Golden Horseshoe this week: Nov. 30, 2011

Golden Horseshoe Chapter this week

Add the Golden Horseshoe Chapter page and the LO events calendar to your bookmarks

Mohawk
offers horticulture apprenticeship

Starting Jan. 2, Mohawk College is offering a horticulture technician
apprenticeship program. This is a Red Seal recognized program taught by
industry professionals experienced in horticulture education. The
college is booking candidates for both Level 1 and 2.
To register, contact Jean Miller, Ministry of Training, Colleges and
Universities by telephone in Hamilton at 905-521-7579, or
1-800-668-4479, ext. 7579, jean.miller@ontario.ca, or for information, contact
Terry Murphy, 905-279-5147, tvmurphy@ca.inter.net. To access the course’s
website go to Mohawk.

Seminars offered in Golden Horseshoe.

LO this week

40 days to go —The countdown is on!

Congress is the largest trade show of its kind in Canada, and is one of
the top three trade shows for the horticultural industry in North America. It also offers special sector-specific opportunities, plus Canada’s most comprehensive green industry conference program.
Show registration is open with early bird pricing ending Dec. 16: register at
www.locongress.com.

Mark
Cullen guest speaker at growers’ dinner, Dec. 6

All are welcome at the LO Growers’ Group Fall Dinner meeting on Dec. 6 at
Grand Chalet, 324 Steeles Ave. E., in Milton. Guest speaker is Mark
Cullen on consumer trends affecting the nursery industry. After the
break, high priority issues for the sector will be discussed
such as stimulating demand for product, enhancing profitability and
forecasting production. Registration begins at 5 p.m. and the event ends at 9:30 p.m. Tickets, including meal, are $40/person. For more
information, and to download a registration form, go to Growers’ Dinner.
To RSVP, contact Kathleen Pugliese at kathleenp@landscapeontario.com by Dec. 2
.

Save money!

Don’t miss your opportunity to register for Congress at the early bird rates. Discounted pricing ends Dec.16.
Conference sessions and special events fill up fast — don’t be disappointed, register today at Congress.

IPM Symposium 2012: 49th annual edition

‘Managing Turf, Trees and Expectations’ is the title of the 49th
edition of the IPM Symposium set for Mon., Jan. 9 at the Cohen Ballroom
of the Toronto Congress Centre. Times have changed, and the program has
been revamped to be more relevant than ever. The Congress event is the
only IPM Symposium to take place this year. The speaker program is
especially exciting this year, and attendance at this event qualifies
attendees for CEC’s from the IPM Council of Canada. Register at
www.locongress.com.

Fall seminar series

Great Landscape Contractors, Great Landscape Businesses On Dec. 12 and 13 This seminar turns great landscape contractors into great landscape
business owners. Get out of your truck and into the boardroom, for the
best two days you’ve ever spent on your business. Actual landscape
contractors from some of Ontario’s best landscape companies lead this
hands-on workshop to help your company build the systems to
create a more predictable, profitable future. You’re going to leave this
workshop with: An operating budget built with your numbers, for your company; a pricing system that calculates how to price your work to
cover your company’s costs and profit; an efficiency rating that shows what your sales should be, and how
much you’re actually spending on waste and inefficiency; estimating methods that improve field productivity and profit; dead-simple, proven methods to measure progress and track job costs; wage and bonus systems that inspire employees to think and act like
entrepreneurs, instead of hourly employees.
Companies who have previously taken LMN’s Plan for Profit are welcome
back to create a 2012 budget, but note that this course will cover the same topics as last year’s Plan for Profit session.

For other opportunities to receive professional development, go to seminars for more details.

NEW! Close the Sale! Dec.5
Building Your Prosperity, Dec. 7
Chiseled in Stone: An Introduction, Jan. 23
Landscape Design- An Introduction, Jan. 23
Native Trees and Shrubs: Expand your Knowledge, Jan. 24
Green Roof Design 101: Introductory Course, Jan. 25
Negotiating with the Savvy Buyer, Jan. 25
Getting Started in Concrete, Jan. 26
How to Use Dynascape, Jan. 26

Landscape Design – Above and Beyond, Jan. 27
Is there a Plant Doctor in the House?, Jan. 27

Simply Accounting-Next Step, Jan. 27

Chiseled in Stone: Intermediate, Jan. 30
The Hardy Woody Plant, Jan. 30

Building Your Prosperity, Dec. 7
Get started on to the road of success. This program is intended to help
green industry members clarify what they excel at and what components of
their business needs attention and improvement. The seminar will take
place at the LO home office in Milton, from 9 a.m. to 3:30
p.m. The cost to LO members is $115, and non-members is $192. Check out
the online survey, to measure your strengths and weaknesses in the five Prosperity Pillars. To find more information, or to register go to Building Your Prosperity.

OPA
Educational Forum

Join the Ontario Parks Association on Mon., Jan. 9 for the 56th
Annual Parks Educational Forum, ‘Turning Grey to Green, 75 Years of
Protecting Tomorrow Today.’ This full-day event features a parks,
politics and pancakes networking breakfast, sessions, a keynote
presentation and door prizes, being held in the Mississauga Room at
Doubletree Hotel Toronto Airport, 655 Dixon Rd., Toronto. There is early bird
pricing of $165 for members before Dec. 16. Register at
www.locongress.com. Contact Shelley May at OPA
shelley@ontarioparksassociation.com.

Looking
to hire?

Recognizing the need for labour in all industry sectors, Landscape
Ontario is pleased to provide an Employment Board again this year for
our Active, Interim and Associate Members just outside the LO booth at
Congress 2012. For more information visit job board.

Time to join a Safety Group

The 2012 WSIB/Landscape Ontario Safety Groups Program helps industry firms develop a Ministry
of Labour compliant safety program for their workplaces. Firms will
select five WSIB safety elements at the start of the year, and then
initiate or improve upon them by attending at least three compulsory
meetings. Working with other members, the initiatives are put in place
by the end of the year. Along with an improved safety record, there are
financial benefits in the form of rebates from WSIB. For more details
and to participate in the 2012 program, go to Safety Groups.

New accessibility standards coming in January

As of Jan. 1, 2012, all employers in Ontario who provide goods and
services must be compliant with Accessibility Standards for Customer
Service issued under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities
Act. Employers will have a legislated obligation accommodate customers
with disabilities. The province has a
website explaining the new rules, while a number of companies are
providing seminars on the issue. Go to seminars to see dates and prices.