrubbing wipes. Winners are selected randomly from each week’s entries and are notified by e-mail.

Participants can enter the sweepstakes daily by going to toughsoils-promotions gojo.com. They also can gain two additional entries daily by sharing the promotion on their Facebook and Twitter accounts; links are available on the sweepstakes page.

For more information, visit gojo.com/automotive.

Aric Almirola

The NASCAR partnership is the first for Gravely, which has been a power equipment workhorse since 1916. Gravely is part of Ariens Company, a fourth-generation, family-owned company based in Brillion, Wisconsin, and sells a complete line of professional mowers and outdoor power equipment.

The company’s partnership with Richard Petty Motorsports will also include endorsements of Gravely products by team owner and racing legend Richard “The King” Petty in sales displays and advertisements.

The Southern 500 is a legendary race on the Sprint Cup schedule, dating back to 1950 when it was first run as NASCAR’s only 500-mile race. Petty himself won the event in the famed No. 43 in 1967. Almirola hopes to follow suit.

The Darlington race will air May 12 at 6:30 p.m. (ET) on FOX.

Currently employing more than 1,000 people working two full shifts and based in Fort Mill, South Carolina, the plant produces the full line of Western Star products including the 4700, 4800, 4900 and 6900 truck models.

Relocating to the Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) Portland plant from Kelowna, British Columbia, in 2002, Western Star produced its first 4900 truck model in June of that year.

Previously, Fogarty held the position of retail bank manager for Wells Fargo Bank. She has experience in a variety of different areas including the medical sales industry, retail car dealerships and coaching college volleyball.

Fogarty is a native of San Antonio. She graduated from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana.

• Saved time
• Saved costs
• Better work vehicle purchases

By completing this anonymous, 10-minute online survey, you can also enter to win a $100 Amazon gift card. Go to worktrucks.questionpro.com.

By entering your gasoline, diesel or propane price; number of mowers; and the annual mowing hours per machine, the site will calculate your fuel expenses. The results show the amount of fuel consumption, cost per hour and the annual fuel expense. You can also view the fuel savings, trade-in value, productivity, profitability and emissions comparisons between diesel, gasoline and propane.

To figure out your mower costs and emissions, visit grasshopperfuelsavings.com.

Project:

Private residence

Camarillo, California

Landscaping:

Gilson Group Landscape Design,

 Tarzana, California

Making Room for the View

Input on the master plan allows landscapers to create unique outdoor spaces

By Lauren Heartsill Dowdle

“The house was new construction, so we essentially had an open palette to work with,” says Andrew Demus, principal, Gilson Group Landscape Design, of the custom-designed home situated on an acre of land. Working with the clients during the construction phase allowed Demus and his crew to give creative input with respect to strategic locations of hardscape/landscape elements. They divided the property into individual environments that also fit into the overall master plan: front entry with water feature; side yard with rose garden; pergola with barbeque and water feature; terraced seating area; pool and Jacuzzi; and side yard dining area. For the walkways, they installed stamped/colored concrete, using Australian Ashlar and Verona flagstone patterns with an Adobe buff stain. The classic Roman-style pool incorporated Indiana limestone rolled-edge coping, and the deck was crisscrossed with 6-inch diagonal breaks of irrigated sod. For the terraced seating area, they used a No. 5 grey decomposed granite. Plants were used to tie in the individual “rooms” and create privacy barriers to delineate the living spaces.

Visit totallandscapecare.net/making-rooms-for-the-view to see additional project photos.To have your project featured, e-mail high-resolution photos, a description of the project and the name of your business to LaurenHeartsill@randallreilly.com.

Ken Noll’s Garden Kingdom started with a romantic vision but has succeeded with pragmatic experience.

By Jenny Agee-Aldrige

The old grain silo painted to look like a castle at The Garden Kingdom’s office, retail shop and nursery may be what first captures folks’ attention, but it’s owner Ken Noll’s creative vision and marketing savvy that seal the deals and make him a TLC 2012 Landscaper of the Year Finalist.

A landscape architect and licensed real estate broker, Noll and his staff of 28 provide maintenance, design/build, irrigation, landscape and holiday lighting, and snow plowing services to the greater St. Louis area, as well as his hometown of Glen Carbon, Illinois, and surrounding suburbs. Last year, The Garden Kingdom grossed nearly $1 million. While the backbone of the business is repeat customers and referrals, Noll continuously explores innovative ways to grow his business, while retaining loyal customers.

Spreading the Word

Noll says he was always fascinated with the once-dilapidated grain elevator that now houses his business and inspired its name. He grew up a few miles down the road from the structure, and in his childhood whimsy, which still serves him well, saw a castle rather than a crumbling old building.

The Garden Kingdom nursery features unusual plants and a hardscape demo area.

With the help of his parents, Noll and his wife Michelle purchased the building and surrounding 6 acres in 1997, working seven months to renovate the facility. It took two months just to paint the silo, but the affect was worth it. Driving down Route 157, you can’t miss it or the business.

“Perhaps the most unique and brilliant advertisement continues to be our own landmark, the castle tower. It’s painted to resemble an old castle rook. During the years, people have come to recognize our landmark as The Garden Kingdom,” he says.

The Garden Kingdom was designated as a historical landmark five months after the renovations were completed. It includes 6,000 square feet of covered retail space and offices, two greenhouses, shade houses and hoop houses, as well as display space where hardscape demos are staged for prospective landscape customers to view.

Besides being a bankable landmark that draws curious customers to the garden center and generating new landscape queries, the revitalization of Peters Station, as the grain elevator is known by locals, also captured a flurry of media attention, making The Garden Kingdom the talk of the town. “You can’t buy publicity like that,” Noll says.

Noll doesn’t purchase media advertising. But he does have a robust marketing strategy that includes, among other initiatives, a monthly newsletter and a website (thegardenkingdom.com) that’s easy to navigate and features coupons, photos of staff members, a list of services and vibrant portfolio pictures. He also promotes the company through Twitter (@GardenKingdom) and Facebook and even sponsors a float in the local Halloween parade, which locals say is the largest event of its kind in the country.

“It’s all about connecting with people, networking and being involved with the community,” Noll says.

Learning the Business

While the Kingdom’s “castle” illustrates Noll’s romantic vision, he remains focused and serious when it comes to business, whether he is in the office designing projects, meeting with clients or getting his hands dirty in the field.

“It’s all about connecting with people and networking.”

For one project where he restored the gardens of a historic residence near his office, Noll painstakingly researched the property using old newspaper clippings, property records and original drawings to ensure the new landscape was not only beautiful but an accurate reflection of the property as it was in 1909.

“The client had gone to great lengths to preserve, restore and update the home while keeping it in its original state,” Noll says.

He splits his time evenly between the office and field. When he first started his company (then called Noll and Associates) in 1996, about 90 percent of Noll’s projects were in St. Louis. During the years, as he built his brand, the work shifted and Noll started working on more projects in Glen Carbon and surrounding suburbs. But, one of his biggest mistakes was growing too fast.

“When I first started the Garden Kingdom, we were the new royals in town. To satisfy the demand, I put people in leadership roles who were not ready,” Noll says. “I assumed employees worked and thought the same way I did.

“I couldn’t be in two places at once. The result was work did not meet the standard quality that is expected at The Garden Kingdom. This led to me spending more time putting out fires and correcting than actually moving forward,” he says.

Waterfall, patio, walkway and fire pit installations are just a few of the services provided by The Garden Kingdom.

So, he slowed down, came up with a training manual and work guidelines. He spent more time with training and required all potential foremen to work at least two years before assuming that level of responsibility. Even when he hires people with experience, they still have to learn to do things The Garden Kingdom way. Benchmarks are set up allowing the employee to understand his/ her goals. If a laborer wants to be promoted to an assistant foreman, and then eventually a foreman, the employee knows what has to be learned.

To ensure the team works as a cohesive group and there is open communication, Noll holds weekly meetings to discuss business strategy and the progress of current projects.

Although most of his energy now goes into overseeing the daily operation of the business, Noll is still involved in landscape and design sales. He hired a CAD operator to assist in producing designs. “It’s easy for me to grab a napkin, sketch and hand it off to Adam. It’s fast and easy to make changes to plans, and it gives our guys precision plans,” he says. The team recently invested in 3D software that provides clients more realistic perspectives of potential projects.

Rendering his visions to paper is a skill Noll honed at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, where he played soccer and graduated with a degree in landscape architecture. After graduation, he went to work for a large landscape design/build firm in St. Louis as a landscape foreman that employed more than 200 people. “I was a flea on a dog. It was all about the bottom line,” he says.

From there, he went to a much smaller firm, also in St. Louis, where he was able to take on multiple roles and learn the business. “I started behind a desk drawing plans, which enabled me to use my landscape architecture training. Eventually, I was able to install those plans and manage a small crew,” he says. “I enjoyed the multi-faceted role of starting a project and seeing it through to completion.”

The experience provided him with the confidence to open his own business, which he operated from his home for three years before moving to the “castle” property.

“It was tough in that we really didn’t have any space away from work. I would go home and work and wake up and work,” he says. “I had employees and customers coming to my house all of the time.”

After saving and dreaming for a few years, Noll drove his parents, Bud and Jean, to the grain elevator property. “I knew I could build a really cool garden center there. I remember my dad just staring at me in disbelief,” he says. After passionately describing his vision, his parents backed his loan and helped Noll and Michelle develop the property. Jean works in the Garden Center’s office while Bud helps keep the nursery looking good. Michelle, a research technician at the Washington University School of Medicine in the Department of Infectious Disease/Medicine, also works part time at The Garden Kingdom as a buyer for the retail store and assists with marketing.

“The garden center and the landscape business go together like your right and left hand, but not necessarily hand-in-hand. They are part of the same body and work together, but they aren’t always in sync,” Noll says. “When the garden center is up, the landscaping is down and vice versa.”

Since 2008, the retail side of the business has been down and the landscape service side has continued to grow, Noll says.

“It’s important to be objective as a designer, and incorporate the lifestyle and taste of the client,” Noll says. On this project, the client wanted a formal look.

To compete with the big box stores, the center offers specialty garden accessories such as fountains, bird feeders and statues, as well as unique plants such as dwarf varieties. Many of the plants Noll purchases are used on his projects.

He keeps costs down by maintaining leaner plant inventory and being choosier about the landscape jobs he takes, focusing on projects closer to home to save time and gas.

Challenges by Choice

Life is always busy for the Noll family, which includes four small children. But that doesn’t stop Noll from giving back to his community or enjoying his hobbies. He has donated his services through the Decorated Soldier Program, decorating the home of a local soldier serving in Iraq for Christmas. And last year, he traveled with teammates from the USA Deaf National Soccer Team and qualified for the Deaf World Cup in Turkey. After 10 years of play, he has retired but serves as an assistant coach for the team.

Staying busy on all fronts of his life is a choice Noll embraces. When asked what he likes most about his job and what he finds most challenging, Noll gives the same answer for both.

“I like being busy.” he says. “I’ve been juggling many different tasks, and it’s about learning to find balance.”

Noll’s 5 Tips for Success

1. Communication: Make sure all of your employees understand what’s expected of them and keep the employee manual current.

2. Don’t Be Afraid to Take Risks: Only through failure do you really grow

3. Avoid Micromanagement: Train employees who complement your weak spots. Accept you are not good at every facet of the business.

4. Establish Multiple Sources of Income: Seasonal business equals seasonal income.

5. Listen: You will never learn anything with your mouth open.

By Lauren Heartsill Dowdle

Building a Future

Fun day draws a new generation to landscaping

How do you attract new people to an industry with an aging workforce? That was the question David Demby of David’s Landscaping and Design in Erie, Pennsylvania, found himself asking a couple of years ago. He felt the best method of informing people about great careers in landscaping and construction was to put the word out – in a big way.

So, Demby pitched the idea of a “Construction Fun Day” to the mayor’s office, equipment dealers and volunteers. As part of the town’s annual “Celebrate Erie” event held during the summer, Demby and his friends brought more than a dozen machines to the event and turned half a city block into a career fair and Kids’ PlayZone, an area that allowed them to check out the landscaping equipment first hand.

“The kids love the equipment. It will sit in their minds for a long time.”

The event didn’t just attract young children, says event planner Laura Schaaf, assistant to Mayor Joseph E. Sinnott. “David’s original idea was to engage older children and teens interested in career exploration,” she says. “The three-day event presented a unique opportunity.”

Demby says an army of volunteers helped pull off the gathering. “Many of the local dealers – Bobcat, Case, Caterpillar and Kubota – participated by bringing equipment,” he says. “We let the kids crawl all over them and blow the horns. We even had a Peterbilt there with a sleeper.”

Demby’s company gave away a free landscape design, and there were giveaways for the children, as well. Steve Latimer, a local Case Construction Equipment salesman, provided free hard hats for the kids, and all of the volunteers were on hand to give out information on careers in landscaping and construction.

Demby says he hopes this year’s event – which is slated to be larger – will be even more successful. “The kids love the equipment. It will sit in their minds for a long time.”

The 2012 Construction Fun Day and Kids’ PlayZone will be held August 17-19 in downtown Erie, as part of Celebrate Erie.

For more information, visit celebrateerie.com.

– Amy Materson, managing editor, Equipment World magazine

Photo: “Construction Fun Day” attendees saw equipment including skid steers, excavators and trucks.

Pets We Dig

Friendly obedience

Said to be man’s best friend, dogs like this black British Labrador Retriever can ease spirits and bring a smile to your employees and clients.

Jeff Schwartz, president of Ashton Manor Environmental (formerly Greenskeeper Environmental) in Ashton, Maryland, adopted Ovie as a puppy from a Labrador rescue organization to add to his growing family. But Ovie, named after the Washington Capitals’ left winger Alex Ovechkin, quickly earned a spot as part of Schwartz’s work crew.

“He adds spontaneity and is a positive distraction from the stress of business for the staff,” Schwartz says. “He can be found playing soccer with the employees or sometimes wandering around to visit office staff. On jobsites, he can entertain inspectors and provide a few moments of ‘social’ conversation with prospective clients.”

If you’re considering adding a dog to your staff, Schwartz suggests taking it to obedience school. “Having a well-trained, controlled dog on a jobsite gives the impression of confidence, strength and being easy going,” he says. “An out-of-control animal could be disastrous for the dog and customer.” He says Ovie, now 2 years old, is calm and relaxed, which is especially important when around “dog anxious” people.

To have your pet featured, e-mail its name, photo and background info to LaurenHeartsill@randallreilly.com.

READER TIP OF THE MONTH

5 tips to improve business

With the down economy looming over many in the landscape industry, Matthew Noon, owner of Noon Turf Care in Hudson, Massachusetts, “made a decision to block the recession out and keep fighting to grow.” Here’s how:

1. Keep up sales: “Don’t stop marketing even during slow times because it drives new business.”

2. Work on the go: He installed laptops in all of his 25 service vehicles, programmed the computers to customize his company’s needs and trained his crew on how to use them. “Our crews have the ability to access our client software database, route their day’s work, write computer-generated invoice notes and print invoices.”

3. Mix it up: He added a 10,000-gallon computerized fertilizer mixing system, which calculates and mixes fertilizers and weed control products. “It’s helped us save on product waste, improve the consistency of our lawn treatments and load tanks in a matter of minutes.”

4. Stay connected: To accommodate an increase in incoming phone calls, he switched to a web-based phone software system. It allows them to separate calls by department, take in 10 times the calls, record phone conversations and e-mail voicemails.

5 .Encourage ownership: Noon launched the “N Factor,” a company-wide profit sharing initiative, to recruit the best employees. “If we hit our goals, each employee is issued a bonus. We’ve already seen an improvement in company morale.”

Have a landscaping tip to share with others?

READER TIP OF THE MONTH REWARD

Send your tip to LaurenHeartsill@randallreilly.com. If published, you will win the Shindaiwa EB854RT backpack blower, which has air speeds of 213 mph.

Reduce impervious footprint

Designed for residential driveways, Pine Hall Brick’s StormPave red permeable clay pavers can reduce your clients’ impervious surface footprint to meet local stormwater requirements and open the way for a larger house footprint. These pavers are also available in the full range color.

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A clean slate

Clean concrete surfaces with Techniseal’s HD Paver Preparator. The formula is efficient for heavy-duty works, since it is formulated to dissolve tough efflorescence (whitish salt) and remove ground-in dirt on pavers, slabs and retaining walls made of concrete. It works deeply without discoloring or damaging the material, brightening up colors, cleaning evenly and enabling sealants to penetrate the surface.

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Rustic charm

Keystone Country Manor combines the appearance of rustic, hand-laid stonewalls with the strength of Keystone’s modular, pin-connection technology. Pins help ensure every Country Manor project is strong and secure, and the three unit sizes help create a random appearance and allow for construction of more than just retaining walls. Made of high strength concrete, Country Manor can also be used for mailbox columns, planters, outdoor fireplaces and benches.

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Landscape accessory that rocks

Boulder Designs are functional boulders made from solid, reinforced, specially enhanced concrete that can beautify a landscape. Boulder Designs trains you on its simple system to create custom boulders that can be used for name or address rocks, memorials, business signage, ranches, schools, parks or subdivisions. Its products are earth-friendly and often allowed by local zoning regulations..

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Prebuilt outdoor living

Stone Age Manufacturing’s prebuilt series combines the performance of its modular systems with real brick finishes. The line features fireplaces, pizza ovens, kitchen islands, fire pit kits and American-made grills and appliances. The series comes in preassembled and prefinished packages.

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Give curb a shape-up

With more than 20 curb-shape attachments, Tygar’s Bengal curb machine can create edging like narrow, natural-looking Belgium Stone borders. With this system, you can start with a smaller package and add components, such as new stamp patterns, as you grow your business. Tygar holds demos in Atlanta, Georgia, and select locations around the country for interested contractors.

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By Billy R. Sims, Editor

billysims@randallreilly.com

It’s easy to find contradictory reports on hardscaping trends. The Wall Street Journal’s sibling Marketwatch website, for example, recently posted a story stating outdoor kitchens and fireplaces are “out” with homeowners in favor of “smaller spaces,” such as simple patios.

Don’t tell that to 2012 TLC Landscaper of the Year Finalist, Ryan Youngblood, whose custom paver driveway project, page 22, was just part of a package of hardscaping installments his client purchased that included an impressive masonry wall with a custom iron gate leading from the driveway to a secret garden and entertaining area in the rear of the home.

This venture isn’t unique for Youngblood, who’s currently at work on another ambitious project for a local professional athlete involving an outdoor kitchen, infinity edge pool and expansive patio entertaining area. “Hardscaping has always been a large part of the company,” he says. “Hardscaping and softscaping go hand-in-hand. You have to have both.

“After working inside all day, people want to be outdoors more with their families and guests. But they want the amenities the inside offers, such as a TV and kitchen,” he says. “Hardscaping defines outdoor living spaces, and softscaping (plantings) connect these spaces to their surroundings.”

Hardscape projects are key to Ryan Youngblood's landscaping philosophy.

You may not have the advantage of dealing with well-to-do clients that Youngblood often has (and earned). But in our feature, “Hardscaping in Stages,” page 26, you’ll learn strategy for selling clients multi-phased projects that allow you to shape their desires around their budgets.

“We’ve found homeowners… may not have the money to do the whole thing at once, but the desire is still there,” says Belgard’s Ken O’Neill in the story.

“Hardscaping defines outdoor living spaces, and softscaping (plantings) connect these spaces to their surroundings.”

Managing editor Jenny Agee-Aldridge takes you through the process of not only how to sell such projects, but how to set goals, choose materials and maintain client relations (especially during the project when their property may be disrupted).

Think of it like a paver project: The outcome depends on the unseen, upfront work you do — another soft side of landscaping.

Lauren Heartsill Dowdle

Built-in brake

Wright Commercial Products’ mid-mount ZTO (zero technology optimized) ZTR mower has a 10.5 mph cutting speed and 31-horsepower Kawasaki FX or optional Briggs & Stratton Commercial Turf engine. With 48-, 52- or 61-inch widths, the ZTO features 23 x 10 1/2-inch rear tires and 13 x 5-inch front tires. A transmission interlock is built into the controls, eliminating the need for a separate parking brake.

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Wash off rust

Eradicate rust on iron and mild steel with Walter Surface Technologies’ Bio-Rust. This non-corrosive solution can be used anywhere rust is present and is safe for the environment because it does not use highly corrosive or toxic acids. To use, immerse parts in the liquid at room temperature and let soak.

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Year-round use

Spread seed, fertilizer, lawn chemicals and mulch during warm months or sand and ice melt in the winter with Spyker’s 120-pound Pro-Series push spreader. It has a polyethylene hopper, 5/8-inch solid stainless steel axle, fully enclosed metal gears, adjustable T-handle and 13-inch semi-pneumatic tires.

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One-key security

Protect your equipment with Strattec Security’s Padlock 2.0, featuring Bolt’s one-key lock technology. The lock has a six-plate tumbler sidebar, stainless-steel lock shutter, spring-loaded steel shackle and crush-resistant body shell. The padlock can be permanently programmed to lock and unlock using the vehicle’s ignition key.

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Portable screener

Configured with handles and wheels so that a single worker can move and transport it, Access Construction Equipment’s ScreenerUSA fits in the back of a pickup truck or landscape trailer. The 70 x 39 x 54-inch unit weighs 420 pounds, and the screen is 48 x 24 inches with different mesh sizes. The screen angle can be adjusted and comes in 120V, 220V or 480V 3 Phase.

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Spray mulch

Mix and pump up to 100 pounds per tank load of any mulch product with TurfMaker’s 325 hydroseeder. The unit includes a Briggs & Stratton Intek 1450 engine, 75-foot TurfMaker hose and 40-gpm nozzle. The 325 features a positive displacement gear pump and powerful mechanical agitation.

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