Upper Canada this week: Dec. 7, 2011

Upper Canada Chapter this week
Add the Upper Canada Chapter page and the LO events calendar to your bookmarks

Ornamental growers safety program

An Occupational Safety and Health Administration-compliant safety
seminar, aimed at ornamental growers, will take place on Jan. 30, from 9
a.m. to 12-noon at Iroquois Parks Sport Centre, Whitney Hall, 500
Victoria St. W., Whitby. This progressive risk management seminar will
engage owners using interactive training techniques to help employers
towards establishing a basic health and safety management program. To
register, or for more information, go to Growers Safety Program. Other
programs are scheduled in London and Vineland in February and March.
Lunch is not included.

Horticultural Technician Apprenticeship

Loyalist College is offering the Horticultural Technician Apprenticeship
Level 2 in-class training. The course will be conducted at Connon
Nurseries, at 956 Old Highway 2, Quinte West. The class begins Jan. 9,
2012, and concludes Mar. 30. To learn more about the program at
Loyalist, check out Apprenticeship. For more information, contact your
local Employment and Training Consultant, or John O’Rourke at Loyalist
College, 613-696-1913, ext. 2561, or jorourke@loyalistc.on.ca.

Seminars that take place in Upper Canada

LO this week

Early bird pricing ends next week!

Don’t miss the 39th edition of Congress, Jan. 10 to 12, 2012
at the Toronto Congress Centre. It is the largest trade show of its kind in Canada, and 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.

LO members attract media with park restoration
The name Landscape Ontario was heard and read across national media on
Dec. 7, as volunteers from Landscape Ontario and the Nursery Sod Growers
Association began preparation work to replace damaged sod at St.
James Park in Toronto. The downtown park was destroyed during the Occupy
Toronto protest. Volunteers from LO are set to lay the new
sod on Thursday. Any members wishing
to volunteer at the park are welcome to show up at the site, starting at 7
a.m. on Dec. 8, or to email Tony DiGiovanni. News media were quick to react to the gesture, with coverage on all major
Toronto outlets in Toronto. National media CTV, Global and CBC
picked up the story. Many of the stories can be viewed online by
writing into Google search engine: landscape ontario st. james park. A Facebook page on the project may be accessed
to view photos and information on the restoration. The information was released to the media by Toronto councilor Pam
McConnell. Her release can be found at St
James Park Restoration.

Landscape Ontario magazine online
The December issue of Landscape Ontario
magazine is
now online. This month your association magazine features the LO Annual Report, along with the latest
news on Congress 2012, Chapter projects in Ottawa, Waterloo, Windsor and
Upper Canada, the new online list and information on alternative trees
to ash and Norway maple, 2012 WSIB industry rates, as well as all
the regular monthly columns. Remember, free subscriptions to the
electronic version of Landscape Ontario are available here.

Landscape Designer Conference

Join your peers for a full day of design-related sessions, lunch and a
networking reception at the end of the day. Held at the Doubletree by
Hilton Hotel, 655 Dixon Rd., Toronto. This is in conjunction with
Congress 2012. Register at www.locongress.com

Irrigation Conference and Luncheon 2012

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly … and the Future of Texas Irrigation
Licensing on Wed., Jan. 11, 2012, at the Toronto Congress Centre. Hosted
by the Landscape Ontario Irrigation Sector Group and presented by Todd
Magatagan, CAIS, CGIA, CIC, CID, CLIA, CLWM, of Woodlands, Texas. Join
your peers at this very candid look at licensing from a seasoned expert.
The oldest irrigation licensing program in the U.S. is in Texas, with
over 39 years of successes, failures and mistakes. He will discuss
whether licensing is a good idea, how to avoid mistakes, how to develop a
better irrigation license and what the irrigation industry might look
like in coming years. Register at www.locongress.com.

IPM Person of the Year Award

This award recognizes leadership in providing hope, looking to the
future and contributing to the healthy growth of the industries
represented in the IPM Symposium. This individual will be nominated by
their peers, and the recipient determined by the IPM Symposium
Committee. The Award recognizes a distinguished educator, representative
of a company, municipality or supplier, who by his or her achievements
in the turf and/or tree industry, has contributed uniquely to enhancing
or promoting the future of our industry for mutual and beneficial gain.
Please see loawards.com and click on “Special Awards” for more details.
Inaugural winner to be announced at the IPM Symposium being held Mon.,
Jan. 9, in conjunction with Congress. Submit your nomination by
Dec. 16 to ipm@landscapeontario.com.

Special-price Canada Blooms tickets: Great gift for staff and clients

LO members may purchase special bar-coded Canada Blooms tickets for $12 each; the regular ticket price is $20. Blooms tickets are a thoughtful gift for clients, staff, business associates
and family. The tickets come in packages of 20, and LO members will be
invoiced after the show, only for the tickets that were presented at the event. Ticket packages are available from Kathleen
Pugliese at 1-800-265-5656, ext. 309, or kpugliese@landscapeontario.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.

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

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 job posting guidelines, 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.

Vineland hosting open house
Vineland is holding an open house on Dec. 16 for an afternoon of holiday
cheer and to view outstanding selection of poinsettias. Meet researchers at
the centre and help them choose the poinsettia of the future. The event
begins at 1 p.m. and runs to 4. Vineland is located at 4890 Victoria
Ave., North, Vineland Station. Watch for signs upon entering the
property. For more information go to Vineland.

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.