May 15, 2009
Denis Flanagan CLD
Manager of public relations

Denis FlanaganFollowing the launch of the Green for Life promotion at Canada Blooms, it’s been a continual road trip in and out of various communities. My itinerary follows:
March 27/28: The speaker series at the Quinte Home Show in Belleville was sponsored, and an impressive line-up of presenters, including Mark Cullen, Charlie Dobbin and Dan Clost educated the public. It took place on a on a stage decorated by Connon Nurseries, which included a large Green for Life banner.

March 29/30: Canadale Nurseries in St. Thomas once again hosted its wonderful spring celebration. Paula Intven and her talented staff coordinated a well-thought-out event. A large crowd was captivated, not only by creative vignettes built by local LO companies, but with beautiful plant displays tied-in with a flyer promotion and a little something for everyone, from free facials to snake charmers.

April 1: The Waterloo chapter held a well-attended meeting hosted by Compact Sod at its new location. The presentation area was staged between large storage areas of top soil and grass seed. It was a perfect segue into top dressing and overseeding lawns, which was one portion of our Green for Life consumer presentation during the evening.

April 3/4:  Next, our spring tour took us to Thunder Bay, where several of our members are involved in The Home and Garden Show at the Canadian Lakehead Exhibition. The area received 18 in. of snow on the eve of the show, but that did not seem to dampen the spirit of zone 3 gardeners, who came out in droves to hear seminars sponsored by LO and to witness a wedding in one of our award-winning member’s (PM Landscaping) gardens.

April 13:  Back to downtown Toronto, where we did a live gardening demo on CBC News, for broadcast that evening.

April 17:  Out to Mississauga to join the celebrations and fund-raiser for The Riverwood Conservancy.

April 22:  Many of our chapters are involved in Earth Day events. What a perfect day to promote our Green for Life campaign.

April 24/25:  We are partnering with Sheridan Nurseries at The Green Living Show in Toronto, helping promote the Home Renovation Tax Credit program. At the same event, we are helping The Ministry of Natural Resourses launch its Tree Atlas project, promoting the planting of native trees. Our new logo will be on the publication.

April 28/30: Travelling first west then east, we will be presenting healthy lawns and gardens seminars in Brampton on April 28th and in Pickering on April 30th.

The April road show concludes with a media launch in Vaughan to promote our involvement in the Communities in Bloom awards.

By May 1st, it will be time to refuel, do a 360-degree vehicle check and plan the next round of promotion events.
 
Denis Flanagan may be contacted at dflanagan@landscapeontario.com.


Caption: As part of the ongoing promotion of Green for Life, Denis Flanagan speaks at Canadale Nurseries’ open house.