The Green Meridian Podcast - A Landscape Design/Build Toolkit

Successfully estimating your project can be the make or break moment that defines your company success. How do other folks do it? We talk about landscape estimating and billing on today's episode of the Green Meridian podcast. Our special guest is Jon Bryant with StickyBid , an application that you can upload to your phone or laptop that allows you to present clients with quick estimates and compr...

For this episode, we speak with Ryland Longoni of Federated Insurance ( rjlongoni@fedins.com ), a specialist insuring landscape designers, landscape architects, general contractors and other green industry professionals. Ryland answers key questions, such as "How much insurance do I need?", "How much liability insurance is enough?" - and covers the ins and outs of Errors & Omissions insurance,...

What if there was almost universal agreement on what constitutes good landscape design? What if we could break a "hidden code" that unlocks the secret to any successful landscape layout? It's fascinating to consider that human beings have a largely consistent sense of what constitutes beauty in art - most of us stand in awe of Michelangelo's talent and line up for hours to see the works in the Lou...

Today's topic is Tough customers: Managing problematic landscape design/build clients. Do you have occasional client problems? Why is it important to try to try to anticipate client behavior? You need to have an awareness about the real Impact client disfunction can have on your business. A lack of understanding can create put stress on staff and resources, and cause time to be wasted Without an i...

I am taking a moment to restock my understanding of my career here, with a compilation of missed opportunities, unforced errors and last minute three-point shots that bounced from the rim. Mixed in like oil in a bucket of water - are some thoughts about Joan Didion's brilliant essay "On Self Respect".  Joan Didion's essay: " On Self Respect " https://sites.gatech.edu/alexburgin/on-self-r...

Welcome to The Green Meridian Podcast, where we dig into the roots of the landscape industry and explore the issues shaping its future. Today, we’re stepping out of the fields and gardens and into the heart of the political landscape - with a timely episode focused on the upcoming election. We are representing both sides of the political divide today - for a lively, balanced (and occasionally unhi...

We are joined by some irrigation experts for this timely Summer discussion, from national irrigation product marketing managers, to some talented technicians - as we discuss the possibilities and pitfalls in marketing water saving irrigation products. Our guests include: Mark Guthrie of Puget Sound's Saving Water Partnership, Bryce Carnehl, Specification Marketing Manager Hunter Industries, Sergio...

Let's spend some time focusing on the vexing topic of online marketing and how to tailor it to your specific business - at low or no cost. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From navigating the sudden onset of harsher Summer and Winter weather events, to articulating ideas about lessening the impact of diminishing habitat, landscape professionals need to not only relate the larger climate to what is happening on a specific property, but show and specify new and innovative solutions. From water saving ideas, to pollution limiting drainage solutions, we are in a unique...

On this episode we speak with Andrew tenBrink, the lead landscape architect for the Seattle’s Central Waterfront and Seattle Aquarium Ocean Pavilion . Working with the firm Field Operations , Andrew is responsible for the overall implementation of this incredibly complex and expansive urban renovation, that includes redirecting urban streets, installation of thousands of native plantings and recon...

On this episode of the Green Meridian podcast, we learn about the busy Mason bee and how these beneficial insects can transform the vibrancy and health in your gardens and landscapes. We discuss how to introduce mason bees to your outdoor area - and how you can purchase, manage and nurture bee populations at your home or landscape project site. We talk here with Dave Hunter, the founder of Crown B...

The Landscape, Nursery and Construction trades are at a crossroads. But then again, aren't we always? "If you see a fork in the road. take it!" Yogi Berra once said. But the election path that we travel this year may be more momentous than in year's past. Issues centering around the economy, business regulation, immigration and crime are affecting every business. Some say that democracy itself han...

Today we speak with three senior designers with the multi-disciplinary Landscape architecture and urban design firm - Field Operations . Field Operations is known for a wide range of large scale municipal and campus projects - including Seattle's new Waterfront project. You can find more info on this and other large scale work here ⁠https://www.fieldoperations.net/projects.html ⁠ We are talking to...

Today we have a conversation with landscape architect Ken Yocom about the evolving students of landscape design, how community college programs yield a different kind of student, how academics is changing in the field of Landscape architecture and the conflicts between designers and contractors. Ken is an Associate Professor and the Chair of the Department of Landscape Architecture. He also has an...

Risk management can take many forms. When we think about it, our thoughts usually go directly to the job site and we think of safety issues. But there are many aspects around this kind of topic. From insurance concerns to contract clauses and safety in the form of training, today we cover a range of facets of risk management. Hosted by my associate Bill Peregrine, he references a gr...

It's harder than ever to find talented staff. Forming the personal and professional bonds to nurture and structure an enthusiastic and loyal production team requires a careful attention to a wide variety of details, an innovative plan of action and careful - constant nudging. In this episode, we talk about what landscape design and build companies are doing to keep that most precious resource - ta...

The Green Meridian video meeting and discussion "Books on Your Shelf" was really insightful today. Thanks to all that joined!  The books we discuss include: Design with Nature, by Ian McHarg Bringing Nature Home and Nature’s Best Hope. by Douglas Tallamy and Rick Darke A Sand County Almanac, by Aldo Leopold Landscape Architecture, by John Simonds The Death and Life of Grea...

What do you do when your company is nearing the turbulent waters at the polar end of the year? You are rounding the back side of the moon, looking at a cooler, quieter time - and this poses a conundrum for designers and contractors. What's your plan? Have you gathered your acorns? Do you have recurring revenue? A late season holiday marketplace? Snow services? Holiday lighting installation? What s...

Laura Wildfong is the well regarded owner and manager of Northwest Nurseries, a professional plant wholesaler just northeast of Seattle. With decades managing a small and focused nursery operation, Laura reflects on the last 20 years, how the business has changed, botanicals that no longer perform - and how to hire and keep people who do. What kind of tree would she be if she could be a tree? You'...

Back in the 80s I remember getting my first computer, it was the original box Macintosh , what is now affectionately called the "Mac Classic". It was an unbelievably amazing machine - which now, looking back appears as a quaint and simple relic of some bygone era. I remember playing games from discs that we would have to pop out and place back in. I feel fortunate to be a person that can look back...

Working in a family owned landscape company, Timberline Landscape - from the age of 18, our guest Josh Gillow had spent almost all of his life in the outdoor construction business. Transitioning from Timberline, he started MasterPLAN Outdoor Living, a design/manage firm. Over his 25-year career in this industry, he has sold and managed over $40 million in outdoor living projects. In 2020, Josh sta...

Landscape architect Kryssie Maybay is a talented residential garden designer that has been working in the Pacific Northwest region for many years. A detailed and meticulous creator of outdoor spaces, Kryssie brings a special sensibility that many of us respect in a successful landscape designer, that special ability to methodically and creatively bring complex projects from conception through cons...

​Our guest today is Lloyd Glasscock, a mainstay presence for green industry professionals in the Pacific Northwest. Originally a wholesale supplier of landscape supplies and later a leader of the Washington Association of Landscape Professionals, Lloyd probably knows more designers, suppliers and outdoors craftspeople than anyone you will ever meet. In addition to managing his own outdoor design c...

Danilo Maffei talks with us in this episode about his work and his outlook for our industry. Danilo is the founder and principal of Maffei Landscape Design in Pennsylvania. He has a background in public horticulture, landscape contracting, education and civic leadership. He specializes in conceiving and creating outdoor places that are meaningful, relevant and responsive to the specific conditions...

Susan Cohan, FAPLD joins us today to talk about her work and how she sees the state of the green industry. Named 'Designer of the Year' by the Association of Professional Landscape Designers in 2021, Susan is the principal and design director of Susan Cohan Gardens, a full-service landscape design studio located in the New York/New Jersey metro area. From small courtyards to large country estates,...