| Illinois Landscape Contractors Association Presents Excellence in ...
Outstanding landscape honors were recently announced by the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association (ILCA) at its annual Excellence in Landscape Awards Gala.
The ILCA Awards Program, started in 1972, provides an opportunity for those in the landscape industry to promote public awareness of their role in environmental improvements. In sponsoring this program, ILCA encourages the preservation and beautification of the landscape, while promoting industry recognition of those responsible.
Illinois landscape contractors, landscape designers, landscape architects and others working with homeowners and businesses were among the 415 attendees gathered at Belvidere Events & Banquets in Elk Grove Village in late February.
A total of 78 award-winning with photos and project descriptions were displayed prior to the beginning of the Excellence in Landscape power point presentation which honored 37 Gold, 29 Silver and 12 Merit Awards.
The project entries were anonymously judged by industry peers from surrounding states.
Front Yard Landscaping Important Choice This Spring Says Yardcrew.com
Spring is here and Yardcrew.com, a top online yard care and yard services resource, has the tools homeowners need to find the right landscaping service in anticipation of warmer weather. Knowing how to choose a good landscaper is just as important as knowing when to landscape. With issues such as proper watering, pesticides and tree trimming to deal with, many homeowners would rather hire a landscape contractor to take care of their yards. Yardcrew.com connects visitors with licensed, quality landscape contractors in their area. (PRWEB) April 6, 2007 -- With spring comes warm weather and Yardcrew.com, the essential home services connecting landscaping consumers and contractors, offers homeowners a resource to find landscaping services. Many homeowners have trouble finding qualified, licensed landscaping contractors and often don't know how important it is to ask the right questions when selecting a landscaper -- or even the differences between commercial and residential landscapers.
'Women in the Wild' show off the local landscape
A group of local plein air artists who share a passion for painting outdoors are showing off the results of their art outings in an exhibit this spring at The Provident Bank, 66 Storey Ave., Newburyport.
Susan Spellman, Christine Molitor Johnson, Susan Hebenstreit and Cheryl Dyment - better known as "Women in the Wild" - have spent the past three years painting landscapes together in the open air, as the impressionists once did. They are drawn to the local environs, which they capture in watercolor, acrylic and oil. They have all studied with Kevin J. Shea of Newburyport and J.C. Airoldi of Hampstead, N.H.
The Provident Bank exhibit runs through May 11. It is part of the bank's rotating Lobby for the Arts program, which spotlights local artists. A reception for the artists takes place Thursday, April 12 from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
The Ashes of Phoenix
In the current edition of High Country News, writer Craig Childs explores the ancient civilization of the Hohokam, who disappeared from the desert landscape before the first Anglo settlers arrived. Even their name, a Pima word meaning "all used up," gives a hint to the fate of a culture that disappeared. It left behind empty adobe ruins, Childs writes, and a new city to rise from its ashes. "Growing faster than any other population center in the nation, Phoenix is balanced on an environmental tightrope," he writes. "Thirty new skyscrapers are proposed for downtown alone, while metastatic sprawl carves up surrounding desert. At the moment, there is a robust water supply — for greater Phoenix alone — but the city's water-wealth has created a growing inequity in the state.
Project volunteers needed everywhere
Feedback told the United Way of Mower County that its Day of Caring, an event for volunteers to provide help to nonprofit agencies, was worthwhile. "Volunteers love it, home owners love it," said Mandi Lighthizer-Schmidt, executive director of United Way of Mower County, referring to the upcoming United Way Day of Caring. Started by United Way of Mower County last year, Day of Caring recruits volunteers from the community who want to provide a helping hand to area nonprofit agencies and individuals that need assistance. Projects can include painting, washing windows, landscaping and other yard work, gardening and sorting clothing. Teams ranging from two to more than 10 people can sign up. "Day of Caring is one of those unique opportunities to get out and volunteer with your friends, families or co-workers on a one-time basis and truly make a difference in the life of an individual or an organization," said Lighthizer-Schmidt.
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