Restoration Grazing
Beaumont, KS
Restoration Grazing
Brush control that people can get excited about!
Well, my farm isn't exactly a farm. I run goats on "borrowed" land. I find land owners with run down and brushy properties. I tell them that Ill clean up their pastures in exchange for free land for my goats. It works out well for both parties. I am a part of the new generation of folks entering agriculture. The generation that doesn't own land, doesn't have access to much capital, but has the desire to work with land and animals. All my goats are managed in electric netting. I move them to new ground every few days which keeps them full of fresh feed. In the summer I take the goats out to customers properties and let them eat away the brush and unwanted vegetation. And people actually pay me for this!
FARM STATS
FARM STATS
Beaumont, KS
Location:
200
Acres:
51-100 Goats
Herd Size:
Available Services & Activities:
Brush Control
On-Farm Stay:
Facebook:
Instagram:
Farm Website:
Meet the Farmers
Rex Rutledge & Susan Elder
Farm Interview
Why Cashmere?
I found a group of cashmere goats for sale. The herd included several giant wethers which I wanted to do my targeted grazing with because of their ability to eat lots of brush. They have been wonderful additions to my operation and I am breeding the cashmere gene into my Spanish does in hopes of creating a hardy cold resistant range goat.
Biggest Challenge?
Marketing the fiber. But this is no longer a problem now that I am a part of Clean Cashmere!
Biggest Successes?
Keep them fed and watered and they'll survive! Ive seen them out bale grazing in -12 degree weather. Watching them form their winter coats was also really fun. Nice and slick in the summer and super soft and fluffy in the winter!
Do you view farming as more of a business or a lifestyle?
Both. I love living in rural America. I love being out in the country. But this work is my livelihood. Business decisions have to be made and sometimes they are hard ones to make because they involve lives that I have brought into this world and raised.
What have been the biggest changes you've implemented on your farm?
I am currently expanding my land base and beginning a production model enterprise. I want to raise goats with good genetics that can survive in a range setting with minimum inputs. The production enterprise coupled with the targeted grazing business should complement each other nicely.
