Articles About Plants, Plant Care and Maintenance,

and the Interior and Exterior Landscape Business

by Joelle Steele

. . . . LANDSCAPING & GARDENING . . . .

Deer-Resistant Plants for Pacific Northwest Gardens: Before you build an electric fence, try some of these plants to repel deer.

Feng Shui Your Garden: Some tips on using Feng Shui to improve your life with plants and other garden items.

Good Neighbor Gardening: The importance of good communication, maintaining fences, trimming trees, the use of vines on fences and common areas, weeds, pests, "junkyards", and helping out.

How and When to Prune Roses in Pacific Northwest Gardens: Describes the kinds of roses you are most likely to have in your yard and how and when to prune them.

Night Lighting the Landscape: Safety and Security Come First: Learn why floodlights do NOT provide security for a home or business, and how to correctly light for security and to highlight design features of a landscape.

Planting and Maintaining Hedges in Pacific Northwest Gardens: Explains how to create and maintain a healthy and attractive hedge.

. . . . INDOOR PLANTS & INTERIOR LANDSCAPING . . . .

A Brief History of the Interior Landscape & Floral Industries: An overview of the industries from the dawn of time until the early years of the 21st century.

Basics of Foliage Diseases: Descriptions of some of the most common diseases of tropical plants.

Bromeliads: A brief plant profile of these epiphytic plants.

Fertilizers-A Feast for Foliage: A quick look at fertilizers as used in the interior landscape. How to select and apply.

Feng Shui Your Home or Office with Plants and Flowers: A quick look at how you can improve your life with plants and the ancient art of Feng Shui.

Indoor Dracaenas: A brief plant profile of these larger species of the lily and other plant families.

Indoor Ferns: A brief profile of ferns used as houseplants.

Indoor Ficus Trees: A brief profile of these popular houseplant trees.

Indoor Ivies: A brief plant profile of some of the most common ivies used in the interior landscape.

Indoor Orchids: A brief profile of some popular orchids used in the interior landscape.

Indoor Prayer Plants: Marantas and Calatheas: A brief profile of some of these colors plants.

Interiorscaping the Restaurant Environment: Nothing is more tricky than taking care of plants in restaurants. Matching the plants to the decor, practical and decorative placement of plants, and selecting plants and containers for ease of maintenance.

Magical Plants: Plants have been used for casting spells and bringing good luck and love since ancient times. Here is a collection of those plants and some of their common magical applications that are still in use to this day.

Myths Behind Plant Names: The myths and legends that led to the names of some of our common garden plants.

Plant Consciousness: Do Plants Think?: For thousands of years people have been trying to determine whether or not plants can think or react to various stimuli. Here's a quick history of that subject.

Streamlining the Design Process: Breaking down the design process into manageable steps, including examining the space and the client's needs, the design details and appropriate design format. Also some basic design terminology.

What's In A Name?: The basics of plant taxonomy (classification) and how to pronounce all those Latin and Greek names.

Winter Gardening Indoors: How to overwinter your garden plants indoors, and water and feed them correctly until spring comes back.

. . . . SPECIALTY PLANTS . . . .

A Brief History of the Use of Poisonous Plants: For centuries, people have been using poisonous plants to commit murder.

Carnivorous Plants: A brief description of the characteristics and growing conditions of insectivorous plants.

Poisonous Plants - Common Species: A short encyclopedia of poisonous plants.

Poisonous Plants - Physiology: Describes the alkaloids, glycosides, and other toxic compounds found in poisonous plants.

Third Day Creations - Biblical Herbs: Information regarding the herbs mentioned in the Bible, problems with some of their Biblical translations, and finding suitable substitutes.

The Sweet Smell and Healing Effects of Herbs and Flowers: A brief article on the use of herbs and flowers for their fragrance and healing effects.

. . . . FLORAL BASICS . . . .

Floral Arrangements: An explanation of some of the basic arrangement styles used in flower arranging.

Floral Design: A look at the design basics as they apply to flower arranging.

Ikebana: A brief description of the styles of Ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arranging.

Floral Preparation and Maintenance: How to cut and prepare flowers and maintain flower arrangements.

Floral Tools, Supplies and Working Safely: A brief look at the tools and supplies used in flower arranging and working safely.

Wedding Flowers and Arrangements: Some of the common bouquets, corsages, and arrangements.

. . . . THE INTERIOR/EXTERIOR LANDSCAPE BUSINESS . . . .

Alternatives to Driving Downtown Maintenance Routes: Ways to manage your service routes to reduce vehicle costs.

Avoiding The Traps & Pitfalls of Being an Owner-Operated Business: How to be your own boss and avoid the problems associated with lack of structure, discipline, and adequate budgets; wearing too many hats; doing dirty work; getting sick; expanding the business; and selling out.

Bidding and Contracts for Interior Landscapers: Some basic background in bidding, plant leasing, maintenance, and contracts for interior landscapers.

Building A Strong Business Foundation: Goal setting, planning, standardization, and making changes.

Communication-The Key To Successful Client Relationships: Communicating through your advertising, the telephone, in-person presentations, written agreements, administration, maintenance, handling problems, and handling problem clients.

Employee Management Techniques: This is the complete text from the former Human Resource Guide book and includes everything from hiring through firing.

Guaranteeing Client Satisfaction: Give clients the word (in writing); personality conflicts; dealing with mischief-makers, meddlers, and other problem clients; getting paid; and tact and diplomacy.

How to Evaluate Your Company & Write A Business Plan: Explains how to accurately and objectively evaluate your company so that you will have all the information necessary to create a business plan or revise an existing one.

How to Avoid the Most Common Web Site Mistakes:  Explains why you might be making your Web site difficult to navigate or view, and how you can fix it.

How to Run A Successful Business in 10 Easy Steps: Dealing with the law, getting insured, ongoing education, setting standards for yourself and your business, setting goals, seeking professional advice, getting organized, taking part in your industry, spreading the word about what you do, and taking some time off.

Landscaping the Indoor Environment: Understanding the indoor space, maintenance concerns, pest control, special services, and public relations.

On Being A Professional: Licensing and certification, trade associations, awards competitions, and educational opportunities.

Personnel Maintenance: Basics of personnel selection, including the establishment of policies and procedures.

Photographing Your Sales Portfolio: How to set up the photo shoot, do it yourself, or work with a professional photographer.

Solving Problems & Making Decisions: Looks at 15 steps to effective problem solving, and also the basics of sound decision-making.

Time Is Money: Explains how the way in which tasks are performed by your employees can directly translate into corporate waste, costing you money in the process.

What Maintenance Accounts Say To Me (and What They Should Be Saying To You): What all of the following say about your business -- account type, location, time allotment, frequency, design, installation, replacements, training, variations in methods used on the job.

 . . . CONTRACTS & AGREEMENTS . . .

Does Your Contract Protect You From "The Worst That Could Happen"?: When you write your contracts, be sure to anticipate the worst case scenario and be prepared in case it happens.

Put It In Writing - Contracts for Individuals and Businesses: A quick overview of various kinds of contracts and their use and applications to individuals and businesses.

Trade Secrets: Non-Solicitation and Non-Competition Clauses: The basics of how such contracts work to protect not only employers but employees as well.

. . . FOR CLIENTS AND CUSTOMERS . . .

How to Hire an Interior Landscaper: All of the things to look for when hiring someone to supply and maintain interior plants for your home or office.

Working With A Landscape Designer: Describes what a landscape designer does and how the design process works.