Maximum Pest Control Services | CockRoaches Treatment
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Monday 2 March 2015 12:00

Rat populations across UK farms are at their highest level this winter for at least the past six years, a survey on pest control shows.

The 2014-15index of winter rat infestations, calculated by BASF from sales of its top-selling rodenticides through selected distributors in a four-month period, reached 860 noticeably higher than the peak of just under 790 recorded in the challenging season of 2012-13.

See also: Rabbit and rodent pest control laws changing

Whatever bait you use, it must be put down in the right places, kept well topped up so all the individuals can consume a lethal dose, and left in place until all signs of rat activity cease. Gavin Wood

And it stands out as by far the highest since the company started its indexing in 2009.

BASF rural hygiene specialist Gavin Wood said: This seasons dramatic surge in rat problems almost certainly has its roots in a failure to get on top of populations in last years exceptionally mild winter.

Unusually warm weather and good external food availability throughout last winter meant rats were far less evident than usual in and around buildings.

Overall then, relatively high rat populations went into last spring and profited from excellent summer breeding conditions, he added.

See also: Take our free online course on rat control

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Dramatic surge in farm rat infestations

I do not want to be the big looking glass of civilization but just the small pocket mirror of everyday life. Peter Altenberg

Charlie sort of came into my life sideways. I was living on Sanford Lake and some people I hadnt known very long came to visit and they had picked up a little dog they found in the streets of Saginaw. It was Saturday and the animal control shelter was closed for the weekend. Did I want another dog?

I have a photo of my holding Charlie the day he came to live with me. He was a beagle and part something else. He was mostly brown and he had this little lost look on his face that touched my heart. How could I let this little guy go to the animal control shelter?

I already had Loki, a beautiful part German Shepherd and part something else. Loki came into my life when we were celebrating I Love Animals Week and one of my second-graders brought this little puppy in for Show and Tell. I dont remember saying anything but on Friday of that week, my second-grader came up and said to me, Mrs. Florey, if you dont come and pick your dog up, were taking him to the dog pound.

After the school buses left and we could go home, I went to pick up the puppy, who I was told was named Bruno. I called Dr. Bill Tower, who had been our veterinarian from the time we got Fritz in 1961, and I took Bruno in for a checkup. After examining him, Bill said, You look too good to be put on the reject pile. And that night I drove down to Dick and Jeans to show my new puppy and when Kerry saw him she said, He doesnt look like a Bruno. He looks like Loki, the Norwegian god of mischief. So just like that Bruno became Loki.

We led a relatively peaceful life, the two of us. But now here was a new puppy.

Charlie loved Loki immediately. Loki did not reciprocate the feeling. He wanted nothing to do with another dog who was going to share his home and my attention. Charlie followed Loki all over. Whether in the yard or in the house, Loki couldnt get away from Charlie. The only place that Charlie didnt like was the water. Sanford Lake was an unknown quantity and Charlie wanted it to stay that way.

In the mornings when Charlie woke up, he would waddle to the patio doors until I opened them and he would go out on the patio, stand there looking at the lake and then back into the house as fast as he could move. Loki loved the water. Charlie didnt and no amount of coaxing or the promise of treats could lure him even down to the dock.

And then October came.

It was the sort of October that made you forget that winter was coming. The trees were all gold and red. The lake was rimmed with color. And one morning after breakfast, Charlie wanted outside because Loki was outside.

Continue reading here:
The Pocket Mirror: Charlie, buried in my heart

POLICE are warning residents not to leave their car keys lying round at night after a spate of burglaries.

Thieves have stolen thousands of pounds of vehicles from houses across Basildon in the past week.

Officers are urging people to be vigilant and to not leave their car keys by the front door or in their coat pockets when they go to bed.

Bizarrely, a number of the break-ins have seen crooks dump the stolen car just yards from the victims home.

It is not known if this was because the cars were out of fuel or the crooks did not know how to drive them.

Sgt Angie Torrance, from Basildon police station, said: A number of these break-ins have involved front and patio doors being forced open. We advise people to ensure they properly lock their doors at night and to consider fitting a door chain and bolt.

While high-value cars are always going to be a target for criminals, we have found it is not solely these vehicles which have been stolen.

All keys should always be hidden away at night.

If members of the public see anything suspicious in their neighbourhood, if they see anyone abandoning a vehicle or acting suspiciously in a vehicle at night, I urge them to contact the police immediately.

The first burglary happened between 3.30am and 8am on February 20, when thieves broke in to a house in Glenmere, Vange, by forcing open the front door.

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Burglars targeting homes for car keys

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Maid Service Los Angeles, Encino Housekeeper, House ...

Bowling balls at 1722 Beverly Place. Photo: John Storey

I find the use of bowling balls as lawn art to be undeniably quirky. For me, that starts with the premise that bowling itself is whimsical an antithesis for the social isolation of our era.

Today, Berkeley has only one bowling venue, one which mustbe seen as at least a bit eccentric.

Lawn bowling at 2270 Acton St. Photo: Tom Dalzell

Thus it ever was not. In addition to the Berkeley Bowl on Shattuck and the underground bowling at the student union, we had at least three bowling alleys:

Left without a single alley today, we compensate with bowling balls as lawn decoration. Sometimes it is a single ball, sometimes a cluster. Sometimes black, sometimes bright colors. Sometimes overwhelmed by weeds, sometimes proudly landscaped.

Bowling balls at 22 Tunnel Rd on Oak Ridge Path. Photo: John Storey

Bowling balls at 3017 Wheeler St. Photo: John Storey

Bowling ball at 1036 Pardee St. Photo: John Storey

Continued here:
How Quirky is Berkeley: Bowling balls as garden art

If good design is invisible, then you might not notice the intentional choices that go into designing a landscape. Its the work of a landscape architect to subtly guide you through a physical space and shape how you interact with it, and its a bit more than just choosing the potted plants.

To learn more about the work of a landscape architect, we spoke with Bret Hanson, who has worked for a variety of firms on projects ranging from public infrastructure to landscapes with Walt Disney Imagineering, and now is working in sustainable urban design with LPA Inc.

Pictured above: Plan for West Hollywood Park, image by LPA Inc.

Howdy! My name is Bret Hanson and I am a licensed landscape architect, which gives me the awesome authority to legally call myself a landscape architect, sign documents into construction, and explain to people I do more than residential. Currently I work for multi-disciplinary design firm, LPA Inc., in our Orange County office, specifically our Urban Design Studio. I have 10ish years of experience (straight outta Kansas) having worked at (four) very different companies and covered probably every market segment imaginable. Currently, my portfolio in LPAs Urban Design Studio focuses on civic, health care, life science, and various targeted developer work.

I was born, raised, schooled, and corn bread fed in Kansas. My mums side of the family were people of the soil, before, during, and after the depression. I spent a lot of my youth on our grandparents farm hunting, fishing, camping, hay bailing, off-roading, cow-tipping, and adventuring throughout the rural surroundings. One of my dads passions is sailing (yes, we actually have lakes in Kansas) so we also spent a lot of weekends on the water. Additionally, my mum has a background in textiles and my dad is a professional guitarist so I like to think some creativity inherently runs through these country veins.

As a kid my toy arsenal included LEGO, Lincoln Logs, G.I. Joes, He-Man, etc. From these tools many elaborate structures and forts were built with epic battles ensuing. This evolved during high school by me delving into architecture classes, even though I had the drawing skills of a two year old. I originally attended college to pursue architecture but switched to landscape architecture because I thought it offered more variety and was more encompassing. The biological nature of a landscape being alive was, and still is, poetic to me. These traits and experiences helped guide where I landed today, and planted the seed for my love and respect for working with our exterior environment.

I was born a surfer in a Kansans body, so after graduating with a Bachelors of Landscape Architecture from Kansas State University, it was California or bust. KSUs program offers a semester long study abroad or internship program. I decided to intern abroad in California and snagged a couple of great internships in Orange County, which led to a permanent position after graduation. The steps to becoming a professional landscape architect are similar to architecture.

The internet memes usually portray landscape architects as either mowing lawns or sitting behind a desk clicking CAD all day. Part of this is true and you can definitely get pigeon-holed. In reality, no matter the discipline (landscape architect, architect, engineer, etc), our profession is extremely expansive. We are not only designers but planners, innovators, communicators, writers, coordinators, managers, marketers, green building leaders, and more. Landscape architects not only need to know about plants but also paving, walls, fence, rails, concrete, wood, metal, furniture, lighting, water features, irrigation, water management, and sustainability. Additionally, we must understand the construction of each piece and how they all stitch together cohesively within the overall site and ecological cycle. We do not just draw beautiful lines those lines must be approved by agencies, to code, within budget, buildable by contractors, and hopefully sustainable. As Ned Stark once quipped, One does not simply draw a paving joint.

Additionally projects have multiple phases and each phase has different players clients, multiple disciplines, consultants, product vendors, cities, agencies and contractors. This makes coordination and communication two of the most important skills within our profession as they are continuous throughout project life. An over simplified project phasing would be Conceptual Design, Construction Documentation (drawing and writing how project is built, agency approvals, bidding), and Construction.

Personally my current week is roughly 25% coordination (email, phone calls, meetings, submittals), 30% documentation and design (sketches, exhibits, CAD, Adobe, Bluebeam), 20% construction administration (field review, submittals, RFI, putting out fires), 20% management (project tracking, scheduling, reviewing plans), 5% miscellaneous (internal operations, marketing, recruitment, etc).

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Career Spotlight: What I Do As A Landscape Architect

Bonnie Chen

Monday, March 02, 2015

Now, chairman of landscape architectural firm Earthasia International (6128), Lau relishes his profession as it allows him to have a strong positive impact on the environment.

Currently, there are only 100 licensed landscape architects in Hong Kong, making them an elite but unique group of professionals.

"It's a sunrise industry," says Lau.

He has been outspoken in the past about the environment, drawing the attention of senior officials in the government who then decided to tap his expertise.

Lau is a member of the Town Planning Board and the Lands and Development Advisory Committee. In the past, he was a Eastern District Councillor and a member of the Harbourfront Commission.

Landscape architecture is a combination of diverse disciplines including botany, horticulture, fine arts, architecture, earth sciences, geography, and ecology that helps improve outdoor environment.

Three decades ago, Lau enrolled for a degree program on landscape architecture at the University of Toronto.

"I did not know what to study at that time. I first came across the term landscape architect while in a construction site one time... I then chose it even if I didn't know whether I could get a job after graduation," he recalls.

Read more here:
Landscape wizard

Torrington, CT (PRWEB) March 02, 2015

O&Gs state-of-the-art fabrication and distribution center is heating up for spring with your stone profiling and radius pool templating projects. The centers capabilities extend to advanced stone profiling and restoration services no matter how detailed or complex. Looking to create something unique? O&G offers a selection of new products and a vast inventory of traditional products including bluestone, limestone, brownstone, granite, marble, quartzite, onyx, and slate.

Serving architects, restoration, landscape, and pool professionals, John Baranoski, Facility Manager oversees the 85,000 SF operation while working with industry professionals to assist in the masonry fabrication of renovation, restoration or new construction projects. "O&G's comprehensive services offer flexibility and efficiencies from its advanced CAD and fabrication methods," remarks Baranoski.

A landmark restoration project is the pinnacle for the Trinity College chapel. Pictured below is an O&G staff artisan applying the finishing touches for an exact replication of the original.

Baranoski noted that, "Stress-free radius templating and profiling are a welcome relief for professionals who want the best and for the customers that demand it." For stone projects that require radius cuts, look to O&G for its radius templating service which delivers the perfect profile and stress-free results for a beautiful finished project.

O&G invites you to take advantage of its radius templating services for your next project including pool surrounds, stair treads, walls, etc. "Look to O&G for beautiful results that your customers will enjoy and you will be proud to share," Baranoski stated.

About O&G Masonry Since its inception in 1923, O&G has grown to become one of the largest and most diversified construction companies in the Northeast and one of the largest suppliers in New England of masonry products and services. Headquartered in Connecticut the company offers LEED project solutions to achieve the highest masonry certification. O&G facilities include eight mason stores and nine stone-yards, six Earth Products Showcase showrooms, and a fabrication and distribution center all strategically located throughout Connecticut. Customers receive expert consultation from showroom sales professionals and are guided through the widest selection of natural stone and tile products of elegantly appointed vignettes from classic to contemporary in design. O&G's logistical coverage extends throughout the Northeast and beyond.

Navigate to O&G's website and social media pages where special offers, raffles, ideas, projects and the latest news are featured.

Excerpt from:
Spring Masonry Projects Are Heating up at O&G's Fabrication & Distribution Center in Connecticut

Introducing new options to Indias mid-market and upscale hospitality landscape

Leading Asian hospitality provider, ONYX Hospitality Group has announced its plan to operate at least 10 properties in India by 2022.

Three key developments will form the strategy for the ONYX India expansion. Firstly, the first full service Amari hotel has been confirmed in the NCR (National Capital Region). Amari Noida will be a part of the World Trade Centre Noida project and feature 120 rooms, with an additional 30 branded residences, three restaurants, meeting and convention space, pool, fitness centre and a Breeze Spa. The project will begin in 2016 and is due to be operational by 2019.

The second project will be in the World Trade Centre development in Gujurat's new central business district, GIFT city. The Amari Residences GIFT City in Ahmedabad will feature 120 serviced apartments, restaurant, pool and fitness centre. The project will begin in 2016 and be operational by 2018.

In order to develop these two projects and the remaining balance of properties in the pipeline, ONYX has entered into an exclusive partnership with hospitality asset management firm, Kingsbridge India. Through the joint venture, ONYX as the operator will closely align with the interests of the asset owner to deliver set objectives. Kingsbridge is a hospitality platform by The Viridian Group, developed to target specific gaps and opportunities in the Indian hospitality market.

Peter Henley, President and CEO, ONYX Hospitality Group said: "This announcement marks a strategic step in our long term strategy to become a leading hospitality provider in Asia. India is ripe for hospitality development right now and as the economy continues to grow, and international visitors to the country rise, we see great potential for hotel expansion. As hospitality specialists, our role is to select the right brands for the right locations and we see market potential for our upscale hotel, resort and residences brand Amari, as well as our select service brand OZO. The hospitality landscape in India is dominated by luxury at one end of the spectrum and unknown players at the other, together with our partner Kingsbridge, we see an opportunity to provide international standards to guests who are looking for reliable and good quality upscale accommodation options."

Commenting on the joint venture, Rajesh Shanbhag, CEO, Kingsbridge India said:"We firmly believe that the Kingsbridge-ONYX partnership will serve to establish the 'joint venture' as a leader in the Indian mid-market hospitality segment in the future. Both partners have come together with the common objective of establishing a pan-India portfolio of mid-market and upscale hospitality properties in key business and tourist destinations. Whilst ONYX, with its established brands such as Amari and OZO is recognised globally for its efficiency in managing and operating hospitality assets, Kingsbridge aggressively mitigates operational, structural and capital inefficiencies that characterise the segment. Kingsbridge envisages a mutually beneficial and very long term partnership with ONYX."

ONYX Hospitality group currently ONYX Hospitality Group manages 54 properties in 10 countries, 38 of which are operational, equating to over 6,000 rooms.

About Kingsbridge

Kingsbridge Hospitality was established as a dedicated platform by The Viridian Group to target specific gaps and opportunities in the Indian hospitality market. Kingsbridge aims to derive significant advantages by aggressively mitigating operational, structural and capital deployment inefficiencies that characterise the Indian mid- market hospitality segment. Kingsbridge co-ordinates and oversees all acquisition, development and operational activity ranging from site identification, construction management, facility management, right up to operational profitability management. The Group's platform tightly aligns Land Acquisition and Development Capability, Fund Management and Hospitality Operations Capabilities.

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ONYX Hospitality Group Expands Operation to the Indian Market with 10 properties by 2022