ALT A picture of a goat with text that says landscape sustainably with goats by Corey Farrenkopf librarian at eastham public library - blue marble library blog post

ALT Picture of a goat with text that says: When we think about sustainable landscaping at libraries, our minds often go to rain gardens, pollinator gardens, educational gardens filled with native plants, and community vegetable gardens. But how often do we think about sustainable landscape maintenance? Most town-run libraries have their grounds taken care of by the town’s highway department. They hustle in and mow and weed whack once a week and they’re on their way. While they do a good job, all of their tools and machinery burn fossil fuels, which isn’t great. In America, “it takes about 800 million gallons of gasoline annually, with 17 million additional gallons spilled” to maintain public and private landscaping needs (Jiahn Sohn, Princeton).

ALT Picture of goats in an enclosure with text that says: A recent trend in sustainable landscaping is to hire a team of goats to munch on all of your unwanted plants. Whether it be poison ivy, or knotweed, or saplings growing where they shouldn’t, the goats will devour them in a nice, leisurely manner. The knotweed, in particular, is a particularly interesting case. It’s become one of the hardest to manage invasives sweeping our peninsula. In an article titled, “Knotweed Dispensary,” Connecticut College had this to say about the issue, “While most plants reproduce by a scattering of their seeds, new knotweed plants crop up from pieces of other plants that have broken free and established roots. Their greatest foe, then, may well be the bearded, bleating weed-whacking goats that find the knotweed so delicious.”

ALT A picture of a white goat with text that says: Recently at the Eastham Library, we had Goat Green Cape Cod bring in a team of goats to take care of the overgrown edge separating the library from the forest that leads down to Depot Pond. This space had become swamped with poison ivy and brambles, encroaching on our rear lawn, which we use for programming space. The last thing you want when you’re having outdoor story time is for a toddler to toddle off into a thicket of poison ivy. Yikes.

ALT Blue Marble Library Blog Post Starting a Circular Seed Economy at Your Library by Corey farrenkopf, librarian at eastham public library

ALT Like many libraries, the Eastham Public Library has a seed library that offers free seeds to all patrons (limit of 5 packets per visit though!). It’s a great way to provide access to everyone who may not be able to afford seeds or might not have access to fresh and nutritious produce. It’s a way to get your community to think about health and where their food comes from and possibly even teach some sustainability and self reliance along the way.

ALT Each year, we host an annual seed swap to get the community excited for the growing season and to provide a place for patrons to swap seeds. We make sure our seed library is stocked and ready to share before the swap, but we also make sure we have plenty of little manilla envelopes for people to divide up their seeds with and distribute at the program. We have a number of active nonprofits in the area concerned with organic gardening, food forests, and sustainable agriculture. I always reach out to them to spread the word and see if anyone can join us for the night. It always helps to have a few experts around to help teach new growers. The only real rule we have at the swap is that every seed packet/envelope needs to be clearly labeled…otherwise, you might think you’re planting kale and end up with turnips!

ALT There are many nonprofits and seed companies around the US that are happy to donate seeds to a good cause. Here are a few of my favorites: High Mowing Organic Seeds, who charge only the shipping for a large number of seed packets if you are a nonprofit/tax exempt entity. Sow Right Seeds, who will send you a curated collection of seeds if you are a non-profit/tax exempt entity and align with their organization goals. Seed Savers Exchange, who will, for a small fee, also send you a bunch of exciting seeds to stock in your library.