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3 md2 wednesday april 27 1983 v home and garden 83i at 27 years old mark cullen oversees operation of five weall and cullen outlets in the metro toronto area jackie steffler shoppers are sharper today cullen insists by jackie steffler the recession has changed people theyre smarter shop pers says mark cullen gener al manager of the weall and cullen nurseries ltd but the 27yearold adds that nursery and garden centres must keep pace with the new consumerdemands he started running the family business in 1979 his father len cullen estab lished the business in 1947 it started with a familylike im age says todays manager dad always made himself available to people and ive in herited that philosophy in tegrity continues to exist mr cullens duties include coordinating the five garden centres as well as visiting the business 150acretarm in brooklyn north of whitby he operates from the markham office on steeles ave at ken- nedyjrd y people know more now than theyusedto mr culleri notes there was a time in the early 70swherigardehihgwas com ing into its own and youd just have to have the product and the means of getting it to the consumer realizing that people are hungry for information i know this from my newslet ter he approached produc tion manager and talk show host jim kidd at ckeyi radio and suggested a gardening program every friday between 11 am and noon the unionville resident becomes a radio per sonality and answers questions- from the many callers the phonein response has been most encouraging he says and if i dont know the answer to a particular ques tion ill make sure i have for the following week as for distributing printed in formation mr cullen pro duces a newsletter about 10 times a year and sends it to 36000 people also five years ago most nurseries didnt have the catelogues they now do he adds in addition according to mr cullen his company is the only one in the toronto area to boast a lath house an open area for shrubs and trees with a roof of wood slats covered by plastic the lath house carries tear sheets pieces of paper with written plant care instructions mr cullen estimates that 76 per cent of the homeowners at least in this area do gardening ten years ago gardening was the most popular pas time he notes nowits second spectator sports on television are first there is a trend toward home improvement in general mr cullen adds forinstance even he and his wife mary are plan ning to build a greenhouse this summer meanwhile his father len is building cullen country barns behind the steeles ave centre theyll be the largest barns in ontario maybe even in cana da says the younger cullen the structures will feature stores and antiques from old ontario working up the soil is an important part of gardening and can make all the difference in the world in combating weeds and allowing roots to breathe increase the value of your home and your living area by adding a wooden patio deck build the deck of your choice and select from packages of all spruce all cedar orall pressure treated lumber lansings knowledgeable staff cart help you with any questions you may have on deck con struction steps nails hardware sonotubes sakrete paint and stain sold separately 8x10 pressure treated 8x10 spruce western red 2 always have the complete selection 6 x 6 landscape timbers nominal sizes random lengths priced per lineal ft rough cedar pressure treated spruce d4s kiss rt 99 2 1 8 88 used railway ties 6x8x8ft lansing has the selection 95 each western red cedar the natural beauty of the colour grain arid texture of this quality lumber enhances any building project priced per lineal ft knotty ruff sawn attractive textured surface improves appearance and holds stain better lansing stocks pressure treated wolmanized labelled lumber guaranteed for 30 years pressure treated ties t wolmanized 3 x 5 x 8ft super tiespine 4 x 4 x 8ft chamfer edge pine 4 x 6 x 8ft rough poplar mini ties 6 x 8 x 8ft decorator ties 75 each 50 each 14 89 each nominal sizes shown for all lumber available in lengths to 16ft longer lengths in some dimensions available at higher prices k ucm