Story and photo by www.PhotoByVivian.com
Fire season is upon us and with little or no rain this season, the hills of SLO County are full of dry weeds and brush that pose a risk of unwanted fires. Lately, you may have seen herds of goats along the freeway, on the sides of hills, in fields and yards and wondered what they are doing there. They are all hard at work clearing brush. No need for chemicals, tools, rototillers, heavy equipment or backbreaking labor, goats provide environmentally friendly vegetation management. It’s a simple process. The goats just need to be contained to the area to be cleared and for their protection they need a watchdog. Goats love weeds and brush, they enjoy steep terrain, they can graze areas too difficult for machinery to reach and they even love poison ivy! As the goats do their work they actually aerate the soil and they fertilize as they graze. It’s a win-win.
