When brainstorming weekday plans, watching others mow a lawn is probably not the first idea that comes to mind. There is a greater sense of entertainment value, however, when those doing the mowing are flocks of adorable goats. From May 4 to May 14 or so, you can watch a herd of nearly 150 goats feed on a couple acres of grass surrounding off the wildflower trail! [Featured image: @rent_a_ruminant_texas]
Over the week in May, the Houston Arboretum is outsourcing their landscaping detail for a 2.5 area near the wildflower trail. Rent-A-Ruminant Texas is a company that provides eco-friendly vegetation management by unleashing a herd of goats on a particularly grassy area.
“Goats can go places where it is unsafe or unsuitable for humans and heavy machinery,” the company writes on their website. “They are also used to preserve existing trees or other established features you’d like to maintain, while removing invasive and unwelcome vegetation that you despise. ”
You check out the company’s landscape crew do their thing at the Houston Arboretum from May 4 to May 14. The 150 or so goats will remain in the confines of electrical fencing and request that you respect their distance as they do their business. Also, as these goats are taking down the 2.3 acres of overgrowth by mouth, and stomach, the Arboretum also insists that you don’t feed them.
“We feel like the goats are almost family now,” said executive director at the Houston Arboretum, Debbie Markey.
“They have been onsite several times in the last few years to assist with removing overgrown vegetation and invasive plant species. This eco-friendly alternative to commercial mowing and herbicides is working. This time the goats will focus on clearing out the dense understory thicket to create a more diverse and open woodland habitat.”