Natural Weeds in New Hampshire

brandon324

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Jun 26, 2018
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Location (City and/or State)
New Hampshire
I am thinking about getting a tortoise soon. But the only thing that is really stopping me is from not knowing what weeds are edible to the little tortoise's around me. Does anyone know what natural grown weeds found in new hampshire are safe to eat? Any help will be appreciated.
 

Maro2Bear

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May 29, 2014
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Glenn Dale, Maryland, USA
Do you live more in a city area or more rural? All types of weeds are natural up and down the East Coast, from Maine to Florida. All types of grasses, broad leafed weeds, plantain, dandelion, chickory, mallow, ragweed, wild grape leaves, the list is endless.

Hope that helps a bit. Happy Torting!
 

daniellenc

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Jun 10, 2017
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Maryland
Here's a nice list of edible weeds, although some of them should be fed in moderation.

https://matteroftrust.org/14760/62-edible-wild-plants-that-you-didnt-know-you-can-eat
A few of these are no feed but to the OP learning your local weeds takes time and effort....I am still learning all the time. There is a site called the tortoise table you can use if you know the plants name to search for safety. There are also several free plant apps where you take a pic and it identifies the plant as closely as possible. You can verify by posting on here as well. Your area has dandelion, rose of sharon, mulberry trees, lilac bushes, many different plantains, clover, and many more. This site will show you common weeds as well and you can use their names to search the tortoise table: https://www.preen.com/weeds/nh
 
Joined
May 23, 2018
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Location (City and/or State)
Ohio
I did this for a while, but it's hard to tell some of the plants apart, and since I have a baby, it isn't worth the risk for weeds i don't know for sure are safe.
I bought some Testudo Seed Mix from TortoiseSupply.com and planted my own planter box.
Until that is ready to be picked at will, i have been scouring my yard pulling all the stuff i know is safe for him to eat: plaintain, clover, dandelion, and then i went and bought a few plants he can eat like a hibiscus and a mulberry.
Point being, there are a crazy number of weeds out there, so i would suggest you find a couple that are easy to identify and spot and mix them into the variety of plants you will be feeding the tortoise.
Here is a list I pulled together from where i live in Ohio that explains by Genus which plants are safe, these are all confirmed by that same resource listed above thetortoisetable.com.

For plant identification, i use an app called Garden Answers which allows you to take a photo of a plant and it will tell you (most of the time) what it is.

Safe To Feed By Genus:
- Campanula
- Carex
- Elymus
- Geranium
- Morus
- Sedum
- Ulmus
- Viola

Feed In Moderation By Genus:
- Betula
- Cardamine
- Claytonia
- Corylus
- Fagus
- Hamamelis
- Helianthus
- Heuchera
- Lonicera
- Lysimachia
- Magnolia
- Phlox
- Polemonium
- Rosa
- Tiarella
- Tilia
- Tradescantia

Feed Sparingly By Genus:
- Acer
- Prunus
- Rubus
- Salvia

NEVER Feed By Genus:
- Actaea - Aesculus - Allium
- Anemone - Athyrium - Cornus
- Delphinium - Dennstaedtia - Dicentra
- Euonymus - Eupatorium - Fraxinus
- Houstonia - Hydrangea - Hypericum
- Impatiens - Iris - Juglans
- Juniperus - Kalmia - Lilium
- Maeianthemus - Oxalis - Parthenocissus
- Phacelia - Pinus - Polygonatum (personal fav)
- Populus - Quercus - Ranunculus
- Ribes - Sambucus - Senecio
- Silene - Solidago - Symphoricarpos
- Taxus - Tephrosia - Thalictrum
- Tsuga - Viburnum
 

RosemaryDW

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Newport Coast, CA
Weeds are great and with time you will get comfortable identifying the “good” ones nearby. It doesn’t happen all at once; don’t feel that you can’t get ready to feed a tortoise healthy food just because you haven’t completed Weeds 101. :)

Often there are options near us for purchasing foods that are interesting and healthy, that we may not know about. Health food stores; “fancy” grocery stores (Whole Foods) and ethnic groceries can all be good options.

If you live in a rural area, there may still be plants available to you from farmers, at least in certain times of the year. (I presume if no crops are growing there aren’t many weeds either!)

There is a LOT of rural area in NH and even in the large cities there isn’t a lot of ethnic diversity but if you have any Asian or hispanic groceries near you, you can likely find some good things. (People often don’t know about these stores in their areas until they poke around.)

Can you tell us what kind of area you’re living in; that might help us give you some tips.
 

brandon324

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Joined
Jun 26, 2018
Messages
5
Location (City and/or State)
New Hampshire
I live definitely in a rural area. Central New Hampshire. Close enough to some cities too. I know that I have dandelion around my yard not whole lot but some growing here and there. I believe everything is edible on that besides the stem ( from what I have read) I was thinking about buying a few spider plants for the enclosure. Does anyone grow weeds inside? Thanks for all the replies, I greatly appreciate it.
 

RosemaryDW

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Newport Coast, CA
The stem on dandelion is fine.

If you have dandelions you probably have a few other things as well. Take some pictures for us. A picture of the whole plant growing in the ground and if you can, a good picture of the leaves by themselves. We can sort a few out.

And yes, people grow inside with florescent lights; just do a couple of searches in here that using the terms “growing indoors” or “florescent lights.”
 

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