January 1, 2016
CNLA News January 2016
Click Before You Dig goes nation-wide
Online underground infrastructure location requests are now available across North America at www.clickbeforeyoudig.com. Easily access your local Dig Safe website through this one portal. More information is also available on developing safe digging best management practices and how to foster education.Improving planting and purchasing for urban trees
With funding assistance from the province’s Growing Forward 2 program, Landscape Ontario has undertaken an initiative to work cooperatively with their colleagues in the municipal sector to improve decision-making at the municipal government and developer levels for the supply and planting of trees in the urban landscape. This objective was achieved by bringing together a select group of nursery growers and municipal green space managers to participate in a one-day professionally facilitated focus group session. The collective results of this workshop will be reviewed and analyzed and will result in a strategy document that outlines key deliverables that the Ontario nursery sector and the municipal green space managers can implement to achieve improved success with urban tree and shrub plantings.For more information, contact rita@canadanursery.com
Improving tree health, one highway at a time
Vineland Research and Innovation Centre (Vineland) is screening urban tree species to develop guidelines for the nursery landscape industry, critical to sustain healthy trees along Canadian highways. Trees planted near multi-lane highways need to be robust because care is limited during the establishment phase.Findings suggest that not all trees classified as urban-tolerant are suitable for planting in unmaintained sites. As well, it was found that shrubs benefit trees in roadside environments, because they are able to help surrounding trees adapt to harsh environments.
The team will continue to conduct research at their two test sites near Niagara, Ont. This project was funded in part through Growing Forward 2 (GF2), a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. The Agricultural Adaptation Council assists in the delivery of GF2 in Ontario. More information on this project can be found at www.vinelandresearch.com
Promoting the turf sector
Turf continues to be under attack. Beginning with the ‘cosmetic pesticide’ ban, turf was demonized by the environmental left, and made a scapegoat, only to be left in a defensive position province by province, municipality by municipality. Forgotten in all the rhetoric and environmentalist momentum were two major factors; science, and turf’s beneficial contribution to the environment and people’s health and well being.CNLA’s Turf-Producer Sub-Committee has four major initiatives in progress to position turf within industry and government, as well as to better serve turf producers across the country. They are: promoting the benefits of turf, representing turf as a crop at the Pest Management Centre meetings in Ottawa, creation of a crop profile for turf, and the development of a National Occupational Analysis for turf production.
Are you taking full advantage of your membership?
With a new year underway, this is the perfect time to assess your company’s needs and see how your provincial association can help meet them. CNLA has a variety of Member Savings programs, from vehicle and equipment discounts, to health and safety training, to insurance. All the information is available on the CNLA website or your local provincial website. Most programs only take a phone call to start using, call us today!A new tool for retailers
Thanks to funding from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program, Garden Centres Canada (GCC) is developing a tool that you can use to better understand your business. GCC is currently working with a software developer to create online benchmarking software that will be simple to use and more importantly, take up as little administrative time as possible!Weekly data reports will be available for your own store so you can easily compare your sales week-to-week, month-to-month, year-to-year, etc. You will also be able to look at how sales turned out for garden centres by region, and nationally. All data will remain anonymous, and only the aggregate data of all participants will be shared. You must enter your information to get the reports back.
Keep an eye on the GCC Retail News for more information as it becomes available. A sign-up form is available on the CNLA website.
The world is coming to Canada in 2017
CNLA will be hosting the IGCA Congress in Niagara Falls, Ont., from September 17-22, 2017. We will take delegates to garden centres, nurseries, and gardens in the Niagara Falls and Toronto area, and will also highlight Canadian culture, sights and attractions. Although this is an international conference, we hope to see a number of Canadians at this Congress as well. Sponsorship opportunities are available to anyone interested in reaching out to this global audience. Visit the CNLA website for more details.Advancing women in agriculture
The Canadian Agriculture and Human Resource Council (CAHRC) has launched a survey to discover barriers to the advancement of women in agriculture. The survey is open to both men and women, so that the resulting actions reflect the true needs of the industry. The survey is available on the CAHRC website.The Canadian Nursery Landscape Association is the federation of Canada’s provincial horticultural trade associations. Visit www.cnla-acpp.ca for more information.