Columns
This Spring, look up for the bees
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION – The changing colors of fall leaves is undeniably one of the great spectacles of the northern hardwood forests. But consider for a moment the other end of the growing season from early April through late May, the color palette of our local forests changes at breathtaking[Read More…]
Azaleas, Rhododendrons attractive, well-behaved
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – Azaleas and other rhododendrons are fixtures in yards and gardens for good reasons: they’re attractive, well-behaved, and easy to care for. But which is which? Azaleas (Rhododendron spp.) are, in fact, rhododendrons, though all rhododendrons are not azaleas. Azaleas tend to be smaller shrubs (around five[Read More…]
Soaking rain expected; persistently cool for rest of week
EAST HARDWICK – After a month that has caught us up on rainfall, we managed to avoid any measurable precipitation in the past week. Thus, the ground is drying out a bit. The overall precipitation for the month has pushed all of the Northeast Kingdom out of drought conditions. However,[Read More…]
Walking on water
EAST MONTPELIER – A couple of weeks ago I mentioned the luxurious digs I called home during one summer of the 1950s, and suggested that there was another story involved. There certainly was. Old George Lamb, who cooked for our work party up at the Ausable Lakes, heard that I[Read More…]
From the Watershed: Beavers cause problems; they also solve them
Hardwick doesn’t have the luxury of abstract conversations about water. We’ve watched it come through our commercial core, into our homes, and across our roads, more than once, and more recently than anyone would like. We’re investing real money and real time trying to reduce that risk. That forces us[Read More…]
Weeks Gone By
113 years ago in The Hardwick Gazette A PARK FOR HARDWICK? Who Will Help? A Public Park Can Be Had Easily. -A Mountain Park Unlike That of any Other Village in Vermont. Does Hardwick need a park? The question almost answers itself. Where in Hardwick is there one piece of[Read More…]
Observe early-blooming flowers for plant-pollinator interactions
WHITE RIVER JUCNTION – It’s a common assumption that dandelions are the only available floral resources for pollinators in the spring. They just happen to be the flowers we see most often in our lawns and gardens. But many other species bloom in early spring (including our spring ephemerals. Some[Read More…]
Much to be done for late spring chores
CORNISH FLAT, N.H. – Spring arrives in New England in fits and starts: Hot and sunny one day, chilly and drizzly the next. Maybe even a few flurries to outrage the impatient gardener. But there is much that can be done in late April, even on a rainy day. I[Read More…]
How to support all types of pollinators in the garden
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION – When you think of pollinators, what is the first thing you think of? What would you say if I told you that flies and beetles were also pollinators? How about wasps? The word pollinator has become synonymous with bees, and while they are some of the[Read More…]
Locals taking potshots at you
EAST MONTPELIER – One of the most New England of poems was published by James Russell Lowell in 1864. “The Courtin” became popular enough to be published subsequently as a separate volume, with period-type illustrations by none other than Winslow Homer. A charming story, it depicts perfectly the knots that[Read More…]
Billingsley stepping back after seeing town through flood recovery
PLAINFIELD – Michael Billingsley may be stepping down as the town’s emergency management director, but he’s not retiring just yet. Because the incoming emergency management director cannot always be in Plainfield, Billingsley views a gradual succession plan as the most practical path forward. “I volunteered myself to be the eyes[Read More…]
