What are invasive species? Invasive species means the plants are not native to the area you live in or that coastal region. An invasive species is a plant, fungus, or animal species that is not native to a specific location (an introduced species), and which has a tendency to spread to a degree believed to cause damage to the environment, human economy or human health.

One particular invasive species in Maryland is Kudzu. Kudzu is extremely invasive and is native to Asia; therefore the east coast in the United States is not native. The weight of kudzu vines can actually uproot trees, elevating the plant from a mere annoyance to an actual source of danger. The Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG) recently added kudzu to the Global Invasive Species database and they’ve named it one of the 100 worst alien invasive species on Earth. Kudzu is so invasive and damaging to the environment that Federal, State and Local Agencies offer grants to assist with eradicating it.

One such means of eradicating invasive species is goats; it looks grand from every angle. A herd of goats can be turned loose on a neglected field, overgrown with invasive exotic plants whose fun names – such as Kudzu – belie the damage it inflicts on native ecosystems.

The goats browse away happily, completely defoliating these unwanted plants. They destroy the seeds inside their digestive tracts that are made up of four chambers and then scatter droppings everywhere, fertilizing the ground as they go. They come back another time or two for subsequent passes, and voilà, a piece of land overrun by invasive plants has been reclaimed and improved in a non-chemical and non-fossil fuel-burning way.

Hire goats to eat the unwanted vegetation in an environmentally friendly way.

For more information about Kudzu damage and browsing goats visit www.browsinggreengoats.com