Author: Joshua Walton

To the Editor: Regarding the Storm

To the Editor:

The Greenwich Tree Conservancy agrees with the recommendations given recently in several letters to the editor. Underground wiring should begin without further delay on major town roads, near substations and for all new construction. The long term cost over the many years this will take, will be far less than the cost of the current archaic system when business and property losses are taken into account.

We believe that severe and destructive “100 year” storms may be coming with more frequency and power lines will continue to suffer with our majestic trees, although the suffering will be much less if our trees are maintained. Trees provide many ecosystem benefits including clean air, cleaner water, the sequestration of carbon from the air, prevention of flooding and creating homes for wildlife. We do need to balance these benefits and the enhanced aesthetics and property values with above ground power lines while they exist, that is why the Greenwich Tree Conservancy complies with state policy of planting only right trees in right places—short ornamental trees under power lines, shade trees only where there is no power line.

The majority of trees which impacted power lines in our recent storms were trees on private property, not governed by the existing town tree ordinance nor managed by our town tree warden. We agree that public and private tree management has to improve. We fully cooperate with our town tree warden and urge an increase in funding for care of existing trees on town property.

JoAnn Messina, Executive Director

Greenwich Tree Conservancy

Save Costs, Save Trees, Bury Lines

Originally posted in Greenwich Time: Letters to the Editor:

To the editor:

The Greenwich Tree Conservancy, a non-profit citizen group dedicated to the preservation and maintenance of our “urban forest,” urges our elected officials to require Connecticut Light & Power to bury power lines in Greenwich, wherever it may be feasible. Many Greenwich residents are insisting after the devastation of Hurricane Irene that this be accomplished.

Burying power lines may actually be more cost effective in the long run for CL&P than repeatedly repairing the damage to overhead power lines after a major storm such as Irene and the nor’easter of March 2010, which cost hundreds of millions of dollars. As a result of climate change, it is projected that hurricanes will be increasingly frequent. There would also be a savings to the utility through the elimination of the continuing cost of tree removal and pruning.

Continue reading “Save Costs, Save Trees, Bury Lines”

New Study Finds Treehuggers Had It Right All Along

– Story by Adam Cervin, Greenwich Patch

According to new research just released from the U.S. Forest Service and the Davey Institute, urban forests across the country save thousands of lives every year. Trees not only save lives, but according to the study, they reduce hospital visits and the number of days taken off work, and help people nationwide breathe better. They do this simply by collecting pollutants on their leaves and branches and thus remove them from the air.
> Read the full story by Adam Cervin on Greenwich Patch.

April 1 PURA Public Hearing on Utility Vegetation Management Practices

PURA has announced that it will hold a Public Hearing in Docket No. 14-07-18 (utility vegetation management practices) on April 1, 2015 at 10:30 am at PURA, Ten Franklin Square, New Britain, CT 06051.

According to the Executive Secretary of PURA, the public may speak at the beginning of the hearing. The public may also send letters to PURA regarding the utilities’ vegetation management practices until the end of the hearing. All communications to PURA on this docket should specifically reference Docket No. 14-07-18, and should be addressed to Jeffrey R. Gaudiosi, Esq., Executive Secretary of PURA:

via e-mail toPURA.ExecutiveSecretary@ct.gov and/orJeff.Gaudiosi@ct.gov or via USPS to PURA, Ten Franklin Square, New Britain, CT 06051.

[Note: Mr. Gaudiosi has replaced Nicholas Neeley, who served as Acting Executive Director of PURA.]

For additional information, see http://www.gardenclubofnewhaven.org/recent-information-notices-and-news.html

Science News: Urban Vegetation Deters Crime in Philadelphia

Mar. 25, 2013 — Contrary to convention, vegetation, when well-maintained, can lower the rates of certain types of crime, such as aggravated assault, robbery and burglary, in cities, according to a Temple University study, “Does vegetation encourage or suppress urban crime? Evidence from Philadelphia, PA,” published in the journal Landscape and Urban Planning.

“There is a longstanding principle, particularly in urban planning, that you don’t want a high level of vegetation, because it abets crime by either shielding the criminal activity or allowing the criminal to escape,” said Jeremy Mennis, associate professor of geographyand urban studies at Temple. “Well-maintained greenery, however, can have a suppressive effect on crime.”

After establishing controls for other key socioeconomic factors related to crime, such as poverty, educational attainment and population density, Mennis, along with environmental studies major Mary Wolfe, examined socioeconomic, crime and vegetation data, the latter from satellite imagery.

They found that the presence of grass, trees and shrubs is associated with lower crime rates in Philadelphia, particularly for robberies and assaults.

Read the full story at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130325160522.htm Source: Temple University (2013, March 25). Urban vegetation deters crime in Philadelphia.

Shady Lanes Initiative

The Greenwich Tree Conservancy, in keeping with its vision of a healthy and beautiful town-wide community forest, announced in April 2011, its new Shady Lanes Initiative to select three main roadways each year to plant and steward trees. The 2011-2012 selected roads are: lower Lake Avenue, Sound Beach Avenue and Hamilton Avenue.

For more information, please contact: treeconserv@optonline.net.

Help Fill a Gator Bag

The Greenwich Tree Conservancy uses Gator Bags for watering of newly planted trees in Greenwich. Homeowners can help by filling these bags once a week if they have not been filled

Treegator® bags apply 15 to 50 gallons of water in a single application (depending on model and bag setup), equating to a fill schedule of 1 to 2 times per week for many new tree / shrub planting applications.

Once you’ve decided to plant a new tree, there are three basic facts to keep in mind:

  • Deep water saturation is key.
  • New trees need lots of water.
  • Establishment can take years.

Scroll down for a handy YouTube video that will show you how to use the Treegator® Bag. It shows where the fill opening is under the tag. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgOTHrqF4oA

Treegator® Bags are not a permanent installation. The bags are used during the initial 1 to 2 growing seasons after planting. The Greenwich Tree Conservancy will remove them and reuse them for new plantings.
For more information on proper tree planting, visit http://treegator.com/watering/index.html.

Greenwich Tree Conservancy Celebrates Arbor Day

Click here to read the full story by Priscilla Lombardi on It’s Relevant.

The Greenwich Tree Conservancy celebrated Arbor Day and its 6th anniversary at McArdle’s Greenhouse Friday night.

Money raised this year will help fund a program that would allow the conservancy to plant trees around parking lots in downtown Greenwich.

“Specifically this year, we are dealing with a new technology called Silva Cell,” said Greenwich Tree Conservancy Executive Director JoAnn Messina. “Which is something that allows us to plant trees in parking lots, on sidewalks, and it can take traffic and the routes don’t get compressed.” Click here to read the full story by Priscilla Lombardi on It’s Relevant.