Spring - Elizabeth Community

more. Start your day with a
heartfelt smile and a joyful
hello to every person you meet.
Have a daily calendar on your
desk with words of wisdom that
will inspire you. Here’s one
from African Villages Calendar:
“Your smile is an open window
which tells people you are
inside the house”.
When making up your to do list
for the day be sure to set aside
15 minutes for a walk outside.
We are so fortunate to have
Independence Park right in our
neighborhood. Researchers tell
us we need only 15 minutes
of sunlight daily to fulfill our
Vitamin D requirement. So
when the sun is out, walk
outside and see how much
better you’ll feel.
Look at your inside
environment. Is it organized
Is your desk clear Take time
alone, with a friend, or with a
professional organizer, putting
your office in order. A good
practice is to spend the last
15 minutes of the day clearing
your desk and setting up for the
next day. Writing a to do list for
tomorrow will help start your
day off with a smile and leave
you feeling lighter as you end
your day.
Have only one picture of family
in your office, preferably not
on your desk. Put as much as
possible in your desk draws to
keep the desk surface clear. Do
have a plant to supply oxygen
near your window. If you don’t
have a window, let your plant
vacation in someone’s office
every weekend. Be sure to set a
day or two each week to water
the plant. Always have fresh
water available for you to sip.
At lunchtime, go somewhere
with a co-worker and enjoy
your lunch in a relaxed
atmosphere. You’ll find getting
away from your desk really
photo by Nancy Albert
helps lighten the day. Bring
fruit to have during breaks so
you’ll be picked up naturally
and you’ll avoid resorting to
the vending machines.
For those long drawn-out
meetings, volunteer to write
the agenda. Somewhere on the
agenda sheet write a humorous
saying and watch people react
to it. Not only will the meeting
go faster, but all might enjoy
participating more.
If you have a long project with
many parts, reward yourself
after each section is completed.
Make the reward something
simple and immediate like a
10-minute meditation or a
second walk outside.
Look for ways to help coworkers
and see how much
easier the day goes. Come to
work with gratefulness and see
how much lighter you’ll feel.
Frances D’Amato is an Elizabeth
Community resident and an
organizational psychologist who helps
neighbors keep clutter free.
Topics on Trees:
cankerworm update
by Kara Gooding
By the time this newsletter is
delivered to you, it will almost
be time for the cankerworms
to hatch. If you banded your
trees and your neighbors
banded their trees as well, your
efforts, combined with the city’s
spraying program will have
protected our gorgeous canopy
for more years to come.
What happens
in the spring
Usually the worms hatch in
late March when they eat their
way through the tree canopies
and then drop on silky threads
down into the ground. But with
the drought and the strange
weather patterns this winter,
it could be earlier or later
than March when they appear.
Whenever they do begin to
hatch, it is important to keep
the tree bands up until after
all the worms have dropped.
This is because several will get
caught in the bands as they
make their way to the ground.
The less worms that make it
into the ground, the fewer
moths you will need to trap the
next fall. Once the worms are
done dropping, it is important
remove the bands. Bands tend
to hold moisture up against the
tree bark and should NOT stay
up all year long.
The city spraying campaign
This year, the city has
committed to spending
$2.6 million dollars on
aerial spraying of Bacillus
thuringiensis, or Bt. The
targeted area for the aerial
spraying is about 73,000
acres and contains an
estimated 365,000 trees. Bt
is a naturally occurring, biorational
insecticide that is
safe for humans and pets. It
is commonly used by organic
farmers and bee keepers today.
Because Bt is effective for a
48-hour window, Charlotte
neighborhoods will be sprayed
only when the worms in those
areas are actively hatching.
Not all neighborhoods will be
sprayed at the same time.
Why spraying is so
important
Last year’s infestation was so
bad that 92% of Charlotte’s
traps exceeded what the USDA
and Forest Service considers
a “high” infestation rate. The
Forest Service defines a high
infestation as any trap that has
90 or more bugs in it. Several
traps in the Charlotte area
last year had +/- 3,000 bugs
ensnared in them and this year
looks to be tracking along the
same numbers. While banding
protects trees, spraying is the
most effective method for the
city to eradicate the infestation
permanently.
Questions or comments, please
email trees4elizabeth@gmail.
com. Thank you to everyone in
Elizabeth who banded trees.
Now, if we could just make it
rain…
Tough year takes toll
on city’s trees
by John Albert
Even if you read The Charlotte
Observer on January 13, the
article by David Perlmutt and
Bruce Henderson is worth our
repeating. The following are
extractions from that article.
“Last year was tough on trees
in the Charlotte region.
The continuing assault by
development was aggravated in
6 the people pages the people pages 7