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A love letter to my Honda mower

By | Company News, Landscape Industry, Landscaping, Landscaping Equipment | No Comments
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My trusted friend, season after season….

 

This Honda mower is incredible! It deserves its own blog post. Every spring it starts without fail. That first puff of exhaust signalling our reunion for yet another season. It always blows me away, considering how little maintenance I perform on it. It must be the combination of shed storage and mild West Coast winters.

When one of my former employers decided to change his entire mower fleet to Lawn boys, I scored this well-used mower for $120. It was well worth it. I use it bi-weekly during the season for side work. It’s a simple machine. It has a choke/speed lever and a pull cord. Dual blade system. No bells or whistles. My trusted friend. Bravo Honda.

Yes, it’s showing its age. The front wheels will have to get replaced; the bag has a slight tear, and one of the pins holding the bag in place tends to come off periodically. The deck below sports blemishes.

I change the air filter, add oil, and stock new pull cords.  Both blades get changed at least once a month. I have two sets. They have seen better days but they will do for now. Sharp blades are critical! Dull blades tear up grass blades. What we want is one clear cut. Always change your blades. Do it carefully by first unplugging your spark plug.

Eventually, I will upgrade to a newer model. I know it. But for now, we work together to satisfy clients and keep my kids fed. It’s a good partnership.

This Honda mower is incredibly reliable. You can not go wrong by purchasing a Honda mower. I would. I might.

 

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The blue number 3 is from my ex-employer’s system; trucks had 3 mowers and we had to keep track

 

(Disclaimer: I am not sponsored, paid or otherwise compensated by Honda. This blog post is my personal review and opinion.)

 

 

01 landscape trucks never die

By | Company News, Landscape Industry, Landscaping, Landscaping Equipment | No Comments

Landscape company owners seem to keep their original 01 trucks around forever. They should be retired but somehow there is always some use for them. I was thinking about this when I showed up for work on a recent Saturday at a company we won’t name. I knew this particular 01 beast was nasty. It couldn’t accelerate, nor climb any hills; and it either didn’t brake or the wheels locked. Shifting to 2 on a steep Burnaby uphill still only got you 35-40 km/h speeds and lots of angry motorists behind you. Luckily they were all obscured in clouds of diesel exhaust.

The boss informed me that he had driven it during the week and it was fine. “Just don’t follow anyone closely, drive slowly and pump the brakes before attempting to brake.” Great. Just what I wanted to hear. The truck needs to get serviced but who has the time during a busy week. Can the company even afford to take it out of circulation?

This just leads to stress. Stress I don’t need. Or want.

One night I had a dream. As I stood in the shop, this same boss handed me the keys to a never-used 2017 truck. I smiled. Then I woke up.

Sadly, I’ve experienced many other 01 trucks over the years. One pick-up truck has wobbly steering and door locks that don’t work. The tail gate no longer opens and it’s just as well. The pins holding the tail gate in place are bent so when it’s down, it slips out. Not fun.

Getting it stolen would be a welcome relief to its owner. But there is lots of nostalgia, too. This was the original 01 beast which started everything. It was there in the first trenches. Now it’s mainly used to shuttle mowers. And for how long?

Sometimes driving a 01 beast is a test. One former employer had a 01 pick-up with a heavy metal box on it. It required very frequent gas station visits. I think I wore out the metal strip on my Petro points card. This beast wouldn’t accelerate. I still remember gunning it at the bottom of the snake hill in Port Moody, afraid the truck would slow down to a crawl. When new employees survived their tests, they were in.

I have given up. Landscape workers must get used to having these original 01 antique trucks around. They will never die.

 

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This beast is a piece of work! A 01 truck all-star.

 

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Reading about seeds, scandal and Darwin

By | Company News, Reviews | No Comments

Reading about seeds, scandal and Darwin

The February 2016 Alive magazine (alive.com) has an interesting story on reading, “A good read” by Vanessa Annand. The article mentions research which credits reading with making us better people: more empathetic, less stressed and even healthier.

Some article highlights:

Reading just 30 minutes per week led to greater life satisfaction and enhanced social connections

Literary fiction helps us “read” people better in real life

Reading may delay the onset of dementia

Those who read for pleasure feel less stressed

Fiction scored better than non-fiction but this is a green blog so let’s take a chance. I am about to share my recent green reads. And they were a blast to read. I would disagree with the conclusion that non-fiction is for loners. Find your own favorite books and share the titles in the comments below.

The Triumph of  Seeds Thor Hanson

If you drink coffee and eat breakfast you already have an intimate knowledge of seeds. What I find fascinating is that seeds contain everything they need inside and some can survive dormant for hundreds of years! Then somehow conditions become just right and a new plant emerges.

Some seed coats are extremely tough to crack; some seeds open up from forest fire smoke, not the fire itself. This book is fascinating.

 

The Scent of Scandal Craig Pittman

This is a true story about a rare orchid and an international scandal that erupted around it. Personally, I think orchids are OK. They are interesting and play a huge role in the plant kingdom. I am not in love with them. I love epiphytes, those plants that live up high in the trees, not rooted in the earth. And I love good stories.

One scandal over a rare orchid species crushes people financially, personally and some even end up in jail. It’s unbelievable. And well worth reading.

 

The Autobiography of Charles Darwin Charles Darwin

We know about Darwin’s work on the theory of evolution but what about his life? Until now I knew very little about the man and his life. This book fills you in on the interesting details of his life. His other book on the Voyage of the Beagle is more exciting; full of adventure. I am satisfied that I now know some details about Darwin’s life. Another recommended title.

What are YOU reading?

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Quick Trimmer Head Change

By | 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.

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Dead trimmer head, save the line and discard

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Allen key immobilizes the head

Side-Job Hell….

By | Arborist Insights, Company News, Education, Landscaping | No Comments

Two young landscapers arrive at a residence and make decent cash by pruning cedar hedges. We have all been there. Living the dream, making extra cash on weekends. Then the owner asks them to prune her Acer palmatum away from the house and below the gutters. Then mistakes happen. First examine pictures of the FINAL product and then consider the many mistakes that were made.

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Owner’s request: bring the tree crown below gutters

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Brutal chainsaw cuts

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Huge stubs that will die off, potentially invite disease in and give the tree zero chance of healing the wound

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Let us consider the mistakes that were made.

1) Agreeing to top a tree

The crown could be reduced but topping is not done for several reasons. Educate your clients!

2) Starving and stressing the tree

In drought conditions, leaf openings (stomates) are closed to prevent water loss. That also means that CO2 can not enter and therefore food production stops. Now the tree is forced to use up food reserves stored in younger branches. The same branches that are likely to be pruned off.

3) Bad cuts

The chainsaw work is inadequate and the stubs amateurish. We have seen in an earlier blog how to make a nice cut, one the tree can cover over and heal.
The stubs die off, can invite disease in, and the tree has no hope of covering the wound.

4) Failure to wear protective gear

Chainsaw work can be dangerous so protection is mandatory; the same goes for high-visibility clothing since the workers repeatedly crossed the road to assess their work. Work which did not get completed.

Pterocarya stenoptera (Chinese Wingnut Tree)

By | Arborist Insights, Company News, Education, Landscaping, Plant Species Information | No Comments

The Chinese wingnut tree is a 40-70 foot deciduous tree from the walnut family: Juglandaceae. I first encountered this tree species by the City of Coquitlam animal shelter off Mariner Way. What immediately struck me were the seed clusters, green strings of winged seeds suspended below the branches. Then there was the scientific name which required a lot of memory work.
This is a fast-growing tree which tolerates drought. It has no fall color; the winged seeds turn brown and fall. The two specimens I know well are both used for shade. Since the trees have aggressive roots they are not well suited for lawns or gardens.

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Winged Seeds

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Seed Clusters

Right Plant, Right Place….

By | Arborist Insights, Company News, Education, Landscaping, Plant Species Information, Tips | No Comments

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Take a look at the planting by the sidewalk. The client had asked me to take down the four tall Calamagrostis grasses, thereby eliminating its ornamental flower heads.
It turns out the client went shopping and bought the grasses without realizing their mature height. Oooops. The grasses obscured the boxwoods (Buxus)- they should be placed behind the Buxus; they also interfered with driveway sight lines and invited complaints from the neighbor. Clearly, this was a case of wrong plant in a wrong place.

Design step: what would you replace the grasses with? Feel free to submit your ideas in the comments space.

Two potential replacements for spring 2016.

Green/lime Mondo grass Ophiopogon japonicus

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Blue oat grass Helictotrichon sempervirens

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Oxydendrum arboreum (Sourwood)

By | Arborist Insights, Company News, Education, Plant Species Information | No Comments

Sourwood is an East coast native belonging to the Ericaceae family. It is well-behaved, easy to care for and its small size makes it a perfect landscape specimen tree. Since it does not like to compete for nutrients it is best to mulch its base, not leave it surrounded by lawn or groundcover. Its distinct flower stalks and fruit hang onto the tree deep into fall.

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A good place for Sourwood: protected, well-drained, mulched base, and no foot traffic

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Flowers

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Fall Color

Further Reading CLICK HERE

Client versus Customer

By | Arborist Insights, Company News, Education, Landscaping, Plant Species Information | No Comments

A few weeks ago, I got called to a Coquitlam home about a tree pruning job. Perfect! I love this kind of work, as long as it does not involve climbing the tree. But this turned out to be a horrible project. The Acer palmatum in front of the house had already been severely topped once in the past and the owner wanted it crushed again, even more severely. I mean massive topping cuts on all major limbs. Then the lady asked for a senior’s discount! I mentioned crown reduction as an alternative to topping, and listed some of the major problems with the practice of topping trees. It did not help. This was my order: massive tree topping with a discount.

Now what? Take the cash and run?

Since ISA membership requires all arborists to sign a code of conduct, the decision was easy to make. Destroying a tree also feels bad. I politely declined the job and literally days later found rhododendron reduction work without any senior discounts. Somebody completed the Acer palmatum job (see picture below) but it was not as severe as first indicated. Complete removal would have been a better option.

This then brings us to the difference between a client and a customer. We want lots of good clients, people we can educate and charge fair prices. Customers are all about pricing and insist they know what they want even when there are better alternatives leading to better outcomes.

In an Arborist News story, several years back, an arborist knocks on the door and a lady opens the door. The tree professional then tells her he got a call about a tree in the back. The owner looks at him and tells him that “hired help” uses the side gate, not the main entrance. The arborist looks at her and politely tells her that he needs new clients, not more customers, turns around and leaves!

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Finished job!? I was asked to go another 3 feet lower

Basic Lawn Care Tips

By | Company News, Landscaping, Lawn Care | No Comments

A) Only mow over grass!

Running over fixed objects is dangerous for the operator, passerby and leads to costly repairs. In the example below, the mower blade was destroyed. But don’t forget about the mower shaft holding the blade. It costs hundreds to replace. The mower will likely work fine for a while with a new blade and then….not so much. Remember, get to know your mowing area well, clear away any obvious debris and avoid hitting fixed objects.

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An unforgiving fixed object

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About to be retired mower blade

B) You CAN line-trim backwards!

There are cases where line-trimming backwards is the way to go: close to cars, windows, tree-wells and bikini girls. The two examples below clearly illustrate how trimming backwards can save you time. The messed up tree well has to be carefully raked out; blowing would dislodge most of the new bark mulch. The clean tree well was line trimmed backwards, eliminating extra clean-ups.

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A clean tree well, line-edged backwards

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Line-edged freestyle, clean-up required