08/30/2026
The more you know!
A Little History About Kudzu and Why We’re Working to Control It
We have seen a lot of questions and comments about kudzu, how it got here, why it was ever planted, and why we can’t simply turn goats or sheep loose on it and be done with it. We thought we would share a little history and information.
First, the Soil Conservation Service did not actually bring kudzu to the United States. Kudzu is native to Asia and was introduced here in 1876 as part of the Japanese exhibit at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. People liked the vine for its beauty and shade. Nurseries began selling it, and farmers later found uses for it as livestock forage.
Years later, during the Dust Bowl era, our country was facing tremendous soil loss and erosion. The Soil Conservation Service began promoting kudzu because it grew quickly, covered bare ground, and helped hold soil in place. At the time, it seemed like a good answer to a very serious problem. They simply did not know then what we know today about how aggressively kudzu could spread and the impact it could eventually have on our native vegetation and ecosystems.
That is unfortunately the story with many invasive species. Something may seem useful when it is first introduced, and it can take years before we fully understand the unintended consequences. By the time the problems associated with kudzu were recognized, it was already well established throughout much of the South. USDA eventually stopped recommending kudzu as a ground cover in 1953.
Today, the Soil Conservation Service is known as the Natural Resources Conservation Service, or NRCS. Fish and Wildlife, the Perry County Conservation District, along with a few other local conservation districts, the University of Kentucky, biologists, and other natural resource professionals are working together with NRCS to address the kudzu problem here in Eastern Kentucky. This is truly a cooperative effort, with science, research, local knowledge, and conservation all working toward the same goal.
It is important to understand that controlling kudzu is not simply about killing a vine. We have to consider our soil and water, native vegetation, wildlife, aquatic life, pollinators, and the overall health of the ecosystem. A lot of science, research, and planning goes into deciding how and where kudzu should be treated.
Why not just use goats or sheep?
Goats and sheep can certainly be useful tools for managing kudzu, and in the right situation they can be a great option. However, they are not necessarily the simple or inexpensive solution they may appear to be.
The University of Kentucky actually studied using goats to control kudzu right here in Kentucky. Researchers working with UK’s Robinson Station in Breathitt County conducted a project in Whitley County using stocking rates of 3, 6, and 9 goats per acre.
After approximately 60 days, researchers reported that at those stocking rates the kudzu was still growing faster than the goats could consume it. Researcher David Ditsch described it simply by saying that at those stocking rates, “the kudzu is winning.” Researchers noted that even higher stocking rates might need to be evaluated when eradication is the goal.
Goats do have a place in kudzu management. They continually remove the leaves and vines, which can eventually weaken the plant by depleting the energy stored in its root system. But that requires enough animals and repeated, intensive grazing over time.
Here in Eastern Kentucky, we also have to look at the practical side of that option. Is the landowner physically able to install and maintain fencing, provide water, move and care for the animals, and manage them throughout the treatment period? Does the landowner have the funds to purchase or lease animals, fencing, gates, watering equipment, and other supplies?
Those costs and responsibilities can add up quickly, especially when successful kudzu control requires consistent management and follow up over several years. Those factors have to be weighed against the treatment project currently being advertised, which may provide treatment to eligible landowners at little to no cost.
Goats and sheep can absolutely be part of the solution in the right situation, but every property and every landowner is different. Good conservation means looking at all of the available options and choosing a treatment that is effective, affordable, practical, and responsible for both the landowner and our natural resources.
Mechanical control and carefully selected herbicide treatments are other tools that may be appropriate depending on the location. There is no single treatment that is right for every property.
One of the most important things to understand about kudzu is that there is no one time treatment. Established kudzu has an extensive root system and successful control requires a faithful and consistent commitment, often for 3 to 5 years. The site has to be monitored and regrowth treated as it appears. Without that follow through, kudzu can regain ground and much of the progress can be lost.
We cannot go back and change decisions that were made generations ago based on the knowledge available at that time. What we can do is learn from them.
Science changes. Our knowledge grows. Conservation practices improve.
That is what conservation is all about. It is not simply about getting rid of one invasive plant. It is about finding the best way to protect the whole ecosystem, including our soil, water, native plants, wildlife, aquatic life, pollinators, and all of the natural resources that make Eastern Kentucky home.
Our responsibility today is to use the best science and information available to us and do everything we can to protect those resources for the generations coming after us.
University of Kentucky Research:
“King of Kentucky weeds, kudzu offers goats a gourmet meal”
