DAIRY GOATS IN THE WOODS (SILVOPASTURE SERIES EP 7)

Painted Pepper Farm is on the coast of Dyer Harbor in Maine. The farm, which includes the on-site creamery Dairy Delights, is owned and operated by Lisa Reilich. Lisa’s herd of 70 Nigerian dwarf dairy goats forage in the wooded pastures 7 months out of the year (roughly May 1st to November 1st), benefiting from a diverse diet of deciduous and coniferous tree browse, fruit drops, pasture grasses, and supplemental seaweed harvested during low tide. If there is no snow cover in other months, the goats will continue to browse on fir tips and other plants.

ABOUT THE SERIES
With support from the USDA National Agroforestry Center (NAC), a collaboration of Regenerative Design Group, Wellspring Forest Farm, and Inhabit Films announce the release of a free video series documenting Silvopasture systems in the Northeastern USA.

Silvopasture (grazing livestock with trees) systems are complex, dynamic and site specific. The practice is both rooted in indigenous land stewardship and its benefits are well documented by scientific literature. Adoption by farmers and land stewards of silvopasture is relatively low, but growing in interest.

This project began with an inventory of self-identified silvopasture practitioners in the Northeast US region which resulted in 145 responses across 9 states (ME, VT, NH, MA, CT, NY, RI, NJ, PA) of people who reported stewarding 26,782 acres, with 5,267 of those acres in Silvopasture. From these respondents a range of examples were selected for videos and case studies to offer a snapshot of the practice along with ideas and inspiration for others to follow.

Videos will be released biweekly through the Farming with Trees collective, a decentralized network encouraging collaborative projects in Agroforestry that are grounded in the wisdom and knowledge of people, communities and ecosystems. Find out more at www.FarmingwithTrees.org.