Dandelions?

[Lilyloveslettuse]

Hi everybody!-
Lily can't resist dandelions. I usually put 1-2 dandelions in her morning salad (she now eats two salads with weeds and a whole bunch of good stuff) So what is in dandelions that is so good? Am I feeding her too much of it or not enough??

Thanks! ~lll

 

[NeuroNaka]

Dandelions are high in oxalic acid, so while tortoises love them, they shouldn't be fed too much, too often.

http://thetortoisetable.org.uk/site/plants_19.asp?mode=main&catID=5&st=true

 

[Saleama]

Mine will full on tackle a brother as soon as I put dandelions or clover in with them! I have to set up three or four eating areas when it is dandelion day as they will knock each other over to get to it. They literally start eating it as I am setting it down and mine are all about 3 - 5 months old!

And they figured out that little hide the hay in the dandelions trick too! There is no fooling my little guys!

 

[Lilyloveslettuse]

How cute! Since its sadly almost winter here there won't be any dandelions so she will get a break from them until Summer comes again

 

[Livingstone]

Dandelions are a great food. Only the old leaves have the oxalic acid (the stuff that binds calcium and causes stones). Feed it whenever you can, its totally fine everyday.

 

[Lilyloveslettuse]

I'm going to feed one to her on Monday and one on Friday now

 

[Tom]

When we talk about dandelions, we are generally referring to the whole plant. Leaves, stems and flowers too.

It's a great food, but I wouldn't feed it, or anything else (except grass or grass hay), everyday. Mine get it two or three times a week when I can find it.

 

[TigsMom]

On one of our vacations, I ran around a park picking all the Dandelion seeds, the delicate blooms and placed them in a gallon ziplock (yes, it was alot of seeds) to bring home and plant. Anyone who saw me had to be shaking their heads and laughing. I so wished I'd had a little kid with me to help me not look quite as goofy. But funnier yet was I had a large pot of Dandelions growing as a centerpiece on my Patio table. I threw some in the tortoise pens and some in flower pots. As soon as the tortoises woke from their hibernation, those dandelions disappeared in the pens within a week or so. The flower pots happily lasted a few months. They don't grow well here in the intense heat of summer, but Spring was good. I tend to grab some seeds when I go to visit family, they've usually got some in their yards. My torts don't care for the wild Arizona Desert Dandelions that grow wild here, spoiled Desert Tortoises perhaps.

 

[Lilyloveslettuse]

My sister just found a dandelion in our yard (I made sure my dad didn't spray it with weed killer) and put it in Lily's play pen so she can discover it tomorrow

 

[Urtle]

Dandelions are excellent.