NEWPORT — For the second year the Memphremagog Watershed Association (MWA) held a “Blueberries for Blue Waters Workshop.”
MWA members Ginnie & Bob Bowman hosted the event on June 27. The workshop included a presentation by Perry Thomas, Manager for Lakes and Ponds Management about the nearshore ecology and relationship to shorelands.
Perry also invited participants to view some of the lake shore critters via a dissecting microscope.
Judy Davis of the Federation of Vermont Lakes and Ponds (FOVLAP) provided information about planting and caring for blueberries and discussed the benefits of vegetative buffers.
All participants received four mature blueberry plants, a variety to promote healthy pollination, soil amendments, handouts to support “Lake Wise” best practices and a shoreland management buffer pledge.
For the past few years, Vermont lake associations and homeowners wishing to learn more about managing their properties for lake health have had the opportunity to receive workshops, educational materials, and plants to help defray the cost of planting buffers.
Through the Buffers for Blue Lakes program, lake associations invited local homeowners to attend a workshop where they learned about lake ecology and the role that shoreland buffers play in creating healthy shallow water ecosystems.
In addition to the workshop and educational materials, homeowners on each lake received blueberry plants, soil amendments, and technical support for planting their blueberries.
