Here’s a breakdown of various products available for use, with a review of whether or not they’ll harm your landscape: http://www.safelawns.org/blog/index.php/2011/01/calcium-based-ice-melt-is-safer-for-lawns/
Article source: http://www.safelawns.org/blog/index.php/2012/01/ice-traction-aids-avoid-salt-on-lawns-and-plants/
One of the nation’s best educational opportunities for professionals and homeowners is coming to the Midwest in late March. Titled the “Lawn Landscape Summit: Chicago 2012,” the event will bring together two leading golf course superintendents, along with a renowned arborist and several of the most progressive landscape products companies for two days of lectures and panel discussions at the Chicago Botanic Gardens in Glencoe, Ill.
The SafeLawns Foundation will serve as co-host of the event with Calcium Products Inc., the soil amendment manufacturer from Iowa, as well as the Safer Pest Control Project of Chicago and a local conservation campaign known as Lawn to Lake. Among the scheduled presenters are Paul Cushing, the Assistant Deputy Director of the golf division for the city of San Diego that manages the Torrey Pines Golf Course, along with Jeff Carlson, the superintendent of the Vineyard Club on Martha’s Vineyard. Arborist Peter Wild of Boston Tree Preservation is also expected to talk about stem injection of trees as a defense against exotic invasive insects such as the emerald ash borer.
Presentations on Friday, March 30, will be geared for professionals, while the sessions on Saturday morning, March 31, will be prepared for homeowners. Other sponsoring companies include Milorganite, the long-time fertilizer manufacturer from Milwaukee, and Natural Industries, which makes the nation’s best natural fungicides.
For more information, visit www.lawnandlandscapesummit.com.
Article source: http://www.safelawns.org/blog/index.php/2012/01/major-american-lawn-landscape-conference-set-for-chicago-in-march/
Meet Larry Weaner, a nationally recognized leader in the natural landscape field whose work combines ecological restoration with traditions of fine garden design. Thursday, January 19, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Larry Weaner takes you beyond popular buzzwords like “sustainable” and “low-maintenance” to examine some surprising and at times counter-intuitive strategies for eco-friendly garden design.
Weaner’s presentation takes a look at practical, concrete processes for creating easily-managed landscapes that seamlessly combine ecological diversity, cultural expression, and the traditions of garden design. See how his alternative approaches—on everything from selecting plants to arranging, spacing, and weeding gardens—can yield rich landscapes that are more easily maintained, achieving their greatest ecological and aesthetic potential.
Weaner, 58, has created hundreds of native landscapes throughout the eastern United States since 1977. Larry Weaner Landscape Associates has received the top three design awards in 2008 from the Association of Professional Landscape Designers. Their projects include private gardens, public and commercial spaces, meadows, and natural areas.
One of Weaner’s largest and most ambitious projects, a 40-acre perennial and grass meadow in Litchfield, Connecticut, took almost a decade to fully mature and now has plants and some grasses grown to over five feet tall. For this meadow, he reportedly used eight different seed mixes with about 25 plants or grasses in each—altogether more than 200 plant varieties.
Weaner notes choosing the right plants for the conditions of the site and developing a plan for controlling invasive species as keys to success. During the first year of the wildflower meadow project, the ground was mowed three times during the summer to keep the weeds at bay and to stabilize growth. Now it is mowed only at the end of winter to about four inches high, and never watered!
Register online for Larry Weaner’s lecture, or call 800-322-6924. Tickets run $39 for non-members and $35 for members. Register for the entire Winter Lecture Series of three presentations and save 10%.
Now in its 12th year, the annual Winter Lecture Series is hosted by the School of Professional Horticulture and Adult Education. This year we will present three provocative experts at the forefront of horticulture, ecology, and sustainable practices who share their insights and wisdom on contemporary gardening.
Photos courtesy of Larry Weaner.
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Article source: http://www.nybg.org/plant-talk/2012/01/garden-programming/breaking-the-rules-ecological-design-for-the-real-world-with-larry-weaner/
Our colleagues in New Jersey are mobilizing anxiously in anticipation of next week’s critical vote in the state legislature that could remove toxic pesticides from school grounds and day care centers.
Suzanne Aptmann of the Northern New Jersey SafeYards Alliance did a great job of getting the issue covered in her local newspaper: http://westdeptford.patch.com/articles/legislature-could-move-on-school-pesticide-ban-next-week.
Safe landscape proponents from across the country are also eagerly anticipating the vote, as is the chemical pesticide industry. Tom Delaney, director of government affairs for the Professional Landcare Network (Planet), denounced the bill as propaganda and is asking all lawn care professionals to lobby against its passage.
We need to urge everyone in New Jersey to call their local legislators and urge them to pass the bill, which was co-sponsored by 40 elected officials.
Article source: http://www.safelawns.org/blog/index.php/2012/01/all-eyes-on-new-jersey-school-pesticide-bill/
“I wonder what it would be like to live in a world where it was always June.” – L. M. Montgomery
Today is the summer solstice here in the northeast. This is the longest day of the year when the sun is highest in the sky and the garden is in all its wonderful glory.
It is the start of new beginnings in the garden as new buds open day after day and continue until fall. It is a time for getting the hands dirty and not caring as long as you’re in the garden. It is a time for dreaming of the next addition and how it will give so much joy.
I can stay in the garden for hours without even realizing the time that has gone by. It is a time of relaxation and solitude. It is a time of satisfaction.
It is really the most wonderful time of the year here for the gardener. There is so much to look forward to. Enjoy your garden for it will bring you joy.
“Then followed that beautiful season… Summer…. Filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light; and the landscape lay as if new created in all the freshness of childhood.”
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Happy Summer and Happy Gardening!
OK I’ll have to admit when I was sent Sustainable Landscaping For Dummies
Owen infuses a bit of humor in this collection of sustainable gardening and landscaping tips that keeps you interested. In the world of “How to” books that can be mercilessly boring this one isn’t. From the basics of sustainability to water management Owen Dell covers all the bases. He talks about composting, mulching, edible sin the landscape, and lawn alternatives which are gaining favor by the minute. There’s a whole lot of information in this one book.
I suspect that if every homeowner in America practiced two or three more of the sustainable ideas in this book than they were doing before we would see a substantial difference in the quality of our environment. If you want to learn more about sustainable landscaping you could go visit Owen’s website or just go buy his book!
Originally written by Dave @ The Home Garden
Not to be reproduced or re-blogged without permission. No feed scraping is permitted.
All Rights Reserved.
Posted by mgervais
In a frozen landscape, color is a rare treat. Even shriveled with cold, this forgotten fruit lifts the spirits. Today’s photo was another winner from last year’s winter garden photography contest, and it’s from Mike Lane in Victoria, B.C. He said, “I’m a retired forester who has always been passionate about the outdoors, so my love of gardening flows from that. My garden here in Victoria, BC is in Zone 8 and averages 287 frost free days a year. Growing English roses has been my specialty for some years, however my love of photography has caused me to begin making changes in the garden. Now I’m planting more varieties that photograph…
The flowers that remain blooming are almost all metal!
Of course, there are wallflowers and a few violas that have seen better days!
How perfectly apt that the last bloom day of the year should end with a big freeze! This year we’ve had arctic freezes, flooding rains, drought and now snow and frigid temperatures! It’s a perfect end to a year of weather events and extremes that have left this gardener shaking her head in wonder over what 2011 will bring!
Looking out into the frozen landscape I knew exactly what made sense to share with you.
Without further ado, I give you Clay and Limestone’s favorite Bloom Day posts! ~You can follow the links if you have any inclination or time!
When winter’s frigid chill descended upon the garden and all hope of bloom were dashed ~I went straight to the florist for tulips!
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I pulled a Rabbit Out Of My Hat For GBBD when there were so few blooms
I was glad all over to see the crocus!
Last, but, certainly not least~
The October Blue skies finally arrive to compliment the native ex-asters.
I am so glad you stopped by for December 2010 Bloom Day~ An event that knows no geographical boundaries and is celebrated hither and yon in this great big wonderful world we inhabit. Please visit Carol, May Dreams Gardens for a link to all gardenbloggers who are celebrating the day!
I wish you all a wonderful day, filled with laughter, celebration and gardens!
xxoogail
Today school was out, the roads were iced over, and the garden was draped in white. I always enjoy the one or two times each winter when our landscape is covered in snow. That’s the great thing about living in Tennessee – or one of the great things – the mild winters! It will snow a couple times each year with usually no more than 1-4 inches. When it does snow 12-24 inches it doesn’t last long and you’re left wondering “did that really happen?” And around here we measure the snow in inches – not in feet! It’s this type of situation that allows us to enjoy Old Man Winter when he comes to visit.
So here’s what winter really looks like in Tennessee (although technically it isn’t winter yet!)
We wake up to temperatures beyond cold, way beyond cold. My wireless weather station does a nice job of letting me know how cold our frost pocket really is. It’s amazing how different our yard can be than what they say it is in our area on the news. These weather stations have really advanced a lot since we got ours (La Crosse Technology WS-1516-IT Professional Weather Center
When you actually get all dressed up in your winter weather gear here’s what you see in the garden:
A red twig dogwood looks fantastic in the snow. In the early spring or late winter I’ll trim back most of the stems and allow new growth to sprout up with its characteristic red bark color. Of course I’ll make sure to propagate more than a few red twig dogwoods!
The vegetable garden is also covered with a layer of white snow. It looks so peaceful and organized right now!
Even though the temperatures inside my shed are staying 10-15 degrees warmer than the outside it is still dipping into the 20′s. I don’t have any heating system in there yet – one day maybe. For now it is protecting hardy plants that are in pots for next spring.
Originally written by Dave @ The Home Garden
Not to be reproduced or re-blogged without permission. No feed scraping is permitted.
All Rights Reserved.
Posted by CoolGreenGardens
If you’re interested in reducing your energy bills and making your landscaping more beautiful, Sue Reed’s book, Energy-Wise Landscape Design belongs on your holiday gift list.
SECT Landscaping
Pressure Washing
Seasonal Clean Up
Junk Removal
Lawn Care 
Mulch Install 
Roof/Gutter Cleaning
