COOPERSBURG, PA - It’s the Christmas gift that keeps on giving!
"It’s better than just throwing it in the trash or leaving it outside on your curb for the trash to come get," says Shelby Mumma, a former intern at Flint Hill Farm Educational Center, "You bring it over here, it can actually be used as another purpose and the goats love it!"
The start of the new year means out with the old...and for many that includes disposing of live Christmas trees that have been posted inside our living rooms since Thanksgiving. But for the goats here at Flint Hill Farm Educational Center, Christmas is just arriving now.
"People can drop their Christmas trees off and it’s good for goats," explains Steward of the farm and educational center, Kathleen Fields, "It helps; goats are browsers, they’re not grazers so they will eat a little bit here and little bit there and it helps their micro-nutrient as well so we are very happy to share it."
The 26 acre preserved farm in Coopersburg that also sells a plethora of homemade dairy products is expanding its work by taking donated Christmas trees to help feed these hungry animals. Donating locals will get so much more when they stop by to drop off their used tree...
"When you come in and drop off your Christmas tree, you can also take a look around. It’s a public farm so you can take a walk down the lane and see the dairy cows, you can see all the kinds of horses and I’m sure Miss Kathy would love to come and talk to you about the farm and what they do," Mumma tells PBS39 News Tonight reporter, K.C. Lopez, "We also have chickens and we have ducks and all kinds of animals that you can see and we also have the market, the store; so you can get some cheeses, milk and ice cream and just any kind of dairy products that we make that are homemade from the farm."
Local farmers across the country are doing the same.. and at the right time! The National Fire Protection Association says nearly a third (29%) of home fires that begin with Christmas trees occur in the month of January; when trees are dried out from a long holiday season. So what better way to dispose of your overdone decoration?
"They’re just going to drive up the driveway, our phone number is outside the store," explains Fields, "So if we are not out they can call us or they can just drop them over the fence into this field here and then we’ll spread them around."
Now, many say this environmentally-friendly afterlife for tree trinkets helps keep your home safe and local farms feedtheir livestock. But before you go throwing your own tinsel-touting tree into the goat’s den, be cautious of what might still be on it’s limbs...
"They can’t have tinsel and they can’t have fire retardant on them," Fields warns, "None of those are healthy for our goats. So please make sure that your trees don’t have fire retardants, please don’t have decorations or tinsel on them and we’ll be happy to recycle them. There you go!"
While it’s obvious goats love Christmas trees, and many say they are great for treating intestinal parasites in the animals, it is important to only toss untreated, unpainted trees that are clear of any hooks and ornaments over the fence on the last field on the left here at the farm located at 1922 Flint Hill Road.
Got a news tip? Email K.C. at KCLopez@WLVT.org!