Rotational Browsing Goats

Is it possible to rotationally graze/browse goats in a mixed wooded/pasture area? I considered growing bushes and small trees in my pasture along with grasses and forbs for goats to browse. However, I don’t want the goats to spend too much time on a tree and kill it. Is there some kind of method to rotationally browse goats? And are there any designs on how to plant trees into a pasture designed for goats?

Choosing plants that can come back up after being heavily browsed is a good idea. For rotating the goats around there are a few options:

• Permanently fencing the paddocks.
You'll need strong, high fencing, minimum 4 feet in height, but some goats might try and jump that, so if you can make it a bit higher, then that will be more secure.

• Tethering.
Only good if you are within earshot. For one to three goats this might be fine. A larger herd is probably going to be more trouble though. Some goats tether more easily than others

• Portable electric fencing.
I've used poultry net before - some goats will jump it, others won't. The tighter the fence is set up, the less likely they are to jump.

• Tree guards around the trees.
You could put pallet tree guards up around each tree, so that the goats can get to overhanging branches but can't get to the trunk.

In one of Bill Mollison's books (I think the intro one) there's a drawing of some fenced tagasaste hedges for goats - the goats can nibble at the stuff that grows out of the fence, but can't damage the trees - if tagasaste doesn't grow for you there might be another shrub that can stand nibbling that would grow well like this.

Kate Downham wrote:Choosing plants that can come back up after being heavily browsed is a good idea. For rotating the goats around there are a few options:

• Permanently fencing the paddocks.
You'll need strong, high fencing, minimum 4 feet in height, but some goats might try and jump that, so if you can make it a bit higher, then that will be more secure.

• Tethering.
Only good if you are within earshot. For one to three goats this might be fine. A larger herd is probably going to be more trouble though. Some goats tether more easily than others

• Portable electric fencing.
I've used poultry net before - some goats will jump it, others won't. The tighter the fence is set up, the less likely they are to jump.

• Tree guards around the trees.
You could put pallet tree guards up around each tree, so that the goats can get to overhanging branches but can't get to the trunk.

In one of Bill Mollison's books (I think the intro one) there's a drawing of some fenced tagasaste hedges for goats - the goats can nibble at the stuff that grows out of the fence, but can't damage the trees - if tagasaste doesn't grow for you there might be another shrub that can stand nibbling that would grow well like this.

I’m wondering for larger mature trees with tougher, thicker bark. Would the goats ignore chewing and eating the bark if there is plenty of leaves in the pasture for them to browse?

One technique I used when running goats in woods was to cut about halfway through tall saplings with a machete or a hatchet, and then bend the top of the tree down so that they could reach the leaves and buds. They would browse on this, and then in following rotations through the area there would be re-growth and sprouts from the stub below the cut for them to work on.  Mostly I used this where I was wanting to thin the stand of trees anyway or be selective about which species to leave unbrowsed.  Some trees, such as most elms, are not only preferred browse but are also vigorous sprouters....

Ryan Burkitt wrote:
I’m wondering for larger mature trees with tougher, thicker bark. Would the goats ignore chewing and eating the bark if there is plenty of leaves in the pasture for them to browse?

Nope.  Or rather, not always.  In my neck of the woods, even with plenty of browse, in the spring no fruit tree is safe from goats.  Once the sap is up, I swear that they can smell it in the fruit trees, and even maple trees.  I had an old wild cherry in one of my winter sacrifice areas that had to be at least fifty years old and sixty feet tall.  Four angora goats girdled the tree one March, even though their favorites were all around them.