Hort East Conference Program

HortEast Conference Program Announced… 

Delegate Registration Now Open!

HortEast, Atlantic Canada’s premier horticulture trade show and conference, will be held at the Cunard Centre in Halifax, NS November 19-21, 2012.  We are offering a new online registration option through our website, www.horteast.ns.ca – registration is now open!

Our full speaker program has been posted on our website and includes an excellent line-up of informative and inspiring speakers that will appeal to both staff and owners alike.

Monday November 19th Pre-Show Workshops:

  • “IPM Fundamentals” Landscape Maintenance Pre-Show Workshop with Dr. Katerina Jordan
  • “Sustainable Hardscape” and “Extraordinary Design Details” Landscape Design/Construction Pre-Show Workshop with Owen Dell and Beth Edney      
  • “12 Store Development Solutions That Don’t Require a Bulldozer or a Bank Loan” and “Inventory Management” Retail Garden Centre Pre-Show Workshop with Judy Sharpton

Tuesday November 20th and Wednesday November 21st Conference Program: 

  • “Business Opportunities in Sustainable Landscaping” seminar with Owen Dell
  • “Selling as a Competitive Sport”, “What Makes ‘Local’ so Important?” and “Container Gardening as a ‘Local’ Selling Position” seminars with Judy Sharpton 
  • “Alternative Pest Management Research” seminar with Dr. Katerina Jordan
  • “Show me the Money!  How to Capitalize on Landscape Design” seminar with Beth Edney
  • “Foreman Clinic: How to Become a Great Foreman” seminar with Phil Harwood
  • “Profiting in the Organic Soil Business” seminar with Rod Fry
  • “Using Native Plants in the Landscape” seminar with Bob Osborne
  • “Turfgrass Soils, Their Selection and Importance” seminar with Dr. Robert Daniels  
  • “Creating a Customer-Focused Culture” seminar with Phil Harwood 
  •  “How to be a Successful Turfgrass Manager and Mistakes (Pitfalls) to Avoid” seminar with Dr. Robert Daniels
  •  “Win More Work: Estimating Snow & Ice using Microsoft Excel” with Phil Harwood
  • “New Varieties and Unique Plants” seminar with Michelle Muis 

Free Demo Area is also included with your trade show registration – make sure to bring your staff to check out the following demonstrations on Tuesday and Wednesday:

  • On the Job Training
  • Plant Layout Competitions
  • Display and Merchandising
  • Tree Grafting and Pruning
  • Landscape Industry Certified Designer Portfolio Workshops
  • Incorporating Green Spaces in Municipalities
  • How to become a Landscape Horticulturist Apprentice

Opportunities will be available to earn credits for certification renewal (CLT, CLD, and CLP), as well as continuing education units (CEU) with the International Society of Arborists and Plant Health Atlantic.

For more information and to register, visit our website at www.horteast.ns.ca, or click here to register online now!

Click here to view a full listing of our exhibitors.  We are still booking booths at the show and looking for sponsors – contact Rebecca Doutre – rebecca@canadanursery.com or 1-866-383-4711 for availability.

Thank you to our confirmed sponsors: Shaw Brick, Atlantic CAT, Sheridan Nurseries, Envirem Organics Inc., Nova Tree, Neudorff North America, Corn Hill Nursery Ltd., Blomidon Nurseries, O’Regan’s Automotive Group, HortProtect Insurance, Willowbrook Nurseries, and Canadian Garden Centre & Nursery Magazine/ Greenhouse Canada Magazine.


Beth Edney, CLD
Designs By The Yard, Etobicoke ON

Beth Edney has close to a quarter century of experience in landscape design, has built several award- winning gardens at Canada Blooms, and received Awards of Excellence for her residential designs. She runs an exclusive Toronto design firm, Designs By The Yard, as well as an online design service called Teamscape, in partnership with Frank Ferragine. An active member of Landscape Ontario, she serves as chair of the Expo and the Congress show committee. She teaches at the Niagara Parks Commission School of Horticulture, Humber College and to her peers in the industry.

Pre-Show Landscape Design/Construction Workshop: Monday November 19th, 4:30am – 6:00pm (Lunenburg Room – Westin Nova Scotian Hotel): Extraordinary Landscape Design Details– This presentation shows a photo collage of inspiring design ideas to take your landscape designs to the next level. Designers and contractors will get great design ideas that they can apply to their own work, including paving details, innovative fences and screens and artistic elements.

Note: as part of this workshop, Owen Dell will present on Sustainable Hardscape: Floors, Walls and Ceilings from 1:00-4:00pm – more details above.

Seminar: Tuesday November 20th, 2:00pm – 3:00pm (Speaker Area ‘A’): “Show Me the Money- How to Capitalize on Landscape Design” The design business can be challenging to get compensated for its true value. Beth will cover some techniques on how to be paid for design projects. She will also cover areas where designers can be creative and make good profit margins. Beth is very candid about her 24 years experience in the Landscape Design business and is willing to share her mistakes so others do not have to make them! 


Owen Dell, ASLA
Principal / Owen Dell & Associations, Santa Barbara California

Owen Dell, ASLA is an award-winning, internationally admired landscape architect, author and
educator. He is the principal of Owen Dell & Associates in Santa Barbara, specializing in
sustainable landscape architectural services. Owen has been part of the landscaping profession
since 1971, and he has pioneered many of the practices of sustainable landscaping presently in
use worldwide. Owen lectures around the country and internationally on sustainable
landscaping and related topics. He is the author of “How to Start a Home-Based Landscaping
Business” and “Sustainable Landscaping for Dummies.” Owen is also a regular contributor to
many national and regional horticultural publications. He is the co-host and co-creator of the
popular Santa Barbara television series, “Garden Wise Guys.” Visit Owen online at www.owendell.com.


Pre-Show Landscape Design/Construction Workshop: Monday November 19th, 1:00am – 4:00pm (Lunenburg Room – Westin Nova Scotian Hotel): Sustainable Hardscape: Floors, Walls and Ceilings-The non-living features of a garden, or “hardscape,” are critical to successful home landscape design. Sustainable Hardscape: Floors, Walls, And Ceilings is an introduction to sustainable hardscape elements that balance aesthetic, environmental, and practical concerns. Participants tackle the three elements of the outdoor room: the floor, the walls, and the ceiling. Each segment covers the most environmentally friendly materials and techniques, with plenty of stylish examples and information on availability, design and construction techniques, and creative professional design techniques. The take-away is a new vision of how to develop a cutting-edge hardscape without destroying the planet.

Note: as part of this workshop, Beth Edney will present on “Extraordinary Landscape Design Details” from 4:30-6:00pm – more details below.

Workshop: Tuesday November 20th, 9:00am – 11:00am(Speaker Area ‘B’): “Business Opportunities in Sustainable Landscaping”
Attention landscape professionals! If you’re not offering sustainable landscaping options to your clients, you are missing out on the biggest business opportunity in the green industry today. This very popular class will cover some of the great new possibilities for expanding into the booming field of environmentally sound landscaping practices and products. There’s no easier sell in the industry, because sustainable landscaping saves clients money and appeals to the values of the 85% of Americans who consider themselves environmentalists. The workshop will show participants how to make money in developing profit centers such as ecoroofs, pervious paving, watershed friendly landscaping, integrated pest management, alternative building methods and a lot more. They will go away with a new enthusiasm for their work, and they will be eager to change their whole outlook on their businesses. WHEN IT COMES TO BUSINESS, GREEN IS RED HOT!

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