List of greens our Russian tortoises will and won't eat

[GeoTerraTestudo]

After some trial and error, I think I have figured out which domestic and wild plants our Russian tortoises like to eat, and which they don't.

Plants they usually want:
Arugula
Lettuce
Endive
Dandelion
Turnip
Collard
Kale
Morning glory

Plants they usually don't want:
Mustard
Spinach
Chard
Clover
Creeping Charlie
Plantago

 

[JoeImhof]

After some trial and error, I think I have figured out which domestic and wild plants our Russian tortoises like to eat, and which they don't.

Plants they usually want:
Arugula
Lettuce
Endive
Dandelion
Turnip
Collard
Kale
Morning glory

Plants they usually don't want:
Mustard
Spinach
Chard
Clover
Creeping Charlie
Plantago

Mine will eat Clover occasionally when outside, the flowers especially.
One will eat Mustard.
As for Plantago, I'd heard it was so good for them, got some seeds, but no, they dont like the common plantago with roundish leaves.
BUT there is another Plantago, a species with longer thin leaves. This one I found a patch last year nearby, and they love that kind! Like the one pictured in this link......see if yours will eat this one, mine do even though not the other kind..
http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/Plants.Folder/LongLeafPlantain.html

 

[Jacqui]

Morning Glory? Interesting, I have always read that it was one of the "bad" plants.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Mine will eat Clover occasionally when outside, the flowers especially.
One will eat Mustard.
As for Plantago, I'd heard it was so good for them, got some seeds, but no, they dont like the common plantago with roundish leaves.
BUT there is another Plantago, a species with longer thin leaves. This one I found a patch last year nearby, and they love that kind! Like the one pictured in this link......see if yours will eat this one, mine do even though not the other kind..
http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/Plants.Folder/LongLeafPlantain.html

Cool! Thanks for the tip!

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Morning Glory? Interesting, I have always read that it was one of the "bad" plants.

Yes, it is supposed to be toxic to mammals, but then tortoises naturally eat buttercup and poppies, which mammals can't handle, either. I certainly don't feed morning glory to them myself, but when they're outside, they just seem to go for it on their own, and preferentially over creeping Charlie or clover.

 

[Kerryann]

Can they both eat the creeping charlie leaves and flowers?

 

[Jacqui]

We have a nice selection of it growing wild here and I have been dreading cleaning it entirely out as we enlarge our tortoise enclosures, because it looks so pretty. I see so many of the different ones eating plants listed as bad and yet not seeing any problems after they do.

I have a young sulcata which is hell bent on eating this one weed (can't recall the name now), which is suppose to be bad. She got a bite before we could remove her and once placed back down in a new spot, she ignored "good" plants to get back to another clump of this weed. The bigger sulcata ignore it, but this one has radar for it.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Can they both eat the creeping charlie leaves and flowers?

They don't eat flowers very often. I realize Testudos are supposed to like flowers, but for some reason, my Russians don't really go for them.

As for creeping Charlie, they do eat it sometimes, but just not much and not often. Creeping Charlie (Glechoma hederacea) does contain a toxic secondary metabolic compound, which apparently even tortoises have some difficulty breaking down. I think they have some tolerance for it, but not as much as for those found in morning glories, buttercups, or poppies.

Anyway, to answer your question, I have seen them eat creeping Charlie leaves from time to time, but not the flowers.

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We have a nice selection of it growing wild here and I have been dreading cleaning it entirely out as we enlarge our tortoise enclosures, because it looks so pretty. I see so many of the different ones eating plants listed as bad and yet not seeing any problems after they do.

I have a young sulcata which is hell bent on eating this one weed (can't recall the name now), which is suppose to be bad. She got a bite before we could remove her and once placed back down in a new spot, she ignored "good" plants to get back to another clump of this weed. The bigger sulcata ignore it, but this one has radar for it.

I think part of why they go for these toxic plants is to "self-medicate," especially when they have intestinal parasites. Somehow they know when they have worms, and they eat toxic plants to deworm themselves. Then, once the infestation is reduced or eliminated, they go back to easy-to-digest, tasty plants in the sunflower and cruciferous families. Amazing.

 

[GBtortoises]

After some trial and error, I think I have figured out which domestic and wild plants our Russian tortoises like to eat, and which they don't.

Plants they usually want:
Arugula
Lettuce
Endive
Dandelion
Turnip
Collard
Kale
Morning glory

Plants they usually don't want:
Mustard
Spinach
Chard
Clover
Creeping Charlie
Plantago

In addition to the above mine will also eat escarole, sow thistle, broad and narrow leaf plantain, Lambsquarter, alfalfa plus a multitude of other "wild" foods. Mine only seem to eat kale if it's the only thing left. They'll generall eat mustard greens and they devour clover.

 

[Kerryann]

I give her a different mix weekly. I have included to date
dandelion
green leaf lettuce
red leaf lettuce
watercress
endive
escarole
turnip
collard
kale
mustard
spinach as a treat
radish leaves
wheat grass
cilantro
spider plant
gerianuim
chicks and hens
day lily
clover
organic rose leaves
organic rose petals
raddichio
I'd say betty hasn't met a food she doesn't like.

Mine has eaten everything I have stuck in her face to date. She doesn't seem interested in grass outside but ate clover, and day lily.

 

[dmmj]

My russaind must be the exception to the rule, they love flowers, and the one they like the best is hibiscus, they often fight over them even though I put down more than enough to go around.

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as for greens I have not found anything yet that they won't eat.

 

[slowpoke]

mine love the mix of greens i give them (kale,mustard,collards, and what ever that green one is with the red vains in it ) ... they also like asperagus fern , they munch on it often , i have that in the indoor (grows supper fast) and planning on putting it in the outdoor home when it warms up ...

 

[nicoleandrocky]

It's true, rocky won't ever touch spinach.

 

[Kerryann]

You can add creeping charlie to the list. She ate some today. Henry wasn't a fan. He is a much picky eater than Betty. He is also more timid. I don't think he has really ever been outside very much before though.

 

[JoeImhof]

They don't eat flowers very often. I realize Testudos are supposed to like flowers, but for some reason, my Russians don't really go for them.

Wow, thats suprising!
Do you consider Squash blossoms as "flowers". Mine would eat squash flowers 24/7 365.
Also love Petunia, Pansy, and Nasturtium flowers.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

You can add creeping charlie to the list. She ate some today. Henry wasn't a fan. He is a much picky eater than Betty. He is also more timid. I don't think he has really ever been outside very much before though.

Yeah, creeping Charlie is on my list of "plants they don't usually want." They eat it sometimes, but not much and not often.

Also, my male is pickier than my female, too. I think it might be a difference between the sexes. Males have been shown to spend more time running around than females, and I think they might not eat as much as females do, either.

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Wow, thats suprising!
Do you consider Squash blossoms as "flowers". Mine would eat squash flowers 24/7 365.
Also love Petunia, Pansy, and Nasturtium flowers.

Yep, squash blossoms are flowers, all right. I haven't offered them to mine, though. I find it hard to justify buying my guys flowers because, A) they're more expensive, so B) if they don't eat them anyway, it's a real waste. Maybe I will see if they like squash blossoms, though. How much are they? Where do you get them?

 

[lynnedit]

Last year I planted one squash vine and it produced many blossoms; a few got away and managed to form squash.
I am not sure, but I think more upscale grocery stores sell them seasonally. Also, you might beg some off of a gardener this summer!
Mine did go crazy for them.

 

[nicoleandrocky]

But my russian eats mustard greens.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

But my russian eats mustard greens.

Mine do, too, but they just don't seem to like it as much as some of the other greens I offer them, perhaps because of its spicy flavor.

As a matter of fact, this past week, I have been giving them mustard greens, and they have been eating them. But unlike other plants, they won't eat them if I offer them several days in a row. There has to be some kind of interlude of other plants before they feel like eating mustard greens again. In this case, I have been giving them spring mix, turnip greens, and dandelion in between feedings of mustard greens, and then they will eat them.

This is why I put mustard greens on the "don't usually want" list. They'll eat it, but not very often.

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Last year I planted one squash vine and it produced many blossoms; a few got away and managed to form squash.
I am not sure, but I think more upscale grocery stores sell them seasonally. Also, you might beg some off of a gardener this summer!
Mine did go crazy for them.

Cool! Thanks for the tip.

 

[lynnedit]

I can never find turnip greens!!! I hear they are among the best greens to give torts.
I have asked at grocery stores, one has a farmer come in for the leftover greens (cut off the turnips, for example). Now I am growing some, but sheesh.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

I can never find turnip greens!!! I hear they are among the best greens to give torts.
I have asked at grocery stores, one has a farmer come in for the leftover greens (cut off the turnips, for example). Now I am growing some, but sheesh.

I only recently discovered turnip greens, and I'm glad I did, because my guys really seem to chow down on them. I might rank them right up there with arugula, lettuce, and dandelion, but we'll see if they continue to go nuts for them as the season continues. Judging by what others have said, they probably will.