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Show The National Enterprise, May 25, 1977 Page eight Mulch sales gain tenfold Lawns are high priority business to preventive gardening If you're in the right business, dry weather could be just the ticket for sprouting green- as public turns attention Utah nursery owners seem to be reaping the profits of public awareness this month as mulch sales increase tenfold and other sales remain stable. publishing brochures advocating the use of mulch to conserve water and retain a healthy lawn. The brochures have been distributed by local nurseries. backs. This month, two new corporations have sprouted - Lawnlife Corp. lawn-relate- -- and Morgan Lawn Care, Inc. and a third business has expanded. Although the ex-- The public is aware of the possibility of a water stortage and has responded by purchasing as much as ten times the mulch sold at this time last year," says Henry Engh of Engh Floral and Garden Center. He predicts this month's sales will exceed those of last May. March, the Utah Nurserymens Association responded to the threat of a drought by In People d arent curtailing planting, they are simply using preventative measures when they plant, Engh says. By using mulches like black plastic, straw, peat or forest humus, they can save up to 75 percent of the water usually used on lawns and gardens. Engh says mulch shades the ground and holds moisture as well as smothering weeds that rob plants of precious nutrients and water. - panding business attributed its growth to dry weather, the two new corporations do not attribute their formation to the drought. You have to assume people arc going to put some priority on their lawns during a drought, Ladd Christenson, president of the new Lawnlife Lawns are Corp., says. possibly the largest single investment in any home and one that people take pride in. Christenson says the corporation, operating from 1313 Madera Hills Drive in Bounti- ful, develops fertilizing programs for private homes and businesses. The pro- grams arc designed to meet the needs of each individual lawn, and can consist of ongoing feedings to develop lawn systems or a single dose of needed nutrients. "Lawn survival in a drought is much better if the lawn has extensive root development, Christenson says. High phosphorous fertilizers aid in root growth, and healthier roots will fare better in verse conditions. ad- Christenson says he has been mowing over the idea of this business for several years, and denies the chance of a dry summer prompted him to form the corporation. Dennis M. and Dennis J. Morgan, a father and son team, incorporated their two-yeold lawn care business ar for personal this month reasons. Calling it Morgan Lawn Care, Inc., the pair add the drought has not affected their spring business. Bland Brothers. Inc., a land- scaping business, expanded its headquarters a month ago to include a nursery at 5 West 1700 So. Brian Bland, owner, says although the new business has been generally good," the firms older landscaping trade began wilting early this month. Glen Cox, president of the Association, Nurserymens says the recent decline in landscaping business is no surprise to him. Nurseries are prospering this year, he says, but the trend shows landscapers are hurting little. a He suggests custom- ers may be changing their emphasis from aesthetics to preventative care. Cox says nurseries all over the valley are thriving, with' one business reporting a 50 percent increase in sales over last year, and another doing over SI 0,000 in sales on a single Saturday. He declines to name the businesses. Sales are up because lawn care involves decisions for the future, Christenson concludes. Drought is an inter- mittent thing and people wont allow it to destroy an investment of thousands of dollars. Jobless rate makes upturn Weekly Unemployment Rate April May Jobless Rate 7 23 30 Week Ending 14 After dropping steadily for two consecutive weeks, Utahs weekly unemployment rate leaped up two tenths of a point during the week ending May 14, from the previous weeks 5.4 figure to 5.6. The movement indicates May's official monthly figure, due this week, probably will not be lower than Aprils 5.6. |