http://www.igin.com/articles.sec-62-1-landscape_maintenance.html Recent improvements in application technology have finally made it possible for landscape professionals in all sectors of the business to provide this valuable service. Top dressing is already considered essential in the maintenance of athletic fields and golf courses.]]> Every contractor and landscape service provider knows that the lawn cutting business is more a marathon than a sprint.]]> Few green industry providers have been untouched by today’s economic environment, and landscape construction companies are among the hardest hit. With fewer building projects in sight, companies are responding in different ways. Some are streamlining operations and putting their efforts into more creative advertising and marketing.]]> Have you ever designed and installed a beautiful landscape, just to see it become so overgrown that you´d never know it was designed and installed by a professional? Either the client let it get out of hand, or the person who was doing the maintenance really didin´t know how to care for plants. Well, who better to keep that landscape looking great, than the company who designed it?]]> How much time do you spend shaving every morning? No matter if you use an electric or straight-edge razor, or how close the cut, you have to shave again the next day and the next, and the next.]]> My mother always said, “If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.” This worked fine when she was a homemaker, but once she started her own business, Mom soon realized that the only thing she was doing right by following her motto was making herself frustrated and completely exhausted at the end of the day. It didn’t take her long to adopt a new philosophy: If you want something done right, you have to train others to do it the right way and trust that they will follow your example. ]]> IF YOU THOUGHT THE TERM ‘GOING in circles’ meant spinning your wheels and not making any progress, when it comes to the landscape profession, you couldn’t be more wrong.]]> Doesn’t it seem like it was only last week when you were applying fall fertilizer and cheering your favorite team to win the World Series? Now, Halloween trick-ortreaters have come and gone, the Thanksgiving feast is just a memory, and you’re starting to feel Jack Frost nipping at your nose.]]> YOUR COMMERCIAL MOWERS PACK a lot of punch. Their high horsepower engines make them very powerful machines, allowing your crews to cover more ground in less time.]]> There are times when the landscape industry feels like an “E-ticket” roller coaster ride. For those of us old enough to remember, E-tickets were purchased at Disneyland for the highest and scariest rides in the park.]]> What if you could easily and relatively inexpensively expand your business without incurring increased operating costs? And what if you could accomplish this by adding only one piece of equipment... ]]> New. That one little word creates a sense of excitement like none other. When you 're asked, "What's new?" the last thing you want to say is "Nothing." People are naturally drawn to the newest hi-tech gadgets, new store openings and new restaurant menus. Why should your company by any different? ]]> Talk about a wrench in the works. Or, in this case, a tree stump. After completing a renovation for a client, the backyard turned out beautifully. ]]> “The best time to start a springtime revival is actually in the late fall of the previous year,” says Walter Cornett, owner of Walter Cornett Landscaping, Richmond, Virginia. ]]> In most professions, there is one central piece of equipment that you have to own before you can hang your company sign on the door. For electricians, it’s their ohm meter. ]]> Few green industry providers have been untouched by today’s recession, and landscape construction companies are among the hardest hit.]]> THE SMALL, GATED RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITY OF MOUNTAIN Cove in Azusa, California, had almost become accustomed to the poorly maintained grass growing there. ]]> For many companies, that familiar chill in the air means it’s time to put some machines to bed for the winter. For others, it’s also a signal to pull out the snow equipment. ]]> Times are tough and people everywhere are rising to the challenge by making do with less. Homeowners who’ve never lifted a rake or pushed a mower are suddenly turning into backyard doit-yourselfers. It’s really kind of heartwarming . . . unless, of course, they’re your customers. ]]> WATER, WATER EVERYWHERE—IT might seem that way, since much of our earth is covered in water, but we all know that water is an exhaustible resource and we must do our part to conserve. ]]>