lawn care

See green Feb. 2, save green by Jan. 26

male gardener working in greenhouseThe 2017 Tri-State Green Industry Conference is Feb. 2 in Cincinnati — the tri-states being Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. It’s for anyone whose work involves plants, including landscapers, lawn and tree care workers, greenhouse managers, and others.

Of note: There’s a whole track of sessions on sustainable landscaping. Plus sessions, too, on planting for pollinators, managing urban and suburban deer, and the evidence for — and changes to landscape plants caused by — climate change.

Early bird registration, which saves you $10 and includes lunch, ends Thursday, Jan. 26.

CFAES’s OSU Extension outreach arm is one of the organizers. Read more.

Urban green space expert at conference

Photo of High Line Park in New York 2Tom Smarr, horticulture director for The Parklands of Floyds Fork, a new urban park in Louisville, Kentucky, keynotes the Tri-State Green Industry Conference Feb. 4 in Cincinnati.

“(The conference) is for representatives of all sectors of the green industry,” said Julie Crook, horticulture program coordinator in OSU Extension’s Hamilton County office and chair of the event’s planning committee.

Smarr previously was horticulture director for New York City’s innovative High Line Park, shown here, which was built on an old elevated train track.

OSU Extension is CFAES’s outreach arm; CFAES is a conference co-sponsor. (Photo by Steven Severinghaus from Friends of the High Line licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.)

Why (and how) we care about our lawns, and whether they can be greener

lawnA recent CFAES survey looked at why Americans think their lawns are important and what they’re willing to do (and/or not do) about it. The researchers say the findings could suggest ways to increase the acceptance (and dare it be said, fashionability) of non-chemical, environmentally friendlier lawn care methods. (Quote: “Homeowners crave the acceptance of their neighbors.”)