Henbit vs nettles

[DoubleD1996!]

I know that these two plants are similar, and the nettle seems to be more common, but is it safe to feed nettle moderation? Is there a safe way to prepare nettle?

 

[Maro2Bear]

So, regarding the Nettle. Are you referring to the Stinging Nettle? The type with little nasty hairs that irritate your skin? If so, use gloves - pick young tender shoots & just feed. Like cactus pads, these little sticky things don’t seem to bother tortoises. As with most things - feed in moderation & feed a wide variety of food types as warranted by the type of tort that you have.

We have a lot of the Purple Deadnettle here. It’s already growing like gangbusters!

 

[DoubleD1996!]

So, regarding the Nettle. Are you referring to the Stinging Nettle? The type with little nasty hairs that irritate your skin? If so, use gloves - pick young tender shoots & just feed. Like cactus pads, these little sticky things don’t seem to bother tortoises. As with most things - feed in moderation & feed a wide variety of food types as warranted by the type of tort that you have.

We have a lot of the Purple Deadnettle here. It’s already growing like gangbusters!

Same here. And thanks for advice.

 

[RosemaryDW]

They are actually from two different plant families, both have nettle as the name but they aren’t closely related.

That said, both are fine in moderation as stated above.

 

[AgataP]

 

[RosemaryDW]

I‘m afraid I can’t agree with the Tortoise Table’s logic on henbit. Deadnettles and henbit are closely related, in the same relatively small plant venus. That’s not a guarantee one is safe when another isn’t but what they say about henbit is that is can problematic for horses. Horses are not tortoises; there is no reason to assume a reptile will have the same reaction to something as a mammal. They go on to say that plenty of other resources report it as a safe tortoise food but on the side of extreme caution they don’t recommend it. That’s pretty slim reasoning in my opinion.

There is no reason not to feed something you’re not comfortable with; just be aware that not everyone looks at that resource as a tortoise bible.

My Russian wouldn’t try henbit the couple of times I was able to get my hands on any so it ended up a non issue here.

 

[DoubleD1996!]

I‘m afraid I can’t agree with the Tortoise Table’s logic on henbit. Deadnettles and henbit are closely related, in the same relatively small plant venus. That’s not a guarantee one is safe when another isn’t but what they say about henbit is that is can problematic for horses. Horses are not tortoises; there is no reason to assume a reptile will have the same reaction to something as a mammal. They go on to say that plenty of other resources report it as a safe tortoise food but on the side of extreme caution they don’t recommend it. That’s pretty slim reasoning in my opinion.

There is no reason not to feed something you’re not comfortable with; just be aware that not everyone looks at that resource as a tortoise bible.

My Russian wouldn’t try henbit the couple of times I was able to get my hands on any so it ended up a non issue here.

Thank you. I'll keep that in mind.

 

[Lyn W]

Thank you. I'll keep that in mind.

The TT is just a guide and it's all down to how confident you are really.
I'm not and worry about feeding anything that may be risky, so tend to err on the side of caution.

 

[RosemaryDW]

The TT is just a guide and it's all down to how confident you are really.
I'm not and worry about feeding anything that may be risky, so tend to err on the side of caution.

Same here. There are a few things I won’t feed; spurges are one example, but not many.

At any rate @DoubleD1996!, you can always do a general search for a plant’s name here in the forum to see where it pops up in different threads. I find that a good way to see what owners actually feed on a regular basis.