To feed the opuntia pads, cut them lengthwise into long thin strips and feed the strips to the tortoise. This is better than chopping the pads into tiny cubes which can be a choking hazard.
Thank you, i tried finding out about it but i couldnt find anything, do plant shops often do that?
There is an opinion, that all decorative plants are treated with systemic pesticides in US. In EU legislation is different but systemic pesticides are allowed to use for ornamental indoors or greenhouse-only plants. You may ask in the garden store, how they propagate opuntia and if they use anything. Or you can replant fresh bought plant in a clean organic soil, let it grow new pads and feed/propagate these new pads. Another option is to look for sellers who sell plants safe for animal consumption.
Thanks for info, ill go ask the store
Yes! most do because we as people only want to buy the biggest and the preatest plants
My local grocery store sells cactus pads in the produce isle. You can get something like that and root it in some clean soil if need be. I have them in my Backyard, I'll harvest 6 or 7 of them, I use a pair of gloves and a scrap piece of leather to de-thorn them, then slice as needed. I actually cut across, where they were cut off the plant. It makes shorter fibers, which is easier to pass through the GI tract.
I don't cut them at all. I just put tender young pads in the food bowl for little baby tortoises and they eat from the edges in.
This is not an opinion. This is fact. It federal law. All of the large commercial producers use these systemic pesticides and are required by law to do so for decorative plants that are not intended for human consumption. Many retail sellers here don't even know this.
You can buy spineless opuntia from several sources. Or ask here on the TFO and perhaps someone will give you a few pads and you can start growing your own.
What happened everybody stopped talking about the fertilizer in plants?
Yes, since many plant propagators may send plants long distances, or across state lines, they are required to "treated" as to NOT spread any diseases to areas that are not used to any number of pests . .
If you are using one of the many "spineless" varieties, you don't have to cut off the little spines. In the wild, they eat whole pads of the spined varieties with no issues.
Plants grown with plain fertilizers are not toxic. Plants must have fertilizer of some sort to grow.
