# Bracken Fern and scotch broom



## jefner (Sep 13, 2009)

Does anyone know how to get rid of bracken fern?? I keep pulling it, I am trying Round up too...

Also--is Scotch broom ok for the goats to eat?

TIA!


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## RunAround (Feb 17, 2008)

I let my goats eat it. I've read it can be bad for them, and i've read it's fine, so I let them eat some of it and now it's all gone in their pasture and no one died from it. lol

It's something that is bad if consumed in large amount for a long period of time. There wasn't a huge amount of it in my pasture so i wasn't too worried.

And it hasn't grown back since the goats ate it. lol so I guess that's how you get rid of it.


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## Shelly Borg (Nov 2, 2009)

There is a gal in our goat club who lost 80% of her herd to eating blacken fern. But the survivors and there young could eat it just fine. 
I have no idea about the scotch broom other then I can not be near it makes my head hurt so bad!


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## FunnyRiverFarm (Sep 13, 2008)

Maybe if you pulled it up and killed the root (with the round-up) and then planted a different fast growing plant you could choke it out.


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## jefner (Sep 13, 2009)

Shelly Borg said:


> There is a gal in our goat club who lost 80% of her herd to eating blacken fern. But the survivors and there young could eat it just fine.
> I have no idea about the scotch broom other then I can not be near it makes my head hurt so bad!


that is interesting that the surviving goats could eat the fern... I def. don't let my goats eat the fern, but they were browsing on the scotch broom, they only ate a little of it and when they were done they chose other things.. which I thought was interesting too..  smartiegoats.. onder:


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## 2 lil-does (Apr 7, 2010)

im new to goats so im not sure the effect on them, but i do know some about invasive plant removal. bracken fern like fields & will take over when the natural wild fire dont burn it back to the forest edge. i think that round up will do more harm then good. its not good for any plants so if you want to grow others there u mite as well go to GMO corn with round up in its genes. scotch/french broom have 10 years seed banks so once you remove the adult plant(we used weed wenches & hand saws) you be getting baby plants for 10 years. i know pple that mow it down then let there cattle graze it. then other pple take alot longer route & plant fir trees all threw the patch of land & shade out the broom. srry for the tangent i hope any tidbit helps.


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## jefner (Sep 13, 2009)

And it hasn't grown back since the goats ate it. lol so I guess that's how you get rid of it.

lol!


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