Targeted Environmental Goat Grazing & Land Restoration

Hi everyone Stacy from Wisconsin. I just wanted to share my expertise with you all about Targeted Environmental Goat Grazing & Land Restoration.
I owe & operate a mobile targeted goat operation here in Central WI call Sustainable Stewards Farmstead & Goat Grazing.
I have come across lots of misinformation on the most harmful of the invasive plants BUCKTHORN.
I'm going to explain how goats help and what not to do.
1. NEVER cut BUCKTHORN down to the root. 10 trees will pop up the next year in its place.
BUCKTHORN is a hedg plant and comes back after cut with a vengeance.  
2. The Poison mistake. Poisons leach into the water system yes but as well don't always kill Buckthorn. The root system of BUCKTHORN is vast you will never be able to kill it wirh herbicides.
3. Heavy equipment to pull the tree and roots. Again you will NEVER pull all the roots. The root can stay dormant up to 4 year as well as the seeds.

So how to we rid this most dangerous invasive that start killing our North America Oak savannahs within 3 years?
Answe is GOATS!
It takes a min of 4 targeted grazings to get Buckthorn to a manageable level.
First visit, let Goats eat down all small plants and defaliate the bigger tree from 7 foot down. Ahold Goats are still in that area cut the Buckthorn trees at chest level. Defaliate first is most important so it don't have the energy to send down to the roots to save itself. Let the goat then eat all the seeds and leaves off the cut tops.
Then simply repeat sending the goats in at least twice a year in June and sep for 2 year best 3.

Last but not least sow some native grasses, plant some native Oaks and Maples.


Now here is WHY it's so dangerous.
I was asked if there were more then one type of bucktorn. The answer is yes.
Goats are an amazing animal. Not only do they love to eat Buckthorn and other invasive they can help to save your old growth Oak/Hard woodlands.
PM me for more info & a free insight estimate.

And the root reason Buckthorn is important to illiterate is this. Within 3 years of it start it creates a Buckthorn desert where it begins to killing all the Oaks, Maples & other native trees.
How? 👇👇👇👇👇

1.      Buckthorn produces a toxic chemical called emodin which inhibits the growth of other plants and prevents “good” plants from becoming established. It creates what we have called a “buckthorn desert”. It generally takes about three years for the toxic chemical to dissipate.

2.      An extensive seed bank from the large number of berries produced. (Although only the female buckthorn plants produce berries, the ratio of female to male plants can be as high as 6:1.) The seed bank only lasts a few years.

3.      An extensive rootstock (sometimes called a caudex) from which new shoots can arise. It took me some years to realize that the rootstock of the buckthorn can remain dormant from many years.

IF YOU DO NOTHING YOUR WOODLANDS WILL BE DESTROYED IN 10 TO 15 YEARS FROM THE START OF INVASIVE.

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Hi Stacy,
I think it is cool that you have a business using goats to help maintain land, particularly to get rid of invasive plants. I wish there were more people doing this sort of thing. I heard of a place down in Washington DC that does sheep grazing. Another one up here in Maine, I heard someone was going to be bringing in sheep herds to graze around the solar panels. I think its a really cool idea, get some fertilizer spread and either your grass cut or your bushes pruned :)