How to Plant Clover for Goats

Goats eat clover, though it isn't their first choice for a meal. Clover doesn't harm the animals and adds nutrients to their diet. One clover that holds up well to heavy grazing, and reproduces fast enough on its own, is hop clover. Sow it in your pasture to add variety.

Rake or power rake
Seed spreader

Instructions

- 1
  Rake over the pasture to rough it up and make ridges in the soil. For large areas, rent a power rake to do the hard labor for you. Push it over the pasture like a lawn mower.
- 2
  Fill a seed spreader with the clover seeds. Use 4 lbs. per acre if you are planting hop clover, and 1 lb. for every 2,000 square feet of pasture if you are using white clover. For large pastures, use a spreader that you can pull behind a tractor. The University of Minnesota Extension Service recommends adding sawdust to the seeds to help them cast evenly since they are so small.
- 3
  Move the spreader back and forth over the grazing area in one direction, and then repeat with rows in the opposite direction. This gives complete coverage of the area.
- 4
  Water the pasture daily for about 15 minutes to dampen the soil. Stop watering once you see growth.

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