Goats Help to Landscape Roger Williams Park and You Can Help Too

By: Tim Studebaker

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PROVIDENCE, R.I. –  Landscaping can be a tough job, made even tougher when unwanted plants invade the area.

One park in Providence is going back to an old solution to deal with those invasive plants.  Three goats are doing the job at the Roger Williams Park Botanical Center.

Lee Ann Freitas, the Director of the RWP Botanical Center, says, “This is Jean, by the way.  Jean Ralphio.  This one right here, with the eyebrow, his name is Salvatore.  And this one right here is Vincent Van Goat.”

The goats are part of a program helping to rid the park of invasive plant species.  It’s a natural solution that Freitas says is also saving tax dollars.

Freitas says, “It’s a very holistic approach to controlling invasive plant species.  It’s a very sustainable approach.”

And, it all comes full circle.

Freitas says, “We use their manure in our garden beds for fertilization.”

It’s actually not the first time the park has been landscaped by grazing animals.  From about 1900 to 1920, a flock of 300 sheep used to do much of the same work.  That was the inspiration for today’s volunteer program.

Freitas says, “We have volunteers come and open the goats in the morning.  They feed them.  They muck out the barn.  They take them for a stroll, walk them along the trails, and then they bring them back.”

And at the end of the day, volunteers put them to bed too.

Freitas says, “Some of our volunteers are so dedicated, they have read bedtime stories, but you don’t have to do that part.”

It’s part of the city’s plan for a sustainable park system.  It’s a pilot program with the goal to eventually expand into the city’s other parks.

They’re looking for more volunteers.  Here’s a link to learn more or apply: https://rogerwilliamspark.wordpress.com/2017/04/24/volunteers-needed-to-care-for-the-newest-rwp-residents/

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