Last spring Jericho Conservation Commission member and ecologist, Allaire Diamond, asked her fellow community members for information about the Burlington & Lamoille Railroad, whose bed runs through her neighborhood. Several people responded with very helpful information and connections. In particular, Gary Irish shared some excellent resources and Jerry Fox visited to walk a section of the bed with her. She wrote a short reflection on this unique local feature for Northern Woodlands Magazine, and it's in the March 2021 issue and at this link:

https://northernwoodlands.org/articles/article/tracing-the-track

Thank you also to the landowners who own pieces of the railroad bed and keep it unposted for others to safely explore!

Emerald Ash Borer in Vermont

Emerald ash borer (EAB), an invasive forest pest, has been confirmed in Vermont.

As of October 2020 Jericho is in the Confirmed Infested Area.

EAB is a major threat to our trees and forests. The emerald ash borer has feasted on over 100 million ash trees in the Midwest, where it was first discovered in 2002. Unless treated with insecticides, most infested trees die within 3 to 5 years. Experience in Michigan and other states has shown that once this pest is detected in an area, more detections follow quickly — and the ash trees die rapidly over a few short years. EAB was confirmed in Vermont and 2018 and there are currently confirmed infestations in five Vermont counties.

• Learn how to identify ash trees and emerald ash borer signs and symptoms. Visit VTinvasives.org for more information!
• Look at ash trees for signs and symptoms – if you see a suspicious trees submit photos on the ReportIT! button at VTinvasives.org
• Slow the spread: burn firewood as close to the source as possible and do not move it outside of infested areas.

Photo Credit: Debbie Miller, US Forest Service, Bugwood.org

You can do your part as a steward of the land by learning to recognize common invasive plants and removing them from your property. Most can be pulled by hand when small and when the problem is limited to only a few plants. Invasive plants are... INVASIVE; they spread easily and in many cases prevent native plants from being able to grow. Stopping them early is KEY to success. Main site: VTinvasives.org

BUSH HONEYSUCKLE fact sheet VTInvasives.org

GARLIC MUSTARD fact sheet VTinvasives.org

COMMON BUCKTHORN fact sheet VT invasives.org

JAPANESE BARBERRY fact sheet VTinvasives.org

WILD CHERVIL fact sheet VTinvasives.org

ALTERNATIVE PLANT CHOICES TO REPLACE INVASIVES

The Vermont Land Trust and the Windham County NRCD are hosting a series of webinars to educate the public on management of invasive plants in their backyards and woods. Stay tuned for upcoming webinars as they become available for viewing. The Jericho CC has links to some of the resources mentioned in these webinars on our web page. Scroll down to find our previous posts on managing invasive plants.

Webinar #1: Introduction to Invasive Plants: Click here for Intro to Invasive Plants Webinar

Webinar #2: Backyard Invasives: Click here for Backyard Invasives Webinar

Webinar #3: Invasives in the Woods: Click here for Woods Invasives Webinar

Webinar #4: Non-Chemical Invasive Species Management Options: Click here for Non-Chemical Options Webinar

Webinar #5: Should I Spray? Responsible herbicide use in the control of invasive plants. Click here for Should I Spray? Webinar

Webinar #6:Preventing Establishment Of Invasive Species - Early Detection as a First Line of Defense Click here for Early Detection Webinar

Learn about old growth forests

Tuesday, November 17, 1-2 pm, online via Zoom

Old growth forests are complex places—ancient, mysterious, and, frankly, messy. Learn about old growth forests in Vermont and in the northeast—what they are, why they are important in the face of climate change, and how you can recognize them.

Join Jericho and Vermont Land Trust’s Liz Thompson and VLT's David McMath as they explore some old forests of Vermont and examine their special habitats. They will guide us to:

• a cedar swamp with old trees
• an old yellow birch grove
• an ancient black gum swamp
• a cliff forest, a blown-down forest
• an old growth rich woods that you can literally drive to.

They will talk about the rich history of these places and the many benefits they provide.

And you will learn how to recognize old growth when you see it. Who knows? Maybe there is an old growth forest waiting to be discovered in your town, or even on your property.

Register Here: hhttps://vlt.org/event/old-growth

Here is an article from VT Fish and Wildlife Biologist, Andrea Shortsleeve, on a new method of controlling Knotweed. The Conservation Commission does not have direct experience with this method, but it seems like it deserves our consideration as a viable option.

Managing Knotweed with Hardware Cloth

The Jericho Conservation Commission is partnering with the Mobbs Committee to host a Bioblitz from September 12-26.

Why a Bioblitz? A bioblitz is a community science effort to record as many species within a designated location and time period as possible, in this case, our own backyard treasure - Mobbs Farm.

Anyone can participate, but you will need to set up an account on iNaturalist to submit your observations. Visit the JCC/Mobbs Bioblitz page to sign up. Our goal is to learn more about the diversity of natural communities that exist within the Mobbs boundaries by inviting residents to make observations of plants, insects, birds, fungi (photographs or sound recordings) during their walks along the trails and submit them to iNaturalist . This project will allow us to continue safe distancing while exploring nature within Jericho. Participants should NOT collect items... follow the "Take only photographs, leave only footprints" mantra. You can make observations any time within the specified dates (September 12-26th, 2020) as long as you are anywhere on the Mobbs property.

All participants must follow the parking guidelines and rules of Mobbs while participating in the Bioblitz.

State of Vermont COVID-19 restrictions in place during the dates should be followed.

The Mobbs Farm Property, acquired by the Town of Jericho in 1970, is located approximately one mile south of Jericho Center on Browns Trace. The property consists of over 260 acres of both open and forested land and is roughly separated into two equal halves by Fitzsimonds Road.

The Jericho Conservation Commission would like to invite you to join us for a town-wide read of Aldo Leopold's A Sand County Almanac, a provocative collection of essays from one of the most influential thinkers in the environmental movement.

We will host a kickoff meeting on February 5th at 7pm at the Community Center to introduce the book and enjoy some light refreshments. We have 20 copies of A Sand County Almanac and will give them to the first 20 people who arrive at the kickoff meeting. We invite readers of all ages to participate as well as anyone who has already read the book and wants to read it again or just join in on the discussion.

We will give readers a little over a month to complete the book. We plan to reconvene for a book discussion on March 11th at the Jericho Town Library to enjoy some more light refreshments and talk about the book! Time TBA.

Meadows can be big or small, short or tall. However large, the environmental benefits are great. Meadows sequester carbon, retain water, filter pollutants, eliminate the need for fertilizers or pesticides and provide habitat.

Reduce your carbon footprint. Improve your neighborhood. Enjoy a meadow in your backyard!

Date: Thursday, October 24th at 7pm

Location: Deborah Rawson Memorial Library

Please join us on Thursday, July 25th at 8 pm as we celebrate our first MOTH NIGHT!

Where: Mills Riverside Park, Rt. 15, Jericho, VT - meet in the Pavilion

What: As part of National Moth Week,a global citizen science effort to learn more about moths, we will be hosting some experts from the Vermont Entomological Society. We will begin with a short presentation about moths and then go out into the field to observe them up-close.