Bits and Pieces from the Good Ol?EUR??,,????'?????<

By George Schmok

• It’s show season again . . . “Hey there” to all of you at the Western Nursery and Garden Expo in Las Vegas and to all of you at EXPO 2004 in Louisville. LCN just returned from the TNLA Show (Texas Nursery and Landscape Association). After the September shows, LCN will be at the Southern California Turf grass show, the Green Industry Expo (GIE Show) and the Irrigation Expo. If you see us, please stop by and say hello. We use trade shows to catch up on the latest and greatest and to get face?EUR??,,????'?????<
• If you really want to improve the way you do business you should make plans on attending at least one trade show a year. While the exhibits will get you in on the latest product developments, you should also sign up for the seminars. Those who do attend the shows are generally the more successful operators . . . Knowledge is power . . .
• How many licenses are enough? . . . In Louisiana now you can (meaning . . . you now have to) get a license to install irrigation systems. Remember, though, if you install a project greater than $50K you also need to be a licensed contractor . . . In Texas you only need a license to install irrigation but not to be a landscape contractor. California wants you be a licensed landscape contractor. Electricians want you to have a licensed to install low-voltage lighting, and there is a push now to license landscape maintenance professionals. Of course, if you want to apply pesticides you need a license, especially if you are a rodent hunter, then you need a special license to handle the most potent WMDs (weapons of mole destruction) . . .
• Of course if you do or don’t have a license you should also be a CLT (Certified Landscape Technician) or a CTP (Certified Turfgrass Professional) . . . In other words you should always follow your name with something like: CLT, CTP, LIC, LC, LLVI, PAPA, PHD, BS, etc. . . .
• Now, more than ever, landscape contractors need a single, strong association to speak on their behalf and get things standardized on a more national level . . .
• Speaking of irrigation . . . Georgia, Colorado, California, Florida and a few other states are all enacting restraints and restrictions on the use of water for landscapes . . . While LCN benefits from more advertisements for artificial lawns, now, more than ever, landscape contractors need a strong national voice to help deal with these attacks . . .
• Well waddaya know . . . Dateline 9/1/04 – While you all had until September 3 to cast your votes, initial response was so positive for a merger between the PLCAA (Professional Lawn Care Association of America) and the ALCA (American Landscape Contractors Association) that plans are already in the works to move the headquarters of the new association and announce a new name in November at the GIE Show.
• LCN has long been pushing for a stronger national association to represent the landscape contractors and it looks like we are well on our way . . . Congratulations to the forward thinkers in both associations who are about to really put the landscape contractor on the map. . . . A big LCN “WAY TO GO”!!!
• Be sure to keep your eye on landscapearchitect.com for the breaking news and we’ll see you at the shows . . .

– God Bless