cut all of it. Their preferences are one part of the equation. Our long- term goals for the land are the other.
Choosing what stays A big part of restoration is not just deciding what to remove, but what to keep. We leave the healthiest, most productive trees, especially white oaks. Their lower-tannin acorns are heavily used by both wildlife and livestock in the fall, and the goats love them. Goats will eat all kinds of acorns, so the higher-tannin red oaks are still worth protecting. Even though our herd often prefers red oak leaves during the summer, we think beyond one season when we choose which trees to save. We are also careful about what not to cut. We do not cut wild cherry in summer, and we do not risk dropping branches into a paddock from nearby cherry trees. Wilted cherry leaves are toxic to livestock, so that is one risk we simply do not take.
Keep them moving
Rotation is what keeps the system working and every paddock has a purpose. Once the goats have done their job in one forest paddock, they move on. Sometimes they go into another section of woods that needs restoration. Sometimes they rotate onto grass. That movement prevents them from staying too long in one place and helps us match the herd to the needs of the land.
Too much of a good thing
Summer browse is valuable, but it comes with its own nutritional challenges. Many of the plants our goats consume most heavily are high in tannins. Oak, especially red oak, and autumn olive
can all contribute significant tannins to the diet.
Goats can handle tannins better than many other livestock species but too much can still become antinutritive if it is not balanced with lower-tannin forage or supplemental hay. Tannins can also reduce the bioavailability of copper and goats already have a relatively high copper requirement. Because of that, we pay close attention to mineral supplementation during the summer. When the herd is eating a lot of oak and other high-tannin browse, we know copper needs extra attention.
Watching the land wake up
One of the most rewarding parts of this work is seeing the response after the goats move through. Where sunlight reaches the ground and the soil is lightly disturbed, grasses and native plants begin to return.
First come the pioneers like curly oat grass and native sedges. In areas that were once pasture, orchardgrass, fescue, redtop and little bluestem start showing up again in patches. With continued management, like unrolling hay in winter that
adds organic matter, manure and seed, we see a little more grass each spring. The change is slow, but it is real. Little by little, paddock by paddock, the goats are helping us bring sunlight, forage and productivity back to an old Ozark farm.
(Nicole Voracka and her family raise 100% New Zealand Kikos and Kiko meat goat crosses using performance-tested genetics, focusing on high ADG and parasite resistance. Follow the farm restoration project on our Facebook page:
www.facebook.com/kiwikikogoats and visit our website at
www.kiwikikogoats.com.)
28 Goat Rancher | May 2026
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