Dangerous Weeds???

[Granolagal]

Is it safe to assume that if I pick weeds for Zippy that he is not going to eat them if they are not good for him???

The internet research that I have done, has very few of the same weeds that I am coming across (they are mostly in Europe). I have ordered two books on edible plants in North America, and am patiently awaiting their arrival. For the time being, I have an abundance of things growing and feel it would be a shame to continuously have to offer store-bought lettuces.

Are their any common weeds that grow that anyone knows are dangerous, and I should be aware of?

I have read a few comments about torties grazing and only choosing the 'good stuff', I am just unsure if the same principles would apply if the 'bad stuff' was offered in a dish?

Any help would be swell

Cheers, Carley

 

[RTfanatic]

They will eat stuff that's bad for them if they are not familiar with it and it smells like something they are familiar with. Genetically they have been tuned to weeds in their native lands. That doesn't mean there are a bunch of weeds that will kill them, but it's better to be somewhat selective and not just feed them any weed you find. I usually can find enough known weeds like dandelion when I want to give them something different. That's a mixed blessing of course. I've also found that they will eat several types of live grasses but almost never eat grass I pulled and put into their pen. They'll eat dandelion I've pulled. Not sure why.

 

[old4x4]

Creeping Charlie (ground ivy) is EVERYWHERE in my yard, but questionable (enough for me) for Sherman, my marginated. Wish I could give it to him as I have a ton of it.

 

[chelonologist]

Oxalis is a bad - and very common - weed, as it's high in oxalic acid.

 

[Itort]

Some old standby you should find in your area are: dandilions, plantain (not the bannana like fruit but what my Grandmother from Michigan called elkhorn), thisles, grape leaves, and mulberry leaves. These should all be common in your area.