By Reba Kocher
Listen to this post here: goats.mp3
I am excited to announce that we have two new staff members at the gardens!
Our newest staff members
Help us name them on social media by clicking here https://www.facebook.com/clarygardens/photos/a.115470678560782/2548703191904173/?type=3&theater . So you are probably wondering to yourself, “Why did Clary Gardens get goats?” Goats are actually great at helping us control invasive species. Some examples of invasives that can be found in our woodlands include: garlic mustard (which you can read about here: http://clarygardens.org/blog.php?d=68 ), poison ivy, Japanese honeysuckle, and many more. Invasive species are extremely harmful because they displace native plants, they change wildlife habitats, and they can negatively impact cultivated plant species. The invasives compete with the natives for sunlight, water, and nutrients found in the soil. Several invasives, like garlic mustard, will choke out the roots of native plants. This causes not only a decline in the native plants, but it also leads to a decline in important native insect and wildlife populations. There are insects and animals that rely solely on native plants for their food. In other cases, if, for example, an invasive plant species chokes out most of the milkweed in your yard then that leads to a decline in monarch butterfly caterpillars which can then lead to a decline in black-backed oriole birds. According to an Ohio State University economic impact assessment, the estimated environmental damage in the United States is $120 billion a year for all types of invasives (plants, wildlife, and insects combined). $35 billion of this can be directly due to invasive plants. As you can see, invasives are a huge problem. Since our ash trees died, due to the Emerald Ash Borer Beetle, the amount of invasives in our woodlands has increased. They are exposed to much more sun, which is allowing them to thrive. Even though there are other ways to control invasives, we decided to rent goats. We are committed to our mission of environmental stewardship, and we have developed a woodland management plan with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. As a result, we do not ever want to use herbicibes (or pesticides). Herbicides for a problem like this can kill other, beneficial plants, but it can also kill insects, like bees, or wildlife. Mowing and burning are other methods of controlling invasives, but it poses the same problem. It could reduce the amount of the beneficial plants, and it is much more demanding on our staff. Goats are the safer option because they are easier to control, they do all the work, and we don’t have to worry about them harming the woodlands. Getting goats is a win-win. We rent the goats from a farmer, they get to eat as much as they want, and we get rid of invasives! Stop by and tell the goats hi!
References & Further Reading:
http://ohiodnr.gov/invasiveplants
https://theoec.org/protecting-public-lands/non-native-invasive-species/
https://ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/sciencebitesvolume2/chapter/chapter-1/
https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_029102.pdf
https://www.apnews.com/c7f234cf3bd540158e3e79ba701489d5
https://practicalfarmers.org/2016/12/research-report-using-goats-to-control-invasive-species/