TREE ADVOCATE: VIRGINIA R.
About Virginia
The discovery of the Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALB), as well as the ice storm in 2009, heavily impacted the tree population within the City of Worcester. After being informed that the city council would not replace the damaged trees from the ice storm and ALB on Arbutus Road, resident Virginia established a petition for the replanting of trees on her road and gathered 19 signatures. The petition was a success and the city mandated the distribution of trees for each resident on the street in 2015. However, nine of the residents on her street did not want newly planted trees due to their perceptions of associated maintenance. The city council enforced the planting of one tree per resident despite the unwillingness of her neighbors to take care of the trees. Virginia worked with her neighbors to help them understand that the tree maintenance would not be overwhelming to them. Additionally, Virginia even volunteered to take care of her neighbor's trees. Virginia believes that trees are important for every neighborhood by producing oxygen, providing canopies for shade, and beautifying the street.
Kwanzan Trees
Virginia embodies the Worcester Tree Initiative’s mission through her advocacy for the trees in her neighborhood. She addressed the tree epidemic as a concerned resident and encouraged her community to support the replanting of the trees within their neighborhood.
Virginia now currently owns two Kwanzan Cherry Trees in front of her house that are relatively small and continuing to grow. Kwanzan Cherry Trees are adaptable and can be found planted on sidewalks and roadways. The tree requires minimal care and is tolerant to droughts (mildly), summer heat, and humidity. However, it does need at least 6 hours of sunlight per day and adequate irrigation. Pruning is not necessary unless the branches are afflicted with diseases.
Burncoat High School
Before the tree casualties of 2009, Virginia expressed her passion for nature by teaching biology and ecology at Burncoat High School. The Worcester Tree Initiative has also been active with Burncoat School students by inviting students to participate in the replanting of trees within their community. Virginia supports The Worcester Tree Initiative’s mission to educate and inform students; she believes that education is vital to the future of the environment.
Personal Garden
Aside from her political activities, Virginia is heavily involved with her personal garden and has gained the reputation of the “flower lady” within the community. After a day of teaching students at school, Virginia would return home and weed her garden. She invested her time in maintaining a variety of flowers including roses, daffodils, tulips, and perennials. Virginia also has a Dogwood Tree that is unfortunately infested by ants but she has been thoroughly monitoring its condition since the discovery.