# fertilizing, lime and seeding



## freckleface624 (Jul 31, 2016)

hey goat friends,
i have a question about pastures. i did not apply a weed & feed this fall and now my pasture is depleted and suffering. i was so nervous about putting anything down with the boys (two 1yr old wethers). i can put our mini pony in the backyard but we cannot put the boys anywhere except locked up until it either soaks in or dries; deepening on what i put down. it has fescue but it is in such poor condition right now. plenty of foraging, shrubs, weeds in the back, but no grass left. 

i am planning to seed with bermuda this spring but needed to lime the pasture in the next week or so in preparation for seeding. 

When/IF you lime... how long do you keep your goats off of the pasture? it is forecast to rain tomorrow afternoon and all day friday so i was thinking about throwing lime in the morning and locking the boys up until friday. has anyone had experience with seeding, liming, fertilizing and what do you use and do with your goats? im thinking of spraying the fertilizer so it dries quicker and is safer. its only about 1.25 acre. 

any and all help is appreciated. i am so scared to make them sick or expose them needlessly to anything. but my pasture needs a reboot!
THANK YOU!


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## freckleface624 (Jul 31, 2016)

I have a granular/crushed limestone lime to throw down.


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## Moers kiko boars (Apr 23, 2018)

Goats eat the weeds, brush, and small trees. And bushes. Why would you remove their food? The pony is the only grass eater. The idea of goats is a natural weed reduction to improve pastures for cattle. They eat the weeds, their system sterilizes the weed seed..and reduces the seed reproduction.


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

We had limed spread on the pastures in late autumn/early winter 2019. I did not keep the goats off of it for any length of time. And they are all still alive!

I'd be much more concerned with a weed killer or synthetic fertilizer though, I'm not sure how long for one of those.


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## freckleface624 (Jul 31, 2016)

Moers kiko boars said:


> Goats eat the weeds, brush, and small trees. And bushes. Why would you remove their food? The pony is the only grass eater. The idea of goats is a natural weed reduction to improve pastures for cattle. They eat the weeds, their system sterilizes the weed seed..and reduces the seed reproduction.


Hey! Oh I'm not take any of the shrubs out at all. They are all along the back and have taken over the burm in the rear of our property. I'm liming to neutralize the soil and prep for pasture. Actually mine tend to graze a lot oddly enough. They don't eat all the weeds in the grass surprisingly


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## freckleface624 (Jul 31, 2016)

SalteyLove said:


> We had limed spread on the pastures in late autumn/early winter 2019. I did not keep the goats off of it for any length of time. And they are all still alive!
> 
> I'd be much more concerned with a weed killer or synthetic fertilizer though, I'm not sure how long for one of those.


Thank you. Did you use the granular? I believe some refer to it as garden lime


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

it was crushed limestone


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## goatblessings (Jan 6, 2015)

DO be careful with other fertilizer - nitrogen can kill your livestock.


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