Page 45 - Priorities #70
P. 45

                                        The problem plants that grow on the Priory hillside are especially vexing because they have a get-in/get-out quick population strategy that allows seeds to germinate, grow, get pollinated, reproduce and disperse in a cycle that is out of sync with the school’s scheduled brush clearing. Fact is, you can’t drive a heavy mower on a steep and muddy hillside in the middle of winter.
So, on March 23, Brian and Daniel Allen of Green Goat Landscaping brought 240 goats, which were set out on two acres surrounded by a temporary electric fence. The goats, they assured me, would eat everything, even the thistle. The goats grazed the Priory hillside. They looked happy and quite at home.
During the week that they were on campus, more than 10 kids (the goat kind)
were born and the goats did indeed eat everything in their two-acre enclosure. They 45 browsed thistle and native grasses to soil level. By the end of the week, in fact,
the last bits of green were disappearing from the hillside like the final sands in an
hourglass. And despite the pleas and plaintive statements from students, “I hope
we keep them. I feel like I am in love when they are around,” I wanted them to
leave. I was worried that we had over-grazed the hillside.
So the goats left. And as the weeks passed and the seasons have changed, the multiple benefits of their time on campus have proved themselves. Yellow star thistle is not present in the areas where the goats grazed. Native grasses have filled in lushly. Moreover, in the time that the grasses were laid-low, red-tailed hawks feasted on rats, squirrels, and gophers. The pests had nowhere to hide.
And, an additional benefit of the grazing seemed to be that the hillside retained more moisture. The grazing and ranging by the goats had re-invigorated micro- organisms in the soil. The grasses in the grazed area of the hillside remained green long after neighboring grasses had turned brown and turned to thatch.
In reflection, the goat-grazing project was an experiment in function stacking. Particularly, it was an experiment in the application of “integrated pest management”. It was a living and dynamic example of the ways in which we can apply regenerative solutions to take advantage of multiple layers of benefits. And while I think that the benefits to the Priory soils and plant communities are immense and represent the school’s embrace of sustainability on a holistic level, I’d also suggest that something much deeper was happening, as well. There was a spiritual benefit that came from having the goats around as well, a kind of ancient and existential reminder that all is right and in balance when humans, animals, and their landscape are working in harmony with one another.
Sincerely,
Hovey Clark Sustainability Director
               SUSTAINABILITY





















































































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