You've Got to Get Goats!

Morris Plains has a plan to try to combat invasive plants. The town’s Beautification Committee looked at options to rid our parks and open spaces of these plants. Goats were the answer! Goats eat invasives like knotweed, mug wart, buckhorn, and poison ivy. By eating the leaves and stems, more light and air can reach native plants and grasses, helping them to thrive. Native plant species will attract pollinators that are vital for landscape health.

The goat herder said that they don’t get calls from municipalities. Morris Plains is one of very few who are using goats to get rid of invasive plants and they’re not sure why this is. Most of their business comes from large estate owners. So, Morris Plains is now in the forefront when it comes to ecologically sound invasive plant removal.

In some towns it’s actually illegal to have invasive plants on your property and housing sales cannot be completed if they’re present. Unchecked these invasive plants rapidly invade large areas, often forming monocultures (communities of just one plant), outcompeting diverse, native plant life. If they grow near structures, they can easily destroy driveways and building foundations.

So many of the familiar plants we see in our open spaces, along roadsides, and in fields are not native to New Jersey at all and cause great ecological harm. These invasives grow out of control because they have no diseases or predators controlling their spread, and deer generally don't eat them. It's tempting to think that all green plants are good, but that would be a mistake.

Spearheading the Morris Plains project is committee member Chris Graziano who researched farms in the area that offer goat services. The low bidder was Neighborhood Farms, a New Jersey based company. They set up a solar powered electric fenced area next to the pond at the Morris Plains Community Park, which is moved periodically during a three-week period. Graziano stated that, “There are 13 goats within the electrified fencing, ranging in age from adult down to a cute little white baby goat. They seem to get lost in the bushes, but when they don't see their buddies they will cry out to find them.” She went on to say that, “the goats eat pretty much ANYTHING!”

These goats are in Morris Plains to work. It's important for residents and visitors who want to observe them realize that it is not a petting zoo and that the electric fencing can give quite a shock. The goats need to be left alone to do their job.