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Author: Marisa Palmieri

Marisa Palmieri

Marisa Palmieri

Marisa Palmieri is an experienced Green Industry editor who's won numerous awards for her coverage of the landscape and golf course markets from the Turf & Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA), the Press Club of Cleveland and the American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE). In 2007, ASBPE named her a Young Leader. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism, cum laude, from Ohio University’s Scripps School of Journalism.

BrightView intends to go public

BrightView, the industry’s largest landscape company, has set in motion the process of going public, according to a registration statement filed with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission on May 30. The IPO date and the price of the stock are undetermined. BrightView said it will apply to list its stock on the New York […]

BrightView reveals additional acquisitions

In addition to its recent acquisition of Environmental Earthscapes, which does business as The Groundskeeper and Greater Texas Landscapes, BrightView Landscape made several other purchases this year. A BrightView spokesman confirmed the following deals to Landscape Management: Cleary Bros. Landscape, Danville, Calif., in February; Precision Landscape, Dallas, in January; Willamette Landscape Maintenance, Tualatin, Ore., in […]

BrightView truck and trailer. Photo: BrightView

How we do it: Preferred vehicle setups

BrightView BrightView and its predecessors have studied the best truck and trailer setups for years, according to Tim Russell, vice president of operations for the Plymouth Meeting, Pa.-based national company. Today, the company has boiled down its preferred rigs to a few setups. The first option, which is a “small percentage of the fleet,” is […]

Robin gets funding from MTD Products for robotic mowing franchise

Robin Autopilot closed a $1 million round of financing—led by a mower manufacturer—to grow a nationwide network of robotic mowing franchises. MTD Products led the financing and was joined by several new and existing Robin investors, including Ken Murphy, former CEO of Mattress Firm. MTD, based in Valley City, Ohio, manufactures and distributes residential robotic […]

The Belknap team. Photo: Katya Danilova, dorogamedia.com

Safety 101

“Coroner releases name of landscaper killed in lawn mower accident.” “Landscaping employee struck, killed while working.” “Worker flown to hospital with life-threatening injuries after chainsaw accident.” There are many reasons landscape companies should focus on creating a culture of safety. The headlines above are just three of them. If avoiding one of those incidents isn’t […]

Editor’s Note: Tendency talk

When I first heard about “The Four Tendencies,” I’m sure I gave an eye roll. Do I really need to take another quiz to give me insight into my behavior and personality? I’ve taken the DISC, Gallup StrengthsFinder, Enneagram and many other assessments. I find them all very interesting. I’ve learned something from each of […]

Web Extra: A look at Ameriscape’s fleet recovery vehicle

In the April cover story, we heard from Tony Canorro, who is all about eliminating wasted time. In his role as fleet manager at Ameriscape Services in Thonotosassa, Fla., his goal is to keep the operations team up and running with as little downtime as possible. “We don’t want to be the reason someone’s losing […]

OPEI cuts ribbon on new headquarters

The Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI) celebrated the opening of its new headquarters on May 7. The association purchased the building at 1605 King Street, Alexandria, Va., last summer. OPEI President and CEO Kris Kiser said in a release last August that OPEI outgrew its current space. “OPEI has been dealing with a problem for […]

ArtisTree 104-inch mower. Photo: Martin Allred, NationwidePhotographers.com

Best ways to save labor and improve production

Landscape companies used to be able to solve problems by “throwing labor at it.” If you were behind on a project and the client was unhappy, you could add another crew or work weekends to hit your timeline and please your customer without doing too much damage to your bottom line, says Jason New, principal […]

Davey acquires Elizabeth River Lawn & Landscape in Va.

The Davey Tree Expert Co. acquired Elizabeth River Lawn & Landscape, a commercial landscape company based in Suffolk, Va. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Elizabeth River Lawn & Landscape has about 140 employees. Revenue was not disclosed for the company, which reported $9 million in 2014 revenue for the 2015 LM150 list of […]

Editor’s Note: What’s in it for them?

No matter what you call it, a companywide effort to run more efficiently has the potential to sound negative to the crews you’re hoping to encourage. Depending on how you deliver it, “work smarter,” “run lean” or “improve productivity” could sound like “move faster,” “work harder” or “you’re doing it wrong.” If that’s how your […]

Hot spots: States regulations to keep an eye on

It’s the first time in 35 years that lawn care industry veteran Bob Mann hasn’t kicked off spring by pushing a fertilizer spreader. In his relatively new role as director of state and local government relations for the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP), he’s been spending his time at local and state legislature meetings […]

Aspen Grove debuts as a national alliance of 10 landscape firms

A holding company for 10 commercial landscaping firms with a combined $180 million in annual revenue has rebranded as Aspen Grove Landscape Group. The holding company, based in Willow Grove, Pa., was previously known as Five Seasons Property Management. President David Fleischner says the alliance “brings together the best landscape professionals from across the country.” […]

Lisa Fiore. Photo: LandscapeHub

Fiore shares background, vision for LandscapeHub

Lisa Fiore’s roots in the landscape and nursery industries run deep and wide. She is a co-founder and the CEO of LandscapeHub, an online marketplace for plants and landscape products, and formerly the fourth generation owner/operator of Chicago-area Fiore Nursery & Landscape Supply. In Chicago, the name Fiore, which means “flower” in Italian, is synonymous […]

Photos: Seabreeze Property Services (top), Yellowstone Landscape (middle), JLS Landscape (bottom)

A look at the drug issue from a landscape perspective

The legalization of marijuana in some states and the opioid crisis present a challenge for labor-starved landscape companies. These landscape industry pros weigh in with their thoughts on the issue. Chris Bright CEO, Seabreeze Property Services Portland, Maine The team at Seabreeze Property Services in Portland, Maine, has been touched by employee drug overdoses more […]

Allentuck launches RightPlantz.com

RightPlantz.com launched with the mission to help gardeners, improve public visibility for landscape contractors and help increase sales for garden centers. RightPlantz.com is a collaboration between Bruce Allentuck and his daughter Tara Allentuck. Bruce Allentuck is president and owner of Allentuck Landscaping Co., a residential design/build and maintenance landscape company that has served the Washington […]

singing. Photo: Chris Bright

BackStory: Chris Bright

Chris Bright CEO Seabreeze Property Services Portland, Maine Education Middlesex High School Middlesex, N.J. Class of 1994 U.S. Military Academy West Point, N.Y. Political Science Class of 1998 University of Missouri-St. Louis St. Louis Masters of Public Policy Class of 20014 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, Mass. Masters of Business Administration Class of 2007 Work […]

Editor’s Note: Do you know the costs?

With an unemployment figure near a record low and a problematic seasonal guest-worker program, landscape companies are strapped for legal labor options. Some landscape company owners confess they must resort to merely looking for “warm bodies,” which presents its own set of challenges. In a country where states are legalizing marijuana and an opioid crisis […]

A checklist for safety protocol around trenches. Photo: iStock.com/alisbalb

Proper safety protocols around trenches

Using proper safety protocols around trenches is literally a life-and-death matter. Read on to ensure you’re following the guidelines. Last month, New Jersey landscape company officials pleaded guilty to criminal charges of failing to properly shore up a trench that caved in, suffocating two laborers. The charges against the company and two individuals are punishable […]

Trugreen taps IBM Watson for personalized lawn care ads

To help consumers develop lawn care plans that are specific to their lawns’ needs, TruGreen is tapping IBM Watson Advertising to create interactive, personalized digital advertising. TruGreen’s Watson ad is available on The Weather Channel app, weather.com and across HGTV properties. Consumers can discover their personalized lawn plan recommendation by simply starting a conversation in […]

Photo: Landscape Management

Insights from ‘Grow 2018’

Growth. What does it mean to your business? Marty Grunder, speaker, consultant and president/CEO of Grunder Landscaping in Dayton, Ohio, asked this question during the opening address at Grow, his annual conference. To many landscape business owners, “growth” means more team members, more clients, more sales, more equipment and more stuff. To the best companies, […]

Web Extra: Fit Turf’s production and sales comp plans

With a goal of being a people-centric business, the leadership team at Fit Turf believes in a robust compensation and bonus structure for sales and production personnel. The company is based in Centennial, Colo. Here’s how it works. Production compensation Base weekly salary. Overbill bonus, which adds 7 percent of all produced production to weekly […]

Photo: Fit Turf/Jackie Batch

Second time around

As he was selling Detroit-area lawn care company Masters Green to Trugreen in 2008, Paul Wagner said he felt like he was losing an old friend. In no time, he started laying the groundwork for his next venture, Fit Turf, because he wasn’t ready to retire, and lawn care wasn’t not going to be a […]

Editor’s Note: Hit Reverse

The term “bucket list” has made its rounds over the last decade or so—popularized by the 2007 movie of the same name starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman. Whether it’s taking a round-the-world trip, running a marathon, writing a book or some other endeavor, the items on a person’s list of things to do before […]

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