In a state with only nine cities and thousands of
tree huggers, Vermont's image does not struggle
to be green. Over 4.5 million acres (1.8 million
ha) of the state (and Vermont is only 6.1 million
acres/2.5 million ha large) are covered by forests—
forests that sequester and store carbon, provide
wildlife habitat, clean surface water, and create
healthy soil. Vermont trees support our forest
economy, fuel fall foliage tourism, sweeten our
meals with maple syrup, and provide our refuge.
In part, people come to Vermont to see its forests;
many stay in Vermont to call them home.
As such, the six staff that compose the entire
Vermont Urban & Community Forestry (UCF)
Program may seem too few to properly repre-
sent the enthusiasm of the Green Mountain State.
Delivering educational, technical, and financial
support to town-appointed tree wardens, volunteer
tree and town forest committees, and the state's
handful of city arborists, Vermont's UCF team sup-
ports healthy and innovative green space design at
the level a town can engage. It connects people to
trees, brings green infrastructure to gray streets, and
empowers citizens to care for their public spaces.
But by both necessity and design, Vermont UCF
spreads its wings farther than urban streets. It is
small and nimble, meeting Vermonters where they
are, whether in farm fields, mountainous roads, lake
edges, town forests, or village parks. Yes, urban and
community forests are city trees. But in Vermont,
they're also all public trees. They are the trees that
take up no more than a passing glance on a commute
home. They are the trees that line our farm fields.
Resilient Right-of-Ways:
A Tale of Urban Forestry
in a Small-Town State
The town of Calais, Vermont,
experiments with a new mowing regimen
and removal of wild chervil (Anthriscus
sylvestris) through hand-pulling.
By Joanne Garton, Resilient Right-of-Ways Project Coordinator and Elise Schadler,
Technical Assistance Coordinator, Vermont Urban & Community Forestry Program
Photographs courtesy of the Vermont Urban & Community Forestry Program
28 CityTREES
