Can I feed that Weed to my Rabbit?

     I have found myself quite torn this week between researching what fresh picked weeds to feed my rabbits and researching what snorkeling masks will be good for our summer vacation! The masks can be rather expensive, so I got discouraged...the Weeds win! Mostly because they are free, and I have a surplus! And well...the garden needs weeding :) I do like instant gratification!

 

   I have found a great rabbit forum online, if you are a rabbit enthusiast I highly recommend checking them out! Great people with lots of friendly advise and information. Please see links at the bottom of the page! When I dive into a project I try my best to read everything I can about the subject...but I have to admit the best available information seems to come from the hands on experience of real live people, not just the experts! I have found so much shared knowledge in Forum Users!  I am part of a few forums really, that I use fairly regularly....koiphen.com (for the koi ponders out there), Rabbittalk for the rabbitries out there, and talkbudgies/talkcockatiels, for all your pet bird needs. When using a forum you will find people from all over the world from the simple novice to an expert, all walks of life...all sharing there advise with you...and with such pleasure! I just love forums for learning....so if you haven't tried registering with a forum in your area of interest or hobby, I really wish you'd give it a shot...there is so much to learn out there! And share!!!!  You may be surprised how much you enjoy it! 

Florida betony

   
     So back to the weeds! I was reading about natural feeding and foraging for the rabbits....here in Central Florida, the one thing we are NOT lacking in, is a healthy variety of lawn weeds! So out came my camera and a quick trip was taken around the yard for weeds that grew in plentiful that could become a supplement staple in the diet of my bunnies! I found a quick dozen I needed to check out!

    I know some may not seem like weeds, like the passion flower and the wedelia, but if the conditions are right these are two of those plants that, by mid summer you are swearing at and condemning to a good dose of round up...not that I ever would.....use the round up that is :) But none the less I have such a surplus of some particular plants...that it would be fabulous to be able to share my xtra's with the bunnies....After all...who doesn't love work with a purpose...I'd be killing two birds with one stone...(did I just say that?) What a horrible expression...when you think about it.... Okay, two jobs would be getting accomplished, my yard would probably be the most weed free it has ever been and the rabbits would be getting fed, and I would be saving money on rabbit food....it's a win, win, win!!!!! Here are the main staples in my own yard that I hoped were safe for my bunnies to eat: I have successfully fed the following items to my rabbits without ill effects or have researched to there safety or not. By far the greatest treat to date has been the Mulberry leaves! SAFE!

 We started with feeding the fruits, which they loved, then once I researched some more, I learned the twigs are a great treat as well for gnawing on, and they happily strip the bark off as many as they can as quickly as they can! All prunings are now kept...After confirmation from a the great Rabbittalk forum, I tried the Mulberry leaves...they were a hit also! Especially right now, as they have huge new-growth leaves....the buns come a runnin'.  Another crazy weed in my yard that I'd love to knock down a bit is the Spanish needle, Bidens bipinnata. SAFE!

 I have a tender place in my heart for it, since the butterflies seem to swarm it in the summer....I leave a little area growing that forms a large mat, not only do most use it as nectar food, but it a a host plant for the Dainty Sulphur butterfly and at night I think they gather under it for protection too! So it STAYS...but it readily escapes this secluded area and pops up EVERYWHERE!  After reading more about it, I found that we can also benefit from it ourselves! I cooked us up a batch...hmmm, "like spinach" they said...I think "not". The husband says I just don't know how to cook it. LOL, he is "the cook" in our house (thank goodness).....next time he will try cooking it like greens with bacon fat! How fun is that! The third weed/plant that has become quite a nuisance since planting is... Wedelia, wedelia tribobata.  SAFE

 I do love the way it jumps, runs, and blooms throughout the shady areas, making for a wonderful woodland setting...but it can get way out of bounds once the Florida summer rains start...so this will be a huge staple for rabbits. It took a little research on this one, but I found some research that had been done on food supplements for rabbits that included this plant. I have posted a link: http://www.mekarn.org/prohan/kdong2.htm. Though it appears the nutritional value is not high, it will still give my weeded Wedelia purpose! I just hate pulling out such huge clumps of a vibrantly living plant....even if it is a nuisance, so being able to use it for a fiber source for the buns will make it worth it! The fourth plant on my ...please please let my rabbits be able to eat it list is the passion vine!  I will never live without one, but the runners are poppin' up everywhere...and though the Gulf Fritillaries and Zebra Longwing can keep it somewhat in check, sometimes through the summer, huge amounts of vines have to be pulled out of the crape myrtles before they suffocate! Some vines just get away from us Southern Gardeners that way :) The passion flower I have is the native passiflora incarnata. NOT determined SAFE

 I have frequently shared the flowers with my Koi....and they love them, and I have read that the fruit and flowers are safe, but as of this writing I have been unable to confirm that the rabbits would be safe to eat the foliage! I have read conflicting reports...so the jury is still out. To error on the side of caution I will hold off until I can confirm if they are safe or not.....Maybe one of you have some personal experience with this one! Leave a comment and let me know! The last flowering weed I have allowed to grow in the garden, and is getting out of hand quickly is Florida Betony, Stachys Floridana SAFE (picture above) This is a nice easily pulled weed I often shared with the chickens to....Nice to know a few animals will benefit from it now!

       There are still quite a few others I need to confirm before trying, but given the list of safe plants for the rabbits and the few I researched on my own, my buns should have more than a dozen foraging items available just from our backyard. Please do..share with me the common weeds or plants you supplement with for your rabbits!
   
       On a side page is a great compilation LIST OF SAFE plants from a great gal , Maggie, from Rabbittalk: http://rabbittalk.com/. (Did I already mention what a great forum that is)  LOL....Some are from her personal experience, having fed her own rabbits and the rest are known to be safe, but with anything...please don't take our word on it, do some research of your own, make sure you identify your weeds correctly and above all..know your bunnies and study their behaviors. Now when you rabbit lovers take a walk around the yard and pull a few weeds...don't forget that one person's weed is ...well....another rabbit's dinner!  They will thank you for it! Thanks for stopping by my page...please leave me a message so I know you passed through! And if you haven't already....don't forget to spread some seed!       - janine

koiphen.com

rabbittalk.com

talkbudgie.com

Isaiah 40 6-8:

"All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it;  surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever".

The Flycatcher comes home

An Earlier writing from a few years back....

      

JUNE 2009:   OMGosh what a glorious day in our garden. This season in our backyard we have had the privilege of watching a pair of Bluebirds return to their shanty and raise two clutches, another pair of bluebirds moved into a new box (or the 1^st pair upgraded finally), and they are in the midst of raising a family right nowJ  and as I write you can hear our red bellied woodpecker baby chirping away each time mom and dad come back with a tasty morsel for it. 

"The Red Bellied Woodpecker"

    The wrens also have returned to the posts of the above ground pool, and the mockingbirds are forever swooping down on us and the dogs, protecting whichever of the nests it finally managed to start a family in. But to my surprise we managed to entice a titmouse to move into a house, I was very excited until I realized unfortunately it was, at the expense of the flycatcher that visits our backyard each year, actually…the very first bird to take up residence here. It was my first homemade birdhouse. It was designed for a woodpecker or an owl, but I was just as happy to see that unfamiliar bird sitting high on a perch on the tallest thing in our backyard 6 years ago.  She came back year after year, even when Hurricane Charlie took out our pine tree pole, and we used a shorter 4x4 for replacement, she still nested there. 

"My Fly Catcher"

     Last year I got worried because the perch had fallen off, and I kept forgetting to find a new one. Upon her return though, under a watchful eye I quickly hot glued a new one in place. Yet again she moved right in, to raise her babies.  She faithfully returned each and every year...and I faithfully looked forward to it.....

    So you can imagine how crushed I was the day she returned and I witnessed the titmouse that had already started a clutch of her own, swoop at her repeatedly to chase her away, with every attempt she made to move in.  It made my heart just ache.

     I quickly got to work and constructed a new house the exact dimensions of the last, and raised it high in the air, to the original 15 feet it was, souring above everything surrounding it. It took me just a few days, but that was not fast enough, and my sweet Flycatcher was not seen again. (That was April)……until this Sunday, that is, way up on the highest branch of the maple tree, looking guard, was no other than my sweet Flycatcher, the same treetop she has used for the last 6 years. The titmouse family have moved out, and I can only hope that she is giving her old home another chance, but whether or not she moves in this season remains to be seen. What I do know is this….she remembers…..and I feel pretty confident she will return again next year, to our yard looking for a home to raise her babies, now hopefully she’ll have a few to choose from! 

"The bluebirds"

   TODAY:  That was three long years ago.....and my sweet flycatcher did not nest that year, nor the season of 2010, or 2011....I watched and was disappointed every season....but this week as I sat out back watching all the songbirds crisscross across the yard in the new bird garden....there she was.....sitting high on the perch of "that" birdhouse, and she was going in! She was making it home!....It's been a very busy birdhouse over the past few years, it raises a few clutches each year, usually Bluebirds and Titmouse.....A young family of Bluebirds  just fledged  a few weeks ago and my daughter and I got to watch as the mom and dad coaxed their two babies into flying! Our first witness of an actual fledging...eeeeek 15 feet is a long way down for a bitty bird that can't yet fly!    

    As I sat outside this morning in awe of ALL the birds this yard attracts....I watched the wren making her second nest of the season on the patio, this time in the mushroom birdhouse the cuban tree frog was living in, and another pair of bluebirds are just finishing raising their first clutch out behind bunnyville, it's been a great season.....we also had our first flock of ceder waxwings visiting the mulberry bush, they stayed all month, along with plenty of catbirds who visit when the mulberries are ripe ..but nothing has made me smile as much as  knowing that our flycatcher is finally back home to raise another family.....She sits high on the tallest Sycamore branch and looks out over the entire yard now as I write.....She started coming here when we offered very little, her house at 15 feet was the tallest thing in the yard, now with all the trees and bushes grown well beyond that height, well....now she sits up there like she is Queen of the garden.........and righfully so....once again!

I hope the Spring Birds have returned to your yard...with a little food and shelter you may be surprised what will move right in! So don't forget....Spread some seed.....janine

Matthew 8:20

And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay his head

You never know where you may find a friend :)

I got to share my garden with a new friend today! I listed a very nicely priced Child's toy that was gathering dust in my daughter's room on Craigslist in hopes that a little girl may get a really "big" surprise on Christmas morning.  Just after posting it....for a very nice price...ummm..did I mention that? Well I rechecked to see what others may be listing this item for, and needless to say I was underpriced....but that's not the point :) I came across a posting from a Mother looking for this item for her girls for Christmas....I quickly threw her an email and hoped she would contact me before anyone else, since it had already posted...To be honest..I would have just called her, had I reviewed the site to begin with...None the less, she called this morning and her and the family came out this afternoon! I had one text just a few minutes before her, and a bunch after.... but I just knew I needed to call this one back first...As it turned out...I met a lovely family, relocated to our county from Fort Lauderdale... The Mom was from Columbia and the Dad from Chile, they had 4 beautiful children, so polite and sweet....I couldn't have asked for a better home for the item :)

 As we talked, and talked, and the husbands talked and talked...we ended up out back, introducing the Chickens, the Koi and the birds to the kids....I would apologize for the mess, and she would just keep saying how it was perfect just the way it was....like being at home where she was raised....It's funny how we see all our own flaws, but others see things about us so differently!
 She seemed like just a beautiful person inside and out...and from such different parts of the world...we had so much in common.....the love of nature, the animals, the kids....They will be looking for a house out this way....I hope God leads them over here closer...would love to have them in the neighborhood... My daughter took their little girl on a tour of the yard as we talked..she picked flowers the whole way...and then Thanked my daughter, Elly, for letting her pick the pretty flowers in her yard..

All the time spent, is rewarded in moments just like that! There is nothing more beautiful than children feeding the fish for the first time, or a little girl clutching a fist full of flowers......... Enjoy whatever garden space you have.....it's like a universal language that everyone finds some peace and comfort in....  janine