On May 5th, Windham & Windsor Housing Trust staff, board, Groundworks Collaborative members, Southeast VT Cooperative Invasive Species Management Association (CISMA), and Chalet neighbors gathered to tackle the invasive species that have, over the decades, begun to dominate the local ecology on the Chalet’s 17-acre property in West Brattleboro. The group of about 20 volunteers kicked off the day with an overview from CISMA member Pieter van Loon, Vermont Land Trust Director of Forest Stewardship on the invasives present, how to identify them, and how to manage them. “It’s important to know that these plants aren’t inherently evil- they were brought here by us (humans) because we liked them. Now they’re taking advantage of a good situation.”
After passing around samples of glossy buckthorn, bittersweet, multiflora rose, Japanese knotweed, winged euonymus (burning bush), and barberry the group rolled up their sleeves and set to work, clipping, sawing, pulling, and hauling the plants.
“It’s been a herculean effort really. We had a maple stand that was completely dominated by these plants and the group got right to work and cleared the entire area. It’s so satisfying to see the results.” Marion Major, Windham & Windsor Housing Trust Outreach and Marketing Coordinator shared, “We’re already looking forward to next year- knowing we’ll be spending some time maintaining what we just managed, that’s just the nature of these species. We’re so grateful for the partnership in putting this event together.”
“We feel so much gratitude for everyone that showed up to sweat and create positive change with us!” Said Effie Finaldi, Chalet Housing Coordinator with Groundworks Collaborative. “It’s absolutely amazing what can be accomplished in a short amount of time when you have a group of folks dedicated and driven to make a difference!”
The idea for this event started in 2021 when Jane Diefenbach, a neighbor to the Chalet approached the Housing Trust about being involved in the broader community effort of education about and management of invasive plant species. “The Chalet is a beautiful site and the Dalems left us so much to work with.” Jane explained, “Our activities these first two years — clearing the margin of the forest of buckthorn last year and removing honeysuckle, bittersweet, and multiflora rose near the buildings this year — have restored outdoor spaces that people can use. There is more work to do, but we’ve done so much and making this an annual event will be transformative.”
After hauling many full trailers of invasives, the group recouped with burgers and hot dogs were joined by residents, and enjoyed the beautiful day.
The Chalet is a Windham & Windsor Housing Trust property in West Brattleboro. With on-site support provided by Groundworks Collaborative, this permanent supportive housing model, an evidence-based practice to ending homelessness, was established to address the health emergency of housing during the pandemic’s on-set.
