Some very cool stuff this week: New research examines the health benefits of green space, a big western city is raising water rates because people are saving too much water and Pittsburgh reinvents itself from a black smudge of steel factories to a champion of sustainability. There’s hope for us all.

See you next week.

• ASLA Guide to Washington’s great landscapes was nominated for a Webby. Vote here.
• Portland is raising its water rates to keep pace with lagging demand.
• The outside Rx.
• Related: New study further shows health benefits of green space.
• 6 of the coolest trees in America.
• How to choose a board for your business.
• Above: Pittsburgh’s Phipps Conservatory opens the Center for Sustainable Landscapes at the “greenest building on Earth.”

Here’s our digest of cool stuff that will make you smarter. Enjoy your reading, and we’ll see you Monday.

• A great guide to designing outdoor rooms. (via @belgard)
• The latest research on equipment theft in America.
• The man behind Pinterest.
• ASLA has released a beautiful interactive guide to D.C. parks.
• What West Nile is doing to people in Texas.
• Science has confirmed: Summer was hot.
• Above: 60 years of American economic history in one graph.

We’ve been a bit lax the past couple of weeks, so here’s an extra-long weekly round-up for your weekend reading pleasure. Stay cool out there!

• Can’t catch rainwater? Try these tips. (via @waterguru2)
• Succulents!
• Why you should hire introverts.
• Chris Heiler has a few suggestions on how to get free PR.
• Advertisers and consumers are getting tired of QR codes. Related.
• How to use elephants to control weeds.
• Learn how to talk to tree guys.
• Brad Johnson on planting weeds for healthy turf.
• Also: Brad’s book is in stores now.
• ASLA releases a guide to designing sustainable sites.
• Above: Why trees are important.

Here’s our weekly digest of interesting stuff from the internet. Have a great weekend. (And call your mom.)

• A history of the sunflower.
• Top 2012 outdoor living trends.
• The best times to post to Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr.
• Massive stormwater park opens in Los Angeles. (via @ValleyCrest)
• Chris Heiler on practical uses of Pinterest.
• Above: Transplanting a tree in Australia with ArborCo.

Here’s our weekly collection of fun stuff from the internet. Enjoy!

• The longest-serving employee at the Morton Arboretum also lives there. (via @ChicagoTreeMD)
• Rutgers launches rain barrels designed by local artists.
• Roanne Miller on why local green industry businesses are better for their communities.
• A great round-up of landscaper-friendly apps from @JShilan.
• Eye candy: 55 photos of Frank Mariani’s personal gardens.
• Above: A new video from the ASLA on how urban agriculture can be adapted to small spaces in cities.

Here’s our weekly update on cool stuff from the web. Enjoy!

• A farm replaces golf as in the suburbs. (Via @turfhugger)
• Monkshood making a comeback in the Midwest.
• A visual representation of what Americans spend their money on.
• Top 5 social media branding mistakes.
• ASLA publishes report how much cash green roofs and similar infrastructure can save.
• Make your designers’ lives easier with Pinterest. (via @uphelpsr)
• Flower subscription service H.Bloom raises $10 million. (via @getsocialshow)
• Above: Landscape lighting series by Barry Underwood, an artist and professor of photography at the Cleveland Art Institute. (via The Dirt)

Here’s our weekly update on cool stuff we found online. Enjoy, and have a great weekend!

• NPR gets really NPR-y with a story on how sound can impact plants.
• Which metro areas in the U.S. are recovering fastest. (via @UrbanLandInst)
• An apples-to-apples spreadsheet for your favorite property manager or HOA.
• Seth Godin makes the case for follow-up calls.
• A new international competition will award 15,000 Euros to the best sustainable landscape design. (via The Dirt)
• Above: Chris Heiler and our own Carolyn LaWell discuss the changes Facebook made this week and what they mean to small business owners.

Here’s a list of the best stuff we found online this week. Enjoy!

• What drives customer loyalty in 2012. (via)
• Some winter plant inspirration from the Neave Group.
• “Caring, it turns out, is a competitive advantage, and one that takes effort, not money.”
• A little trompe-l’oeil with landscapes. (via)
• Weed ink.
• Donec venenatis latina nomina.
• Above: The oldest living things in the world photo series by Rachel Sussman.

Here’s a collection of some of our favorite stuff from the web this week. Enjoy!

• TruGreen and Terminix add jobs in Dallas, Atlanta.
• Should you buy your own building? Depends on your market.
• Some California businesses are turning parking spaces into parks.
• A new speakers bureau started just for the green industry.
• Alan Burke has a great post on the ancient meanings of many popular landscape plants.
• Take a tour of the green roof at ASLA headquarters in Washington.
• Above: Wear your sunscreen – a cautionary tale. (via)

Urban Forests = Cleaner, Cooler Air from ASLA on Vimeo.

This video from the American Society of Landscape Architects explains how trees and other green spaces fight air pollution, reduce the so-called “heat island effect” and generally make cities more livable.