Trees at Risk

Another Worcester First: Independence Day 1776

Evelyn Herwitz — Fri, 04 Jul 2014 16:46:28 +0000

As we await the arrival of Hurricane Arthur on this dreary Independence Day, here’s my account of the very first community celebration of the newly signed Declaration of Independence—right here, in Worcester, Massachusetts. The document had been approved by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, but it took another week or more for broadsides […]

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Proof Positive: Fewer Trees Mean Higher Temps

Evelyn Herwitz — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 17:11:37 +0000

In the back of our rock garden, shaded on three sides by arborvitae and neighboring trees, stands a chest-high, white, capped PVC tube with holes drilled along its sides. Beneath the tube is a wooden stake; attached to the stake are two small climate sensors, one at the top and one at the bottom. Every […]

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Arbor Day Reminder: Protect Our Urban Forests

Evelyn Herwitz — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 21:37:54 +0000

It’s been one long, cold spring so far here in Worcester, but the trees are finally in bloom. The Norway and sugar maples that line so many miles of our city’s streets are bursting with pale green flowers. Cylindrical Callery pears shyly show their snowy petals. A few magnolias offer cream and purple blooms to […]

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End in Sight for Worcester’s Beetle Battle

Evelyn Herwitz — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 21:11:24 +0000

Only 13 Asian Longhorned Beetles were caught within the Greater Worcester quarantine area during all of 2012. That’s significant progress in the four-and-a-half-year fight to eradicate the black-and-white spotted insect that has gnawed its way through tens of thousands of trees in the city and surrounding towns, feasting on maples and other hardwoods over the […]

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How Trees Make Our City Livable: Interview on WICN’s “Business Beat”

Evelyn Herwitz — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 21:47:59 +0000

Thanks to Steve D’Agostino, host of The Business Beat on WICN 90.5FM, I recently joined with Peggy Middaugh, Executive Director of the Worcester Tree Initiative for a half-hour conversation about the importance of Worcester’s urban forest. Our talk ranged from who planted the first trees in Worcester to why trees are so important to the […]

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With Beetles in Decline, Worcester Gets $3 Million for More Trees

Evelyn Herwitz — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 20:31:34 +0000

As hors d’oeuvres circulated amidst tree advocates, environmentalists, politicians, government officials and staff, as TV reporters staged interviews and photographers clicked shots, you could hardly hear the person next to you above the excited chatter at Green Hill Park’s Grill on the Hill last night. The reason? Worcester will benefit from $3 million in state […]

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November Light

Evelyn Herwitz — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:34:01 +0000

At this time of year in New England, when most of our trees have shed their leaves, the light sharpens. By 3 o’clock in the afternoon, the shadows are stark, as if the sun had etched black outlines around each blade of grass and carved deep furrows into tree bark. A couple of Novembers ago, I […]

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A Tale of Two Hurricanes

Evelyn Herwitz — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 16:18:17 +0000

The images are stunning and sobering: water flooding New York City streets, beach houses ripped from their foundations, boats bashed by ferocious waves. The footage is black-and-white. The storm is the Great New England Hurricane of 1938, nicknamed “The Long Island Express.” Without warning, at 2:30 p.m. on September 21, the Category 3 storm that […]

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How to Care for Trees in a Heat Wave

Evelyn Herwitz — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 22:16:25 +0000

It’s been a long, hot, dry stretch here in Worcester, as elsewhere across the U.S. during this record-breaking heat wave. While it’s nice to have a real summer, the extreme temperatures and lack of rain are placing a lot of stress on our trees, young and old. The city planted many new street trees this […]

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Tornado Season: Remembering 1953 and 2011

Evelyn Herwitz — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 16:24:51 +0000

It’s a beautiful, sunny day as I write. Our seemingly endless stretch of rainy days that have been great for trees but dreary for humans has finally broken, and it looks like a fine weekend ahead. On a beautiful June day like this, it’s hard to imagine a tornado striking Central Massachusetts. But on a […]

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