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Grazing animals as weed control agents

    • Authors: I. Popay, and R. Field

      Date: 1996

      Journal: Weed Technology

      Volume: 10

      Number: 1

      Pages: 217-231

      Summary of Methods: This paper is a summary of 130 articles examine the use grazing animals a method of weed control.

      Article Summary / Main Points:
      • Success of any grazing animal in controlling weeds is based on the availability of the animal and being able to fence animals onto or off if specific areas in order to manipulate grazing pressure.
      • Integrating grazing with other control methods in an overall plan or diversifying the class(s) of animals grazed while matching them with the “weeds” and resource goals need to be considered very carefully when developing a weed control plan.
      • Selectivity of grazing animals is reduced by increasing animal density or grazing pressure.
      • Proper timing and adjustment of grazing pressure can also benefit the competitive ability of desired species.

      Vegetation Types: All Vegetation Types

      MLRA Ecoregions: Not Applicable

      Agrovoc Control Words: Grazing Weeds Integrated Pest Management

      Article Review Type: Refereed

      Article Type: Scientific Synthesis

      Keywords: cattle, sheep, goats, grazing, integrated weed management, non-chemical weed control, low input sustainable agriculture, targeted grazing

      Annotation: This synthesis paper nicely summarized a lot of information on the use of livestock for weed control not only research from the US but also Australia, New Zealand, Europe and others. The challenges of selecting the correct species, age, size, and breed of grazer, timing, intensity and duration of grazing, costs of grazing for weed control and integration of grazing into a more comprehensive week management system were brought up in this paper but also by others including DiTomaso (2003, Weed Science 48:255-265), Frost and Launchbaugh (2003, Rangelands 25:43-47), Mosley (1996, Sheep and Goat Research Journal 12:74-81) Olson and Lacey (1994, Sheep Research Journal – Special issue:105-112), and Brock (1988, Rangelands 10:32-34) all are available within the RSIS database.

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