Goodbye, grass mowers and chemical herbicides. Hello, goats grazing in Toronto parkland for a two-day test run.
Recently, goats named Munchkin, Mocha, Baba, Wipeout and Cinnamon were among a herd helping themselves to all the plants they could consume in downtown Don Valley Brick Works (DVBW) Park.
In an effort to better maintain its natural habitats, Toronto recently launched an innovative pilot project using a specialized “eco-herd” of goats aimed at controlling woody and invasive plants in the park.
On June 25 and 26, the eco-herd was deployed for an intensive two-day grazing session, marking the first time Toronto has tested prescribed grazing for its urban meadow ecosystem.
“We're trying out something new,” said Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow. “A pilot project to see how goats can help maintain meadows and prairies in Toronto's parks. If successful, it would be an environmentally friendly and affordable way to keep our parks well-maintained.”
The city says urban-managed meadows, such as DVBW park, contribute to the important habitat diversity and urban ecology of Toronto. Prescribed grazing represents an opportunity to introduce a new tool to help maintain the local ecosystem.
“Currently, urban meadows and prairies within Toronto are managed using a combination of techniques, such as herbicide application, mowing and burning,” reads the city’s statement. Now, the goat-grazing project represents “an exciting opportunity to show the City’s commitment to innovative ecosystem management.”
Many benefits arise from meadow management including reduced carbon emissions, noise pollution and reliance on mechanical equipment, while minimizing impacts on ground-nesting, burrowing and slow-moving animals, according to the city. The project would also encourage re-growth of native species and improve species diversity, while potentially decreasing the need for chemical herbicides over time. It lowers labour demands needed for manual methods like cutting and digging. And soil quality can be enhanced, while opportunities for public education about meadow management are provided, the city statement added.
The city’s forestry staff and volunteer-run Toronto Field Naturalists (TFN) are developing a protocol to monitor species in natural sites like the Brick Works park. This partnership aims to inventory flora and fauna at DVBW park before and after prescribed grazing to assess vegetation trends and the impact on invasive species. TFN will monitor the meadow's central area, half grazed in 2024, and provide a control area for comparison, the city said.
Jason Ramsay-Brown, a TFN member who leads the group’s monitoring efforts, explained: “In order to gauge the effectiveness of this pilot program, the city wanted to ensure that they had a clear understanding of the plants and animals that were using the grazing zone in the year prior to the goats showing up. We did a series of vegetation assessments last year, right up until basically the day the goats arrived.”
“We will follow up for the next year with evaluations of the site to see what impact grazing had and how the plant and animal life at this site changed in response to the grazing activity of the goats,” he added.
Ramsay-Brown told Canada’s National Observer that goats offer several tactical advantages over traditional mowing techniques. Goats can access areas where mowing is impractical, consuming plant material rather than leaving it behind. This reduces the need for cleanup and has the potential to enhance the site’s ecological balance, he said.
Noise pollution and exhaust fumes are reduced without traditional machinery. This makes goats a more community-friendly option, especially in certain areas and times of the year, Ramsay-Brown noted. Herd grazing has been a natural part of ecosystems for thousands of years, so reintroducing this method offers a historically appropriate form of habitat management, he added.
DVBW park's ecosystem is also well-suited for the pilot project. “By our estimate, 90 per cent of the species present are edible and attractive to goats,” said Ramsay-Brown. “I think it will be quite interesting to watch, over the next year, which of the 10 per cent they avoided take advantage of the fact that grazing occurred. That could speak to a whole bunch of potential opportunities for re-naturalization of native species.”
Ramsay-Brown said different grazing animals have varying dietary preferences. For instance, sheep tend to favour grasses over herbaceous plants, while goats prefer herbaceous plants. In Toronto, many invasive species are herbaceous, making goats particularly effective in managing these plants. Goats are also aggressive eaters of woody plants, including tree saplings and semi-mature trees.
This trait is advantageous for preserving the rare meadow habitats at DVBW park. Without intervention, these meadows would gradually transform into forests, he noted. By grazing on woody plants, goats help maintain the meadow ecosystem, supporting wildlife that relies on this habitat.
“The fact that goats favour these woody plants means that they have an amplifying effect in protecting the meadow that another grazing animal, like sheep, for example, wouldn't necessarily produce the same results,” said Ramsay-Brown.
“I think grazing by goats in an urban environment, particularly with the composition of woody plants and herbaceous species that are of greatest concern in Toronto, makes goats an ideal choice of grazer in these circumstances.”
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