By Julia Harmsworth

Sarah Beckon, Grounds Management Sector Group representative to the Landscape Ontario (LO) provincial board of directors, is working hard to get Grounds Management off the ground.

Beckon’s horticulture journey began with her high school co-op at her local Parks and Recreation department. “Right from there, [I] fell in love with being outdoors, and growing, and working in the parks and planting — all of it,” she said. “I loved horticulture and I had a really great mentor who directed me to go into the Niagara Parks Commission, and really, really helped me along.”

After graduating and working for the Parks and Recreation department just outside of Auckland, New Zealand — which Beckon said proves a horticultural career can take you anywhere — she moved to Toronto and started at Allweather Landscape Co., where she’s been for 17 years.

Allweather is very involved with LO. The company sponsors apprentices, sends their employees to LO seminars, and Beckon’s boss, owner Phil Charal, is a LO past president. Beckon had been going to Congress since her co-op days, but Allweather introduced her to the many other opportunities LO has to offer.

Beckon joined the Grounds Management Sector Group a few years before COVID-19. Unsurprisingly, the pandemic paused the group’s operations. After activities returned to normal, the chair needed support, so Beckon stepped up.

Now, as chairperson of the group, Beckon said Ground Management is “really in that re-engagement process.” When it returned in 2023, she was one of only two members; now there are eight. Beckon wants to get the message out: “Hey, we’re back, and we really want to have representation throughout all regions.”

The group is focused on increasing its numbers and promoting discussion on issues critical to the sector, like Toronto’s potential ban on two-stroke engines — which Beckon supports, but believes warrants serious consideration of the transition process to battery. A panel discussion held last August included discussions on the ban’s implications for both landscape companies and clients.

Grounds Management is also looking to create short, digestible demonstration videos on everything from how to get rid of box tree moth, to how to plant a tree, to how to prune different types of roses, that companies can share with their crews and apprentices.

“We’ve got a really engaged group that feels strongly about getting out the right message,” Beckon said. “We’re looking to support the training for companies in everyday practice.”

Beckon is passionate about this message: she said there’s mountains of content out there offering varying horticultural methods, but she wants to make sure everyone has the resources to learn how to do things the right way. This, she said, will promote professionalism in the trade.

“I really, really, feel strongly about promoting professionalism in this industry and raising that level up. If Landscape Ontario can be the go-to place for correct [practices] so we can avoid things like mulch volcanoes… I really want to make an impact or a dent in that.”

In addition to promoting best practices, Beckon believes investing in professional development at all levels is key to elevating the trades. She’s hired people who have completed the GROW program, which she believes “shines a light on this industry.” Like all Allweather managers, Beckon has also completed the GROW Employers of Choice program.

“It gives managers a common vocabulary,” she said of the program. “It gets everybody aware of what’s happening out there in the workforce. It was super beneficial for the whole team to get on board so that we’re all speaking the same language, from the top to the bottom.”

Beckon’s passion for boosting professionalism — and her desire to build up the Grounds Management Sector Group — brought her to the LO provincial board of directors. She’s excited about the opportunity to stay informed, share her passion for plants, continue to advocate for best practices and increase her dosage of her favourite thing about LO: the connection.

“You sit at a table with eight other people and you come away with seven new ideas,” she said. “It’s a good feeling to be a part of something bigger than yourself.”

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