Lawn consultant academy is coming!

Friday, March 2, 2012

Jonathan Green is very excited about launching the Jonathan Green Lawn Academy this spring!  This website based training guide will only be available for use by our retail dealer network at this time.  We hope to be able to offer a similar educational academy for general homeowner use in the future.  We are pleased to announce that Tom Castronovo, editor and publisher of Gardener News is our spokesman for this project! 

This state-of- the-art training guide will be a combination of videos, graphics and descriptive content to vigorously train store employees about our lawn and garden products.  This will also help them to better understand and answer your lawn questions.   There are over 50 questions that are asked and must be answered properly before the person receives a passing grade.  Once the individual completes and passes the training course they will receive their diploma and graduation pin indicating they are a certified “Jonathan Green Lawn Care Consultant”.  Look for the window sticker indicating stores in your area that have lawn care consultants working in their store.            

Each year new product innovations are introduced to the retail lawn and garden industry.  This abundance of lawn and garden products offered to homeowners can become quite confusing when you stroll into your local garden store each spring.  The shelves are full of many different products and solutions and yet each situation is different, Mother Nature made it that way.  Information is the key and we are not all skilled at using our smartphone.  Many of us like to get real face-to-face answers to our questions, not just off the internet.  Homeowners demand a certain level of expertise when they visit a store; they expect someone to be that “go-to” person who can answer their basic questions. 

Questions the homeowner asks often: There are so many grass seed mixtures, which one should I use?  I am having trouble growing grass in the shade, what can I do differently?  Crabgrass always seems to be a big problem in my yard, help!  Every time I fertilize the grass does not seem to green up as much as it should?  I want to seed this spring but also control crabgrass, is there a product that allows me to seed and control crabgrass at the same time?  Why can’t I grow grass seed along the street curb?  What does soil pH mean?  We had drought one year and too much rain the next, either I am watering too much or I can’t enjoy my pool!  I have a lot of weeds, should I kill them all and re-seed or just give up and spread gravel?  Are your organic products safe to use around children and pets? We can imagine you could add a lot more frustrating questions to this paragraph!

Over the years many of us have experienced a lot of frustration when it comes to caring for our lawn.  We have all spent many hours and dollars trying to achieve the perfect lawn.  After all, isn’t that why we bought a house with a yard to enjoy and relax?

A more practical approach to helping the homeowner is what we are seeking.  We need to try and understand our true lawn concerns.  If you have repeatedly done the same routine of applications to your lawn for years and you are not satisfied, sit back and try to figure out why your methods aren’t working.  You do not have to follow the same plan every year, have it your way!

We hope our new academy becomes a leader in the lawn industry educating dealers to help their customers.  In the final analysis, let’s help each other create the best lawn and garden in town.  Remember, in New Jersey, do not apply any fertilizers on your lawn before March 1^st- it’s the law!

 

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