Featured Articles
Organic Lawn Care
Organic lawn care is a growing business segment, as more landscape industry professionals are looking to organic solutions to expand their market and grow their businesses.
Paver Q&A
For our focus on patios and walkways, Landscape and Irrigation asked Ted Corvey, paver business director at Pine Hall Brick, a Winston-Salem, N.C. manufacturer of clay brick pavers, about paver selection and installation.
State of the Industry 2010, part 2
Part one of our annual "State of the Industry" report focused on the landscape industry with input from the Professional Landcare Network (see January Landscape and Irrigation, page 10). For part two, we are focusing on the state of the irrigation industry and have asked leaders at the Irrigation Association (IA) for an overview of the industry as well as an outlook for the year to come.
WaterSense Label Identifies Smart Irrigation Technologies
Improving the efficiency of outdoor water use is not as straightforward as installing a product that will automatically save water. The amount of water used is related to how people irrigate, how well irrigation systems are designed and installed, whether they are regularly maintained, and whether the irrigation schedule is adjusted for rain and seasonal weather fluctuations. For this reason, WaterSense strives to improve landscape irrigation efficiency through an approach that focuses on programs, partners, and products.
Pest of the Month: Defoliating Insects
Defoliating insects come in a variety of shapes, sizes and species, but they all have one thing in common – they damage trees by causing massive leaf loss or defoliation that results in loss of vigor and decline over time. Some of the most common defoliating insects include sawflies, caterpillars and webworms.
New Year’s Plant Revolution
Growers across the country are introducing plants specifically bred to make residential and commercial landscape projects more profitable and successful.
Bright Ideas: Shedding some light on the landscape lighting industry
For insight into the landscape lighting market, changing lighting technologies, industry opportunities, and more, Landscape and Irrigation recently spoke with Brandon Stephens executive vice president of The Decor Group, Inc., and Nite Time Decor, a provider of landscape and architectural lighting that offers franchise opportunities for entrepreneurs seeking to market, sell, design, install and maintain low-voltage landscape lighting systems.
Planning Your Sales
The thing you have most control over is your relationship with your existing clients. These customers already have a relationship with you, they trust you, and, presumably, you know what they like and want. This can and should be the first place you look when planning for sales.
Making Sense of Soil Moisture Sensors
Ask any irrigation professional about the hottest products on the market today, and they'll probably tell you that components offering "Smart" technology are creating the most buzz. Controllers featuring Smart technology can automatically modify watering schedules based on weather conditions for a profound impact on the amount of water used. However, only one type of Smart technology can communicate actual real-time soil moisture levels back to the irrigation controller -- a soil moisture sensor