Earth-friendly mowers - Wildlife Gardeners

Staff · 07-14-2009, 10:36 AM

Earth-friendly mowers
Goat owner rents out herd to eat up unwanted greenery
By John Krerowicz

Kenosha News | Earth-friendly mowers
excerpt from above:

Quote:

RANDALL — Goats are great employees, says Kim Hunter.
The town resident last month started renting out her flock of 50 bucks, nannies and kids to munch on weeds, invasive species and other undesirable vegetation.

The advantage to using goats is reducing the use of herbicides, pesticides, pollution-spewing machinery and labor.

“I say, don’t send a man to do a goat’s job,” she said. “Goats work 24/7, don’t need fringe benefits or workman’s compensation, and they work for food.”

hazelnut · 07-14-2009, 04:53 PM

Goats really prefer "browse" but they are great to clean up a property.

When I came to Greensboro Alabama and bought my house, I threw a birthday party for my dog. One of my dog's "gifts" was a goat who promptly started to clean up the overgrown yards. That is until it got down to the nitty-gritty - asian wisteria, china berry and the hard core. Most of these were poisonous to the goat and she started vomiting all over her beautiful white coat. And then there was socializing the goat with my dog friends. The goat wanted to be the head cheese around here and chased the dogs by butting them with her horns. Finally the dogs just stayed in the house - and goat reigned supreme.

It only takes one or two goats to manage a few acres. After they eat everything though you have to plan to feed them.

gbreadman · 07-14-2009, 08:20 PM

They love norway maple like ladybugs love aphids. You gotta saw the tree down for them, though.

TheLorax · 07-19-2009, 09:30 PM

Giggle. I opened this expecting to find a new type of lawn mower. Instead I found the oldest style of lawn mower.

Equilibrium · 07-19-2009, 10:16 PM

I thought the same thing.

Staff · 07-25-2009, 04:25 PM

More use grazing sheep, goats against invasive weeds, vines
By Greg Latshaw, USA TODAY

More use grazing sheep, goats against invasive weeds, vines - USATODAY.com
excerpt from above:

Quote:

Sarah Cahn Bennett, co-owner of the family-owned Navarro Vineyards in Philo, Calif., says they began using the flock of 70 in June to keep the vineyard trimmed and minimize the work of tractors and manual labor.

Grazing vineyards is just one application of a growing niche industry that is harnessing the eating power of animals to control invasive weeds, maintain lawns and clear fire-prone grasses. The animals are an alternative to using machinery that burns up fossil fuels or herbicides that, in some cases, can seep into groundwater.

"It's very widespread, but there's lots of room for more application," says Sandy Tartowski, a New Mexico-based scientist in the research division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Called conservation or targeted grazing, the use is more predominant in the western U.S., she says, but livestock have cleared the brush around power lines in Durham, N.H., and have been used to eat up the invasive vine kudzu in Chattanooga, Tenn.

hazelnut · 07-25-2009, 06:47 PM

Ive noticed around here where kudzu is rampant, the best way to clean it up is to turn cows into it. In one section where I live - there was kudzu covering trees for miles and miles along the road way. Someone bought the property and started grazing cattle. In about 3 years the kudzu was completely gone and I noticed they now have a big vegetable garden near their house.

Kudzu is a nitrogen fixer so that land is going to be productive for a long time.

07-19-2009, 09:30 PM	#4
TheLorax Unicellular Fungi Join Date: Nov 2008	Giggle. I opened this expecting to find a new type of lawn mower. Instead I found the oldest style of lawn mower. __________________ "In the end we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand; we will understand only what we have been taught." -Baba Dioum, Senegalese ecologist

07-19-2009, 10:16 PM	#5
Equilibrium Official Plant Nerd Join Date: Dec 2008	I thought the same thing. __________________ "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." - Dr. Seuss

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07-14-2009, 04:53 PM	#2
hazelnut WG Writer Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Greensboro, Alabama USA	Goats really prefer "browse" but they are great to clean up a property. When I came to Greensboro Alabama and bought my house, I threw a birthday party for my dog. One of my dog's "gifts" was a goat who promptly started to clean up the overgrown yards. That is until it got down to the nitty-gritty - asian wisteria, china berry and the hard core. Most of these were poisonous to the goat and she started vomiting all over her beautiful white coat. And then there was socializing the goat with my dog friends. The goat wanted to be the head cheese around here and chased the dogs by butting them with her horns. Finally the dogs just stayed in the house - and goat reigned supreme. It only takes one or two goats to manage a few acres. After they eat everything though you have to plan to feed them.

07-14-2009, 08:20 PM	#3
gbreadman Grub Join Date: May 2009 Location: NJ	They love norway maple like ladybugs love aphids. You gotta saw the tree down for them, though.

07-25-2009, 06:47 PM	#7
hazelnut WG Writer Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Greensboro, Alabama USA	Ive noticed around here where kudzu is rampant, the best way to clean it up is to turn cows into it. In one section where I live - there was kudzu covering trees for miles and miles along the road way. Someone bought the property and started grazing cattle. In about 3 years the kudzu was completely gone and I noticed they now have a big vegetable garden near their house. Kudzu is a nitrogen fixer so that land is going to be productive for a long time.