Outdoors & Environment

Have you noticed the light is changing and the sun has moved a good way to the south?

Rather than leaving a field or patch of soil open over the winter, consider cover crops. A cover crop is basically a temporary seeding of an area that would otherwise have exposed soil. The crop is a placeholder for future crops that will be grown there.

While Charlotte has made great strides to conserve farmland through land trusts, our town has a lot of work left to do to protect vital forest land.

In early September, Charlotte Trails Committee members Jack Pilla and Chris Boffa finished building a new bridge on the mowed path along Ferry Road to replace one that had been damaged repeatedly by flooding — most recently in July.

The unusual temperatures of September have prolonged the haying season as well as allowing gardens to flush a third round of lettuce, radishes and cilantro just in time for the last ripe tomatoes and a flourish of salsa-based meals.

If you have driven north on I-89 in recent years, you have probably noticed an ever-growing mountain of white slag on the west side of the road between Bethel and Randolph.

The Vermont Disaster Recovery Fund has approved $1 million in grants to help flood survivors.

The final day to register any damage from the July 10-11 storm for FEMA assistance is Oct. 21.

Are you looking for a low-labor, chemical-free method to help eradicate weeds and soil-residing pests in the garden?

With our recent rainy weather and storms, I am not surprised that we diagnosed late blight (Phytophthora infestans) in the University of Vermont Plant Diagnostic Clinic in late August.

Lilacs (Syringa vulgaris) can be stunning in early summer when in full bloom, but this time of year they tend to look a bit worn out.

Did you know that the condition of your yard can have an impact on regional water quality?

As summer winds to its close and the second year of extraordinarily powerful storms spins chaotically toward its denouement, the evening breezes bring with them the solace of lower humidity.

Weeding is often a reality of summer landscape maintenance.

Cucumber and squash production is in full swing in the garden, but there is a key pest that can affect the yield and quality of the fruit.

When the town of Charlotte lost its tree warden, the selectboard’s concern about filling the position posthaste may have seemed rushed.

Julie Parker-Dickinson, a master gardener and a second-grade teacher, was encouraging kids about their futures back in 2017 when she realized something:

On July 18, a group of journalists took a cruise on the University of Vermont’s research vessel, the Marcelle Melosira, with a group of scientists, to hear and see what impacts flooding, and specifically the July 11 flood, have had on Lake Champlain’s water quality.