The ruminants are returning! Goat encore at the Houston Arboretum!

The goats from Rent-A-Ruminant® will return to the Houston Arboretum & Nature Center to do some more “mowing” of vegetation in the Savanna area of the nature haven. Goats, which graze on many varieties of grasses and plants, are an effective “eco-friendly solution” to vegetation management that negates the need for commercial mowing and/or herbicides. (They had a successful stint in the first part of October.)

From 120 – 150 goats will be on hand for about two weeks. The public is welcome to come out and see them! You can help us spread the word.

WHEN: Starting Tuesday, Nov. 10 for approximately two weeks

                                Arboretum hours are 7 a.m. – Dusk

WHERE: Houston Arboretum, 4501 Woodway Dr., Houston, 77024

Savanna area, between the Post Oak Trail and Willow Oak Trail

Link to map here.

Note: The best entrance is 4501 Woodway Dr. However, some GPS platforms may direct you to the Loop 610 entrance. If so, continue on to Woodway Drive, turn right and then take the first right into the Arboretum.

VISUALS: Goats, goats and more goats at work on the savanna area doing natural “mowing.” A goat wrangler will also be on hand.

INTERVIEWS: Christine Mansfield, Marketing & Development Manager, Houston Arboretum

Kyle Carr or Carolyn Carr, Owners, Rent-A-Ruminant

SPONSOR: The Houston Arboretum wishes to thank its sponsor, Main Street Capital Corporation, for generously underwriting this project with the Rent-A-Ruminant goats that will benefit the health of the Arboretum’s savanna ecosystem.

MORE: You can contact Carol Brejot at 713-503-3885 or Christine Mansfield, 713-253-4354 to set up a time to shoot photos/video, conduct interviews, etc.

Link here to Goat Photos – Anthony Rathbun

Link to video here

See Q&A below with helpful facts and figures about the October pilot project with the goats, courtesy of the Houston Arboretum’s Conservation Team member, Ella Matsuda. Feel free to use this as background in any stories.

Overall, how did the goats do? Were you happy with what they accomplished?

Overall, we were very happy with the goats. We will probably have a better understanding of their lasting impacts on the space in the spring, but we are happy with what we can see and excited about this new experiment!

What did/didn’t the goats eat?

The goats love anything with lots of leaves-blackberries, vines, shrubs, trees, and wildflowers. We’re really happy that the goats helped push back a lot of the young willow trees that were growing in our prairie areas, and they ate a huge quantity of invasive vines that were smothering our native plants.

They weren’t as enthusiastic about the bunchgrasses and big sedges. Unlike a mower, they left the cores of our grasses intact. That was great for showy grasses like Gulf Muhly that we didn’t necessarily want mowed down to the ground. There are other bunch grasses and sedges that we wouldn’t have minded them removing, but it will be a lot easier for us to go in and remove them by hand now that the area is clearer.

Was there something you wish they had eaten that they didn’t?

Of course, it would be ideal if we could train a goat to eat only Deep-rooted Sedge and not flowers, or to distinguish between small trees we’re trying to remove and big trees we’re trying to protect. But every invasive species removal has its drawbacks: manual removal is very labor intensive, herbicide has potential human and soil health risks, mowing can’t be done when it’s muddy, and a biological control (like an insect targeted to eat one plant) has the potential to become invasive too. Restoration requires a variety of management techniques working together, and we think the goats could definitely be part of keeping our ecosystem healthy!

Any memorable moments with the goats?

The goats started mowing around one pond, and when they were done, the staff formed a “human wall” to corral the goats to the second pond. The corridor between the ponds was pretty narrow, so when we opened the gate to move them to the second pond, the goats in front couldn’t stop moving. There were 100 goats behind them pushing them forward. Instead, they plowed through the wall of vegetation surrounding the second pond, much as a bulldozer would. It was pretty impressive.