Upper Canada this week: February 16, 2011

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

Upper Canada Chapter meeting, March 9

Join the Upper Canada Chapter at the Strathcona Paper Centre in Napanee, for this highly anticipated MTO session, starting at 2 p.m. Two reasons
for attending: staying safe and staying compliant. Learn what’s new this
year in record keeping, load securement, general maintenance standards,
etc. This is considered the most important meeting of the year and will include elections for the 2011 chapter board. Back by
popular request is Frank Collins of Pro-Tech Transportation &
Industrial Safety Training Services. For more information, contact Helen Hassard at 1-800-265-5656, ext. 354, or helen@landscapeontario.com.

Permacon Spring Tour 2011

Permacon

has announced the dates for its Spring Tour 2011 Seminars. For Upper Canada
Chapter members, the closest event is on Mar. 10 at 2011 Hampton Inn and
Convention Centre, 200 Coventry Rd., Ottawa. Educational seminars
include
Sustainable Landscaping by Sean James, Pricing and Estimating for Profit
by George Urvari, Proper Installation of Polymeric Sand, Sealers, etc.,
and a keynote speech by Theresa Syer. The day is free of charge and
also includes product workshops, lunch, gifts, a mini trade show and even
a chance at a door prize. Register here.

Upper Canada Training Session, Mar. 23
Come
out to 698 Station Road, Gananoque at 8:30 a.m. to learn about WHMIS, Bill 168, Lawn Care
Equipment Familiarization, Risk Assessment, Managing Compliance and
Hazard Recognition. Participants must bring their PPE, and everyone on site is
to have CSA footwear. Cost for both members and potential members is a
food bank donation. Lunch will be provided by the chapter. To register
or learn more contact Helen Hassard at 1-800-265-5656, ext. 354, or helen@landscapeontario.com.

Skidsteer certification, Mar. 24
Come
out to 698 Station Road, Gananoque at 8:30 a.m. for skidsteer (bucket and forks)
certification. Participants will receive laminated certification cards.
Participants must bring their PPE, and everyone on site is to have CSA
footwear. Cost is $125 for LO members and $150 for potential members.
Lunch will be provided by the chapter. Foodbank donations are
appreciated. To register or learn more, contact Helen Hassard at 1-800-265-5656, ext. 354, or helen@landscapeontario.com.

LO this week

Minimum wage remains at $10.25

The Ontario minimum wage rate will remain at $10.25 per hour in 2011.
Ontario still has the highest provincial minimum wage in Canada. The
Ontario minimum wage has increased by 50 per cent with annual increases
in the last seven years. This fall, the provincial government has
promised to appoint a committee, representing both business and workers,
to provide advice on the minimum wage in advance of the 2012 budget. Find Ministry of Labour minimum wage info here.

Green Roof seminars next week

Now is your chance to take advantage of two seminars next week that will
provide green roof accreditation. Green Roof Design 101: Introductory
Course will take place on Feb. 22, while Green Roof Implementation 201
will be held on Feb. 23. The courses are presented by Green Roofs for
Healthy Cities (North America). Each course will take place at the LO
office in Milton, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. To find out more, or to register
for the introductory course go to Feb. 22, and to take Implementation 201, go to Feb. 23.

Video reveals Greening Ontario Highways project
A video produced by Vineland Research and Innovation Centre shows how
Landscape Ontario, local nurseries, horticultural suppliers, the
Ministry of Transportation and Vineland are collaborating with Ohio
State University on an initiative that will re-forest areas along
Ontario highways. To see the video go to Greening Ontario Highways.

Garden Inspiration 2011: Order your bulk copies!

Once again, Landscape Ontario is producing Garden Inspiration, a
64-page, all-colour magazine, featuring award-winning landscapes and
exciting new plants for 2011. Its unique flip format also features the
Canada Blooms Show Guide. Cartons of 100 can be shipped direct in
mid-March, or picked up at LO home office in Milton. Cost is $67 per
carton delivered, or $54 per carton picked up in Milton, both prices
include tax. Download an order form, or contact Angela Lindsay, alindsay@landscapeontario.com , 647-723-5305.

Building your Prosperity seminar, Feb. 17
The
introductory Prosperity Partnership seminar will get you started on to
the road of success. The next program is scheduled for Landscape Ontario
home office at 7856 Fifth Line South, Milton. It is intended to help
green industry members clarify what they excel at and what components of
their business need attention and improvement. A seminar workbook will
be provided. Take this online survey, to measure your strengths and weaknesses in the six Prosperity pillars. Click here for more information, or to register.

Landscape Lighting Symposium, Feb. 24
Don’t miss your opportunity to attend the second annual Lighting
Symposium. You will learn about
LEDs, how to
properly shoot photographs of your night lighting projects, participate
in round-table discussions and visit the mini-trade show, all in one
building. Last year, the symposium was sold out, resulting in a move this year to
the
larger Grand Chalet venue in Milton. Register here, or view flyer for more information on this popular event.

Industry Canada creates SME benchmarking tool

Industry Canada has created a web page benchmarking tool which provides
background information on Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). The
program provides access to industry averages for income statement and
balance sheet items, financial ratios and information on profitability
for small- and medium-sized businesses, and features detailed financial
data on more than 600 industries across Canada, including more than 30
performance benchmarks to help small businesses determine how they
measure up to their competitors. To access the page go to
Benchmarking.

NEW employee handbook for garden centres

The Garden Centre Sector Group of Landscape Ontario has created a
template that all business owners can adopt and modify for their
business. This initiative was done to help you create consistency of
behaviour, training and job safety for garden centre employees. The
template is considered a guideline only, and employers are reminded to
make sure they are in compliance with up-to-date legislation. The
handbook template can be downloaded from Landscape Ontario’s website, Employee Handbook.

Quit hoping for Profit: Plan for it Feb. 22

Building Quality Water Features in the Landscape Feb. 22

Post-Ban Commercial and Residential Turf Feb. 24

WHMIS-Train the Trainer Feb. 24

Sustainable Turf Health Care on Treed Properties Feb. 25

Legal Obligations of the Landscape Employer Feb. 25

Quit Hoping for Profit: Plan for it Feb. 28
Ground Maintenance Week Feb. 28

Risk Management and the Law in Construction: Avoiding Problems and Getting Paid Mar. 2

Customer Service: Back to Basics for Extraordinary Success Mar 3

To register or get more information, click seminars.

Nursery Sector IPM at three sites

Jen Llewellyn, Nursery Crops Specialist with the Ministry of
Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs will conduct the 9th annual IPM in
the Nursery Sector presentation at the Copetown Community Centre on Feb. 22. The seminar is at the Claremont Legion (off Brock Road, northeast of the
407) on Mar. 1, from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. There
is no charge for attendance, but bring a lunch. If interested in
attending, fax 519-767-0755, or email to jennifer.llewellyn@ontario.ca
with the names of interested parties from your nursery by the
registration date of Feb. 18.

Ontario Turfgrass Symposium, Feb. 23-24
Rozanski
Hall, University of Guelph, is the site for the 20th annual Ontario
Turfgrass Symposium. Speakers from both industry and academia will
provide information pertaining to the symposium’s theme, ‘On the Cutting
Edge.’ Sports and recreation staff, lawn care, golf course workers and
nursery sod growers will benefit from the many sessions, including pest
and disease controls to safety and liability issues in turf
environments. Registration for the symposium is available at Symposium, or call 519-767-5000 for more information.

Unilock to hold Spring Contractor seminars

Unilock’s Spring Contractor Seminars will include information on how you
can build your own website effectively with special guest speakers from
WSI,the Dos and Don’ts for Unilock Select Products and a look at
correct aggregates for paving installations, and much more. The seminars are free of charge and
include lunch. There will be ballots for a chance to enter a draw to win
up to $40,000 in landscaping equipment. For dates and locations of
Unilock seminars, visit Unilock, and to register call Marcello @ 905-887-1717, or email Marcello.cantanna@unilock.com.

Garden Tourism Conference in Toronto
The
second Canadian Garden Tourism Conference, with the theme of Blossoming
Partnerships, will take place Mar. 14 and 15, at the Delta Chelsea
Hotel in Toronto. For more information on the event, and to register go
to Garden Tourism Conference.

Support Foundation and win cash
Try your luck in the Ontario Horticultural Trade Foundation raffle, and
help support your industry. Tickets are $20 each; first prize is $5,000,
second is $1,000 and third is $500. Only 1,000 tickets have been
printed. The draw will take place at the 2011 Growers Auction on July
15. You may donate in increments of $20 to get raffle tickets. All proceeds to go to scholarships and research projects. Contact Kathleen Pugliese to purchase tickets.

Free safety training opportunity
Safety
trainer LandscapeSafety.com is offering each LO member a free,
comprehensive online training program for one employee. Participants may
choose from any or all of 23 online training modules, including WHMIS.
To sign up, visit http://www.landscapesafety.com/lo.php.

Order personalized, reusable tote bags by Mar. 18
Reusable tote bags are a great gift for your customers, as well as, an eco-friendly way to promote your business. LO is
offering a chance to order your personalized tote bags and give your company logo visibility. The bags feature your
company logo on one side, and Landscape Ontario’s attractive “Green for
Life” icon on the other! Don’t let your competitors beat you to it! The more members who purchase the bags, the cheaper the cost will be for everyone; price based on quantity ordered! For more information, contact Helen
Hassard at 1-800-265-5656 ext. 354 or Helen@landscapeontario.com

WSIB’s service for clearance certificates is online

The WSIB launched its new electronic clearance certificate program, called eClearance, on Jan. 17. The WSIB says this online service will allow employers to easily check
the validity of a potential contractors’ clearance to avoid any
financial liability when hiring independent operators / contractors,
contractors will be able to obtain an electronic clearance certificate
to verify their WSIB account is in good standing, and both parties will
be able to view clearance status at any time. For more information about clearance certificates, refer to OPM
Doc. No. 14-02-04, Clearance Certificates: Employer Accounts.

Survive and thrive in today’s market, Mar. 2

Monroe
Porter, internationally-known business strategy speaker is coming to
Landscape Ontario! Learn to survive and thrive in today’s market in this
program that demonstrates how to establish goals and strategies to keep
pace with the lightning-fast changes in the green industry. Porter will
discuss how to combat shrinking margins, realistic budgeting,
profitable pricing structures, how to identify winning jobs and more.
This seminar takes place on Mar. 2, 1 to 4 p.m., at the LO home office.
Cost is $60 for LO members, and $96 for non-members. For more information, see the flyer. Space is limited to 15: register today at the LO seminar page.

Green Roof Boot Camp

A Green Roof Boot Camp is scheduled in Toronto the end of March.
The event is an opportunity to become an Accredited Green Roof
Professional. Location varies by day: Mar. 24, and Mar. 27 at Ted Rogers
School of Management – Ryerson University, 55 Dundas Street West, and
March 25 and Mar. 26 at Oakham House Room A/B, 55 and 63 Gould Street.
Find out more information on the
Boot Camp, or contact training@greenroofs.org

Landscape Industry Certified tests at Canada Blooms

Written tests in all categories of Landscape Industry Certified will
take place at Canada Blooms 2011 on Mar. 17. To register, visit Certification, and email completed registration form to rachel@landscapeontario.com, or fax 905-875-3942. Registration to take the tests closes Mar. 3.

Great Ontario Garden Guide

The Master Gardeners of Ontario, with the help of sponsorship from
Landscape Ontario, have created a brochure on gardening in Ontario. The
Great Ontario Garden Guide is available for the low cost of only $20
per 100 copies. Act now and order some before they are in short
supply. It is expected that this informative brochure will be popular
with your customers. Use it as a sales promotion, goodwill tool, or just
to say, “Thank You.” Contact John Craw at jonbon@bell.net for further details.

Irrigation conference, Mar. 1-3

The three-day Ontario Agricultural Irrigation Conference, at Elm Hurst Inn, Ingersoll, will feature a drip irrigation course, presentations by irrigation experts and assistance with the Permit to Take Water program,
as well as a trade show. New technologies and the latest research developments in the field of agricultural irrigation will be the focus of the conference. To access the poster and registration form, go to Irrigation Conference.

OPA Foundation offers seven scholarships

Ontario Parks Association Foundation Awards Program
Once again, Ontario Parks Association Foundation is offering seven
$2,500 scholarships and bursaries to students completing their first
year in a program related to horticulture, landscaping, parks services,
conservation, or environmental management. To see both information and
registration form, go to scholarships. The deadline for applications is Apr. 29.