Earth Tools Supports JSP's Land Stewardship

For 15 years, Earth Tools has been a partner connecting the park with the resources needed to do the work.

When Josephine Sculpture Park was founded 15 years ago, the physical labor of removing invasive species and mowing walkable pathways was all done by the park’s founders, primarily Melanie VanHouten and her husband BJ Duvall. Their background in horticulture proved useful, but they had to do more plant removal than growing at first. BJ’s employer, Earth Tools, lent a hand in many ways, with donations, discounts on equipment, event sponsorships, volunteer labor and expertise. 

Earth Tools helped the park buy their first zero-turn riding lawn mower and when the time came to replace its’ engine nearly 15 years later, they again stepped up and donated parts and service.

Caring for the land requires tools at the appropriate scale for the park, and for the staff and volunteers who use them. With Reforest Frankfort in 2018, 2,000 tree saplings were planted. They could quickly be overtaken by bush honeysuckle, Bradford pear and other woody invasive shrubs and trees. Careful mowing around these fragile young lives gives them a fighting chance at survival, and the perfect tool for the job is a walk-behind tractor. By partnering with Earth Tools, the park secured a grant and purchased the park’s walk-behind. Just like a four-wheeled tractor, the walk-behind can be used with a variety of implements. It can be used as a plow, mower, hay baler or even a wood chipper, but it is much more compact with no seat or steering wheel.

Unlike a tractor or riding mower, the walk-behind enables the operator to pay closer attention to details on the ground. As Joel Dufour, owner of Earth Tools explains, “It’s slower, more precise so you can see what you’re doing. This is critical to help maintain young saplings without destroying them by accident.”

Melanie appreciates this different kind of tractor. “We need something strong enough to eat woody things but very maneuverable like a push mower. The walk-behind is the perfect tool for that, we can easily train anyone to use it. It’s not a big, heavy machine.”

The implement that intern Lucy Swenson is using on the walk-behind is a flail mower. Joel from Earth Tools says, “It chews up material, handles heavy brush, cuts it low to the ground, and is better for killing privet, bush honeysuckle, and multi-flora rose.”

Earth Tools has been a long-term supporter and their practical gifts will be useful for many more years to come. Joel shares that another benefit of the walk-behind is agricultural longevity. By requiring less overall engine maintenance than having multiple machines that do all the versatile things a walk-behind will do, it will outlast our lifetimes.

Through their support, Earth Tools has given the park the means to fulfill our vision of practicing responsible land stewardship. “All the equipment they’ve helped us purchase enables us to replace invasive plants with native trees and flowers, restore wildlife habitat and enhance the overall beautification of the park,” says Melanie. Joel shares the reason for their support has been a common value. “We appreciate that the park has taken the initiative to pay attention to invasive plant management. Some parks believe all green is good but that’s not always the case. We also believe in the importance of art, and how they involve the community in everything they do.”

Partners like Earth Tools provide essential support for doing the work of natural habitat conservation and landscape management. For the fifteen years that JSP has been a park connecting people to each other and nature through art, Earth Tools has been a partner connecting the park with the resources needed to do the work.

To learn more about Earth Tools, visit https://www.earthtools.com/.

Published May 31, 2024