Featured Archives - The Edge from the National Association of Landscape Professionals

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Featured

Team Building: Enhancing Your Training Programs

Your landscape or lawn care can only be as successful as your training programs. If you want to see improved profit, you first need to ensure your training programs are setting team members up for success. “With the improper foundation, which is the knowledge of your people at the base level, you actually don’t receive […]

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How I Do It: Improving My Fleet Safety Program

Michael Hatcher & Associates, based in Olive Branch, Mississippi, has a fleet of over 70 vehicles on the road every day. They have achieved an average annual reduction of 95% in the cost of their auto claims and an 87% reduction in the frequency of auto claims. This is in part thanks to their partnership […]

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Landscapes of the Month: Reinventing a Historical Landmark

For many years, this grand site was home to the USPS headquarters for Houston, Texas. However, in 2015, the building was decommissioned and sold to commercial developers, causing it to sit empty until 2020. During that time, plans were made to rejuvenate the five-acre property and create a place where the community could come together […]

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Harnessing Artificial Intelligence for Business Success

ChatGPT was first launched in November 2022, and it, along with other large language models, has evolved drastically since then. “Even from a year ago, it’s a much bigger part, not just in the landscape industry, but it’s a much bigger part of our lives, generally speaking,” says Skyler Westergard, learning & development specialist with […]

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How I Do It: The Power of Bringing Trades In-House

As your landscape company’s operations grow, one of the questions that will arise is if it is time to bring some of your services in-house. Starting out, it makes sense to subcontract others for specialties you aren’t particularly well-versed in or simply don’t have enough work to support throughout the season. Yet bringing your trades […]

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Crafting a Resilient Landscape with Tree Diversity

When selecting tree species for your customer’s landscape design, it’s important to consider biodiversity, as having a variety of trees on a property not only creates a more dynamic space, but it’s also beneficial for the surrounding ecosystem. “The number one thing is with diversity, you will minimize the abiotic stressors such as insect and […]

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Level Up: Color Burst Thrives Thanks to Their Singular Focus

Our Level Up series shares the strategies that help landscape and lawn care companies get to the next level. For many landscape companies, seasonal color is just one service offering of the many they provide their customers. However, for Color Burst, based in Grayson, Georgia, the design, installation and maintenance of seasonal color is their […]

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Reflecting on My Small Business Struggles and the Gift They Provided

This article is written in an “As Told To” format. John Munie is the founder and president of Focal Pointe, a $50 million firm specializing in commercial landscape maintenance, based in Caseyville, Illinois. During the early years, I would look at the Top 100/150 lists and wonder what those guys knew that I didn’t. How […]

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How I Do It: Creating a Safety Champion Program

Environmental Management, Inc. (EMI), based in Plain City, Ohio, recently created a safety champion program in an effort to increase their team’s engagement and focus on safety. “It’s hard to have people be engaged with safety,” says Joe Payne, environmental health and safety associate director for EMI. “A lot of people were just like, ‘Oh, […]

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The Hidden Costs of Skipping Lawn Irrigation

Written by: Alec Kowalewski, associate professor and turfgrass specialist at Oregon State University Turfgrass is known for requiring frequent irrigation during the summer months to sustain active growth and development, and an aesthetically pleasing appearance. Due to recent concerns associated with the availability of water, turfgrass irrigation is being scrutinized. Turfgrass scientists have been exploring […]

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