PUTNEY — After nearly 70 years, grazing animals returned to the summit of Putney Mountain - and kept it clear and open during the summer of 2014.
In late September, a flock of 38 sheep, accompanied by shepherds David, Yesenia, Marion, Sam, Danielle, and Johnnie,NOTE (Unknown Author, 2014-11-23T00:10:47): Why no last names? border collies Joni and Cookie, and the Maremma guard dog Phantom, walked more than seven miles from David Major's farm in Westminster West to Putney Mountain.
Once there, the sheep set themselves on a diet of glossy buckthorn, an invasive plant that's overtaken the once-bare summit. In short order, the sheep demolished the buckthorn's last-of-the-season growth.
Until the 1940s, the top of Putney Mountain was used regularly by local dairy farmers as a summer pasture for young stock. Putney historians suggest that even earlier, when settlers lived high on the ridge, sheep likely were kept on the mountain.
According to the 2010 survey taken by Putney's Conservation Commission, Putney Mountain is the most often visited natural area in the town.
When the Putney Mountain Association (PMA) took ownership of the land in 1947, much of the ridgeline and the highest point were essentially open. A few old trees, including the so-called Elephant Tree (which still stands) were well established, but the view west to the Green Mountains and east to Monadnock was clear from several vantage points.
As has happened all over Vermont, when livestock moved out the forest moved in. But the bare ledges of the summit were inhospitable to seedlings, and those that took hold were easily controlled by lopping and pruning, while hayscented fern established itself in the hollows.
Then came glossy buckthorn: Frangula alnus, an invasive plaguing forests in southeastern Vermont. The Vermont invasives website describes buckthorn as “an aggressive invader that can form dense thickets which shade and displace native understory plants, shrubs and tree seedlings.”
Left to its own devices on Putney Mountain's summit buckthorn would grow 20 to 30 feet high, blocking prized vistas and sightlines for dedicated hawk watchers who monitor the hawk migration each autumn.
In addition, as buckthorn displaces native plants, habitat for native wildlife is threatened.
For many years, PMA members attempted to keep buckthorn under control by cutting it back annually, and sometimes attempting twice-a-year cutting.
This only seemed to serve as pruning, encouraging vigorous regrowth and the development of deeply entrenched roots. Cutting three times a year was recommended but the infestation overcame volunteers' efforts.
Many Putney Mountain Association board meetings have included discussion of the buckthorn problem. A decision was made to use glyphosate, a broad-spectrum systemic herbicide, as a foliar spray on a test patch.
At the same time, investigations began looking into the use of grazing animals, a more natural method of invasives control and one that's at home on agricultural land and in cities. It's worked in San Francisco, Cleveland, and Detroit, research shows.
NOTE (Unknown Author, 2014-11-23T00:27:14): Passive construction here confused me, so cut.Landscape gardener Hope Crolius of Amherst, Mass., realizing many of her clients needed brush clearing services, founded The Goat Girls. In late May, with grants made available to pay for two two-week visits by this group, two herders with 15 goats in tow, and equipped with hundreds of feet of solar-powered electric fencing, were welcomed to the Putney Mountain summit.
And the goats began to chomp.
It was almost miraculous to watch the goats devouring buckthorn leaves, and astonishing to see how quickly new leaves sprouted.NOTE (Unknown Author, 2014-11-23T00:04:39): Our reporter needs to say she was there or something, that these are her impressions. There's no attribution.
Visitors to the summit were full of questions, finding the grazing project a source of great interest. Many expressed appreciation that such a natural, tried-and-true method was being applied to this beautiful location.
A second two-week session, with the goats covering the same area, began in late July. Again, leaves regrew, though a bit less vigorously than before.
With insufficient funds for a desired third visit from The Goat Girls, the question became how to proceed. Was there a local herd of goats that could be employed?
None was found, but in a casual conversation NOTE (Unknown Author, 2014-11-23T00:07:01): Whose conversation? Four layers of passive construction here.with David Major, producer of prize-winning Vermont Shepherd cheeses, it was learned that sheep control buckthorn on his farm. A flock of 38 ewes was about to be dried off from the milking parlor and could be made available.
This local source of grazing animals proved affordable, and the sheep proved equal to the task. With the increased number of animals and their stay of almost three weeks, the sheep were able to cover the area grazed by the goats - and quite a bit more.
(To see sheep, shepherds, and dogs leaving the mountain Oct. 14, watch the film made by Greg McAllister for Brattleboro Community Television at http://bit.ly/1Ff5BWQ.)
With just one summer of grazing, buckthorn has been significantly reduced and the area is more accessible for people and animals.
That's not to say buckthorn is eradicated from Putney Mountain's summit. Leaf-out next spring will show how much progress was made.
As avid hiker Shana FrankNOTE (Unknown Author, 2014-11-23T00:09:36): When? Where? To whom? Was this hiker present at the grazing? Plus this graf doesn't quite ring authentic – it sounds promotional, which risks casting the whole piece under suspicion. remarked, “The top of Putney Mountain offers spectacular views. Thanks to the Putney Mountain Association and the help of some hungry goats and sheep, now the experience is even more enjoyable.”