A new Oregon State University Extension Service website provides science-based solutions for garden pests, weeds and disease problems in one easy-to-navigate place.

The project was shepherded by Weston Miller, an OSU Extension community horticulturist who started six years ago when collaborators expressed interest and provided funds for what would become the Solve Pest and Weed Problems website.

“Our stakeholders – Metro, the East and West Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation Districts and the city of Gresham – challenged OSU to create a user-friendly pest management resource for the public. Part of my job was to figure out the resources Extension has and pull them together in one place,” Miller said.

Solve Pest and Weed Problems focuses specifically on the Pacific Northwest and prioritizes low-risk approaches. Based on feedback, Miller incorporated household pests, invasive plants, pesticide safety and pollinators, as well as pests and diseases.

“We did extensive planning, including community involvement, user testing, feedback from agencies, nonprofits and many more,” Miller said. “We were able to hire a professional to design the website and do graphic design. Gradually, we kept improving it and building on it.”

The peer-reviewed content is presented in categories with information presented below photos. Clicking on the photo takes you to another page that offers information about identification, look-alikes and specific information on control. Photos illustrate each subject.

After compiling Extension resources from sources like the Pacific Northwest Pest Management Handbooks, entries are written by Miller with help from Signe Danler, OSU Extension Master Gardener online horticulture instructor, and other OSU experts. The content is peer reviewed by the OSU Department of Horticulture in the College of Agricultural Sciences. Miller edits the content and posts it on the website. More entries will be added in the future.

To provide more information, the website features links to other OSU Extension resources, as well as to other university-level, science-based sources.

“We hope that people both public and private property managers find practical pest management and prevention,” Miller said. “We want people to use it to make informed decisions for their gardens and public spaces.”

To do that, users will find sections on using less pesticides, pesticide safety, organic pesticides and preventive measures like planting in the right place for the size, water needs, exposure and soil for each plant. Using good selection criteria keeps plants healthy and a healthy plant can fend off pests and diseases, Miller said. The hope he added is that people will use less pesticides – or if they do, in a safe manner.

Weeds – from both sides of the Cascades and from throughout the state – get attention. Examples include cheatgrass in eastern and western Oregon; pampas grass on the coast; and tree of heaven, a species of concern statewide. The website includes guides about how to manage landscapes without pesticides or herbicides and 20 pages of pesticide safety guidance.

“We’re putting together material that’s not available in one place with such complete information,” Miller said. “We are super grateful to our partnerships in the broader community who were looking to have a durable information service to meet a fairly defined need. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished.”

Action Lawn and Tree Service, a lawn, tree and pond care company in Sioux Falls, SD, joins forces with Weller Brothers Landscaping, a commercial and residential landscape design and maintenance company in Sioux Falls, SD

“Our Action Lawn and Tree Service customers will continue to receive the same quality services from the same team,” said Ryan Myott, owner of Action Lawn and Tree Service. “Now, with Weller Brothers, we will be the one stop shop for the best outdoor living experience in Sioux Falls.”

In its 21st year of business in the Sioux Falls area, Weller Brothers Landscaping recently celebrated a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new facility in Rochester, Minn. The company’s Sioux Falls location employs approximately 100 people.

“We are very excited about this merger,” says Cole Weller, President and CEO of Weller Brothers Landscaping. “With the addition of Ryan and his team, we are able to expand our services to include enhanced pest control and a full scope of tree health, pruning and removal services. This aligns perfectly with our commitment to offering our customers a full scope of the highest quality lawn and landscape maintenance services in the Midwest.”

A pair of brothers in business pleaded guilty Friday to charges related to doing more than $1 million in insurance premiums while enduring employees on city demolition and road repair work.

Nicholas and Vito Dragonetti, turned in by a tipster last year, underinsured their workers at Dragonetti Brothers Landscaping and DB Demolition to pad their profits, prosecutors said in announcing the settlement.

“Workers doing dangerous work should be afforded every possible protection, yet these city contractors misclassified their employees for financial gain,” said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. “As a result they put their workers at risk.”

Company presidents Nicholas Dragonetti, 49, and his brother Vito, 53, each pleaded guilty to offering a false instrument for filing while both their companies admitted to insurance fraud between 2017 and 2019, authorities said.

The two residents of Bellmore, LI, agreed to pay $1.2 million in restitution to the New York State Insurance Fund. They were barred from city contracts for the next three years in the probe.

According to authorities, the pair classified 217 laborers, foremen and heavy-equipment operators as florists, salespeople and office workers. Authorities also said other workers listed in NYSIF paperwork as office workers were actually registered as commercial drivers with another agency.

Since 1998, the brothers landed more than 100 city contracts worth millions of dollars for jobs including sidewalk reconstruction and pedestrian ramp replacement, work requiring heavy machinery and demolition.

The charges were brought in September 2021 against the long-time contractors. The plea agreement places independent monitors in their businesses for the next three years and appoints a new managing director for the landscaping business, authorities said.

The ban on city contracts includes any other companies where the brothers hold more than 10% ownership.

The agreement “sends a clear message that companies cannot line their pockets at the expense of its employee,” said Bragg.

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A pair of sibling business owners pleaded guilty Friday to dodging more than $1 million in insurance premiums while endangering their employees on city demolition and road repair work.

Brothers Nicholas and Vito Dragonetti, turned in by a tipster last year, under-insured their workers at Dragonetti Brothers Landscaping and DB Demolition to pad their profits, prosecutors said in announcing the settlement.

“Workers doing dangerous work should be afforded every possible protection, yet these city contractors misclassified their employees for financial gain,” said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. “As a result they put their workers at risk.”

Company presidents Nicholas Dragonetti, 49, and his 53-year-old brother Vito each pleaded guilty to offering a false instrument for filing while both their companies admitted to insurance fraud between 2017 and 2019, authorities said.

The two residents of Bellmore, LI also agreed to pay $1.2 million in restitution to the New York State Insurance Fund, and they were barred from city contracts for the next three years in the probe.

According to authorities, the pair classified 217 laborers, foremen and heavy equipment operators as florists, salespeople and office workers. Authorities also said other workers listed in NYSIF paperwork as office workers were actually registered as commercial drivers with another agency.

Since 1998, the brothers landed more than 100 city contracts worth millions of dollars for jobs including sidewalk reconstruction and pedestrian ramp replacement, work requiring heavy machinery and demolition.

The charges were brought in September 2021 against the long-time contractors, with the plea agreement placing independent monitors in their businesses for the next three years and appointing a new managing director for the landscaping business, authorities said.

The ban on city contracts includes any other companies where the brothers hold more than 10% ownership.

The agreement “sends a clear message that companies cannot line their pockets at the expense of its employee,” said Bragg.

At 10 am, when most teenagers are sleepily wiping their eyes to start their summer days, Nathan Humphrey tows lawn equipment behind his bicycle as he heads to work. He isn’t worried about his boss being upset if he’s late because he is his own boss, holding himself accountable, and his business is booming.

Four years ago, when Nathan was just 10 years old, he noticed his elderly neighbor’s landscaper neglected to regularly cut the woman’s lawn. Nathan offered to help the woman for free, but she recognized his hard work with money and muffins.

“That was when it really all started because I really didn’t ask many people at first, but the neighbors would see me cutting lawns and ask if I could do theirs, too,” Nathan said.

And so his business was born.

Nathan, 14, and his 12-year-old brother Colin are the sole employees of Two Brothers Landscaping, but Nathan hopes to bring on additional employees next summer. The business grew steadily and organically, he said, and now handles landscaping needs for 14 homes.

In addition to cutting lawns, Two Brothers Landscaping handles weeding, mulching, raking leaves, dirt removal, snow removal and additional spring and fall cleanup services. The two brothers divide and conquer the tasks based on who enjoys each task the most. Nathan typically works all day, stopping only for football practice.

A neighborhood boy with that much work ethic is bound to be noticed, and that’s how Nathan met Jersey Chiluisa, owner of Crowner Barber & Co., 5019 Fairview Ave., Downers Grove.

“I have been actively looking for kids to do basic lawn care for years and here I am and I see this kid on a bike,” Chiluisa said. “I couldn’t get over it, so I made a U-turn to find him and stopped to talk to him about his business.”

That stop was the beginning of a business relationship and friendship. Chiluisa invited Nathan to stop by Crowned Barber & Co. after Nathan finished his workday. Chiluisa waited from 10 am when he met Nathan until 6:30 pm to close the shop, figuring Nathan had forgotten about their meeting, but Nathan hadn’t forgotten. Nathan had been working and his day didn’t end until 6:45 pm

The two eventually got together and Chiluisa offered to help Nathan make his business more official. Chiluisa helped Nathan design a new logo and with the help of social media, Nathan and his brother received six T-shirts, four hoodies and six hats, all with their logo and business name printed on them.

“I wanted to show him that with a helping hand he can be the biggest landscaper in Downers Grove,” Chiluisa said. “He’s such a well-rounded individual and his spirit is so kind and genuine. I would love to be a friend and a mentor to him.”

For Nathan, the excitement of becoming a more legitimate business has been motivating. He hopes to expand his business by buying a bigger trailer to tow his equipment, hiring another employee and, pretty soon, getting his license so he can drive to customers who may live further away.

Nathan will be a freshman at Montini Catholic High School this fall and plans to continue working as much as he can. He credits his business knowledge to his parents and said his love of the outdoors comes from time spent planting flowers with his family.

“It gives me something to do and I like to be outside and working in my free time,” Nathan said. “I like talking to new people and working with the customers, and I love working with my brother, too, and teaching him things.”

To contact Two Brothers Landscaping, call 224-283-4536.