NORTHEAST Technician Wages % Prenotifying 73 $ Per Hour 8.50 Technician Wages $ Per Hour 6.75 % Customers Concerned About Pesticides 49 % Prenotifying 16 Benefits LCOs Provide Their Employees Paid Holidays .58% Sick Leave .32 Paid Vacation - 56 Overtime pay 51 Life Insurance- 20 Medical Coverage 34 Dental Coverage 12 Education/Training 62 Retirement Plan 8% LCOs Using Computers Yes 161% No 99% LCOs Using Mobile Communications Beepers 32% Two-Way Radios 32 Cellular Telephones 12 LCOs Using "Natural" Products Yes 30% No 70% 1990 "State of the Industry" highlight. LCOs in the Northeast are on the cutting edge of the lawn application business, according to Lawn Care Industry's most recent survey. Slightly more than 1/4 of the survey's 240 responses came from northeast states where LCOs pay more to attract employees, and where customer concerns over pesticide use are greatest. LCI McClure to direct PLCAA ATLANTA, GAŠAnne Mc-Clure will take the reins of the Professional Lawn Care Asso-ciation of America on October 1. PLCAA board members met her in August in a recep-tion following a board meeting here. McClure replaces James A. Brooks, PLCAA executive vice president for the past seven years. McClure, a graduate of Washington State University, Pullman, WA, had served as the executive administrator of the Irrigation Association. LCI MWN GRE INDUSTRY Serving the needs of the professional lawn care operator VOLUME 14 NUMBER 9 PUBLICATION SEPTEMBER 1990 PLCAA seminars Promise too much and pay! STURBRIDGE, MA-Lawn professionals promising too much are taking money out of their own pockets, says con-sultant Paul Skorupa. That was one of the mes-sages at the Professional Lawn Care Association's (PLCAA) traveling summer road show that concluded here in August after previous one-day stops in the Midwest and South. About 250 lawn pros took advantage of seminars aimed at showing LCOs how to reduce customer service calls (callbacks). Service calls, those up and beyond the number con-tracted by clients, are a black hole in a lawn care company's bottom line, LCOs learned at the seminars. Apart from that, an unusually high number of callbacks indicates unaccepta- ble customer dissatisfaction, probably because of flaws in a company's program. Skorupa reminded LCOs of the added cost of continually canvasing a market area for new customers to replace those that have switched their loyalty to a competitor because of either poor service or poor communi-cation. Skorupa hammered away on the role of communi- cation in keeping clients. ''Your technicians See PAY on page 7 ************* 3-DIGIT 4flfl 15? 0D4Sbl32 10 Š Pfls COOIClNSHAn LC, rr J -1 (31 usga turfgrass info file rirCHIGAN TTATE UNIV Hoi,AST LANSING HI 45034-1040 3DG Some LCOs now "coloring" lawns BY LISA GITLIN If your lawn looks like straw in the Mohave and no relief is in sight, what do you do? Call a professional to spray it green. Homeowners anxious about the drought's effect on their property values are finding tem-porary solace from dyes and paints that turn brown grass green, usually for less than $100 per 1,000 square feet, including labor. Some Cal-ifornia lawn pros are offering this service and they see no reason why LCOs elsewhere, partic- ularly in the arid Southwest and in areas of prolonged drought, can't provide it too. Actu-ally there's nothing new about coloring grass. It's been done for years on Hollywood movie sets and for televised football games and golf tournaments. Lawn greening products are either paints, dyes and treatments, and are usually applied with a sprayer. Colors range from grass-green See COLOR page 14 LOW CAB FORWARDS BACKED BY GM. GM, GMC Truck, Chevrolet and Forward are registered trademarks, and Tiltmaster is a trademark of General Motors Corporation. ©1990 General Motors Corporation. All rights reserved. Circle No. 107 on Reader Inquiry Card or V t!BÌ:u,.1;.^ ; i vV,Ł ..ŁŁ,.. t TURF-SEED, INC. PO Box 250, Hubbard, OR 97032 FAX 503-981-5626 TWX 510-590-0957 1-800-247-6910 Use ROUNDUP® herbicide to kill undesired turf. ROUNDUP® is a registered trademark of Monsanto Company. nirHo Mn 1?1 nn I RON HALL Editor JERRY ROCHE Executive Editor JON MIDUCKI Publisher ROBERT EARLEY Group Vice President LINDA O'HARA Production Manager ROSY BRADLEY Production Supervisor BRYAN VOLLMAN Graphic Design MARILYN COPP Circulation Supervisor GAIL PARENTEAU Reader Service Manager THEODORE C. MATHEWS Promotion Director JOHN PRESSELLO Graphics Manager BUSINESS STAFF Midwest Office: JON MIDUCKI (216) 826-2855 Publisher ANNE LANGHENRY (216) 891-2739 Regional Sales Manager PAUL QARRIS (216) 891-2729 Regional Sales Manager 7500 Old Oak Blvd. Cleveland, OH 44130 FAX (216)826-2832 Southern Office: DICK GORE (404) 233-1817 FAX (404) 261-7022 3475 Lenox Road, N.E., Ste. 665 Atlanta, GA 30326 Western Office: BOB MIEROW (206) 783-0549 FAX (206) 784-5545 1515 N.W. 51 Street Seattle, WA 98107 Classified DAWN NILSEN (218) 723-9349 1 E. First St., Duluth, MN 55802 Please send advertising materials to: LAWN CARE INDUSTRY 120 W. Second St. Duluth. MN 55802 218-723-9465 EOGELL COMMUNICATIONS INC PUBLICATIONS ROBERT L. EDGELL, Chairman RICHARD MOELLER, President LARS FLADMARK, Executive V Pres ARLAND HIRMAN, Vice Pres ./Treasurer THOMAS QRENEY, Senior V. Pres EZRA PINCUS, Senior Vice President JOE BILDERBACH. Vice President JAMES GHERNA, Vice President GEORGE GLENN, Vice President HARRY RAMALEY, Vice President LCI ADVISORY COUNCIL MARTY ERBAUGH Erbaugh Corp Peninsula. OH A. J. POWELL JACK ROBERTSON U. of Kentucky Robertson Lawn Care Lexington, KY Springfield. IL LAWN CARE INDUSTRY (ISSN 0160-6042) is published monthly by Edged Communica-tions. Inc. Corporate and Editorial offices: 7500 Old Oak Boulevard. Cleveland. Ohio 44130 Advertising Offices: 7500 Old Oak Boulevard. Cleveland. Ohio 44130,233 North Michigan Avenue. 24th Floor. Chicago. Illi-nois 60601 and 3475 Lenox Road. N.E. Suite 665 Atlanta. Georgia 30326. Accounting. Ad- vertising Production and Circulation offices: 1 East First Street. Duluth. Minnesota 55802 Subscription rates: $25 per year in the United States: $50 per year in Canada. All other countries: $100 per year. Current issue single copies (pre-paid only). $2.50 in the U.S.; $5.00 in Canada: elsewhere $10.; add $3.50 for shipping and handling per order. Back issues, if available $10; add $3.50 per order for shipping and handling (pre-paid orders only). Office of publication: Edgell Communi-cations. Inc.. 1 East First Street. Duluth. Min-nesota 55802. Second class postage paid at Duluth. Minnesota 55806. Copyright © 1990 by Edgell Communications. Inc. All rights re-served. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical includ- ing photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without per- mission in writing from the publisher. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to LAWN CARE INDUSTRY. P.O. Box 6200. Duluth. Minnesota 55806 W VBPA This advanced controlled-release material derived from methylene urea polymers is the ideal nitrogen source for all your turf 1 i needs. That's because NUTRALENEŽ works two ways. First, it provides a quick-release nitrogen through hydrolysis. Second, NUTRALENE releases nitrogen more slowly through microbial action for sustained feeding. This dual action (the result of its unique molecular structure) makes NUTRALENE the superior controlled release nitrogen source. The following points show that NUTRALENE meets all the professional's requirements for a broad-use nitrogen. This quality nitrogen source offers... Quick greenup Controlled-release nitrogen feeding for up to 16 weeks Ł Both hydrolysis and microbial actionŠ not dependent on coating or particle size ^ for release Ł Minimal leaching and volatilization Consistent release of all nitrogen in one growing season, under all conditions, even during cool soil tem-perature situations Ł Low salt and low burning potentials Ł 40-0-0 guaranteed analysis The New TROGEN! iNORAM NOR-AM CHEMICAL COMPANY A Schering Berlin Company 3509 Silverside Road, P.O. Box 7495, Wilmington, DE 19803 IMPORTANT; Please remember always to read and follow carefully all label directions when applying any chemical. Copyright © 1989 NOR-AM Chemical Company. All rights reserved. « 6 m Weed or friend? (I. to r.) Dr. Rich Cooper, U. of Massachusetts, tested attendees like Steve McDonough, Dave Sevigny, both of South Shore Lawn Consultants, Boston, on weed knowledge. Hands On! STURBRIDGE, MAŠWeatherwise a perfect day. And LCOs from across New England spent a summer afternoon participat-ing in a weed scavenger hunt, calibrating spreaders, and brush- ing up on their spraying technique. Why is it important to have spreaders and sprayers in top-fight condition: so they put out the right amount of material. Applying the correct amount of material at the proper time provides agronomic, esthetic, and environmental benefits. It also saves money. Worn equipment puts out too much material. LCI Well-tuned sprayer reduces product waste. Mark Blais of Green Machine, Bloomfield, CT, tests sprayer. (I. to r.) Tom Foster, H.D. Hudson Co.; Rich O'Donnell, Tuff Turf; Rich Zito, Green Machine. PBI/Gordon owner of PGR amidochlor KANSAS CITY, MO ŠPBI/ Gordon Corporation devel-oped a new tank-mix program combining Limit® grass growth regulator and Em- bark® 2S Plant Growth Reg- ulator. (PBI/Gordon recently acquired ownership of amidochlor, active ingredient in Limit developed by the Monsanto Company.) John Van Haften, director of research for PBI/Gordon, says combinations of different PGRs give longer control and seedhead suppression, and are safe to turf. Limit is taken up through the roots of plants while Embark is absorbed through a plant's foliage. "Limit and Embark can be tank-mixed at rates that sig-nificantly reduce the amount of each product used and yet provide results combining the best features of both," claimed Van Haften. LCI Mike Dietrich, Lesco, demonstrates spreader care and proper calibration at PLCAA seminar. .X ChemLawn Manager Chris Forth explains spill control procedures. More runoff work is set UNIVERSITY PARK, PA Š The $125,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council will get good use, says Dr. Tom Watschke, Penn State. PTC funds will support the Water Quality Research Cen-ter studying pesticide runoff home lawns, and the 10-acre Joseph Valentine Turfgrass Research Center will receive new equipment. Money will also fund work on bio-rational insect control. LCI Conditions good for outbreak of lawn problems from grubs Be on the lookout for Japanese beetle grub damage in home lawns. It's not uncommon in some areas of the Midwest this season. Grubs can eat great amounts of grass roots and badly damage turf. Dave Shetler, an insect spe-cialist at The Ohio State Uni- versity, says adult Japanese beetles eat plant leaves from mid-July to mid-August, then lay eggs in nearby lawns. The beetles prefer to lay eggs in thick turf because it has lots of roots for the grubs to eat. The Aeration manual revised LINCOLN, NBŠA 24-page manual on aeration and over-seeding for LCOs is available from Cushman. This new, re-vised edition includes new university research con- cerning the benefits of aera-tion and overseeding with marketing and pricing info. Free. Contact: Cushman, P.O. Box 82409, Lincoln, NB 68501. 800/228-4444. Ask for "The Dawn of a New Age in Lawn Care." LCI eggs hatch into grubs which feed on the roots, beginning in August in Ohio. To check for grubs, use a spade to cut and lift a flap of lawn. The grubs will be white, c-shaped and almost a half-inch long. If a lawn has more than 10 grubs per square foot it will probably suffer visible damage, says Shetler. Gran-ular materials containing Oftanol, Diazinon and Sevin are often used to kill grubs. Use these controls after the grubs hatch but before they destroy the lawn. Experience and inspection will tell lawn professionals the best time to treat a grub in-festation. That will probably be more accurate than the ap- plication dates on product la- bels. To improve chances of con-trol, apply a half-inch of water to the lawn immediately after treatment so the product gets down to the insect. (If at all possible water before applica-tion too.) Also, products will probably work better on re-cently dethatched or aerated lawns. Wet weather in the Mid-west this summer probably contributed to the grub prob-lem, says Shetler, because the eggs of the Japanese beetle need moist soil to hatch. As temperatures begin to drop in late summer and fall the grubs slow their feeding and retreat into deeper soil. In spring they begin moving up in the soil againŠoften feeding only sparinglyŠto emerge from lawns as beetles in sum- mer, says Shetler. LCI PAY from page 1 shouldn't oversell your pro-gram," Skorupa of Pesticide Compliance and Training Ser-vices, Inc., North Kingstown, RI, said. Dialogue reduces call-backs andŠthis is important, said the consultantŠallows LCOs to introduce new or ad-ditional services to clients. Generally speaking, said Skorupa, LCOs don't receive many requests for service calls following the first or second chemical applications of the season, and those that do come in can usually be handled over the telephone. By the third round, however, calls for re-peat service visits increase as weed and insect pressures build. "Then we have to take a person out of production and we're deriving no income from that unit. That service call is costing us money," said Skorupa. How much? The consultant estimated about $40 counting drive time, labor and materials. Goodbye to a goodly hunk of the profit from that particular account. One way LCOs might re-duce these service calls is to begin a "call ahead" program prior to an application round. He recounted how Old Fox Lawn Care (Skorupa formerly worked for the company) hired customer service reps to make evening calls to clients to remind them that their lawns would be serviced soon...and also to sell more services. He said it was suc-cessful. "We contacted a lot of customers that were about to give us a call and we'd ask 'we're planning to be out there in a week or 10 days anyway, can your problem wait that long?' and often they said yes." Can't take anymore? But, how many return calls are too many? A tough ques- tion, but an LCO can gauge and analysis service calls and it shouldn't be particularly dif-ficult with the computers many LCOs already use. Rec-ords should be kept of when applications are done at each property, by who, materials used, weather, condition of the lawn, etc. But perhaps the most ob-vious way to reduce additional service calls is to have trained, dedicated technicians. And make sure they do a good job on that initial application of the season, the one where pre- emergent herbicides are usually applied. Skorupa said poor weed control is probably the biggest reason for callbacks. LCI LCA relocates GAITHERSBURG, MD ŠThe Landscape Contractors Asso-ciation, MD-VA-DC, office: 9053 Shady Grove Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877. LCI Heritage Lawns servicemen know their routes well Conn, firm asks technicians' help FARMINGTON, CTŠHeritage Lawns, Inc., reduces service calls by giving its technicians freedom to do the job right the first time. Or coming back and doing the job again. In other words, when a Heritage service person gets a route, they get a route. The same truck. The same neighborhood. The same customers. And, if they don't pay attention to what they're doing, call-backs to the same lawns. When a serviceman makes a mistake, they usually end up paying for it, says James H. Leszuk who is co-owner along with Bob Horan of Heritage. How: that extra service call cuts into that technician's production time (he may have to work later that day) and, conceivably, into his take-home pay. This sharing of responsibility is just one facet of Leszuk and Horan's from-the-bottom-up management style where the number one rule is the company's oft-repeated goal Quality and Service Still Count. "What we're trying to set up is a self-policing and self-managing company," says Leszuk, almost admitting at the same time that "sometimes we have to pull in the reins." The workload of Heritage technicians is respectable with each carrying as many as 450 customers, but the routes in the bedroom communities surrounding Hartford, CT, are tight. Indeed, Heritage service personnel eventually learn their routes and their customers as well as their own next door neighbors. Your most | valuable as aren't alwl liquid. For many weed control problems, the answer is not a solution. It's granular Team " preemergence herbicide. Team puts your weed control where it does the most goodŠthe weed germina-tion zone. There, it turns into a vapor and delivers a zone of protection that's very solid. So solid, it keeps out crabgrass, goosegrass and many other problem weeds all season long. That keeps your reputation solid, too. With Team, your golf or lawn care cus-tomers will see fewer weedsŠand more beautiful turfgrass. But it's not just Team's tough weed control that keeps customers happy. Many of them also prefer its gentle activity to turfgrass. Plus its easy, precise application. Team granules stay where you put them and won't leach out, even in heavy rainfall. And you can either apply Team by itself or on fertilizer available from leading formulators. Find out why your most valuable asset could be granular Team. Call your nearest DowElanco distributor or for technical assistance, call toll-free: 1-800-352-6776. DowElanco 4040 Vincennes Circle Š Suite 400 Indianapolis. IN 46268 U.S.A. Team'"Š (benefin-Mrifluralin, DowElanco) Refer to the Team label for complete directions. Afterall, they probably had a hand in selling the accounts (using leads garnered from early-spring telemarketing campaigns). And, should any of these clients have a question or complaint, the call will probably be directed to their service person, not to management. Not the first call anyway. Then it's up to the technician to either work the service call into a regularly scheduled application or catch it on their own. "Our servicemen can usually be working in the area of a service call within two days anyway," says Leszuk. Not everyone can handle the responsibility Heritage gives its service personnel. (There are 12 servicemen, including the owners.) "It's a little tough when we get a rookie," says Leszuk. "The poor guy, in those first six weeks, he's ready to quit. Then something snaps and he knows what he's doing. Actually we do some looking over their shoulders then anyway, but it still takes a pretty unique individual." LCI (Right) Heritage technicians establish their own routes, treatment schedules and respond to customer complaints. Co-owner Jim Leszuk, third from left, says servicemen can carry responsibility and still do quality work. Fine Lawn Research proves... not all Kentucky Bluegrasses are created equal. Experienced sod growers and professional turf managers know there are measureable differences between turf varieties . . . dif-ferences in overall turf quality, color, summer density, shade performance and more. As the ratings shown here prove, Chateau Kentucky Bluegrass has consistently outper-formed some of the most popular bluegrass varieties. So, for truly premier turf year after year, choose Chateau Kentucky Bluegrass. Strength of breeding always shows. KENTUCKY BLUEGRASS Top Rated Chateau Kentucky Bluegrass Turf Quality NATIONAL TURFGRASS EVALUATION PROGRAM 1986 VARIETY AVG. SCORE Chateau 6.0 Classic 5.9 Challenger 5.8 Ram I 5.7 Julia 5.7 Eclipse 5.6 Rated 1-9; 9 = Best Turf Color LINCOLN NEB.-2 YR. MEAN VARIETY AVG. SCORE Midnight 7.9 Chateau 7.0 Baron 6.9 Fylking 6.8 A34 6.5 Rated 1-9; 9 = Dark Green Summer Density NATIONAL TURFGRASS EVALUATION PROGRAM 1987 VARIETY AVG. SCORE Chateau 7.3 Challenger 7.2 Bristol 7.1 Julia 7.0 Liberty 6.8 Nassau 6.6 Rated 1-9; 9 = = Maximum Density Shade Performance MARYSVILLE, OH 1981-82 VARIETY AVG. SCORE Chateau 2.32 Eclipse 2.20 Birka 2.01 Glade 1.65 Rated 1-4; 4 = Best Ł A truly elite bluegrassŠone of the best available Ł Beautiful emerald green color. Ł Outstanding shade performance. Ł Withstands summer stress better than most bluegrasses. Ł Superior performance in trials throughout the U.S. and Canada. Ł Very wear-tolerant Š excellent for athletic fields. » Semi-dwarf growth habit for lower mowing and attractive appearance. » Excellent resistance to leaf spot, stripe smut and powdery mildew. Another quality product from.. 'tw For additional information, see your distributor or dealer, or write to Fine Lawn Research, Inc. 4900 Blazer Pkwy. Dublin, Ohio 43017 Ft E S E A Fl C Ciba-Geigy evaluating nematodes for turf use GREENSBORO, NCŠCiba-Geigy is evaluating an in-sect control product con-taining the nematode Steinerema carpocapsae. The company's venture into biological pest control for turf and ornamentals is a result of a recent agree-ment with Biosys, Palo Alto, CA. "Our objective with this agreement is to investigate all avenues for offering turf and ornamental profession- als the broadest spectrum of chemical and biological in- sect control products," Scott Moffitt, CG's product manager, tells Lawn Care Industry magazine. "We're viewing this as a long-term proposition. There's a lot of manage-ment questions that have to be answered yet, but we're optimistic." Nematodes are micro-scopic organisms that seek out and kill many soil-in-habiting insect pests. The Biosys formulation can be applied with standard spray equipment, says informa- tion from Ciba-Geigy, and attacks cutworms and ar-myworms in turf, and black vine weevils, fungus gnats and white grubs on orna-mental plants. The product is being tested in various areas of the country, including sev- eral golf courses, says Moffitt. LCI CA fee hike? SACRAMENTO, CAŠCalifor-nia Sen. Ken Maddy (R- Fresno) seeks a 300 percent in-crease in the tax paid by man- ufacturers selling pesticides in that state. He proposed the tax be increased from 9 mills (nine-tenths of one cent) to 34 mills for fiscal year 1991. LCI Beware of the real estate hazard of '90s: pollution BY JACK PETREE If you own business prop-erty, even an office build-ing, the simple act of listing that property for sale can sub-ject you to legal liabilities amounting to thousands or even millions of dollars. If you purchase a piece of business propertyŠwhether an office, bare land, or a devel- oped commercial propertyŠ without taking precautions you also face potentially ruinous liabilities. Worse, those liabilities never go away. They apply in most cases even if you didn't know about a problem, and they involve virtually every piece of commercial property in the United States. This threat to your busi-ness future results from the environmental legislation and regulation passed over the past 25 years or so such as the Comprehensive Environ-mental Responsibility, Com-pensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), Superfund Amendments and Re- authorization Act (SARA), and state acts like the Haz-ardous Waste Clean Up act passed by Washington State voters in 1988. Many of these state laws are more restrictive than federal law. The rules set down by CERCLA and all the many other laws are pretty simple. If you buy con-taminated real estate, or own contaminated real estate, you are liable for clean up costs even if you didn't contribute to the contamination or know it was present. Selling the property doesn't release you from liability. Under Washington State's new law, for instance, a Poten-tially Liable Party (PLP) is Ł the present owner or op-erator of a facility or property, Ł past owners or operators of a facility or property Ł generators or transpor-ters of hazardous substances who used the facility for dis-posal, and Ł sellers of hazardous sub-stances who are required to provide written instructions as to use, if the use constitutes a release for which cleanup is required. Further, of the laws writ- ten affecting property transfers include a phrase stating that "Liable parties are jointly, severally, and strictly liable for all cleanup costs as well as for all natural resource damage re-sulting from the release." This means that a single business can be forced to pay for the entire costs of a cleanup even if a large number of other parties were involved and the business paying for the cleanup had nothing to do with the original contamina-tion. Lastly, the laws make no distinction between materials known to be hazardous wastes and those considered to be be-nign or beneficial at the time they were applied and only later declared hazardous. Used motor oil is a common hazardous waste. As oil drips from cars parked on your parking lot, for instance, it puddles, then is washed by rain into surrounding soils, contaminating those soils. Cleanup of those soils can cost thousands of dollars. An old transformer on the property that's leaked can cost tens of thousands of dollars in cleanup costs. Even an old farm field may put you at risk because chemicals used for in-sect control in the '50s and '60s are now considered haz-ardous chemicals reguiring cleanup. As a purchaser of business property, you have only one defense in most cases. Most of the laws regarding hazardous waste cleanup allow a land owner to escape liability if he or she had "no reason to know" of any hazardous sub- stance on the property. How-ever, the innocent purchaser defense is only available under certain conditions. State of Washington law is typical, saying, "To establish that a person had no reason to know, the person must have under-taken, at the time of acquisi- tion, all appropriate inquiry into the previous ownership and uses of the property, con-sistent with good commercial or customary practice in an ef-fort to minimize liability." In essence, there is no way to prove innocence under the law without subjecting the property you wish to pur-chase to an environmental audit done by a professional. An environmental auditor analyzes the history of the property you're purchasing, checks water flows, wind pat- terns, historical events af-fecting the property, etc. to determine whether a piece of property is likely to be con-taminated by an existing or potential hazardous waste. You can then negotiate with the landowner and environ-mental authorities so that the purchase becomes, as much as possible, a safe one for your business. Listing property for sale is fraught with danger under ex- isting environmental law too. You list your property, a po- tential buyer commissions an environmental audit, and a problem is found. How does that harm you? Here's how: most states require the results of an environmental audit be forwarded to the state's envi-ronmental department. Now your property is on the state's list of potential hazardous waste sites and a cleanup can be ordered whether or not you sell the property. Appearing on the state's list of potential cleanup sites can dramatically reduce the value of your property. In fact, every city and town in the United States has property with a negative value because of re-cent legislation in that cleanup costs could exceed the value of the property. If you are considering the purchase of property for busi-ness use it's imperative that you not buy until you've com-missioned a complete environ-mental audit of the property and can be assured that the property is not subject to being listed as a potential haz-ardous waste site. Once you have purchased the property, you must take steps to assure the property is not con-taminated in the future. If a spill happens, you must take immediate steps to notify the proper authorities and do a recorded and approved clean up. A spill of toxic materials can be contained and cleaned easily soon after it happens but can cost tens of thousands of dollars to clean if it's left to contaminate ground water or migrate through soil. If you already own property, there may not be much you can do aside from commis-sioning your own environ-mental audit and then negotiating with authorities for a cleanup. Often, if you bring information to the au-thorities in a good faith effort to mitigate problems you knew nothing about when you pur-chased your property, they will work with you to effect a cleanup that will cost a frac- tion of one they have to force on you. If you find that your property has been con-taminated, work with your at- torney in taking that information to the state. Lastly, it's critical that big, medium, and small businesses begin to work hard for passage of reasonable laws that protect the environment without pil-laging innocent businesses of their right to operate. LCI About the Author Jack Petree is a freelance writer living in Bellingham, WA. Finally! A one-piece tank/deck unit that is lightweight, low mainte-nance, rust free. tank/deck 1 ^cmvimc*«**»* Complete tank/deck weighs approximately 800 pounds All fiberglass construction, no rust, no painting Customized exterior colors to match your company colors Compartmentilized to your specs, ideal for liquid and dry No more rust plugged nozzles, pumps, or strainers Solid, one-piece construction Easily installed by your staff Optional auxiliary tanks for versatility Call toll free 1-800-657-6344 (Out of state) nÄNK/DECK 4060 South 500 West, #6 Salt Lake City, UT 84123-1300 (801)268-0941 This business closed down by local fire department because of underground pollution. Brown patch: fungus, insects or drought? An LCO's overview of the art/science of lawn diagnostics BY CHRISTOPHER SANN You've just received a phone call from a long-time lawn care cus-tomer. She's complaining about "brown spots" in her lawn. At first you think you can solve this problem over the phone. But the more questions you ask the more vague be-come her answers. The termi-nology you're so familiar with is confusing her. You soon re-alize you're not receivingthe information you need to diag- nosis the grass ailment. That's no problem; you'll just ask a technician on a nearby route to stop and check the lawn. So you get back to work thinking that the techni-cian will take more time to drive out to your client's prop-erty than he will take to solve this great mystery. Right? Wrong!. Your technician reports back that he can't decide what's causing the "brown spots". Now, it's up to you. As you drive out to your client's property, you know that there has to be one of three reasons for the "brown spots" on the lawn Š fungus, insects or drought. Does this sound familiar? How many times in the past three or four years has this happened to you? The answer is it's probably happening more often than it should. As the turf in your service area becomes more mature and as your client mix broadens, more of the lawns you service will surely be of questionable quality. That's one reason why complaints will increase. Sometimes when you get a phone call from a cli- ent complaining about the "brown spots" on their lawn, it's possible to ask a few questions, get some timely and specific information from the client and make an accurate diagnosis over the phone. Other times, you will have to visit that property if you want to keep the customer. Begin upgrading your problem lawn diagnostic skills now. First, educate yourself on an ongoing basis by reading any literature that you can find. Subscribe to several trade magazines, send for product information from manufacturers and pick up any pamphlets that deal with the subject. Set aside time each year to attend any con-ferences or industry affairs that may provide you with in-formation. Join and support your local organizations and attend their functions reg- ularly. Second, get the right equip-ment for the jobŠa soil sam-pling probe to check thatch and soil profiles, a 10X hand lens to check for insect nymphs or disease fruiting bodies or mycelium, and a good set of reference books or pamphlets that have good sample photographs of insect or disease damage. An excel-lent reference book is "Com-pendium of Turfgrass Dis-eases" by Richard Smiley. Third, approach your work with an open mind. Don't de-cide ahead of time what the problem must be. Fourth, don't limit the number of possible causes. Ignoring low-probability causes such as an unusual insect pest or an obscure disease can be a mis- take. Finally, if you can't make an accurate diagnosis, don't fake it. Say you're not sure what's causing the problem but that you will make every effort to find out. Clients don't expect you to have all the an-swers and they will appreciate you taking the time to find out. But what do you actually do when you get on that lawn? Eliminate the easiest thing firstŠdrought damage which occurs when the evaporation rate at the leaf surface exceeds the ability of the root structure to provide the plant with water. There are many reasons why this can happen, but the diagnosis is only half the job. You've got to find the reason for the damage. Use your soil sampling tube to pull several cores. If you have trouble get- ting the soil probe into the soil and the sample is very dry then you know that you're, at the very least, dealing with a localized dry spot maybe caused by buried rocks or a gravel layer just below the soil surface, reflected heat from buildings or next to driveways, heavy-surface rooting trees such maples or evergreen, re- stricted root structures caused by the layering of different soil types, or root-invaded dense thatch. Wetting agents and a good watering program will usually solve these problems, at least temporarily. If drought is not the prob-lem, investigate insect infesta-tion next. Get down on your hands and knees and look at the edge of the damaged areas. Separate the grass leaf blades and look for anything that moves. In the case of chinch bugs, the adults and juveniles often are present at the same time so actively feeding chinch bugs can be as small as the head of a pin or as big as a fat grain of rice. Examine live insects with your 10X hand lens. If you can't find any active insects, look down between the grass blades for evidence of frass or chewed grass blades that would indicate various worm activity. Some of today's turf insecticides are only mar-ginally effective against the full spectrum of turf-damaging worms and a recent ento-mologist's report says there is more than several varieties of sod webworm out there. One variety has a life cycle that would make the usual applica-tion times for turf insecticides ineffective. Tug at the leaf blades and see if they break off at the crown indicating billbug nymph activity. Grab a small area of turf with both hands and see if it comes up like a piece of carpet. If it does, examine the soil below for the presence of grubs. Remember that billbugs and weevils as well as beetles have a turf-damaging grub stage. If you cannot find any evi-dence of insect activity then you're probably dealing with one or more diseases. Properly diagnosing disease damage is not as hard as it seems at first glance. The key thing to re-member is that there are two basic types, foliar-damaging and root-damaging. The most common type of diseases are those that have easily identifiable foliar or leaf symptoms. Usually, light to moderate infestations of this type of turf disease doesn't cause major turf damage and can be treated correctively with good to excellent results. The list of foliar symptom dis- eases include: Ł "Dollar spot" with it's distinctive hour-glass shaped leaf lesions and blighted white blade tips, Ł "Drechslera leaf spot" with it's classic cigarette- burn-shaped leaf lesions and its heavily thinned out turf and yellow-orange color in ad-vanced stages, Ł "Rhizoctonia brown patch" with its brown shriveled leaf tips that form large circular patches when viewed from a distance, Ł "Rust" with its obvious bright orange pustules on the middle of the leaf blade, Ł "Red thread and pink patch" with their thread-like red mycelium that binds 4 or 5 leaf blades together at their tips and give the area a dis- tinct red appearance, Ł "Powdery mildew" with its light gray powdery coating on the leaf blades and a host of lesser known diseases that are more curiosities than major problems. The second group of dis-eases are the root and crown -damaging diseases. This group is small, but the amount of damage that they do exceeds all of the damage of all the other diseases put together. This group should be dealt with on a preventive basis; at- tempts at curative treatment lead to marginal success. Usu-ally by the time you see the symptoms of these diseases there has been so much root damage the the plants either take months to recover or fre- quently don't recover at all. This group includes: Ł Necrotic ring spot which is the main component of the so-called patch diseases. Re- searchers at Michigan State University said that as much as 80-85% of the patch dis- eases that they culture out is in fact necrotic ring spot. For shear volume it is the most prevalent disease that can be found on turf in this area and yet it's perhaps the most mis-diagnosed. Ł Pythium while thought to be primarily a problem of golf course turf is an unrecognized major component of the patch diseases. Where layering such as in old sod installa-tions causes the top soil layer to stay saturated for long periods of time it's not uncommon to find four or five distinct episodes and summer patch whose time of appear-ance closely resemble what we used to call "fusarium blight syndrome." The severity of this disease increases when prolonged wet spells are fol-lowed by dry hot spells. Dif-ferentiating between the diseases in this group can be difficult especially since they very often occur on the same lawn at the same time and in the same place. If you suspect this type of disease, consider help from a testing lab or your local plant pathologist. An aid in determining dis-eases is the limited number of monoclonal antibody disease detection kits. The kits give both a positive reading for the specific disease tested with an optional meter to determine its intensity. Presently the number of diseases that can be detected is small but it's in-creasing. The kits are expen-sive so for now their use may be limited. If the cost comes down and the company can de-velop an inexpensive survey kit, then this technology may revolutionize the art of diag-nosing diseases. Detection kits or not, the art of deciding whether it's fungus, insects or drought will always require an open knowl-edgeable mind that takes nothing for granted and ex-cludes things only when they have been disproved. LCI About the Author Christopher Sann is the owner/ operator of Complete Lawn Service. He's been a lawn care pro for 18 years. VA company goes natural CHEASPEAKE, VA ŠHar-mony Products gears up to be a provider of "natural" fertil-izer for the professional lawn care market. "A lot of LCOs are real hun-gry for an excellent organic-based fertilizer," Mark Nuzum of Harmony tells Lawn Care Industry maga-zine. "Right now a lot of them are in a learning curve con-cerning agronomics and they're starting to discover how a product like ours will help them." Nuzum says his company is working on a product that will be superior to both all-syn-thetic and all-natural fertil-izers, and he expects criticism from both corners. "We're taking this approach because we think there are advantages to both sides," he says. "I'm sure it will be a challenge for us." The aim of Harmony Prod-ucts has been to develop a pro- prietary slow-release nitrogen with emphasis placed on envi-ronmental concerns. Research by the staff at Agri-Nutrients Technology Group, Dispu- tanta, VA, led to the process-ing of organic materials. Initial research has been di-rected to the poultry industry because of the concentration of its wastes and the relative high value associated with them. Nuzum has been a part of the effort since January 1989 with the formation of Nitrex specialty products division. In July 1989 Nitrex was sold to Arcadian Corporation, and in February 1990 the former Ni-trex executive staff exercised its option to buy the specialty products division. LCI Test to measure effects of grassrecycling grows KUTZTOWN, PAŠThe first season of a three-year test to study the return of grass clip-pings to turf was encouraging, reports Terry M. Schettini, Horticulture Coordinator of the Rodale Research Center. Although he said it was "too early after only one cut-ting season to receive defini- tive data from the first soil core samples," he said that grass cut with the mulching mower had a "healthy appear-ance" with no clumps of grass or visible thatch buildup. The tests are being held at the research center's 305-acre facility here. They will con-tinue to be monitored through the 1991 growing season by Schettini and his research staff, and by Mike Ferrara, senior product/equipment ed- itor for Organic Gardening, a monthly magazine published by Rodale Press, Inc. Said Schettini, "we are ex-panding the program because the disposal of grass clippings has become a major environ- mental concern. LCI Lofts' 14th Annual Field Day Dr. Virginia Lehman, director of Lofts' new West Coast Re- search Center, discusses recent research in bentgrass breeding at the company's farm at Martinsville, NJ. This year registrants earned pesticide recertification credits at the field day. LCI The first turf fertilizers so specialized, they make the competition see red. Distributor's Own Turf Supplies " It's understandable, because no other dis-tributor offers what we do. Some suppliers may pass their pre-packaged fertilizers off as custom blends, but when it comes right down to it, their products simply aren't formulated to meet your specific needs. As a result, your expertise and input are ignored which turns into frustration for you. At DOTS (Distributor's Own Turf Supplies), we do things differently. Our fertilizer/pesticide products are designed so you can develop your program professionally with specialized formulas for your specific needs. With a DOTS dis- tributor, you're treated individuallyŠnot clumped together with others and sold "off-the-shelf" blends. We test the soil before we make the formula. We realize that the markets you serve have different turf, climate, and soil conditions. You tell us your specialized needs and problems, we'll provide soil testing when Circle No. 108 on Reader Inquiry Card needed, and then work with you to prepare an individual solution. It's easy on your part, thorough on ours. All DOTS products are designed to meet the highest industry standards in uni-formity and performance. In-house quality control means that each order delivered to you complies with our rigid specifica-tions, assuring you the quality you expect. Just look for the red dot to know you're getting the best... from the best distributor. For more information, call l-800-345-D()TS. COLOR from page 1 to yellow-green to blue-green. The products, diluted with water before application, will not revive drought-ravaged or dormant lawns but can make them look healthy. "Even lawn experts can't tell the difference," says Wal-ter Barrows about his color- treated lawns. "They'll stay green until the roots grow out." Barrows, a Santa Bar- bara lawn care specialist, charges $85 to coat 1,000 square feet of lawn with what he describes as an "environ-mentally safe vegetable dye," and $30 per each additional 1,000 square feet. arrows uses a commer-cial sprayer for large jobs and a Hudson "Neighbors thought she was secretly watering her lawn.99ŠLes Robin sprayer for up to 1,000 square feet. He's been painting lawns for 30 years for churches, golf courses, weddings and football fields, but Santa Barbara's lawn-watering ban has pro-duced a slew of requests for his service from homeowners. "It's a nice touch, but the real issue is that the city created this water shortage to control growth," Barrows says. "Can you imagine people our par-ents' age, in their 80s, out on their lawns with hand-held watering cans, and being watched by water police? That's what's happening. Peo-ple are in mass hysteria. And a lot of them are saying, well, just paint it green." Drought victims aren't the only homeowners who get their lawns colorized. For years, affluent homeowners have used lawn-greening prod-ucts as an alternative to winter rye to cover brown patches and beautify their yards for weddings and bar mitzvahs. Now average homeowners are demanding color restoration for ailing lawns and some LCOs are responding. Les Robin, owner of Oasis International, which offers a variety of lawn care and water conservation products in the Santa Barbara area, is work-ing on a training program to educate professionals on lawn greening application, equip-ment maintenance, and prod-uct salesmanship. "Partici- pants will be furnished with backpack sprayers and color-coordinated worksuits," Robin explains. But lawn greening is not all fun and profit, and some LCOs won't do it. "I found it far too expensive compared to putting down COVER STORY winter rye," says Bob Cohen, president of Green Scene, a lawn care service in the San Fernando Valley. "You can get 10 pounds of winter rye seed at a total cost of $2 and charge $15 to $20 for labor to treat 1,000 square feet. When you compare that with $30 of lawn dying materials, the amount of time you have to spend and the risk of spraying peoples' walk-ways and driveways, it's just not practical." Kenneth Doyle, owner of Ken's Lawn Doctor in Escon-dido, also quit coloring lawns. "The product I was using wasn't a satisfactory color," he says. "It was kind of a blue-green, and it didn't look real enough. Also, it clogged my equipment. I was using a hand-held, two-gallon pump-sprayer which I also had been using for weed control." Doyle says that if he were back in the lawn-greening business he would use an airless. He warns, however, that what is gained in speed is lost in accuracy. Homeowners don't find green walkways and driveways at- tractive, he says. Robin, however, claims few problems with lawn-coloring. Using Oasis Lawngreen, his own vegetable dye-based prod- uct, he says it takes about two hours to cover an average-sized lawn with a four-gallon backpack sprayer. He says one gallon of Lawngreen covers be-tween 2,000 and 10,000 square feet, depending on the degree of discoloration and the height and texture of the grass. "One of my customers, a woman, got complaints in her mailbox from her neighbors who thought she was secretly wa-tering her lawn," says Robin. "It was Oasis Lawngreen." Robin says not all lawn-col-oring agents are equally effec-tive. "Some products look almost florescent. There's some pretty weird stuff out there, however, ours has a real-istic color. We offer more than 10 exclusive varieties of grass seed. But only one color. At Scott we may offer a lot of exclu-sive seed varieties. But we have only one set of standards. The highest. And those high standards begin with our breeding and varietal devel-opment. We not only work closely with universities and other seed developers, ,we have our own extensive in-house breeding program, with our own test-ing facilities all over the country. The result? Seed to meet any requirement. Exclusive varieties like our Coventry, Abbey, Bristol and Victa Kentucky bluegrasses; Accolade, Car-avelle, Loretta, Applause and Ovation perennial ryegrasses; Banner Chewings fescue; and Chesa-peake and Aquara tall fescues. But seed development is only part of the story. We have the most stringent requirements and controls for clean seed in the in-dustry. From grower selection all the way through cleaning, testing and packaging, our standards are uncom-promising. In fact, we pioneered the seed business over 100 years ago. And only our seed comes equipped with a Scott Tech Rep. They're true agronomists, who can make recom-mendations and develop complete seeding and fertility programs to fit your specific needs and problems. Of course, we still aren't content. We're constantly working harder to develop even better seed varieties. Although you can rest assured, we're going to stick with the same old color. COVENTRYŁ Abbey Ł Bristol - VICTA*Accolade Ł Caravelle Loretta Ł Applause Ł Ovation Ł Banner Ł Chesapeake Ł Aquara "I found it far too expensive as compared to putting down winter rye."ŠBob Cohen, Green Scene, San Fernando Valley But what exactly are these colorants? Jim Harper, sales mana-ger for Frazee Industries, a manufacturer of paint coatings, describes his product as a "vinyl-type dye." He says it will not wear off, leave a film, destroy grass or change its tex- ture. "If you roll in grass that's been treated by lawn paint, as opposed to lawn dye, it may leave some sort of coating on your clothes," he says. One of the more popular products, Permagreen, made by California Liquid Fertilizer Company, is described as a lawn paint. "Permagreen is similar in chemical formula to green vinyl paint." says Dan Inglish, telemarketing mana-ger, product knowledge de- partment. "I'm not familiar with the vegetable dye prod- uct." Inglish reports "a tre-mendous upswing" in Per-magreen sales, and adds that calls are starting to come in from states such as Arizona and Florida. The usual warnings apply to these products: keep out of childrens' reach; do not ingest; etc. But the experts say that once the product dries con- sumers may treat their lawns like any normal lawn. Barrows says the products don't require EPA registra- tion. "Football players have been rubbing their noses in it for years," he says. Nonethe- less, many specialists and cit-izens are concerned about the possible repercussions of spraying lawns with coloring agents. "One thing that bothers me is they don't say exactly what's in the product," says Hugh Gillespie, assistant manager at La Sumida Nur-sery in Santa Barbara. "There's no assurance that it's not bad for the groundsoil." But Gillespie's customers don't seem to share his misgiv-ings. Sales of La Sumida's greening product have risen tenfold this spring and sum-mer. "I've talked to several landscapers who are planning to go into the lawn greening business," Gillespie says. "There's money to be made." Les Robin agrees that lawn greening is potentially profit- able. In fact, his Oasis Interna- tional is marketing a lawn greening do-it-yourself kit to homeowners and businesses. The kit retails for $59.95 and contains a Chapin one-gallon plastic sprayer, one gallon of lawn-greening material, a plas-tic pour spout, gloves and oil paper to cover areas adjacent to lawns. (Additional Lawngreen can be ordered, says Robin.) The new coloring materials, he says, give everyone the abil- ity to have green lawns year round rather than just sea- sonally. The real estate market likes it because it gives a prop-erty better curb appeal in the off season. LCOs can extend their business through the normally dormant periods by colorizing lawns. "Imagine all the businesses, particularly restaurants with nice green lawns even through the fall and winter months," says Robin. LCI About the Author Lisa Gitlin is a business journalist and freelance writer living in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. » Sandoz is readying herbicide, fungicide DES PLAINES, ILŠSandoz Crop Protection Corporation is readying two new products for EPA approvalŠa pre-emergence herbicide called Barricade and a fungicide known so far as SAN 619. Sandoz unveiled the two compounds at a series of prod-uct introduction seminars this summer. Barricade (pro- diamine) is the most active of all the dinitroaniline her-bicides, says Sandoz, meaning that less of it will be needed to get weed control. It will feature long residual control of grasses and broadleaf weeds and is ex-pected to be registered for turf uses in 1991, says Mike Min-ford of Sandoz. SAN 619 (cyproconazole) is yet to given a trade name. It's a systemic fungicide for golf courses and commercial grow-ing establishments. Initially, not all turf diseases will be on the label, but a more extensive label will be developed. Sandoz says it will come in a water- soluble, pre-measured packet that covers one acre. LCI CA bills die SACRAMENTO, CAŠThree pending pesticide bills died here August 6. The California Assembly Agriculture Com-mittee failed to approve them. The bills would have out-lawed chemicals "known to cause cancer" including those where the risk is tiny. LCI LCI welcomes Langhenry CLEVELAND, OHIOŠAnne Langhenry joins Lawn Care Industry magazine as Central States Sales Manager. Anne is an experienced marketing professional with an extensive back-ground in marketing, promotion and sales. She joins LCI from the Yumico Corporation, Wal-tham, MA, where she served as marketing and promotions manager. She can be reached at 7500 Old Oak Boule-vard, Cleveland, Ohio 44130. 216/891-2739. LCI Langhenry Here's how to breath life Into cold-hurt turf ATHENS, GAŠGil Landry and Ed Brown of the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service provide these tips for coaxing health back into cold-damaged centipedegrass and St. Augustinegrass turfs: Ł Irrigate lightly and frequently to maintain good surface soil moisture until normal growth occurs, then gradually return to normal practices. Ł After greenup, fertilize with a complete fertilizer at the rate of 1 lb. N per 1000 sq. ft. per month (do not exceed 2 lbs. per year on centipedegrass). Ł Mow slightly higher than normal and gradually return to normal mowing heights (I-IV2 inches with centipedegrass). Ł If thatch or elevated stolons are part of a problem, lightly topdress with weed-free topsoil or lightly dethatch or core aerate, and begin lowering to the recommended mowing height. Ł If diseases are thought to be a problem, correctly diagnose before treating. Ł Limit herbicide use. Brown and Landry made these suggestions as a result of turf damage resulting from the December 1989 freeze and the partic- ularly slow greenup in much of the Southeast in the spring of 1990. The tips appeared in the Turf grass Topics newsletter. LCI Feds are adding photos, talk to list ATLANTA, GAŠAdd photo- graphs and drawings to the growing list of "misleading" safety claims. Tom Delaney of the Profes-sional Lawn Care Association of America (PLCAA) said his recent meeting with the EPA and FTC didn't resolve much about what LCOs can imply in advertising their services, but LCOs should steer clear of showing children or pets play-ing in a recently treated lawn. Also, he said lawn companies should be precise when mak-ing oral statements of pesticide safety. LCI Anne McClure, new executive vice president of the Professional Lawn Care Association of America (PLCAA) confers with James A. Brooks who served PLCAA in that capacity for over seven years. McClure is to join PLCAA in October. LCI PLCAA show '1 Day's Drive' NASHVILLE, TN ŠFact #1. Nashville is less than a day's drive for more than half of the nation's lawn professionals. Fact #2. Nashville is the site of the Professional Lawn Care Association of America's 1990 education conference held in conjunction with the new Green Industry Expo. Fact #3. PLCAA, through its "One Day's Drive" promo-tion, is determined to attract a record number of new atten-dees to the conference. Registration for PLCAA Nashville '90 includes admis-sion to The Green Industry Expo, PLCAA's 11th annual educational conference, and the large outdoor equipment demonstration. More than 200 exhibitors will be featured at the trade show. For information on regis-ORLANDO, FLŠMassey Ser-vices, Inc., became an even larger player in the pest/ter- mite prevention/lawn care-markets in Florida. Harvey L. Massey, presi-dent of the company, an-nounced he bought Certified Pest Control, Leesburg, and Greyhound Exterminating, tration, travel, hotel and care rental arrangements for both events, call PLCAA at 404/977-5222. LCI Eustis, this summer. The two companies add about 4,000 new customers to Massey Ser-vices and push the Orlando- based firm to over 40,000 cli-ents. The company has 11 ser-vice centers in Florida. Massey's GreenUp Lawn Care Service is a part of Massey Services, Inc. LCI Massey expands in Fla.; enters Leesburg, Eustis Wor Wor Wor Relaxation is for your customers. It it's work you want, Americalist* direct marketing services will keep you busy. We know where your best prospects live and exactly how to reach them. What's more, we have everything you need at one convenient source: names and numbers of 25 million single-family homes that can afford your services, instant mailers or customized direct mail packages, and a complete telemarketing bureau with 120 outbound stations, including predictive dialers. So if you want to get busy and stay busy, just call Americalist today and ask about our NeighborSelex program. We'll do the rest. Now, you can relax. d= americalist DIVISION 01 HAINES I COMPANV. INC. 1.800.321.0448 USA 1.800.962.7881 OH 216.494.0226 Fax Americalist is a division of Haines & Co., Inc.Špublisher of the Criss+Cross Directories since 1932. No, it's not really beer but ginger ale colored with bitters, but Robert An-drews (left) and Neal DeAngelo have a good reason to celebrate a toast. De- Angelo was elected 1991 president of the Professional Lawn Care Associa-tion and Andrews, president elect. Ac- tually the two men posed for this publicity photograph to kick-off a "SpeakEasy" drive to recruit new members to PLCAA during that asso-ciation's 1990 educational conference November 12-15 in Nashville. Prospec-tive new members (and former associa- tion members) will be invited to a special reception at the conference. LCI à PLCAA 'SpeakEasy' promotion NEWSMAKERS Davey Tree president joins business council R. Douglas Cowan, presi-dent of The Davey Tree Expert Company, Kent, Ohio, was elected a member of The Conference Board's Executive Council. The Executive Coun-cil was founded inl966. It con-sists of chief I executive of-ficers of mid-sized com-panies who meet twice a year to dis-cuss key busi-ness issues. Cowan Ron Gelvin became gen-eral manager at Southern Turf Nurseries' 500-acre Lake Wales, Florida, production farm. Gelvin has 25 years ex-perience in agricultural man-agement. The Lake Wales farm produces certified hybrid Bermudagrasses. Southern Turf also appoin-ted Bill Carraway as its sales manager in the Florida and Caribbean territory. Car-raway spent the past year in the Atlanta territory. He has 15 years experience in land-scape construction and main-tenance. Carraway Gelvin Fermenta ASC Corpora-tion named Gerald J. Mi-nore as its Products Business Manager. A chemical engi-neer, he's a 1979 graduate of the University of Delaware. Kurt A. Schwartau became Manager, Marketing and Planning. He now manages the worldwide marketing, communications and planning for Fermenta's ag and spe-cialty chemicals business. Fer-menta also appointed the following: Ł David M. Ingram as Western Area Manager. He'll be in Fresno, CA. Ł George N. Chism as Southern Area Manager, lo-cated in Atlanta. Ł Brodie Blair as Area Sales Supervisor. He'll work from his home office in Ormstown, Quebec. Ł David A. Evans to Gen-eral Manager, Europe/Africa/ Asia. He and his wife will live in Petts Wood in the United Kingdom. Ł Sandra Spalding and Vivien Jones as Interna-tional Assistants in the Petts Wood office in the United Kingdom. Monsanto Lawn & Garden Business Unit appointed David D. Harper as its Na-tional Sales Director. Harper joined Monsanto in 1976. He received a B.A. from Brown University and an M.B.A. in Finance and Marketing from the NorthwesternGraduate School of Manage-ment. He lives in St. Louis with his wife, Susan, and two children. Harper Monsanto named Cheryl A. Sharpe as manager, public relations and environmental affairs, in its Lawn and Garden Business Unit. She's a native of St. Louis. Sharpe will be in charge of that unit's new environmental education ef-forts. Monsanto also named Danna Doede as lawn & garden marketing supervisor and Keith McKay as area marketing supervisor for the business unit. Both had been regional marketing super-visors. New Monsanto mar-keting supervisors: Beth M. Haslam (Northwest), Dar- ryl Brooks (Midcentral) and Kristine A. Ebershoff (Midwest). They began on July 1. LCI Dr. Walter Skroch, (right) of North Carolina State U., talks weed control with members of the BASF Specialty Business Group, created this summer for the turf, nursery and ornamentals markets. The group will manage sales BASF chemicals. BASF's Impact turf herbicide is being readied for registration. LCI PROFESSIONAL TREE & TURF EQUIPMENT GOLDEN, COLORADO YOUR TELEPHONE CONNECTION TO PUMPS, ENGINES & REGULATORS HOSE & FITTINGS, BOOMS PTO's, DRIVES & COUPLERS SPRAY GUNS, TIPS & HOLSTERS VALVES, STRAINERS & GAUGES REELS & SWIVELS, TOOL BOXES HAND SPRAYERS & SPREADERS SAFETY ACCESSORIES REPAIR PARTS, FLOWMETERS CHIPPERS & BUCKET TRUCKS FMC & CUSTOM BUILT SPRAYERS NEW & USED EQUIPMENT TECHNICAL ADVICE & DESIGN FULL SERVICE SHOP DENVER AREA Š 303-422-7608 OUTSIDE DENVER Š 800-237-7785 SAME DAY SHIPPING A Better Educated industry Helps us All Knowledge, research and how to apply them effectively and intelligently are what will keep the lawn care industry dynamic and growing. That's why LAWN CARE INDUSTRY magazine, the first to publish in the lawn care field, has made a S50.000 commitment to the PICAA Education and Research Fund No other industry publication has deemed education and research important enough to make this kind of commitment. But then, no other magazine was founded exclusively for the lawn care operator The other publications have their interests, we have ours, you LAWN CARE INDUSTRY first In the Industry and In placing the needs of the Industry first. WWN OIRE INDUSTRY Serving the needs of the p 7500OMO*Boulevard Oevettnd OM441JO (71S826 28SS 3'IHH ». With The Andersons choice of Tee Time fertilizers phis DIAZM0N, you get to have it your way! Combine quality-formulated The Time fertilizers with the proven performance of DIAZINON turf insec-ticide. The result is a superb combination product that provides active double duty in a single application. The Andersons The Time 28-3-9 and 18-3-5 with DIAZINON, and The Time 5% DIAZINON, are now available at your nearby The Time distributor. Or you can have it your way with a custom blend fertilizer/DIAZINON combination product made to your specifications in our state-of-the-art plant. The Andersons lineup of performance-proven lawn care products is available in your area from one of our quality distributors. For the name of your local Toe Time distributor or for more information, call toll free: 1-800-225-ANDY (2639) the professional's partner0 Tbe^CCe» Andersons © 1990, Ite Time is a trademark of The Andersons "f # 1 Circle No. 119 on Reader Inquiry Card Circle No. 102 on Reader Inquiry Card To sell IPM, convince clients of extra value BY DUANE MOLL You're thinking of offering an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) service and you're con-cerned about your customers' reactions to it. Will it provide the service they need? Will it meet their expectations? What are their expectations? You've taken a wise first step. You're investigating your market area's percep-tions about IPM. Your IPM success depends on how well people understand what they're buying because it's dif-ferent from what they're used to. Also, you've doubtless dis-covered that customers cancel services for many reasons. Even when your service is good. Often they cancel be- cause they perceived they were going to get something else. That's just one reason why customer education is so vital in IPMŠas it's always been in quality landscape services. Customer expectations? Why not survey an area, send out questionnaires or telephone some of your cus- tomers? Focus groups also al-low you to get "close" to the customer. (I particularly like written surveys. They allow the customer to give some thought to the questions and provide more detailed infor-mation.) Cost is another considera-tion. IPM costs a company more to provide than does conventional landscape care, and that cost must be passed on to the consumer. But, peo- ple who say they'll pay higher prices to "save the planet" sometimes hum a different tune when it comes to paying more to care for their yard, particularly if they don't per-ceive a greater value received for the increased dollars spent. That's why we market the fea- tures in our IPM services that give increased value. These "value added" features must be regularly reinforced to the customer. Newletters. Infor-mational/educational materi-als. Extra customer contact. Remember, your technicians are your best public relations PROFESSIONAL LAWN CARE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 11th ANNUAL EDUCATIO CONFERENCE, NASHVILLE, NOV. All roads lead to Nashville this November! That's where lawn care professionals will gather for PLCAA/Nashville '90, sponsored by the Professional Lawn Care Association of America, the official national organization of the lawn care industry. NASHVILLE! PLCAA Ł90 NOV. 12-15, 1990 LEBOEUF ON HOW TO WIN CUSTOMERS AND KEEP THEM FOR LIFE1 PRACTICAL BUSINESS SOLUTIONS FOR THE 90'S' IS CONFERENCE THEME 'Practical business solu-tions for the 90's' is the theme for PLCAA's 11th Annual Conference, Nashville, November 12-15. Given in conjunction with the GREEN INDUSTRY EXPO/90 trade show, PLCAA's 3-day educational program will focus on: Ł PRACTICAL PROB LEMS AND ISSUES that face the lawn care profes-sional weekly and daily. Ł BUSINESS DECISIONS needed to enhance growth and profitability in today's marketplace. Ł SOLUTIONS AND APPROACHES shared from experiences by fellow lawn care and landscape professionals from across the nation. Ł 90's AS THE DECADE OF CHANGE in business practices, technology, and regulatory requirements. GREEN INDUSTRY EXP0/90 OFFERS ATTENDEES MORE THAN EVER BEFORE GREEN INDUSTRY EXPO/90, the new block-buster trade show co-sponsored by PLCAA, ALCA,&PGMS, offers the largest array of lawn care and landscape products, equipment, and services ever assembled for lawn care professionals. This premier industry 'supermarket' provides: Ł Over 200 companies exhibiting the latest products, services, and technology. Ł 10 hours devoted exclusively to 'shopping' the trade show floor. Ł 4 additional hours of 'hands on' outdoor dem-onstrations to test and make equipment per-formance comparisons. Ł Product presenta-tions that will focus on what's REALLY new and innovative in the lawn and landscape market. Michael LeBoeuf, inter-nationally known author, business consultant, and recognized expert on the topic of customer service will keynote the 11th Annual PLCAA/Nashville '90 Conference on Monday, November 12. His topic, 'How to Win Customers and Keep Them For Life', outlines a practical strategy that's based on a simple but often overlooked message: the rewarded customer buys, tells others, and comes back. IL I I I TOP-NOTCH FACULTY, FIRST-RATE PROGRAM The educational faculty for PLCAA/Nashville'90 features owners and managers from all sizes of lawn care companies. They'll discuss practical business problems and share solutions. Roundtable and panel topics will include: Ł How to reduce customer callbacks Ł How to better track business expenses. Ł Pros & cons of adding business services. Ł Getting more out of your computer. Ł How to improve your routing system. Ł Training the employee who arrives mid-season. ALL THIS AND RECERTIFICATION CREDIT, TOO! Recertification credits/ points will be given by a majority of states for attendance at selected educational sessions during the 11th Annual PLCAA/Nashville'90 conference, Nov. 12-15. Tell me more about PLCAA's Educatonal Conference! NAME COMPANY -STATE ZIP I I ADDRESS I CITY I Clip and mail to: PLCAA CONFERENCE I 1000 JOHNSON FERRY RD., NE, SUITE CI 35, MARIETTA, GA 30068 j^HONE: 404-977-5222 FOR INFORMATION tool. Another concern involves the work actually done in the yard. Inspection of plant ma-terial is a major function of IPM and accounts for the largest reduction in pesticide use. In fact, properties often need no treatment after an in-spection. A customer might IPM marketing at a glance Remember, customer ex-pectations of your service will increase if they pur-chase an IPM program. It will become more impor-tant than ever before to ed-ucate the consumer regard-ing what that service provides and how it will be provided. Customers should be told upfront what chemicals, materials and methods will be used and what the results they can expect from them. It may sound like a tall order but some companies have shown that it is defintely possible. It can be done in a variety of ways, limited only by your imagination, and your customers will ap-preciate the efforts you make in helping them un-derstand their yard. ask, " Why should I pay for someone to look at my prop-erty and possibly do nothing else ? I can do the same thing for myself for free." Re-member: perceived value for the dollar. In this case the cus- tomer sees no special ability or training needed to properly in-spect a property. You must show the client that there's more to an inspection than giving a cursory look at the yard. The client must see the skill needed to keep a yard healthy. But, unless it's part of your program, be careful not leave the impression that your company's going to do a com-plete lawn analysis each visit. No silver bullets The public is used to the "silver bullet" approach. When a problem develops with their yard they expect that an application of something (the "silver bullet") will cure the problem. Because of this atti-tude, it's more difficult to sell a fertilization and/or pruning of a tree (often higher priced items) along with, or instead of, a pesticide application. This is where customer educa-tion comes in again. If the cli-ent really wants to use fewer pesticides he needs to under-stand something about plant health. This doesn't mean that he has to know every- thing about plant health (That's why he hired you.), but the client should under-stand the basicsŠwatering, mowing, etc. That's why an IPM techni-cian must be a special person in your operation. Your clients are expecting a qualified plant health care specialist. And you're expecting that that same technician can commu-nicate effectively with your clients. Obviously, your tech-nician needn't know all the an-swers, but he/she should be sharp. Your training program grows in importance. Biorational Biorational or alternative pesticides are another area where the customer may have concerns, not about their safety but rather about how well they work. For example, bt controls some insects but has a reputation for acting slower than other chemicals (despite newer formulations that have reduced the time for control). Also, insecticidal soaps work well on certain in- sects but have little residual so a repeat insect infestation a few days later may necessitate a service call by the customer. As a rule, your customers should be informed of the products you use and the re-sults they can expect. This leads into another concernŠthat of the ideal IPM customer profile. An IPM customer, ideally, is one who is concerned about his yard enough to be involved in it. The person who wants to simply turn the whole thing over to you without taking the time to notice when things need attention probably is not a good IPM customer because this alternative program is truly a partnership effort in landscape care between you and the consumer. An IPM customer should have an awareness of his yard and be willing to alert you if some- thing doesn't look right. LCI About the Author Duane Moll is president of Horticulture Concepts, Aurora, CO, a landscape management consulting firm specializing in IPM, chemical use and evaluation and training for turf and ornamental management. Lofts says new turf aggressive BOUND BROOK, NJ ŠLofts Seed Inc. says its new Ken-tucky bluegrass P-104, mar-keted as Princeton®, is unusually aggressive. Lofts claims that only 5-15% dominates a sod blend In two to three years. Also, Princeton is a dark green, and holds it color from November through March. For more information con-tact Lofts in Bound Brook, NJ, 201/356-8700. LCI For Getting Rid of Grubs in Record Time, There's Nothing Faster Than Dylox. Underground turf irrigation idea catches on in Cleveland market CLEVELAND, OHIO ŠJim Ferguson and Stuart Ramsay began tinkering with under-ground irrigation systems al-most 10 years ago. Now they've brought their system out into the open and attracted a sizable following of homeowners and commercial property managers who like the idea of irrigating and fer- tilizing plants, including lawn grasses, at the plants' root-zones. Ferguson and Ramsay are principles in a company known as Porous Pipe Inc. which, claims Ramsay, in-stalls more irrigation systems in the Cleveland metropolitan area than any other. And PPI's five work crews put all of the systems underground. They lay out carefully plotted grids of dark-gray, thumb-sized-diameter, flexible tubing that, when filled with water, See POROUS on page 25 "We're not in the business of selling pipe. We've developed an entire system"ŠJim Ferguson DYLOX »8 a Re*. TM of Bayer AG, Germany. 75371 © 1969 Mobay Corporation DYLOX* insecticide stops grubs in their tracks. Fast. Usually in less than 48 hours. And for the record, nothing on the market works better or faster. Mobay Corporation A Bayer USA MC COMPANY DYLOX Bayer Specialty Producta Group Box 4913, Kansas City, MO 64120 NEW PRODUCTS Green Machine offers versatility in a second The Green Machine's Land-scaper Model 2800 and Expand-It System has a 57V2-inch straight shaft and a 24.1cc, 1.4 hp, 2-cycle engine. It comes with a 4-inch trim-mer head with brush blade ca-pability and can be inter-changed with a variety of attachment tools with the twist of a single knob on the shaft coupling. Available tools include a weeder/cultivator, edger, power blower, snow thrower and an optional 8-point blade and 9-inch saw blade fixed line head for heavy-duty cutting which are all sold separately. Circle No. 130 on service card. This wetting agent also aids compaction woes Pene-Turf Soil Treatment does what a wetting agent will do, but where the wetting agent stops, Pene-Turf con-tinues. It reduces the surface tension of soil water, which al-lows compacted soil to shift, and it works several feet deep in the soil. This results in in- creased pore space, improved percolation, and deeper water infiltration. Also, Pene-Turf is non-phytotoxic. Circle No. 131 on service card. Here you see our finest products. Our finest products are lush, green, and vigorous. Our best work is knowing we can stand behind them. Years of field experience. Continuous research. Nationwide testing. All these are hidden in every blade that sprouts from a Northrup King Medalist01 Turfgrass Mixture. Mixtures such as Athletic ProK II, Northrup King Medalist Turf Products, P.O. Box 959, Medalist North, Premium Sod Blend, Landscape Pro, and the Medalist Winter Overseeding Products. And we never stop improving them. For help with your toughest turf problems, contact us. Then we can show you more of our best work. Listening. ^liyi^jQyj And answering with turfgrass mixtures that work. X^B^M Minneapolis, MN 55440 ©1985 Northrup King Medalist Newly patented product gives mulch a new life Magic Mulch®, recently pat-ented by Becker-Underwood, Inc., has been licensed to Lesco which is offering the product under the trademark Nu-Mulch®. When applied to faded fibrous mulch, the prod-uct revitalizes its natural brown color. The application of these products prolongs the uselife life of mulch and re- duces the need to uproot mulch or to "top" with fresh mulch. Circle No. 132 on service card. J A Air gun can be used to sweep, clean machinery The 75XT XtraThrust Safety Air Gun delivers maximum compressed air output to clean, sweep dry and/or cool hard-to-reach areas. The XtraThrust has a unique Ven- turi tip at the end of the barrer furthest away from the oper- ator to reduce operator haz- ards. The gun can clean rafters and pipes, floors under equip-ment as well as remove grit and dust from heavy equip-ment and conveyor systems. Circle No. 133 on service card. Enkamat "S" is strong; ideal for erosion jobs Akzo Industrial Systems' new reinforced erosion control matting combines Enkamat (a 3-dimensional nylon matting) with a PVC-coated polyester geogrid. The product, En-kamat "S" is ideal for erosion-control projects where a high tensile strength is required. It will withstand the stress of fill materials like gunite, gravel and soil. Circle No. 134 on service card. Signal shows applicator where herbicide applied Signal is a high-visibility her-bicide dye. The nontoxic colorant shows the applicator what has been sprayed, thus reducing chances of overspray. Signal can be used with hand- held sprayers. Circle No. 135 on service card. NEW PRODUCTS Brochure shows how chipper/shredders help Tornado Products released a new four-color brochure il-lustrating its Baker chipper/ shredders. The brochure ex-plains what a chipper/shred-der is, how it recycles yard refuse, its positive impact on the environment and waste disposal, and the product's high-quality design. Circle No. 136 on service card. Load your truck easily with safe, sturdy ramps The Ramparts Kit allows any-one to build their own ramps for safe loading and unloading of equipment. The kit con-tains two sturdy, aluminum brackets which attach to 2x8 or 2xl2-inch boards; it trans-forms them into safe, non-slip ramps. Circle No. 137 on service card. This vest will cool those working in heat ILC Dover, Inc., offers the Model 15 Ice Pack Vest with six sets of gel strips to keep workers cool in any high tem- perature working condition. It has no electrical components and is constructed of flame re- tardant fabric. The vest weighs 12 pounds and keeps a wearer cool for at least four hours. Circle No. 138 on service card. New turf aerator covers a lot more ground easily The Ryan Lawnaire V covers a 26.5-inch aerating swath and can aerate up to 29,000 sq. ft. per hour. It's powered by a 4-cycle, 3.5-hp Honda engine and equipped with 3/i-inch, open-sided coring tines that can penetrate up to 23A inches deep, depending on soil type and conditions. The unit comes with 38-lb. removable weight bar and a polyethylene water drum that holds up to 10.2 gallons of water (about 77 lbs.) for extra penetrating pressure. Raising and lowering is accomplished easily with a spring-loaded lift handle readily accessible at the operator's handle. Circle No. 139 on service card. Haz-Stor offers range of metal out buildings Haz-Stor offers non-com-bustible metal buildings. These sturdy, prefabricated structures are designed to be used as separate, detached buildings for storing Class I, II and III flammable/combusti-ble liquids or hazardous mate-rials. Circle No. 140 on service card. Milorganite FERTILIZER America's Number One Natural Organic Fertiliser Ł Many of the finest parks and grounds in America are fertilized with Milorganite. Ł Non-burning, cost-effective, turf fertilizer Ł Rich in organic iron Š 4% minimum guaranteed. Ł 90% Water Insoluble Nitrogen (WIN.), slow release nitrogen promotes vigorous growth. Ł Supplies humus and improves water holding capacity of soils. Ł The golf course choice. Circle No. 111 on Reader Inquiry Card FREE LITERATURE Mail in the coupon below for further information or call 414-225-2222. Please send me further information Ł Milorganite's Specialty Fertilizer Program Ł Milorganite s Iron Š Technical Bulletin LCI-S M DATES September Ł12 Successful Strategies for Managing Your Land-scape seminar. Chicago. Same seminar Sept. 19 in Cin-cinnati and Sept. 26 in Wash-ington, D.C. Contact: In-site, James Martin Associates, 24380 N. Highway 45, Vernon Hills, IL 60061. 708/634-8888. Ł 17-20 Northwest Turfgrass Conference. Rippling Rivers Resort, Wel-ches, OR. Contact: NTA, P.O. Box 1367, Olympia, WA 98507. 206/754-0825. Ł 30-0ct. 3 Florida Turfgrass Association Conference & Show. Orange County Convention Center, Orlando. Contact: Florida Turfgrass Association, 302 S. Graham Ave., Orlando, FL 32803. October Ł3-4 Southern California Turfgrass Expo. Orange County Fairgrounds, Costa Mesa, CA. Contact: SCTE, 26442 Vera Cruz Lane, Mis-sion Viejo, CA 92691. 714/951-8547. Ł8-9 Diagnosis & Treat-ment of Landscape Plant Problems. University of Cai-PRESERVATION PLAN ON IT BELLE GROVE. MIOOLETOWN. VIL A NATIONAL TRUST PROPERTY Planning on restoring a house, saving a land-mark, reviving your neighborhood? No matter what your plans, gain a wealth of experience and help preserve our historic and architectural heritage. Join the National Trust for Historic Preservation and support preserva-tion efforts in your community. Make preservation a blueprint for the future. Write: National Trust for Historic Preservation Department PA 1785 Massachusetts Ave., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 ifornia, Davis, CA. 800/752-0881 (Davis residents, 757-8777). Ł12-13 New Mexico Asso-ciation of Nursery Indus-tries Trade Show. Albu-querque Convention Center. Contact: Linda McLain, NMANI, P.O. Box 667, Es-tancia, NM 87016. Ł24 Safety & Preventive Maintenance Seminar. Oyster Bay, NY. Contact: New York State Turf Associa-tion (NYSTA) 800/873-8873. Ł26-29 American Society of Irrigation Consultants Conference. SunBurst Re- sort Hotel, Scottsdale, AZ. Contact: Wanda Sarsfield, ASIC Executive Secretary, 425 Oak St., Brentwood, CA 94513. 415/516-1300. Nov. Ł6 Drip Irrigation Sys-tems in the Home Land-scape. University of Califor-nia, Davis, CA. 800/752-0881. Ł 12-15 Green Industry Expo (including the PLCAA Convention). Nashville Convention Center, Nashville, TN. Contact: PLCAA, 1000 Johnson Ferry Road, NE Suite C135, Mar-ietta, GA 30068. 800/458-3466. Tests set SACRAMENTO, CA ŠThe CLCA Certified Landscape Technician tests for construc-tion and maintenance: Oct. 6 & 7 at Foothill College, Los Altos Hills. Contact Robert Bavetta, CLCA, 2021 N St., Sacramento, CA 95814. 916/448-2522. LCI Ł 13-16 New York Turfgrass Association Turf & Grounds Exposi-tion. Rochester Riverside Convention Center, Rochester, NY. Contact: NYSTA 800/873-8873. Ł27-29 Turfgrass & Orna-mental Chemical Seminar. Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN. Contact: Jo Horn 317/494-8039. Dec. Ł10-12 Georgia Turfgrass Conference & Trade Show. Atlanta. Contact: The University of Georgia Cooper- ative Extension Service, Col-lege of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30602. January Ł 14-17 Turfgrass Inte-grated Pest Management (IPM) Short Course. Col-lege Park, MD. Contact: Dr. Lee Hellman, Department of Entomology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742. (Note: enrollment lim-ited to first 35). Ł20-22 Empire State Tree Conference. Syracuse, NY. Contact: New York State Ar-borists Association 518/783-1322. Ł 25 Mid-Florida Turfgrass Conference. Seminole Community College, Sanford, FL. Contact: Uday K. Yadav, 407/323-2500, Ext. 5559. Ohio's notification regs good compromise so far COLUMBUS, OHIO ŠBill Pound, a turf specialist at The Ohio State University, says Ohio's lawn care notification law is working. "There are still groups in Ohio that want stricter regula-tions on the use of lawn chemi-cals. Their demands include having firms offer more timely and detailed information to neighbors," says Pound. "A few people have even lobbied Ohio legislators to have some lawn pesticides banned." But Pound describes the state's notification law as "a good compromise." This is the first full season that lawn care companies in Ohio have had to post warning signs after pesticide applica-tions and inform people about chemicals used. "Some com-Türn¥)ur GreenThumb Into Greenbacks. You can grow your own company with a ServiceMaster LawnCare Franchise. And make a good living doing what you love. As the industry leader, we give you all the training and support you need. So don't let the grass grow under your feet. For more information, call toll-free at 1-800-228-2814. Partners in the ServiceMaster Quality Service Network-ServiceMASTER. TERM/MIX merry maids AMERICAN HOME SHIELD* panies say the signs are a bit of a hassle to post. But most real-ize the law goes a long way in improving relations with cus-tomers and neighbors," says Pound. The law doesn't require property owners who apply chemicals to their land to post any warnings. Many in the lawn care business feel that homeowners are the worst misusers of lawn chemicals be-cause they often don't read the labels of pesticidesŠor they just don't follow directions. Also, the law does not apply to chemicals applied to row crops, maintain public utility property, or control termites or other pests. As a result of the law, LCOs in Ohio must leave detailed in- formation with property owners following an applica- tion. Property owners are given the name and type of each chemical applied, con-centration of the chemical and its application rate, any spe-cial instructions on the chemi-cal's label, the lawn care company's name and tele-phone number and the date and time of the application. Companies must also post signs for 24 hours on the lawn saying pesticides were applied and that people and pets should keep off. The signs list the company's name and phone number, and say neigh-bors may be notified of the ap- plication. "If a company is to apply pesticides to the lawn next door, then on the day before application, neighbors who have written the company should receive a mailing stat-ing the time of application and the firm's name and telephone number," Pound says. LCI Questions about Pesticides? Call 1-800-858-7378 National Pesticide Telecommunications Network POROUS from page 21 irrigates and fertilizes turf areas. The tubingŠthough no holes are visible in itŠis por-ous and, under as little as five pounds of pressure, allows water to seep into the soil. Similar to trickle The idea of underground ir-rigation is hardly new and, in many respects, similar to "trickle" systems com- monplace in landscapes, par-ticularly in arid or semi-arid areas of the United States. These systems, traditionally, have been used to irrigate landscape trees, ornamentals and garden areas. And, claims by the two entreprenuers that their system is more water- efficient than traditional sprinkers certainly is broad considering the different types of soils and the variability of turfgrass root zones. Even so, Ferguson and Ramsay claim their system has several innovations that now makes it practical for turf areas as wellŠspecifically the "pipe" itself and a comput-erized control system that ac- tivates the system only when soil sensors tell it water is needed. In addition, claim the two entreprenuers, they've built in safeguards (including a man-datory training program for installers) to help insure the system is installed correctly. Vibrating plow Installers use a vibrating plow to slice a one-inch-wide groove into the soil, five inches deep. The "Porous pipe" is then uncoiled into the groove and when the pipes fill with water (or a water/fertilizer mixture), the water moves out through the microscopic open-ings in the pipe and into the soil. Because of capillary ac-tion, explains Ferguson, it moves farther through clay or loam soils than through sand. In clay or loam, the pipe can be placed about every 3*/2 feet ap-art, in sand closer. But the pipe is just part of the system, says Ferguson. "We're not in the business of selling pipe. We've developed an entire system. It's taken us years to get to this point. We've had to cover each issue NY Medical Col. foundation site VALHALLA, NYŠNew York Medical College is the site of the new American Lyme Dis-ease Foundation, Inc. The foundation is a non-pro-fit organization to battle Lyme Disease. New York Medical College is the only medical uni-versity in the nation con- ducting Lyme disease research on three frontsŠclinically with patients, in the field with dis-ease-carrying ticks, and in the laboratory. LCI Former LCO Stuart Ramsey thinks his underground irrigation system is particularly suited for commercial properties. as it came up." Also key to the success of each installation are under- ground moisture sensors and a wall-mounted electronic con- trol panel (actually a 264K mini-computer, says Fer-guson) that opens valves and allows water to fill the porous pipes when the soil reaches a certain dryness. Ramsay, himself once a lawn care professional, claims the underground irrigation system can save anywhere from 30 to 70% of the water used with a traditional sprin-kler system. And, he says, fer-tilizing a lawn is much easierŠjust add the liquid fer-tilizer (which his company supplies) to the system and fertilize the lawn automati-cally at the plants' rootzones, small, easily used applications on a more regular basis. Ram-say says this eliminates the question of applying fertilizers and/or control products where children or pets can contact them. Seeking dealers Porous Pipe, adds Ramsay, is building a nationwide dealer network (the product is being used in Canada too). Dealers must attend a week-long train-ing program to be allowed to install the system. "We're al-lowing our name to be used and we have to guarantee that the installations are correct," says Ferguson. Cost of an underground sys-tem is 20 to 50 percent more expensive than a properly de-signed above-ground system, but the costs are made up in water savings, reduced main- tenance and improved lawn and landscape areas, says Ramsay. LCI On Some Lawns, Grubs Just Aren't a Problem. OFTANOLŽ controls grubs before they have a chance to do their damage. Providing continuous protection that lasts. Nothing works better. It's your best bet for grub control. Mobay Corporation A Bayer USA