On these hot summer days, getting sufficient water to thirsty pollinator plants along the MRG can be a challenge, especially at Dysfunction Jct. where there is no easy parking. Bart Guetti, head of the Friends of Lebanon Recreation and Parks, and willing waterer, has been watering the new plants by way of bike with saddlebags. Thank you Bart. A perfect solution!
Posted in Good News!, Pollinator Corridor, Thank you!
It was exciting to spot a hummingbird moth in the MRG parking lot pollinator garden (west of the overpass near Alice Peck Day Hospital.)
The first sighting of a hummingbird moth can be very confusing; Is it a bird? A big bee? A butterfly? A moth? It buzzes, hovers, and flies from flower to flower like a hummingbird . Instead of a beak like a hummingbird, it has a long tongue-like proboscis that can reach the nectar deep inside flowers. The antennae, colors, and furryness make it look like a bumble bee . . . and the tail is like that of a lobster. It looks like a creature designed by Dr. Seuss! This one lingered longest on the liatris, which seems to be a favored perennial of many pollinators..
Posted in Pollinator Corridor, Pollinators
Thanks to APD and the Upper Valley Trails Association, we now have a wheelchair- accessible path from the APD/MRG parking lot, opposite the Alice Peck Day Homestead, down to the Mascoma River Greenway. The surface is hard-packed and will eventually be paved. Thanks to all who made it happen!
Posted in Good News!, Mascoma River Greenway Updates, Progress!
The Mascoma River Greenway is still a work in progress. The closing of the tunnel under Lebanon’s downtown mall has stymied our linking to the Northern Rail Trail; renovations of the tunnel and the mall are scheduled for summer 2020. The connection to White River Junction on the western end is still in search of a solution. There are other items on the drawing table:
The MRG is a well-used and much enjoyed resource and will continue to improve over time. In the meantime, it has been great to see runners, bikers, dog walkers, baby strollers, roller-bladers, birders, wildflower enthusiasts, skateboarders, skate-skiers, snow-shoers, cross-country skiers, and young children learning to ride bikes, all actively enjoying this wonderful resource.
Posted in Next Steps
Those who have parked in the parking lot donated to the MRG by Alice Peck Day Hospital will be glad to know the path to the MRG has been greatly improved and will soon be paved and wheelchair-accessible. Thank you Upper Valley Trails Alliance!
Have you noticed these signs and new plantings along the MRG?
Upper Valley residents are becoming aware of the risks associated with pollinator collapse and are responding by planting organic native perennial flowers, shrubs, and trees to provide food and habitat for pollinators and other creatures, as well as enhanced environment for humans.
There is a plan for a pollinator corridor along the MRG. With funding from the Robert F. Church Charitable Trust, we have begun to create what will be a string of pollinator gardens, fruit trees, and berry bushes for bees, butterflies, birds, and even hungry humans. Check out our new Pollinator Corridor Page at this site and start looking for pollinators along the Mascoma River Greenway. Some of our new gardens will not hit their stride for a year or two but look for the Milkweeds (Common and Butterfly), Purple Coneflowers, Black-eyed Susans, Liatris, Anise Hyssop, New England Asters, Yarrow, Bee Balm, Borage, Coreopsis, Goldenrod, and other flowering pollinator plants as they emerge. If you get a good photo of bees, butterflies, or hummingbirds enjoying the new plantings, please share to the Lebanon Photo Gallery!
Thanks to Ellen Shaw for sending a few photos of wildflowers in bloom along the trail this week!
Coltsfoot
Bloodroot
Trillium
And, with all the rain, a powerful Mascoma River.
Current plans for the renovation of the tunnel and the Lebanon Mall were presented this evening, with construction beginning Spring 2020. We are making our way toward connecting the MRG to the Northern Rail Trail. You can see illustrations of the redesign of the mall and what the interior of the tunnel will look like at https://lebanonnh.gov/DocumentCenter/View/9735/Community-Conversation-Presentation-5-02-2019 (You may find the most useful photos toward the end of the presentation.)
(Note the skylight which will bring natural daylight into the tunnel.)
May 11th, 2019
Trail Head across from Alice Peck Day
1:00 pm
Parking Lot across from Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital Entrance
Join us for an event with Wild About Lebanon and Mascoma River Greenway!
Meet us at the MRG parking lot across from Alice Peck Day Memorial then walk, roller blade, or bike to Glen Road and back. The trail is flat and paved, great for walking or biking! (3 miles, easy).
Posted in Events
There is a plan afoot to create a pollinator corridor along the MRG. We have funds from the Robert F. Church Charitable Trust to plant native organic flowering perennials, fruit trees and shrubs (apple trees, blueberry bushes, elderberries, hazelberts, etc) along the MRG to enhance habitat for pollinators and other creatures, including hungry humans. Today was a reconnaissance mission with a knowledgeable team from Upper Valley Apple Corps and MRG Pollinator Corridor co-chairs Sarah Riley and Pat McGovern. The focus was the western end of the MRG starting at the Price Chopper parking lot access. Three spots were identified as possible planting zones.
Site 1 at the intersection of the paved MRG with the western end of the unpaved loop path that runs along the river. It is open to the sun and would be great place for an apple tree and blueberry bushes.
Site 2 Along the unpaved loop path, a possible site for a number of elderberry bushes.
Site 3 the picnic table site by the umbrella sculpture, a fruit or nut tree to provide shade for picnickers?
This spring we plan to plant native organic perennials along the MRG and plant trees and shrubs in the Fall . . . unless we can figure a plan for frequent waterings of the new trees throughout the summer
It was a wet day and we appreciated the hardiness of the Upper Valley Apple Corps crew, Cat, Kye, Zea, and Jesse, who were willing to show up and offer advice in spite of the weather. They were all impressed with the MRG, a natural treasure hidden behind the Miracle Mile plaza.
Sarah Riley and Pat McGovern with Apple Corps crew members Zea, Cat, Kye, and Jesse.
P.S. Spotted along the way were lots of bloodroot in flower, coltsfoot, ramps (wild leeks) and dandelion greens. Canada geese were in and along the banks of the Mascoma River . . . and lots of litter! We hope Saturday’s Clean-up Day will inspire some Lebanon residents to head to the MRG to check out the raging river, the bloodroot, and help clean up the litter!
Bloodroot!
The Mascoma River Greenway 