by Tao Oliveto, Carrboro

Remember my post about The Goat Patrol – the greener weed eaters? Well, I had the chance to see them up close and personal this morning! They have been hired by the Carrboro Parks system to take care of the brush, weeds and vines invading some tree areas, and I stumbled upon them this morning during my morning dog walk.

I didn’t get a picture, but here’s one from the website. Just imagine a group of blissed-out, medium-sized, multi-colored goats reaching and chewing and reaching and chewing. They only paused from their mission to bleat loudly when their owner and guardian, Alex, would wander too far away – they obviously were happily attached to her.

Alex says that by the end of the day, their bellies are nice and round but they come back lean each morning. They are contained by simple movable fencing that changes location each day. She added that they seemed a bit sleepy yet this morning but would soon kick in to high gear.

Nice that Carrboro “gets it”. Every town needs a Goat Patrol – entrepreneurs, pay attention!

by Tao Oliveto, Carrboro, NC

It’s Spring. You know what that means. And I’m not talking about the birds and the bees. I’m talking about lawnmowers, weedwackers and leaf blowers. That insidious noise that drowns out the above mentioned, seems to be endless between March and October, and pollutes more than our ears. Did you know:

Gasoline-powered landscape equpment account for over 5% of our urban air pollution.

Running your lawnmower for 1 hour is equal to driving a new car between 200 and 300 miles from an air pollution standpoint.

And, each year, more than 17 million gallons of fuel are spilled during the refueling of power lawn and garden equipment. (See here for sources.)

Not surprisingly, Mik and Jodi Beetham found the noise and smell of their former NYC home “tame compared to the pollution of traditional lawn equipment used every day here” in the sub-urban areas of NC. So, they did what more and more eco-minded folks are doing – something about it. They started a business called, Green Energy Lawn Care.

I met these two at the Farmer’s Market last weekend, where they were enthusiastically talking about life with lawns. They believe that home/yard-owners should have the option of making a difference in their carbon footprint. Their inclusive yard servicing is powered by battery/electric equipment and small, fuel efficient trucks. They use solar generators for recharging and the carbon they do create is entirely offset by NCGreenPower.

Green Energy Lawn Care is a contributor to the Environmental Defense Fund and the Natural Resources Defense Council. Learn more on their website, or call for a free estimate in the Triangle area at 919-338-2667.

Mik and Jodi should team up with Alix and The Goat Patrol – now there’s a holistic green landscaping idea!

by Tao Oliveto, Carrboro, NC

Got ivy, honeysuckle, poisen ivy, kudzu or other invasives taking over your yard? Call Goat Patrol – the fastest, most efficient and most sustainable landscaping team available. This discovery has made me smile all day – sustainable landscaping at it’s best! What I’ve learned so far from The Goat Patrol:

Nature’s landscape architects, goats can clear invasive growth from any area in record time and with skillfull precision. Born to munch, goats graze up to 8 – 12 hours per day, quietly moving around an area to find their favorite edibles. Goats are also non-toxic and won’t threaten the water supply.

Business school graduate, entrepreneur, land and animal lover, Alix Bowman, owns and operates Goat Patrol in NC, which includes a hungry team of superhero ruminants. Alix and her team get the job done without gasoline emissions, noise pollution from machinery or weedwackers, herbicides – or coffee breaks!

Alix and her team have an affordable and enjoyable working system which begins with a free estimate of your landscaping needs. Appropriate for large or small areas, the costs cover 3 simple steps – installation of portable fencing, grazing time and transportation of the herd. Fencing is set up to specification, the goats and supervising goatherd arrive the next day. The herd heads home each night, returning until the job is done.

I’m looking foward to bringing the Goat Patrol to our co-housing community to clean things up soon. Visit GoatPatrol.com to meet the team – a herd of munchers with personality and charm!