Education Archives - Page 6 of 9 - Proper Landscaping Inc.

May 13

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8 steps to becoming a landscape maintenance professional

By Vas Sladek | Education, Landscape Industry, Tips | No Comments

Yes, you can become a landscape maintenance professional. Just consider the following eight steps. I originally published this list in a post on LinkedIn. This is a new, improved version. It came to life as I arrived at a crossroads early in 2016 and had to make a decision. Do I continue with my temporary full-time municipal parks laborer position or accept a better paying, full-time senior supervisor position in the private sector. As I reflected on my own sweaty 16-year journey from rookie at a landscape maintenance corporation to Red Seal Journeyman Horticulturist, the list was born. Feel free to add comments or ask for help.

Practice, practice

New landscape maintenance workers inevitably mow miles of lawns but the idea is to get it down quickly and then move on to all of the other machines. Edgers, blowers, bedwork and power shears. Ask for training. Face your fears. Gain skills and confidence. Add value to your company. The goal is a quick progression from mowing to all of the other skills.

Plant ID

Don’t dismiss this crucial skill. Start on day one. Keep a notebook, take pictures with your smartphone. Learn only botanical names. Some plants have multiple common names so don’t waste your time. All nurseries deal in botanical names. Tests use botanical names.

Plant knowledge is critical for proper care and pruning. To get you started I created an eBook called “Common strata plants, A Guide for West Coast Landscapers“. Message me for a copy.

Get tested

If you live in Canada or the US, you can get tested and become a certified landscape technician. The test validates your skills and shows employers and clients that you have the required minimum skills to do a great job for them. Going through the written and practical tests is a humbling experience. Getting my certificate felt great! It will boost your confidence and your income. Get your employer to cover the fees.

I invite all prospective Lower mainland candidates attempting the ornamental maintenance module to contact me for a private review session at very reasonable rates. Save money and time by not making the same mistakes I did.

Hug trees

You only need two field seasons to qualify to write the ISA (International Society of Arboriculture) exam. It’s recognized internationally and prepares you to care for trees in our landscapes. Proper pruning and avoiding conflicts with landscape machines are two critical issues. So is safety. Plus trees are beautiful and provide numerous ecosystem services for free. They deserve a hug!

Mentors

Remember, the goal is quick acquisition of new skills. Get your foreman and senior workers to help you. I spent one season working under a brilliant municipal gardener and I learned a lot. It took one nice comment from her for me to walk into my Red Seal Journeyman Horticulturist exam challenge with confidence. I also read the works of brilliant horticulture professionals. Look for mentors from the beginning.

Industrial athletes

Your body is a money-maker so take care of it. Everything is neatly summarized in this ISA article. Read it. Study it. Green workers may not think of themselves as athletes but consider the daily physical output required on the job. I would just add a regular exercise program based on sports you enjoy. I take part in road and trail running races. Find your favorite sport and do it. Regularly.

Seal it with Red

Landscape horticulture is a Red Seal trade in British Columbia. The recommended procedure is to sign up for an apprenticeship with a good company. Learn the trade in the field and complete schooling in winter. Four years; 9700 hours required. This is consistent with the 10,000 hour idea developed by Anders Ericsson and made famous by the writings of Malcolm Gladwell. See the latest book by Ericsson. Make the hours count.

If you possess the required documented hours in the field, you can challenge the exam. I did. It wasn’t easy but with field experience, one day preparation course and some study, I passed. You will too. Journeyman status is critical to your career success. Municipal park departments now demand it. In private industry you separate yourself from other workers and management is a possibility.

Kaizen

Kaizen is a Japanese term for continuous improvement. Never stop learning. Read new books, attend conferences, subscribe to journals and stay in touch with your mentors. Keep reading this blog. The goal is to be better than you were yesterday.

Follow the steps above and enjoy your green career!

May 02

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Free garden and landscape seminar May 11, 2016

By Vas Sladek | Education, gardening, Landscaping, Lawn Care, Mulch, Seasonal, Tips | No Comments

Free seminar

A free gardening seminar in Port Moody within walking distance from my place will take place on Wednesday May 11, 2016. It sounds great already! Remember, this is in line with our goal of continuous improvement. Free education is awesome.

Master Gardener Dr. Linda Gilkeson will talk about “Naturally resilient gardens and landscapes.” Come learn how to make your lawns and gardens more resilient to variable weather patterns; and about year-round natural gardening, native plant selection and natural pest management. Also discussed will be gardening methods for drier and warmer summers, water shortages, and other types of extreme weather. This is very topical. I am in. Notebook in hand. Are you?

When: Wednesday May 11, 2016

Where: Inlet Theatre, 100 Newport Drive, Port Moody

Admission: Free!

A Sedum solution

The theme of this seminar reminds me of a recent strata complex case in Langley. The complex boulevard beds are exposed to the sun and the original planting didn’t survive. Planted between Acer campestre trees were Skimmias and Heathers. Many of them didn’t survive the hot summer. The proposed solution is to plant succulents like Sedums between the trees. It will be interesting to see what happens; and if we get another hot summer.

Acer campestre and some surviving Heathers and Skimmias; Sedums will replace the Skimmias and Heathers.

Apr 15

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PlantSomethingBC initiative

By Vas Sladek | Education, Landscape Industry, Landscaping | No Comments

The PlantSomethingBC initiative was launched at the recent BC Home and Garden Show. It is run by the BC Landscape and Nursery Association (BCLNA) and the BC Government’s Buy Local program. I’ve been buying plants from local nurseries for years so the idea is nothing new to me but it’s well worth plugging in this blog. Promoting the sale and use of BC grown plants helps everyone; it supports BCLNA members and non-members in the landscape industry from landscapers and growers to garden centers. Getting listed on the PlantSomethingBC website is free for BCLNA members. Non-members have to pay $150. You can also purchase your annual BCLNA membership. The fee is based on your company’s revenue. Check out the list of member benefits.

Key points from the PlantSomethingBC website:

Live local, buy local: People who live in BC have intimate knowledge of our local plants, how to grow them and take care of them, what diseases affect them
Feel better: Green environments are great for people, they reduce stress, lower blood pressure and calm nerves. Gardening leads to healthy eating habits and active lifestyles. Not convinced? Read this:
Chill out: Planting trees on the south and west sides of your house can reduce your air-conditioning costs by up to 30%
Air: Plants can clean your indoor air, trees produce oxygen-for free!-and add value to your property
Money: A Properly landscaped yard may increase your home value by up to 20%. Hire Proper Landscaping for your strata complex; for residential work hire Landscape Industry Professionals

All of the recent projects I worked on involved locally sourced plants. Usually the nursery-landscaper relationships are deep, benefitting both parties.

Pieris japonica

Pinus mugo

Rhododendron

Prunus lusitanica

I also had some fun on my patio, planting up pots with the kids with BC grown perennials.

Armiria maritima

Support your local growers, garden centers and landscape professionals by using locally-grown plants on your next project! It makes a lot of sense. You’ll be glad you did.

Apr 08

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Feeling happy with spring color

By Vas Sladek | Education, Landscaping, Seasonal, Species | No Comments

Spring is here and it feels fantastic to leave winter behind. Walking home with my son from Menchie’s- side trips we don’t tell mom about- I noticed my favorite Doronicum flowers by the liquor store. The yellow is very warm and happy. These are the earliest flowering daisies. They are herbaceous perennials growing from a rhizome (underground stem). I first discovered them as a municipal worker by Como Lake.

Cherries (Prunus) are everyone’s favorites even though they are bittersweet: they are beautiful but, like life, they don’t last very long. A side-note on cherries. When I lived in Japan, I got a chance to visit a revered old fuyu-zakura or winter cherry. I was blown away with the whole idea: winter flowering cherry? Really? It was true. There it stood in the middle of a snowy open field with its gorgeous flowers. Protective fencing ran around the drip line. We already know from an earlier blog what soil compaction does to trees.

This past week I discovered deep red colored Magnolias at a mall parking lot in White Rock. The effect is stunning. It’s impossible to miss the parking lot trees.

Camellia japonica flowers totally dominate gardens at the moment.

Tulips and Daffodils are perennial favorites. Tulips are good for one or two shows and then best replaced. Daffodils can be naturalized and they will keep on wowing you every spring. One such event happened in 2014 at Como Lake in Coquitlam, BC. Volunteers were recruited to plant bulbs in fall on the west side of the lake. Many were ESL students and recent immigrants; this was the first time they planted anything. I hope they got to see the result of their work.

Bulb planting tip: look at your bulb height, double it and plant it that deep. Keep the planting depth consistent, otherwise your bulbs will emerge unevenly.

What color have you noticed lately?

Mar 29

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Mowing 101: pilot errors crush tree wells

By Vas Sladek | Education, Landscaping, Lawn Care | No Comments

Spring is finally here – a bit early this year – the grass is shaggy and mowers are coming out. Strata members wonder when the lawns will get mowed Properly. So we send our workers out and, inevitably, blogs are born! Consider the mistakes that were made in the field today.

How many problems can you list?

Mowers don’t belong in tree wells, period! Go around the tree well instead of forcing the mower into a narrow spot. Line trimmers were designed to hit tight spots, so use them. This is a horrific way of saving time.
Scalping is a huge, HUGE, problem. The brown zone in the photo has been scalped and will require repair; most likely over seeding. Seed is expensive and extra time will be required for repairs. Remember: grass grows from meristems located about a third of the way up a blade of grass. Grass blades don’t regrow from underground roots, they grow from meristems. This is why a scalped area will likely stay bare unless we over seed.
Soil compaction is another problem. The tree well is there to channel water and nutrients into the root zone. Weekly soil compaction with mower wheels will make it difficult for fine roots near the surface to move through the soil; water will also most likely pool up and run off instead of penetrating into the soil.
The mower destroys the ninety degree tree well edge we so diligently established in winter.
The wheel marks are unsightly.
The tree well also exists to eliminate tree v. machine conflicts. The most likely outcome of any collision is bark destruction. Open wounds invite pathogens which the tree has to fight by compartmentalization and that uses up precious energy reserves, thus reducing health and growth. Wounds also affect xylem cells which means water transport is temporarily interrupted thus compromising function and growth. Collisions with machines also cause stress and reduce growth. If the tree dies and has to be replaced we face direct replacement costs and loss of ecosystem services.

Summary: Never run your mowers through tree wells. Navigate around the edges carefully.

Mar 21

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Canadian Gardening ceases publication!?

By Vas Sladek | Education, Magazines | No Comments

Excited, I picked up my March 16, 2016 issue of Canadian Gardening magazine only to discover a letter attached to the back. The letter informed me that with the current issue the magazine is ceasing publication. Really? Too bad.

My remaining issues will be substituted with Canadian Living magazine-“the magazine that will inspire you and motivate you to live your best every day.” I can’t wait. What about my garden?

Published by TVA Publications, this was their statement, published online here.

“TVA Publications has decided to concentrate on its strongest brands and will allocate the required staff and resources to keep strengthening their positioning. In that context, we will cease the activities of the Canadian Gardening magazine. The final issue will be the Spring 2016 issue (hitting newsstand on March 21, mailed to subscribers on March 8).

This consolidation strategy is the best way for the company to optimize the reach of its flagship titles in a fast-changing market. TVA Publications will maintain a strong presence in every segment of the industry – fashion, beauty, home decor, cooking, celebrities & entertainment. We remain fully committed to print magazines as a core component of TVA Publications’ business strategy while continuing to develop its brands on other platforms.”

My question is, why drop gardening? With the death of Gardenwise magazine, we are left with the excellent magazine Garden Making. I wonder for how long. All I can do is subscribe and cross my fingers.

Feb 22

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Landscape Certification Top 5 Mistakes

By Vas | Education, Landscape Industry | No Comments

Landscape Industry Certified top 5 mistakes

Landscape Industry Certified testing has been in place in Canada since 1995. It was designed as a way to set minimum standards of skill and knowledge within the landscape industry. The CNLA News Brief (summer 2015, volume 24, issue 3) lists the top 5 mistakes made by candidates. Having gone through the testing and getting certified in the fall of 2011, I found the list interesting and correct. I took the liberty of adding my own observations.

1) Forgetting personal protective equipment (PPE)

Safety is extremely important so use whatever is provided for you on the table. This one slip can cost you valuable points and be the difference between pass and fail scores. Sadly, I found this out the hard way. Half-way through the Planting and Staking station, candidates are required to stake their tree with a stake pounder. Ear protection is required for this step. I was so caught up in the station I totally forgot about my head set. The deducted points gave me a fail mark and meant that I would have to wait until fall for my third attempt. Not really trusting myself, I wore my headset for the entire thirty minute test! Success, finally on my third attempt. Remember, this station is testing your ability to follow specifications, not just tree planting and staking. Study the diagram carefully.

Bonus hint: put your tool away safely before grabbing another one. Leaving a shovel on the ground is considered a hazard.

2) Talking instead of doing

One word: action! Take your instructions from the judge and then wow him or her. This is a practical test so just do it. I personally didn’t have this problem.

3) Second-guessing yourself on the written exam

The exam is based on what you do every day. Write with confidence. It does require some preparation. They don’t give it away easily. I didn’t have any problems on the written exams. I wrote them on Friday afternoon, did a few practical stations and then faced a full day of testing on Saturday.

4) Not paying attention during the candidate orientation

Again, I didn’t have any problems here. I was all ears and focused. One minor distraction might be former co-workers from other companies. The testing stations are timed and roll on quickly. There is no room for mistakes.

Hint: don’t watch other candidates, they might be doing it wrong. Walk in there and kill it your way.

5) Getting too nervous

Who enjoys tests? I openly admit to feeling very small in the candidate tent. I ate donuts to comfort myself and then a certain prominent judge walked in and finished the rest.
Allegedly, the judges want you to pass but that wasn’t really obvious. My judges had shades on and responded to my questions with finger movements. Having former managers and supervisors stand only meters away watching was extremely distracting. Luckily, I am stubborn and able to focus. Do the same. The stations are yours to pass. You can do it!

Getting certified shows your clients and bosses that you are serious. It should lead to raises and opportunities for growth in your green career. Your boss should be able to pay the testing fees. Ask nicely.

For more information visit www.cnla-acpp.ca/certification or contact certification@cnla-acpp.ca. You can also message me if you have questions. Also visit the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) www.landscapeprofessionals.org Sign up now, don’t wait until you feel ready.

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Testing station

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Successful third attempt! Acer platanoides Norway maple

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BCLNA awards dinner, cleaned-up Vas on far right, Yay!!

landscape industry certified technician (1)

Jan 15

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Stihl Dream Machine…..

By Vas | Arborist Insights, Education, Landscaping Equipment | No Comments

You know the scenario well. You are blowing a strata site and your worker stops you with a question. So you stop and then take the blower off your back to start it again. Back to your leaf avalanches. Then a strata lady stops you with a pressing landscape emergency. You get the picture. I always wanted a better system where I wouldn’t have to take the unit off my back to restart it. And this year Stihl came out with my dream machine, BR 450 C-EF professional blower!

br450cef

(Image courtesy of Stihl USA, www.stihl.com)

Key features:

Electric on/off switch so you can keep the blower on your back and eliminate idling (and excessive noise) as you go from one area to the next.
The blower tube extends by loosening the orange collar, no need to fit two pieces together like on my Echo blower
The trigger has adjustable cruise so you are not stuck at maximum power on cruise control
The trigger is easily moved along the tube with one lock, no need to tighten anything

I am not sure if this blower is available in the Lower Mainland but it is on my wish list!

886868_orig

Dec 25

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World Record Weed Pull!

By Vas | Arborist Insights, Education, Events, Landscaping, Plant Species Information | No Comments

As soon as I found about this project, I knew I had to be there. World record attempt for the most people involved in invasive plant removal sounded interesting. This was a good chance to give back to the community and improve my green resume. I used to run at Mundy Park in Coquitlam with the Phoenix Running Club so why not remove some invasive plants and make it better.

On October 4, 2015, my group went through orientation with City of Coquitlam staff and then we picked up paper bags for green waste and gloves for safety. Water was also provided. I opted to join the group heading deeper into the woods. I love trees and hiking; and collisions with dog waste are less likely deep in the woods.
After a short hike we reached our work zone. It was a patch of ivy (Hedera helix). At your house the plant can be contained in a bed but in the woods it can do as it pleases. I am happy to report that my group attacked the ivy with great passion. All green waste was hauled out to the trail to be taken away by an ATV. Snacks and drinks were provided at the baseball diamond afterwards.

As the Tri-City News reported recently (Friday December 18, 2015, A34) the record was officially set for the most people involved in an invasive plant removal.
Over 800 people participated. If you are interested in becoming a Mundy Park Champion or a Park Spark volunteer visit www.coquitlam.ca/parkspark, email parkspark@coquitlam.ca or call 604-927-6334

bad-seed

Learn about these Bad Seeds

bad-seed-2

Orientation with City of Coquitlam staff

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Work zone: Hedera helix Ivy about to be removed

Vas in his element

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Green waste

bad-seed-5

Dec 18

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Quick Trimmer Head Change

By Vas | Arborist Insights, Company News, Education, Landscaping, Strata Maintenance | No Comments

This week I found myself on a narrow median up in the Westwood Plateau buzzing down crack weeds when my trimmer head died of old age. No problem.
With tools in the truck and a spare head, this was a quick job.

1) use a screw driver or Allen key and look for two openings, one on the edger and one on the head

2) spin the head until the holes align to immobilize the head

3) unscrew the old head

4) screw on the new one, tight but not super tight!

My new head was already full of string so I was back in action very quickly.
Put your safety equipment back on and line edge carefully.

Dead trimmer head, save the line and discard

Allen key immobilizes the head

Education