The World 11_07_18

REAL ESTATE
Emerald Ash Borer Preparedness & Management
for Central VT Communities
Vermont Urban & Community Forestry Program: A partnership
between the Department of Forests, Parks &
Recreation and UVM Extension; and the Central Vermont
Regional Planning Commission are working together to
facilitate a training regarding Emerald Ash Borer (EAB). The
training is scheduled for November 28, 2018 from 4:00 to
6:00 pm at UVM Extension Office, 327 US Route 302, Barre,
VT. The intended audience is municipal staff, Selectboard and
City Council members, Conservation Commissions, Planning
Commissions, Tree Committee members, Tree Wardens, and
Forest Pest First Detectors. Anyone else who may be engaged
in planning for EAB at the local level in Central Vermont
communities is welcome to attend.
The training will be led by staff from the Vermont Urban &
Community Forestry Program and is intended to teach participants
about EAB, introduce management options, and to
help towns assess risk and establish a plan. EAB is a destructive
and invasive forest pest that feeds on and kills all species
of ash trees. The presence of EAB has now been confirmed in
Washington, Caledonia, Orange, Bennington, and Grand Isle
counties. Participants in the training will engage in an activity
to strategize an approach to EAB management and will leave
the training with action steps to take back to their community.
The Central Vermont Regional Planning Commission will
be assisting two communities to train volunteers to conduct
ash tree inventories and will help prepare management plans.
Municipalities interested in this service are encouraged to
attend the November 28th meeting.
The training is free, but registration is required as space is
limited. Registration will close on Wednesday, November 21st.
Please link to centralvteabtraining.eventbrite.com to register or
visit the Events section on VTcommunityforestry.org
WINDY WOOD – BARRE TOWN
WINDY WOOD – BARRE TOWN
“A common interest community”
VIEW
“A
HOMES
common
BEING
interest
BUILT SUNDAYS
community”
1 PM – 3 PM
VIEW HOMES SHOWN BEING BY APPOINTMENT BUILT SUNDAYS ANYTIME 1 PM – 3 PM
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One Level Living: single and duplex units, 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, full basement, 1 or 2 car garage option
Single family homes priced from $267,000 and Duplex homes priced from $229,000
CALL 802-249-8251 OR 802-734-1920
One Level Living: single and duplex units, 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, full
basement, 1 or 2 car garage option
Single family homes priced from $269,000
and Duplex homes priced from $229,000
Directions: From RT 302, turn onto Hill Street at Elmwood Cemetery, ¾ mile on Hill Street, left onto
Windy Wood Road, look for sign on left and turn into Windy Wood.
Directions: From RT 302, turn onto Hill Street at Elmwood Cemetery, ¾ mile
on Hill Street, left onto Windy Wood Road, look for sign on left and turn into
Windy Wood.
Moles And Voles, and Their Controls
Dr. Leonard Perry, Horticulture Professor Emeritus
University of Vermont
These two garden critters have similar names, and even
may look similar at a quick glance, but they really are quite
different. Knowing something about these garden pests—
what they eat and where they live—may help in their control.
Both these critters resemble large furry mice, but moles are
quite distinctive with their large, paddle-shaped front feet
with claws. These are designed for digging their characteristic
tunnels in lawns, as is their whole body. Their small eyes and
ear openings (they have no external ears) are hidden in their
fur. Their hair is short and, offering no resistance, allows them
to move forward and backwards in tunnels. Their bodies are
four to six inches long.
Moles can dig with a force of 32 times their body weight,
and dig surface tunnels at a rate of 18 feet per hour. They then
can travel in these tunnels at up to 80 feet a minute. They
make surface tunnels for feeding, and deeper tunnels to unite
the feeding tunnels. These deeper tunnels have characteristic
mounds or volcanoes of soil at the end—a sign you have
moles instead of voles.
What moles are digging for is food—insects, grubs, and
earthworms. In addition to the mistaken notion of many that
moles and voles are the same, is the false belief that moles are
eating plants.
By eating insects, moles can be helping to prevent insect
outbreaks. It is some consolation though when one’s lawn is
riddled with tunnels, though, to know they are eating the
grubs. Many try to control moles by using pesticides to control
the grubs. This may not help, however, as it forces the
moles to eat more earthworms that you actually want in your
lawn, gardens, and flower beds. So even if not to prevent the
tunnels, you may want to control moles to prevent them from
eating all your earthworms. A five-ounce mole can consume
50 pounds of insects and earthworms a year!
There are some commercial repellent products, and even
more home remedies, to control moles. More common examples
of these are moth balls, vibrating posts, ultrasonic
devices, and castor oil solution. Many of these seem more
annoying to humans than moles, and are often of little effect.
Poison baits are not recommended as they can be quite toxic
to non-target organisms (humans, pets), and work their way
into the wildlife food chain.
The best control seems to be traps. I use a mouse snap trap,
baited with peanut butter, and placed at the opening of an
active tunnel. I then cover the opening and trap with a clay
pot, which is attractive, keeps other critters out of the trap, and
makes the mole think the trap is in the tunnel. Other trap types
may be used such as harpoon and scissor-jaw. Just make sure
and follow directions when using these. Traps are most effective
in spring and fall when moles are most active.
Shrews are related to moles only they’re smaller, three to
• • •
four inches long (one will fit into a tablespoon), with a pointed
snout, dense fur and small eyes. They, too, eat insects both
above ground and in tunnels made by moles and voles. They
don’t create tunnels themselves.
Voles often are called meadow mice, as they resemble mice
with shorter tails. Adult voles have chestnut brown fur, mixed
with black. These rodents are about the same size as moles,
but have easily seen large black eyes, small ears, a blunt face,
and noticeable orange teeth used for gnawing plants. They
don’t hibernate, and are active day and night.
They, too, make extensive tunnel systems. They tunnel
under the snowpack in winter, leaving those above ground
channels in lawns that you see in spring when the snow melts.
Near tunnels and openings you often can find non-uniform
gnawing of plants (girdling) in irregular patches. This may be
above or below the soil surface, and may result in roots eaten,
and perennial plants heaved out of the ground. Obviously
such plants are weakened, if not outright killed, by such feeding.
Although voles mainly feed on stems and seeds of
grasses, they will feed on most ornamental plants too. They’re
mostly found in grassy and weedy areas.
Vole control is similar to that of moles. I have found that
keeping attractive (to them) organic fertilizers away from
plants in high vole areas tends to reduce their damage. Such
fertilizers may be, or contain, bone meal, cottonseed meal,
and similar strongly smelling products. Other least toxic
approaches to vole control include keeping gardens weeded,
and grass mown, thus removing habitats. Similarly, keep
snow away from bases of favored trees and shrubs, and avoid
mulching too deeply.
You also can put tree guards around trunks of young trees
during winter. These will keep rabbits from chewing on bark
too. Just make sure that the guards are removed in summer if
they’re the solid plastic type, and can expand as the trunk
grows in girth. Hardware cloth wire mesh makes a good trunk
guard. Make sure guards extend above the snow line.
Registered repellent products may be tried as part of a control
program. Products containing thiram (a fungicide) or
capsaicin (the hot substance in chili peppers) are sold for vole
control. Just make sure to follow all label directions and precautions
when using.
You can learn many more details about these garden and
landscape pests, their biology and control, from Penn State
University Extension leaflets
(extension.psu.edu/identifying-moles-voles-and-shrews).
Distribution of this release
is made possible by University
of Vermont and Green
Works—the Vermont Nursery
and Landscape Association.
Updated Weekly
Home Mortgage Rates
LAST
DOWN
LENDER UPDATE RATE APR TERM PTS PAYMENT
Community National 11/02/17 5.125% 5.133% 30 yr fixed 0 5%
Bank 1-800-340-3460 4.625% 4.639% 15 yr fixed 0 5%
New England Federal 11/02/17 4.875% 4.901% 30 yr fixed 0 5%
Credit Union 866-805-6267 4.375% 4.419% 15 yr fixed 0 5%
Northfield Savings 11/02/17 4.875% 4.916% 30 yr fixed 0 5%
Bank (NSB) 4.250% 4.320% 15 yr fixed 0 5%
802-485-5871
VT State Employees 11/02/17 4.875% 4.917% 30 yr fixed 0 5%
Credit Union (VSECU) 4.375% 4.446% 15 yr fixed 0 5%
1-800-371-5162 X5345
Rates can change without notice.
***APRs are based on 20% down payment. Some products are available with as little as
5% down, with purchase of Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI). The cost of PMI is not
included in the APR calculations.
AFFORDABLE
APARTMENTS
WITH HEAT
INCLUDED
Highgate
Apartments
located in Barre, is currently accepting applications
for 2 & 3 bedroom apartments
Hardwood floors, fresh paint, modern kitchen & baths, yard space,
ample closets, & washer/dryer hook-ups. Laundry room on site.
Rent includes heat/hot water, 24-hour emergency maintenance,
parking, snow removal, & trash removal. Income limits apply.
To request an application, call 476-8645 or stop by the on-site
rental office at 73 Highgate Drive, #121, Barre, VT.
EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY
Quiet Home Noise With Soundproofing
Many people want their homes to be comfortable,
relaxing retreats. While much
thought will be given to layout and decor, the
noises in and around a house also can affect
how enjoyable a space is or isn’t.
Certain offenders are driving up the noise
levels in homes. New building materials that
are lighter than those used in the past can
make it easier for noise to travel between
rooms. In addition, open floor plans make it
easy for noise to travel from room to room,
while handheld personal devices can make
rooms noisy. Homeowners who want more
peace and quiet in their home can take the
following steps.
Add more drywall
Homeowners may not be able to add walls
of sturdy brick to block sounds, but they can
add more drywall in noisy rooms. Consider
adding more drywall to a library or reading
nook. The home improvement resource
HomeLogic notes that drywall can be used to
isolate noisy rooms, such as those where kids
practice playing musical instruments.
• • •
Beef up dense materials
Heavy curtains, fluffy furniture and thick
carpets can make rooms quieter because they
help absorb sound waves. Such items and
materials also can help prevent echoes. Bare
walls and floors will only make sounds
bounce around.
Seal holes and cracks
Noises from outside can sneak around gaps
in windows, doors and siding. Making sure
gaps are sealed will not only make a home
more energy efficient, but also help block out
some exterior noises.
Fix squeaky floors
Wood floors can shrink and expand, leading
to movement and the development of
squeaky areas. By fixing squeaky floors,
homeowners can reduce noise created when
people walk through their homes.
Soundproofing a home can be a relatively
easy and effective DIY project.
470 Georges Blvd, East Haven
$150,000
Three bedroom,one bath off grid home on 10
acres with direct access to VAST trail, views of
nearby Burke Mtn. Warm and inviting design
with two car attached, direct entry to house.
Ski and ride fun awaits.
MLS#4686288
1474 Waterbury Stowe Rd,Waterbury
$395,000
3+bed/1 bath home has eat in kitchen,large
living room with Vt slate hearth. Plumbed in
for new bath in MBR. Rear deck overlooks
the Thatcher Brook. A very convenient setting
with access to nearby I-89 features almost
10 acres with many mature fruit trees, raised
arden beds, a chicen coop for your oc.
Plenty of room to grow.
See MLS#4704540 for full details.
Visit Our Website For Details On These And Other Listings
HARRINGTON REALTY
www.harringtonvt.com
802-563-6000 or 802-595-1156
Cabot, Vermont
November 7, 2018 The WORLD page 39