Can Goats Eat Japanese Knotweed? (Find Out!)

Yes, they can! Knotweed is a tasty plant for goats that they enjoy grazing on, and as I said, are often specifically used to stop the spread of it. Japanese knotweed is an invasive plant, so it can be a real pain to get rid of once it has started growing. Goats can safely eat it.

You may also simply be thinking of harvesting the knotweed to give to your goats regularly, if you aren’t worried about the invasiveness of it.

It is reasonably good in this way, although usually better if you just let them forage for it.

So, while invasive Japanese knotweeds can be a big problem for many, for goats they are a solution.

That said, there are nonetheless one or two caveats.

Let’s look further into this.

Can Goats Eat Japanese Knotweed?

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Will goats eat Japanese knotweed?

Yes, they certainly will.

As you’ve likely heard and most probably know if you have goats, they will eat just about anything.

Japanese knotweed is no different, and indeed goats are very often utilized to curb the spread of this invasive plant.

If set loose on a pasture with Japanese knotweed, then the goats will eat it.

They probably won’t eat absolutely all visible foliage, and even if they do, it’s likely to grow back anyway.

Nonetheless, if you don’t mind, this can be a symbiotic relationship.

Is Japanese knotweed good for goats?

Certainly, in some ways yes.

A goat’s diet should be mostly hay and forage, and they need the enrichment of a large pasture to explore to find things to eat.

Japanese knotweed is great for this, as it adds a steady supply of a healthy, tasty plant to their pasture.

Knotweed is not especially nutritionally rich on its own, but your goats will get through a lot of it. the very fact of having a live plant they can come back to that will regrow is almost as important as the actual nutrients, though.

But this is not without its caveats.

Is Japanese knotweed bad for goats?

It’s a relatively simple plant, compared to say, fruits or vegetables.

So, in that sense, there’s nothing inherently dangerous or toxic in goats eating Japanese knotweed.

There is nothing in it that will harm them in any way.

That said, you always need to be sure that your goat’s diet is good and varied, and provides everything they need.

Don’t think if they have Japanese knotweed on their pasture that they are set forever.

As part of a balanced diet, Japanese knotweed is not bad for goats.

Can goats eat Japanese knotweed leaves?

Yes, they certainly can eat the leaves, and these will be the most attractive feature.

This will be what the plant has most of, so it will be most of what your goat focuses on. Indeed, leaves like this are usually a goat favorite.

The leaves are fibrous and crunchy, and your goat will love them.

While they won’t flower for most of the year, they will have big green leaves for most of the warmer months.

Can goats eat Japanese knotweed stems?

Yes, the stems are perfectly safe, too.

They do not contain anything that the leaves contain, and they’re not thick or coarse enough to be any kind of choking hazard.

The stems are not what your goat will be interested in, though, as much as they will eat accidentally when eating the leaves.

The stems are probably the least nutritious part of the plant, but naturally it would be more delicate task to eat the plant while avoiding the stem.

In any case, you’ve got nothing to worry about when it comes to your goats eating knotweed stems.

Can goats eat Japanese knotweed flowers?

When the plant flowers, your goats will be even more attracted to it than before.

If you’ve ever tried to have a flower garden in a place goats can get to, you know what I mean.

They are drawn by big attractive flowers, and love to eat almost any they find.

Japanese knotweed flowers are perfectly safe, and will be tasty and enjoyable for your goats.

Again, they will only flower a few months out of the year, so your goats will have limited chance to get flowers.

Once they’ve eaten the flowers, they may not flower again.

Japanese knotweed can be a huge problem for the horticulturalist.

They’re spectacularly invasive, and have a real staying power once they are established.

While your goats probably won’t be able to completely eliminate the knotweed from your pasture, they will be able to limit its spread.

And, furthermore, they will continue to eat it even as it regrows, so depending on how you look at it, it could be beneficial.

The important thing is to always make sure they’re getting the right balance in their diet, and they aren’t eating too much of any one thing.