2 months after Find It, Fix It Walk, goats clearing slope near Westwood stairway

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More than 50 goats from Rent-A-Ruminant have been busy clearing one of the Westwood-area trouble spots highlighted during the Find It, Fix It Community Walk two months ago – a tangle of stairway-side brush, the removal of which has revealed numerous cans, bottles, and other litter.

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We got word of their work at 22nd SW/SW Henderson late today from Ami, who had spoken to the mayor and dozens of other walkers during the July 26th event, playing a video clip from a former neighbor who said crime and disorder in the area had forced her to move (it’s in our July 26th report).

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Ami explained in her note today, “After the Find it Fix it walk, we applied for a grant to mulch the area adjacent to the 22nd Ave SW and Henderson stairs. SDOT assigned an arborist to the project who brought in goats and is donating mulch for our neighborhood work party on 10/1 from noon to 2 pm.” We went over for a look at the goats, whose “head wrangler,” RAR proprietor Tammy, told us they’ve been working since Thursday and will likely leave around midmorning Sunday. (Her herd also did work for SDOT along the Delridge/Holden stairway a year and a half ago.)

6 Replies to "2 months after Find It, Fix It Walk, goats clearing slope near Westwood stairway"

  • LarryB September 24, 2016 (9:45 pm)

    The blackberries are encroaching on the Holden stairway again. Time for another goat visit.

    • WSB September 24, 2016 (9:51 pm)

      Talking with Tammy, she said she’d noticed that. Report it to SDOT and maybe they’ll bring back the goats! (206-684-ROAD, or the Find It Fix It app.)

  • West Seattle Hipster September 25, 2016 (1:28 am)

    The Holden staircase was over grown within a few weeks of the last goat feeding.


  • D. Radke-Bogen September 25, 2016 (9:29 am)

    A one off goat visit won’t kill invasive blackberrys. They come back from the roots. Repeated visits will eventually starve the roots. Pigs will “root them out” but don’t smell as nice as goats. Around my yard I use a demolition bar.  It’s an octagonal bar  about 6ft tall, one inch in diameter and has a pointed end and the other is a chisel. Stab and pry into the ground near a vine until the plant loosens and then pull it out. They will still come back from root fragments and seeds so the process needs to be repeated.

    DRB

    Seola Creek

  • Mark September 25, 2016 (10:37 pm)

    Lots of goat food to go around.  This is creative natural vegetation control.

  • wsn00b September 26, 2016 (3:05 pm)

    How much does this cost (per sq-ft/acre) compared to doing this with tools/machines?  What is the quality difference in the way the ground is cleared  (short term and long term)? 

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