In the right setting, when two or more are gathered together for a common purpose, unexpected break-through takes place. After years of leading teams and small groups, I am always amazed at the power of the collective genius. What is the Collective Genius? It’s about the fresh new perspective that results when we tap into the co-creative potential of each team member.  The “co” in co-creative is about collaboration. As each person contributes, ideas build – one upon the other – until suddenly we have what I call the AH-HA moment.

Someone takes hold of all the contributions, sees clearly and summarizes it for the group.  It’s not about “who” finally has that point of clarity, because without the contributions, this particular idea would not occur.  The TEAM in this case is the Genius, not the individual.

In the right setting… Not all groups are created equal.  In the wrong setting what rises to the surface is  the Power of Chaos & Discord. So how do Leaders prepare the way so that the Genius surfaces?

Keys to success:

Learn their Language

Invest the time to understand the value of each team member.  Recognize not only their experiences & training, but how they show up from a personality perspective.  As a licensed Trainer & Reseller with Laurie Beth Jones Inc., we use  PEP™ (The Four Elements of Success: Path Personality Profile™) with our clients.  Using the elements found in nature (Earth, Wind, Water & Fire) we learn how to best communicate with each member.

Balance the Team

Nature requires a balance of the four elements and so does your team.  If the nature of your work requires that your team be made up of primarily 2 or 3 personality types, consider inviting others in the organization to round out your team for purposes of your creative session.  For example: a sales team will probably be made up of Wind and Fire personalities.  Wind brings the fresh new ideas and fans the flame that Fire adds to bring these ideas into focus. Fire paints the vision.  But who will get the work done?  Who knows the existing processes best? Earth & Water bring in the missing pieces to this puzzle. Without agreement from the rest of the organization, all you have is just an idea.

Set the Expectation

Pre-Meeting Preparation State the desired outcomes. Allow your team members time to prepare by informing them well before the event what is expected of them.  What do you want each person to walk away with?  What about the collective results you want to achieve?  How will you measure success?

Discuss the rules of engagement Create a safe, friendly and open environment. Participation is key.  Listen; don’t interrupt.  Cell phone and lap top use tend to disrupt the creative process.  We recommend “no”.

Show up Fully – don’t hold back Collaboration is one of the keys to success.  Without agreement by the participants to leave “I” out of the room and consider “we”, what we have is a group of folks competing to be “right” and have the “last word”.   While there is a degree of compromise required, it quickly takes a back seat to the value of the collective genius.  After a few successful events,  you’ll find it’s totally worth it!

Facilitate

Make sure everyone participates. Honor the various personalities and talents in the room. Recognize that all do not process information the same way.  Consistently recap the ah-ha’s and challenge each member with “what is the take-away”? Listen more; talk less.

As I conclude, I am reminded of a verse in the Bible:  ”Two are better than one, because they have a good [more satisfying] reward for their labor” Ecclesiastes 4:9 (AMP).   While I didn’t intend to conclude with a spiritual perspective, it clearly supports this message.

Unleash the Power of Genius in your Team!

Original article | Click here to read more from Coach Maggie

About Coach Maggie
Speaker, Personal & Team Development Coach, Catalyst for change.

President and Founder of Called To Action, a division of Mainspring Consultants, Inc., Coach Maggie partners with Leaders… Entrepreneurs, HR Professionals and Organizations who want to grow and challenge their leaders to greater levels of influence. My personal mission is to communicate Divine significance and inspire a Call to Action!

Click here for more information about Coach Maggie

Many golf course superintendents are concerned about root loss due to the extreme heat this summer. The chart below is a 12 month rooting pattern developed at the Sandhills Research Station in 2000 and 2001. Note that, averaged over 2 years, bentgrass lost 76% of root biomass from the end of May to September 1. The heat this year, coupled with stress from Pythium Root Rot, has likely exacerbated this decline in bentgrass root biomass.

For more information, please visit NC State University’s TurfFiles Centre.

By Jonathan Yaakobi

Patience is a virtue much in decline in this instant gratification epoch. This is no less evident in gardening; a word that not so long ago was synonymous with such terms as serenity, balance, harmony, and of course patience.

Writing in the 80s, Christopher Lloyd, the world-renowned British gardener, said that for the first five years after planting, “there’s nothing to talk about.” Nothing to talk about! Dear Mr. Lloyd was very advanced in years when he wrote those immortal lines. He should have met some of my customers and see them jumping up and down two weeks after planting the garden, pointing out that “there’s not a lot going on”, or “can’t we push thing along a bit”.

Times of course have changed since Christopher Lloyd was in his horticultural heyday. In warm climates, there is no need in any case, to wait five years for things to happen as the average garden begins to take shape after about a year or so. However, the most memorable elements in gardening tend to be those that take time to grow and develop. The wise gardeners know this, and acting accordingly, adopt the precious attitude that in the end makes their gardens so worthy of admiration. That attitude is patience.

Take the tree for example. Nothing remotely compares to a tree in terms of its power, and in its capacity to move and inspire us. Even the greatest artist would have to admit that no human hand could create a sculpture to match an old, gnarled Oak or Beach. The fact is there is no substitute for maturity in a garden, and the great trees in the world’s finest parks are as such because generations of gardeners had the time, dedication, and patience to nurture and care for them.

Impatience on the other hand causes gardeners to ignore slow growing species, to the detriment of the garden as a whole, because many slow growers happen to be amongst the most successful of landscape plants. This is especially relevant to dry climate gardens, where a correlation exists (although not in every case) between slow growth and drought resistance. Beautiful, drought-tolerant shrubs like Pittosporum, Raphiolepis, Carissa and Grevillea, are hard to “sell” these days, because they take “too long” to grow.

If maturity is the single most prized asset to a garden, fashion is its most insidious enemy. The patient gardener is in horticulture for the long term, while the instant gratification brigade tend to be swayed by whatever latest show plant the garden centers introduce. Many of these plants, by virtue of their rampant growth, upset the balance and harmony of the garden, are liable to take over, and in the worst cases, turn out to be invasive pests.

Author Jonathan Yaakobi Resource: My name is Jonathan Ya’akobi. I’ve been gardening in a professional capacity for 25 years. I am the former head gardener of the Jerusalem Botanical Garden, but now concentrate on building beautiful gardens for private homeowners. My job is to help you get the very best from your garden, so visit me at http://www.dryclimategardening.com

Take the opportunity and download FOR FREE, the first chapter of my book, How to Garden in a Dry Climate. Go to http://www.dryclimategardening.com/Products/tabid/55/Default.aspx

Article Source: Patience: Do You Know Why Patient Gardeners End Up With The Best Garden? Read On To Find Out

Article From: Organic Gardening Articles

It only takes a spark… Business, career, life stuck in neutral? There is treasure buried deep within conflict, boredom, unrest. Take the time to fan the flame of hope, future and purpose. You Matter!

I can see clearly now… Sometimes we just have to step out of ourselves in order to see clearly. I remember a time where I longed for a new identity. I wanted to be someone with no past, where no one expected me to be anyone other than myself, a present full of opportunity and choices, and a future full of hope. As I ventured down that imaginary path, I was surprised that I wasn’t willing to let everything go. I discovered that there were some memories, some lessons-learned, and some people that I wanted to keep in my new life. I also noticed what needed to be left behind.

The many faces of clutter… when we begin to mentally remove what no longer serves our future, we discover not only the obvious obstacles but the hidden traps. On my personal journey I was able to see the obvious obstacles. It took a little extra personal reflection to find the real treasure… those things that were buried deep into my belief system. I went back to the beginning – that time when I knew that I mattered and that my life was to serve a purpose. I then found the lies that tried to rob me of my future.

A life lived with the freedom to make choices is a mindset. Take some time to go through your thought process to uncover those hindering beliefs.

Ready for your new identity?

Consider these Steps your Call to Action…

1. Begin by sorting through the clutter. What stays; what goes?
2. Choose a visual that works for you in terms of your new mindset. It could be a suitcase… where you take only what is best for you as you take your steps on your new path.
3. Choose a visual to store what you will leave behind. Honor your past; ceremonially take time out to be grateful for the good and the bad.
4. Start packing! Celebrate the treasures you choose to take forward.
5. Imagine & Believe! If like me you are longing for a new identity, what does that look like?

Why wait until “someday” to consider changes you need to make?

Let’s fan the flame of hope, future and purpose. It only takes a spark!

Original article | Click here to read more from Coach Maggie

About Coach Maggie
Speaker, Personal & Team Development Coach, Catalyst for change.

President and Founder of Called To Action, a division of Mainspring Consultants, Inc., Coach Maggie partners with Leaders… Entrepreneurs, HR Professionals and Organizations who want to grow and challenge their leaders to greater levels of influence. My personal mission is to communicate Divine significance and inspire a Call to Action!

Click here for more information about Coach Maggie

Cutworms

Cutworms are active on golf course putting greens. These infestations can continue until Thanksgiving, so be vigilant in monitoring for their presence. Most other turfgrass settings (golf course fairways, home lawns, athletic fields, etc) can tolerate the typical abundance of cutworms that we observe on putting greens.

Black cutworm	Black cutworm moth

Bronze cutworm	Cutworm moth

For more information, please see the NC State Turf Files page on cutworms: http://www.turffiles.ncsu.edu/Insects/Cutworms.aspx

Fire Ants

Fire ants have also become quite active and baits will work quite well in the spring when workers are actively foraging. Be sure and use fresh bait and carefully follow label directions. Take the time to understand the product and that most baits take several weeks or more than a month to be fully effective.

Fire ant mound

For more information, please see the NC State Turf Files page on fire ants: http://www.turffiles.ncsu.edu/Insects/Fire_Ants.aspx

Mole Crickets

Mole crickets are active in coastal areas and have begun their mating flights. Egg laying has taken place in May and egg hatch in late May and throughout June. You have probably noticed increased mole cricket damage over the past few weeks.

The large size, big appetite, and high mobility of these pests make springtime damage extremely unsightly. Damage this time of the year appears as tunnels on the surface and large holes, which are calling chambers produced by the males. Calling chambers essentially act as megaphones to amplify the call of the males in order attract females for mating.

Over the next few weeks, the female adults will participate in nightly flights in order to locate males, mate, and the lay eggs. Although spring adult mole cricket damage may be unacceptable for you, it is recommended that you wait to take any large-scale remedial action since the adults will experience natural mortality shortly after mating. If you do choose to treat at this time, any insecticide applications that you make now should only be focused on high priority areas, and should not be applied on a widespread basis. It is more appropriate to wait until the new generation of crickets has hatched from the eggs that the adults are now laying. Small newly hatched nymphs are more easily controlled with insecticides and timing your control measures to coincide with the presence of small cricket minimizes your chances of having late season damage. Control of adults will also not be very effective at this time, so you can save yourself time and money by targeting the new generation in late June or early July.

Mole cricket eggs	Young adult mole cricket	Mole cricket with eggs

For more information, please see the NC State Turf Files page on mole crickets: http://www.turffiles.ncsu.edu/Insects/mole_crickets.aspx

Q&A: Tall, Narrow Perennials

From hortmag.com

Question: Do you have any suggestions for tall and narrow perennials? My garden is tight on space.

Answer: Yes. Tucson-based garden designer Scott Calhoun offers these suggestions. All are at least twice as tall as they are wide. None require staking or pruning to maintain their shape. Unless otherwise noted, all require full sun.

SHOWN: Palmer’s penstemon (Penstemon palmeri)
4 to 5 feet tall and 2 feet wide. A fragrant, heat-tolerant plant with light pink early summer flowers. A Southwest native that needs dry conditions. Zones 4–9.

‘Autumn Minaret’ daylily (Hemerocallis ‘Autumn Minaret’)
2 to 3 feet wide, with flower stalks rising to 5 or 6 feet in mid- to late summer. Gold- and rust-colored flowers. Zones 3–9.

Ava’s hummingbird mint (Agastache x’Ava’)
2 to 5 feet tall and half as wide. Rosy pink flowers from early summer to autumn. Zones 5–9.

‘Herbstonne’ coneflower (Rubeckia ‘Herbstonne’)
6 to 8 feet tall and 4 feet wide. A yellow coneflower that can take some shade but may require staking there. Blooms all summer.  Also known as ‘Autumn Sun’. Zones 5–9.

Joe-pye weed (Eupatorium fistulosum)
4 to 7 feet tall and 2 to 4 feet wide. Large heads of tiny pink flowers appear in mid- to late summer. Zones 3–8.

Maximilian’s sunflower (Helianthus maximiliani)
3 to 10 feet tall and 2 to 4 feet wide. 3-inch sunflowers appear in late summer. Zones 4–9.

For more articles like this, please visit Horticulture Magazine’s Smart Gardening page.

Also be sure to check out Scott Calhoun’s garden design web site.

It’s hard to believe that email is almost 40 years old (Ray Tomlinson is credited as having sent the first email message in 1971). Today, pretty much everyone has an email address. For ease of use, reliability and convenience, you just can’t beat the good old email message.

As with any technology in widespread use (including email’s younger brother, the World Wide Web), there are folks trying to exploit email for their own personal gain, and at your expense. We’re all familiar with spam by now, and most modern email programs have some kind of spam filter that greatly reduces electronic junk mail, but some of the bad stuff still gets through. This article explains two common uses of email that make crooks a lot of money: trojans and phishing.

Falling victim to either of these can lead to identity theft, computer problems, loss of data, or someone taking control of your PC without your knowledge. Don’t be fooled by these types of emails, even if your junk mail filter is!

Trojans

Getting its name from probably the most famous event of the Trojan war (specifically, the Trojan horse), the trojan is a type of malware that you actually allow onto your PC, thinking that it’s safe. Trojans are primarily distributed via email, and show up as something fun and harmless, like a new screen saver, a hilarious video, helpful program, etc. You think you’re getting something interesting, but when you open the file, you release the bad code on your PC.

I remember my first day working a real technical support job several years ago. My boss ran into my office saying that his PC had a virus. On further investigation, I found that he double-clicked a file attachment in an email message that appeared to be someone at his bank.

“Do you know this person?” I asked. He admitted that he did not, that it was someone who apparently worked for the bank. I asked him what sort of file was included in the email, and he said the email promised that it was a “cool new screensaver” or something like that. I asked him if it made sense that someone at a financial institution would send out screen savers, and he admitted that it did not. He never had another issue with an email trojan as far as I know.

The lesson here is to never open an attachment in an email message unless you’re 99% sure of the source and the intent. Grandma sending photos? Sure, open away. A business partner sending an Excel spreadsheet? Probably fine. A message from UPS asking you to open the attached file, saying “we were not able to delivery postal package“? Delete!

The bottom line is that email trojans can be avoided (and deleted) easily — you just have to know the signs. If you’re not sure about a particular email message, ask your IT department, or contact the sender to find out if it’s really their message.

Phishing

Hyperlinks are an integral part of the Web and email. They really make life easy; instead of telling you that the Smithsonian has a really great Web site with a lot of good information (but sorry, you’ll have to ask around for the address), I can just say check out the Smithsonian’s web site and the link does all the work.

The problem with links is that they can lie. Did you click the Smithsonian link in the last paragraph? If so, you’ll notice that you went to the Museum of Science and Industry’s web site in Tampa. While this example is harmless, (the real Smithsonian web site is here, by the way) Internet crooks use a very similar technique to steal your bank’s web site login information.

Phishing scams frequently use the names and graphics of real banks to make you think they’re legit. They do a great job of looking like the real deal, when in fact all they really do is trick you into signing into a fake page with your username and password.

Here’s an example:

Notice the Bank of America logo at the top? The copyright notice at the bottom? Something about “security enhancement”? All lies in this case. This email was not from Bank of America. If the recipient clicks that link and attempts to sign in to update their account, they hand over their username and password to a 3rd party, which can be used by the scam artists to steal money and account information from the real Bank of America web site.

The good news is that spotting a fake is pretty easy if you know what to look for.

First, understand that a financial institution will never send you an email like this asking you to click a link to update your account. Always open a new browser window and type in the web address of the bank yourself: if you type out bankofamerica.com you’ll know that you will end up at the right web site. If you think your account might be in jeopardy, call the bank’s customer service number.

Your next line of defense is to keep in mind that the people behind these emails are generally not English majors (ok, that’s an understatement). Let’s look at some of the exact wording from this message:

• We have believed that someone other than you…
• ..we have temporarily suspend your account..
• Bank of America is proud to announce about their new…

Bank of America is a large company. They can afford proofreaders and folks who know how to use proper English. Occasional typos happen, but there are too many grammatical problems in the body of that email message for it to have any chance at being legitimate.

Remember when I said links can lie? Here’s how the bad guys make those links look real.

They will put a link into the email that looks like this:

If you look at the bottom left of your browser window, you’ll see where you’re really going:

Web addresses (also called URLs, or Uniform Resource Locators) are very exact. Making one tiny change to the part after the “www” can send you somewhere completely different. In the above example, you’re not going to bankofamerica.com, you’re going to rz.com. The part that matters most is what’s immediately to the left of the .com — that’s the actual domain.

Be safe out there, and if you have any questions, use the form at the bottom of this page.

Symptoms

Pythium blight first appears as small, sunken, circular patches up to 1 foot in diameter during hot, humid weather. Leaves within the patches are matted, orange or dark gray in color, and greasy in appearance. Gray, cottony mycelium may be seen in the infected areas when the leaves are wet or humidity is high. The disease spreads rapidly along drainage patterns and can be tracked by equipment. This disease can spread rapidly and cause severe damage to a turf stand very quickly when conditions are favorable for development.

Characteristic	Description
Host Grass Species	Bentgrass, bluegrasses, fescues, ryegrass
Month(s) with Symptoms	June to August
Stand Symptoms	Patches (4 to 12 inches), irregular distribution across turf stand
Foliar Symptoms – Location / Shape	Blighting of entire leaves
Foliar Symptoms – Color	Tan, brown, black, gray, orange
Root / Crown Symptoms	None
Fungal Signs	Mycelium or none

Note: Still not sure if this is the right disease? The Turfgrass Disease Identification program may be helpful. Or consult the experts at the Turf Diagnostics Lab. Check the TurfFiles glossary for definitions of unfamiliar terms.

Pythium blight mycellium in tall fescue

Factors Affecting Disease Development

Pythium blight may develop when night temperatures exceed 65°F and leaves are continually wet for 12 to 14 hours for several consecutive nights. Daytime temperatures above 85°F also encourage Pythium blight development, possibly due to increased stress on the turf.  Severe Pythium blight epidemics are commonly observed the morning after a late afternoon or early evening thunderstorm in the summer. Excessive soil moisture and succulent foliar growth also favor disease development.

Perennial ryegrass and annual bluegrass are most prone to Pythium blight and can sustain significant damage in 2 to 3 days when conditions are favorable. Creeping bentgrass and tall fescue are more resistant to the disease, but can be severely affected if conditions are conducive for prolonged periods.

Cultural Control

Reduce prolonged leaf wetness by watering before sunrise and on a deep and infrequent basis. Avoid excessive rates of nitrogen to prevent lush, succulent foliar growth, which is very susceptible to Pythium blight. Cool-season turfgrasses should not be fertilized with more than 0.25 lb N per 1000 ft2 when conditions favor Pythium blight activity. Avoid establishing turf in low-lying areas that will collect water. If necessary, install subsurface drainage to prevent wet soil conditions. Relieve compaction and maintain soil drainage through hollow tine aerification, and topdress golf course putting greens regularly to minimize thatch accumulations.

Do not mow or irrigate when Pythium mycelium is present on the foliage to minimize spread of the pathogen. Collect and promptly dispose of clippings from infected areas and ensure that mowing equipment is washed before going to an uninfected area.

Click here to continue reading this article at NC State University

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By Bridget Behe and Tom Dudek, Michigan State University

Pricing products has the appearance of being cost-based and somewhat mathematical until you realize the art involved in finding the right price. When is the price right? When you not only cover all of the costs involved, but you also generate your profit goal.

The cost is one part of the equation, but not the only part. Knowing your costs (of production, transportation, marketing, overhead, etc) is the first step to finding the right price. Many horticultural professionals don’t make the time to develop systems to help them calculate costs on a regular basis. And it is a system that is needed, since costs change about as often as gasoline prices.

Often, retailers will mark-up items using a standard percentage to identify the retail price of the item. A simple mark-up on cost formula uses a set percentage and multiplies that by the item’s cost. If the standard percentage mark-up on cost for a 4-inch container is 200 percent, and a pot is $1.29, then the retail price is calculated by:

• $2.00 (or 2000/0)= (retail price -$1.29)/$1.29
• $2.58 = (retail price -$1.29)
• $3.87 = retail price

The mark-up on cost percentage may vary by product line. For example, the mark-up on fertilizer might be 150 percent, the mark-up on annuals might be 300 percent, and the mark-up on perennials might be 250 percent. But how do you know if that is the right price?

Figure 1. Graph of the product life cycle showing sales and profits over time.

Another way to determine if the price is right is by the product life cycle. Products, like plants and people, go through distinctive phases of growth in sales and profits (Figure 1). In the introduction stage, sales are slow and profits are negative due to high initial costs of product development. Prices are often high, since little competition exists and the real product innovators are excited to buy the new product, even at a high price. Once more people buy the product, sales grow rapidly in the growth phase of the product life cycle. Pressure from an increasing number of competitors drives prices down, the pace of which is set by how many competitors come in and how quickly they speed up their production. This is the phase in which most profits are made for most businesses, since they can keep prices relatively high and glean profits before too many competitors enter the market. In the mature stage of the product life cycle, sales growth slows and profits dry up, largely due to the overproduction of the product which drove prices down so low that they’re no longer profitable (Figure 1).

Pricing Affects Everyone

Prices can be higher earlier in the product life cycle, but we all know in which direction they’ll go. Profits need to be made early, or they can only be made by selling a tremendous volume of the product. We know the pattern of sales and profits, but the unknown is the length of time the product will be on the market. It is that unknown that makes pricing like a game of chess.

We looked at a practical way to see whether the price was right by surveying prices of five common annual plant container sizes in spring 2007. Prices were obtained through a convenience sample of 79 businesses in a six-county area of Western Michigan, primarily Grand Rapids, and represents 98 percent of the businesses asked for prices. All businesses were independent retailers; no chain or box stores were included. Prices were from the first week of May, 2007.

One goal of the investigation was to show retailers how some pricing strategies are detrimental to everyone, including their own business. Another objective was to show retailers the upper end of possible prices, giving them some objective information on which to base next year’s pricing decisions.

Figure 2 shows the price range for a 4-inch single species container. Retail prices ranged from $1.50 to $4.99 with an average or mean retail price of $2.83. What can account for a $3.50 range in retail prices? Cost of production cannot account for all of that difference. Neither can geography since the retailers were all within a 25-mile radius of a point in Western Michigan. There were 19 businesses with a retail price higher than the mean. How could those businesses charge a higher retail price? They likely have the customers who are willing to pay those premium prices. A more important question might be asked of the 35 business that sold 4-inch containers below $2.83. Could they be leaving some profits on the table at such a low price, especially the two businesses with retail prices at $1.49?

Figure 2. Prices in spring 2007 for 4-inch container of annuals (single species) in western Michigan. Line shows the average or mean price, which was $2.83.

For a 36-count flat (Figure 3), prices ranged from $5.29 to $12.29 or a $7 range. The average price for a 36-count flat was $9.02. There was a similar range in prices for a 48-count flat (Figure 4). Those prices ranged from $5.99 to $12.00 with an average of $9.90. Some retailers are likely selling flats at below­ cost prices. What does this strategy do to the entire market?

Figure 3. Prices in spring 2007 for 36-cell flats in western Michigan. Line shows the average or mean price, which was $9.03.

It is difficult for some customers to differentiate between products. When they can’t tell a big difference between Behe’s flats and Dudek’s flats, they will differentiate purely on price. Our inability as an industry to differentiate between products is exaggerated by retailers who do sell at or below cost. It only pushes everyone closer to the mature stage of the product life cycle where profits only exist to those who sell massive quantities.

Figure 4. Prices in spring 2007 for 48-cell flats in western Michigan. Line shows the average or mean price, which was $9.90.

We saw an even greater range in the price of a IO-inch hanging basket (Figure 5). Prices ranged from $5.98 to $21.95 or a $15.97 retail price range. For the 12-inch hanging basket (Figure 6), prices ranged from $12.00 to $25.99, with an average of $19.46. Again, cost of production cannot account for the entire $14 to $16 price differential.

Figure 5. Prices in spring 2007 for 10-inch hanging basket in western Michigan. Line shows the average or mean price, which was $13.06.

 

Figure 6. Prices in spring 2007 for 12-inch hanging basket in western Michigan. Line shows the average or mean price, which was $19.46.

Discounts

One more pricing component is discounts. What happens when a retailer discounts prices? Psychologically, we teach some customers to expect this again next year. Nearly every American who buys Christmas gift wrap does so in the days after Christmas because we expect the price to be heavily discounted. Why would we buy at any other time? Table 1 shows the effect heavy discounting can have on profits. If a retailer has 500 4-inch containers to sell (with a cost of $1.29 each) and is considering a $4.99 price point, what is the break­even point? Total cost is $645 and break-even is calculated by dividing total cost by the price of $4.99. So, the retailer literally breaks-even when the 129th unit is sold, and profits will be generated on the 130th unit sold.

What revenue is possible at that price? If all 500 plants were sold, total revenue would be 500 x $4.99 = $2,495. This gives the retailer a profit of $1,850 or $2,495 -$645 = $1,850. If the target profit goal was $1,600, the retailer would only need to sell 450 units. Calculate that by adding $1,600 to $645 cost ($2,245) and dividing it by the price ($4.99).

Let’s imagine the retailer wants to discount price by 10 percent to $4.49. Typically 10 percent off isn’t enough to stimulate much more demand, but it’s something to consider. The break-even point goes up to 144 units at this new lower price, meaning they have to sell 15 more plants before total costs are recovered, but they would achieve a $1,600 profit goal at this price selling all 500 plants. Consider next a 20 percent discount to $3.99. This price moves the break-even point up 33 plants to 162 plants and changes both sales and profits. If the retailer wanted to achieve $1,600 in profits at this price, one must have to sell 63 more plants than at $4.49! Discounting even more takes a greater toll on profits. At a 25 percent price reduction, they would have to sell 100 more plants to achieve the profit goal of $1,600. At a 30 percent reduction, they have to sell 643 plants, not 500 to achieve a profit of $1,600. And at 50 percent the number of units doubles to achieve the same profit goal.

Who has the right price? The grower or retailer who can cover all of the costs of production and generate sufficient profit to sustain the business is the one with the right prices. If you sell out of product too quickly, did you set the price high enough? If there is a surplus on the market, do you have a competitive price to move enough units to make this item profitable? With all of your costs on the rise, have you taken a long, hard look at your prices? Maybe it’s time to devote some new energy this winter so that come spring your customers will say (and buy to show) that the price is right!

Table 1. Effect of discounting on profits generated and the number of units needed to be sold to achieve a specified profit goal.
Retail Price (cost = $1.29)	Units Available for Sale	Break-even Units (total cost $645)	Sales Revenue Generated if all 500 Were Sold	Profit Generatedif all 500 Were Sold (sales-cost $645)	How Many Units Do I Need to Sell to Achieve $1600 in Profit?
$4.99	500	129	$2,495	$1,850	450
$4.49 (10% off)	500	144	$2,245	$1,600	500
$3.99 (20% off)	500	162	$1,995	$1,350	563
$3.74 (25% off)	500	172	$1,870	$1,225	600
$3.49 (30% off)	500	185	$1,745	$1,100	643
$2.49 (50% off)	500	259	$1,245	$600	901

If you use a computer that’s connected to the Internet (and I think you just might, since you’re reading this post), there are some guidelines you should follow to keep your identity and the important data on your computer safe. This information applies to PCs running Microsoft Windows, but Mac and Linux users certainly aren’t off the hook when it comes to safety.

The first installment of our online safety series covers antivirus software, and what you can do if you think your PC might be infected.

Anti-virus Software

If you use a computer at work, chances are that your IT department has antivirus software installed (if they don’t, you need a new IT department). What about your home PC though? Having virus protection is a good start, and there are several great commercial products out there that will generally charge a yearly fee.

If you’re looking for a paid antivirus solution, make sure it’s one that’s highly rated. Online reviews from reputable sources (like this one at cnet) will help you pick the right virus protection software.

If you don’t have the cash, or just don’t want another fee in your life (can’t say I blame you), there are really nice antivirus solutions that are completely free for home users. These may not have all the bells & whistles of a commercial product, but they give you the basics: real-time virus protection with regular updates.

Some recommended freebies are:

• Panda Cloud Antivirus
• AVG Free Edition
• Avast Home Edition
• Microsoft Security Essentials

Keep in mind that most of these will require you to register your email address yearly to keep using the software, but these companies are legitimate and won’t sell your address to spammers.

Regardless of what antivirus software you use, you will want to make sure it updates itself regularly, at least every day or two. Most solutions come preconfigured to check for updates on a regular schedule, but you may have to check around in your software’s settings to make sure.

If you bought a computer from a store like Best Buy or Wal-mart, be warned that your antivirus software may only be active for a few months, and you’ll have to pay for continued protection after the introductory period. This software is known as “trialware”, and is a tactic used by software companies to get you hooked on their product so you give them your money. It’s not officially considered a scam, but most IT folks will tell you it’s a little shady.

My advice is to do some research if you plan on paying for an antivirus program, or go with one of the free alternatives listed above. Oh, and uninstall that trialware unless it’s the one you want to pay for anyway.

If you’re already infected

So you clicked a link in that email message that promised the most hilarious video you’ve ever seen, and now you’re getting popup ads, or you’re seeing other strange behavior and you think you might be infected. Before we continue, let’s get this out in the open: never click links in email messages. If Bank of America says you need to confirm something, and “here, click this link“, it’s not really an email from Bank of America, and it’s probably an attempt at identity theft (also called “phishing”). You can read more about phishing here.

Always open a new browser window and type in the web site’s address yourself to make sure you’re getting the real deal (or call the company’s customer service number if it’s something really important).

One of the more popular scams out there at the moment involves fake antivirus software that gets installed without your knowledge. It’s probably the virus issue we’ve seen the most over the past year or so. If you’re getting bombarded with messages saying that you’re infected (like the one below), chances are that you’ve picked up this “scareware” that will try to scam you into paying for virus protection that actually does nothing but report false positives (and ask for your money).

Never pay for virus protection unless you’re sure of the vendor and have done your homework. The last thing you want to do is hand over your credit card number to a less-than-reputable company. If you think you’re a victim already, contact your bank, dispute the charges, and ask them to issue you a new card with a new number.

This is just one of the fake antivirus variants out there – it’s actually the problem, not the solution.

Before taking your PC to a trusted computer expert, there are actually a few things you can try yourself.

• Some infections are smart about what tools can be used to remove them, and will block those tools from being downloaded or installed. You may want to download the following virus removal tool from another PC and get the file to the infected PC via USB drive or CD.
• Download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware here (click the link for the free version) and get the install file to the infected computer.
• Run the install file. If your PC doesn’t let the file run, reboot and press F8 when your computer starts. Keep pressing F8 until you get a menu with “Safe Mode” as an option, and start your PC in safe mode with networking.
• When the Malwarebytes program is installed, click the update button to make sure you have the latest virus definitions.

  

• When the program is up to date, run a full scan.

  

• It will take a while to run, but when it’s finished you’ll have a full diagnosis, and the option to remove the bad stuff. Click view results and remove selected. It will probably ask you to reboot your PC to finalize the clean-up, but if you’ve made it this far, chances are that you’re in the clear.

  

Of course, some of the above may not work for a variety of reasons, so you may end up needing professional help anway, but it won’t hurt to give it a shot.

Good luck out there, and if you have questions or comments, let us know!