STANDARD COMPETENCIES:

 

 1. Create business procedures and documents to manage client care, employee hiring, personal safety, and productivity,

    equipment safety, equipment mainenance training and budget tracking.

 2. Develop site-specific management plans for a newly planted and an established site that use Best Management Practices

    to define the management goals, standards of practice, and review procedures for the care of turf, trees, shrubs, ornamental grasses,

    color beds on the site.

 3. Demonstrate familiarity with how landscape management firms react to or manage seasonal cash flow fluctuations.

 4. Demonstrate familiarty with planting, fertilization, and pruning  practices for young trees and established shrubs, perennials,

    and ornamental grasses.

 5. Identify careers within the landscape maintenance industry and the responsibilities (job duties and activities) and qualifications

    (knowledge, skills, and abilities) of employees in each career.

 6. Demonstrate an understanding of the landscape enviroment and its impact on plant establishment and care practices.

 7. Identify the cool season turfgrass species commonly found in commercial and residential lawns and 30 comon landscape weeds.

 8. Use published materials to identify the insects and diseases likely to be encountered on a site because of the

    host species present on the site.

 9. Uses site characteristics (weed and pest problems, plant condition, etc) to diagnose environmental conditions on the site and

    formulate management actions.

 10. Demonstrate familiarity with turfgrass establishment  and culture practices (seeding, sodding, mowing, aerification, etc)

    and how environmental conditions impact them.

 11. Discuss common soil fertility and turfgrass nutrient management practices (i.e. soil and water testing, fertilization practices,

    fertilizer selection, etc), turfgrass irrigation management practices, and integrated pest management practices for turfgrass.

 12. Demonstrates the ability to select and prepares equipment for use in completing specific tasks and the ability to shut down and clean

    equipment in compliance with any relevant environmental or safety regulations/guidelines.

 13. Demonstrate the safe use and maintenance of landscape management equipment.

 14. Use numeracy and problem solving skills to solve content related problems (ex. fertilizer applications, problem troubleshooting, pest

    identification, etc).

 15. Demonstrate an understanding of planting methods (including safety procedures ) used for the installation of trees, shubs, grasses

    and flower and familiarity with accepted planting productivity rates.

 16. Demonstrate familiarity with the procedures used to value trees and with procedures use to protect trees during landscape

    renovation/maintenance operations.

 17. Demonstrate familiarity with methods used to identify, document, and report hazard trees in a landscape and with

    hazard tree mitigation procedures.

 18. Articulate the practical, legal, ethical, and business issues associated with the management and care of urban landscapes and trees.

 19. Demonstrate familiarity with first aid, CPR and other safety procedures connected with landscape maintenance operations.

 20. Demonstrate familiarity with the procedures used to irrigate landscapes in summer and winter

    (i.e. drip irrigation, overhead spray, water truck, gators, etc).

 

 TOPICAL OUTLINE:

 

 I. Business practices for landscape management companies

       a. Contracts (clients and subcontractors)

       b. Client relations

       c. Job tracking forms and procedures

 II. Cultural practices, integrated pest management and best landscape management practices

       a. Turf installation, establishment and maintenance

       b. Tree installation, establishment and care

       c. Shrub installation, establishment and care

       d. Color Crop installation, establishment and care

 III. Equipment selection and maintenance

       a. Employee training procedures

       b. Equipment operation and selection