The Seascape
Newsletter of the CLCA
Central Coast Chapter
July/August 2020
Calendar of Events
We’re off for the Summer, we’ll be back in September!
September 3, Thursday
Central Coast Chapter Board Meeting
will be held as a virtual meeting.
Contact Justin White for details at (831) 331-3476 or justin@kndlandscaping.com
September 10, Thursday
Golf Tournament—Liar’s Cup 2020
Time: 9:00 a.m. start, but we will stagger start times (Also keep social distance and wear masks) to be covid-19 compliant. more info on start times to come.
Location: Spring Hills, watsonville
It’s on! Our Annual Golf Tournament, the Liar’s Cup is happening. Create a foursome and sign up. This is going to be a fun event. More information and registration here. Sign up soon online. Registration will close on September 6. Contact Matt Gomez at Ewing Irrigation in Santa Cruz: 831-464-6777 or Justin White at justin@kndlandscaping.com
** Our new Beautification Awards Banquet has been postponed until June 25, 2021 due to difficulty scheduling around the COVID virus.
July/August 2020 President’s Message
by Justin White, Chapter President, K&D Landscaping Company
Blessed to be a Landscaper
It may not always feel like it, but we are lucky to be landscapers, especially right now. As some industries struggle to adapt and survive, take the hospitality or fitness industries for example, landscape companies are seeing an increase in sales and consumer confidence. As I check in with many local landscape companies and sit in on conference calls nationwide, the overall theme is that business is up. The other noteworthy metric is that finding and hiring employees is becoming easier every day. Not too long ago, (February actually), the number one challenge landscape companies faced was not having enough employees.
A question I hear a lot is, “although business is up right now, how can we be sure that it will last?” The answer is pretty simple... we don’t know. We just don’t know how the coronavirus pandemic is going to affect our businesses over the next 12-18 months. With so much uncertainty in the world today we really can’t predict where we are going to be as a nation next year. Although you should be developing long-range plans and talking with your team about the future, the most important focus right now is what you are doing each day. What can you do today to have the largest, positive impact on your company and your clients? Hone in on your client’s properties to ensure they are flourishing and looking their best possible. Dedicate time to make sure your employees are thriving. If you can make certain that your employees are happy, the chances of surviving the next wave of change are that much greater.
PPP loan updates: the PPP loan program has been extended and the forgiveness has gotten easier. Recipients now have until August 8th to utilize the funds and the forgiveness calculations have changed. The SBA is allowing you to use more of the funds on rent and utilities than before. I recommend making contact with the bank that issued your loan and requesting information on the forgiveness process. If you did not receive a PPP loan and feel you need one, there is still time to apply and receive funding. You can find more information about the PPP loan here: www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/coronavirus-relief-options/paycheck-protection-program
As we continue to search for ways to provide value to the CLCA membership, we ask for your feedback: what is an area that you or your team would like more information on? Any specific online training we can organize to help put you in front of the competition? We may not be able to physically congregate right now, but that doesn’t take away our ability to aid each other and add value to one another. We are always looking for creative ideas to engage and connect, so please drop me a line with any you would like to share!
To your success,
Justin White
CEO, K&D Landscaping Inc.
justin@kndkandscaping.com
C: (831) 331-3476 │ O: (831) 728-4018
2020 Central Coast Chapter Partners for Success Program
There has never been a better time to support Central Coast’s Partners for Success Program. Joining provides an opportunity to increase your visibility in the community, to be seen as a leader in the green industry by helping sustain the many educational and enrichment offerings of our association. For more information, contact Justin White justin@kndkandscaping.com. Or, better still, go directly to our online registration! Join us!
PaRTNERS CORNER
Andrew Tuckman of Vision Recycling
This month Andrew Tuckman is featured in our “Partner’s Corner.” Read more here.
education corner
Upper left: Broccoli can be grown nearly year-round along Central Coast California. Upper right: Garlic is easy to grow in the rainy season. Sow in November and harvest in June with little-to-no irrigation water. Lower left: Summer time and the livin’s easy…all those great vegetables from garden to table. Lower right: Artichoke and Cardoon are delicious and beautiful additions to the landscape.
Edible Landscapes Have Become Wildly Popular During COVID-19 Pandemic
As many of you know I’m a vocal advocate for designing and installing edible landscapes and incorporating more edible plants into ornamental landscapes. Over the last few months of shelter-in-place orders and physical distancing protocols many people have discovered, or rediscovered, gardening. Edible gardening has become fashionable (again!) and people are enjoying sowing seeds, growing their own plants, and harvesting delicious bounties from their own yards. Many of us have been doing this for years and now some of our clients are finding joy in plants and gardening.
Will this be a passing fad like the ‘Victory Gardens’ during World War 2 or will this be a more permanent change that people incorporate into their post-COVID lifestyles? The answer to that depends on several factors including:
Initial successes in the garden, i.e., did that tomato seed germinate and become a healthy productive plant, did my plants survive, were they productive?
Access to reliable local information about seasonal gardening practices
Recognition of multiple benefits of gardening and growing food in our yards
Here on the Central Coast we’re fortunate to have robust and useful resources for edible gardening. The University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) Center for Agriculture and Sustainable Food Systems (CASFS) provides valuable local gardening information with their “For the Gardener” publications online. You might remember the hard copy versions of these that were available at the CASFS Farm during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Now all that wonderful information, and more, is available online. One of my favorite resources for local edible gardens is the UC Vegetable Gardening for Santa Cruz County. This guide helps us know appropriate times of year for sowing and transplanting over 45 types of edible plants including favorites like peas, onions, broccoli, lettuce, peppers, and tomatoes. Another outstanding local resource is Orin Martin’s recent book, Fruit Trees for Every Garden. This book has excellent information about growing and maintaining fruit trees in California. We’re blessed to live in a place where we can grow edible plants year-round along with high-quality resources that guide us along the way. The fun never stops!
Another local resource for edible gardening and urban agriculture is Cabrillo College Horticulture Department’s Edible Landscaping course (offered every Spring semester). This course provides hands-on training and community-building experiences, including sowing Spring and Summer crop seeds, designing and building edible gardens on campus, and guidance with nutrient and water inputs. The recent pandemic offers new challenges that include providing safe learning environments. Cabrillo College is adapting and innovating and strives to continue implementing unique and significant learning experiences.
Incorporating more edible plants in your landscape designs and installations can be easy, rewarding, and beautiful. Let’s continue to satisfy and delight clients with edible plants in landscapes.
Michael Johnson, CLCA Central Coast Education Director
California H2orticulture Service
(831) 325-3376
Special Announcement
Pic Your Pic Garden Challenge
See links below to see our entries
We asked the landscape contractors of Santa Cruz, San Benito and Monterey Counties to submit entries to the Central Coast Chapter’s “Pic Your Pic” very informal, fun-and-easy contest in these catagories: Lighting, Irrigation, Innovation, Formal Water Feature, Natural Water Feature, Residential, Commercial or HOA, Public Work, Recreational, Vegetation, Wildlife Conservation and more…
Please follow the links to see what Central Coast CLCA folks have been working on:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CLCA-Central-Coast-Chapter-307093040132440/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/clca_central_coast/
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/54134395/
Visit www.clca-cc.org to learn more about the CLCA Central Coast Chapter.
Critical Information for CLCA Members
special announcement
Landscape Maintenance Service Needed
The City of Carmel-by-the-Sea is soliciting bids from qualified contractors for landscape maintenance services.
Link is provided here. https://ci.carmel.ca.us/pod/city-invitations-bids-and-requests-proposals
especially for CLCA Members
Links for Current Covid-19 Information
Helpful county-specific links for Covid-19 updates here:
Alameda County information here.
Contra CostA County information here.
Marin county information here.
San Benito County information here.
San Francisco bay AREA Information here.
San Mateo County information here.
Santa Clara County information here.
Santa Cruz County information here.
Advertise in the Central Coast Seascape Newsletter!
THis is a great time to show your support for the central Coast CLCA and promote your business. Advertise in this newsletter! Reach your target audience monthly. Sign up for large, medium, or small ads. For specs and pricing contact: clcaccc.editor@gmail.com. OR sign up online here.
Board Meeting Minutes
Central Coast Chapter CLCA June Board Meeting
By Elise Huffman
June 4, 2020, present at online zoom meeting: Justin White, Katia Valasquez, Ki Bowman, Elise Huffman, Andrew Tuckman, David Ventura, Phil Dundas
Call to order
The April and May meeting minutes reviewed online and approved.
Covid 19 Updates
Retail services seem to be opening up, curve is flattening, and everyone seems to be busy. Nothing new needs to be done at this point.
Education
• We have held two webinars to this date. Katia is doing one today.
• Suggestion that we do a webinar in July. Possible topics: “New OSHA Requirements” (CLCA Ins. Solutions or LCIS, Gina to suggest they discuss this topic.) and/or “Heat Prevention Plans” (possibly David Ventura?)
• Will Laura Lauer help with phone calls for webinars and “Pic-Your-Pic” online event? Is Pic-Your-Pic just our chapter or are we hosting the whole state? Should this be an offer to suppliers too?
Newsletter/Website
Discussion about what articles are still needed for the next July-August issue of newsletter. Next board meeting is in September. Elise will work with Justin and Katia to get the summer edition of newsletter pulled together.
New Event Schedule
• All Spring “on location” events are postponed are cancelled for 2020.
• Golf event, in September, will be first event. Plan to hold at Spring Hills and have a BBQ afterwards. Social distancing will be in place, two people per hole, “stretch tournament out.” Start promoting Golf event in July-August newsletter. Open registration late to avoid the hassle if we have to cancel. “Cross-pollination” CLCA and ICPI partnership? Discussion about sponsorship.
• Beautification Awards moved to July 15, 2021.
• Continue to promote “Pic Your Pic”
Treasurer Updates
• Cathy Q to be added as approved Bay Fed administrator.
• Cathy salary to be reduced to $200/month per request from her.
• Payments to vendors to be through “Zelle.”
• Budget update next meeting.
Member Updates
Discussion about how to engage with our members when we are not having events? Do we add more information in “Why join CLCA?” Add some specific benefits to the Central Coast website, suggestion by Ki that we lead with benefits.
Associate Members
Discuss how we can connect our associate members with our C-27s to improve their visibility and bring value to their membership. Orange County has a “Supplier’s Soapbox.” Use FB to have a live presence, “Hey, what’s new?” “10-Tips” request of partners,” Elise will create and send eblast to get content for 10-Tips (Katia and Justin will approve). Instagram password...
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 1:30 p.m.