Land & Fiber
How Our Landscapes Benefit From Grazing Animals
Grasslands evolved with grazers. Grazers move across the grasslands, pruning back the grasses and adding fertility to the soil through their dung and urine. Grasses respond to the pruning and manure deposits by developing healthy root systems. Healthy root systems of a balanced grassland ecosystem create resilience during drought and fire and hold healthy soils in place. Humans have been taking advantage of this wonderful symbiosis between plants and animals since domesticating sheep, goats, and cattle and other ruminants 10,000 years ago. When done properly, grazing domestic animals can fill the role that herds of wild animals once played in maintaining healthy grassland environments, and produce food and fiber in the process.
The Magic of Wool
Wool is a warm, flexible, durable fiber that has been used by humans to create protective clothing and shelter for centuries. Today, wool is valued as an all-natural fiber and when it comes from sheep grazed properly, it can also be climate beneficial, helping sequester carbon in soils and in the wool itself. 100% wool is also fully biodegradable. Products made from wool are durable and will last for generations, but not forever in our soils as microplastics.
Local wool producers are slowly bringing back wool products and making clothing and household goods from farm wool and yarns. Bringing back local, small-scale wool industry depends on working together with shepherds, shearers, and mills that turn raw wool into spinnable wool and artisans that make beautiful products from local wool. Most of our wool growers are Fibershed Certified Climate Beneficial Wool and we expect all of our artisans to use local wool. The Wool Shed is proud to support these small-scale producers by selling their products in a permanent location in Point Reyes Station.
Understanding Livestock Guardian Dogs
Livestock Guardian Dogs (LGDs) are used to protect sheep from predators that live where sheep graze. LGDs have been bred to protect the animals that they are raised with and keep predators at bay, eliminating the loss of livestock and the need to kill predators. Breeds such as Great Pyrenees, Akbash, Marema, and Anatolians live among the sheep and are happy doing their jobs. They will keep strangers and domestic dogs at bay, so respect their role as protector and keep your distance.