Volunteers and sisters braved a wet Saturday to tackle some of the invasive species in the landscaping around the monastery. "We have been working to eliminate invasive species here at the Mount," said Sister Annette Marshall, chair of the Care for the Earth committee. She explained that invasive species are types of plants and animals that have been introduced into an area that do not belong there naturally and are prone to take over an area and not allow the native plants or animals to live there. The main invasive species that we have been working to eliminate has been multifloral rose - which the goats we have hired for the past three summers have been helping us do. Another invasive that is often used in landscaping and was introduced onto monastery property in that way is English ivy. It has been growing since 1970 and has gotten out of hand and has been growing on the trees. It needs to be manually removed and replaced with a native ground cover.
"We are grateful to volunteers from the Boy Scouts, Neighborhood Art House, Oblates, Master Gardeners, Master Watershed Stewards, PLEWA, and Eagles Nest School who came to help us begin to tackle the ivy," said Sister Pat Lupo, long-time environmental advocate and instructor at the Art House.
If you are interested in learning more about how the goats help clear the land, join us for Goat Fest on Saturday, August 23, from 1-4 p.m. There are also sponsorship opportunities available for Goat Fest, click here.
