I've noticed a lot of stuff starting to come out now down here so I'm going to attempt my first forage of the year on Monday. So far I've spotted some nice willow and birch trees and some hawthorn. I'm also growing some strawberries and have a ton of dandelions I planted in pots last year. I love this time of year.
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Gardening/Foraging 2013 Diary
- Thread starter Elena
- Start date
Bouncing bunnies
Mama Doe
Iv been foraging today, only the third time this year and everything has grown like mad.
Today I got some grass, sticky weed, dead nettle, stinging nettle, a few dandelion leaves and a small amount of hawthorn
And this is what iv dried so far from my two previous foraging attempts (the buns have eaten some)
Today I got some grass, sticky weed, dead nettle, stinging nettle, a few dandelion leaves and a small amount of hawthorn
And this is what iv dried so far from my two previous foraging attempts (the buns have eaten some)
Bouncing bunnies
Mama Doe
Today's lot of forage :shock:
Fluffs mum
Warren Scout
^^^^ wow ! Xxxxx am going picking later ... Don't think I will get that much though .
Buns will eat stinging nettles, but they're best left over night to wilt, sometimes the leaves rolled over with a rolling pin. They don't sting then.
I find that good forage is often at the edge of a patch of stingers.
Tip for foragers I always get a leaf of broad leafed plantain at the start for me. If I do get stung, I rub the plantain leaf on it so the juice comes out. Immediate & permanent relief.
(Don't bother with dock, it's useless)
I noticed a post which I can't find, that marguerites were safe for buns.
I don't know the basis for this.
We have many wild marguerites (ox eye daisies) locally. The only difference being single rather than double flowers.
I notice that the wild rabbits don't eat them at several warrens, even when they've virtually eaten out their forage area.
Personally I'm not convinced that they are safe. I go entirely by what wild rabbits eat extensively.
I don't know the basis for this.
We have many wild marguerites (ox eye daisies) locally. The only difference being single rather than double flowers.
I notice that the wild rabbits don't eat them at several warrens, even when they've virtually eaten out their forage area.
Personally I'm not convinced that they are safe. I go entirely by what wild rabbits eat extensively.
Debster
Mama Doe
I found a great place to forage local to me yesterday, lots of hawthorn, apple, bramble, plantain, nettle, hazel, so I'm really pleased. Currently drying a load of dandelions I pulled from the front garden before we mowed the lawn.
This is our first summer in this house and we're trying to plan what to do with the garden. I have a list of rabbit safe plants I'd like to try, but I also like to spend time in the garden when I'm home from work and let the buns freerange. I'm just not convinced anything will last around them! Not unless I fence off what's growing anyway :roll::lol:
This is our first summer in this house and we're trying to plan what to do with the garden. I have a list of rabbit safe plants I'd like to try, but I also like to spend time in the garden when I'm home from work and let the buns freerange. I'm just not convinced anything will last around them! Not unless I fence off what's growing anyway :roll::lol:
I love spring!
There is so much about now, new bramble leaves coming through, the rose bushes along the canal are getting huge again, lovely new hawthorn leaves (although some are starting to get flowers through), the willow trees are getting leaves on. Not much in the way of plantain and other ground type plants yet though, but the amount of other things are making it easy to fill to big bags full of stuff in a 15 min trip along the canal.
I'm definitely overly excited about it all but the buns are loving it. They got a lot of brambles over the winter and no much of anything else apart from apple branches.
There is so much about now, new bramble leaves coming through, the rose bushes along the canal are getting huge again, lovely new hawthorn leaves (although some are starting to get flowers through), the willow trees are getting leaves on. Not much in the way of plantain and other ground type plants yet though, but the amount of other things are making it easy to fill to big bags full of stuff in a 15 min trip along the canal.
I'm definitely overly excited about it all but the buns are loving it. They got a lot of brambles over the winter and no much of anything else apart from apple branches.
I am also excited, for the same reasons. Spring was so late this year, I'd nearly run out of forage & he needs a totally foraged diet! It's amazing how fast the plants growth with plenty of warm sun.
I find that the hawthorns grow fewer flowers on the shadey side of the bush & best of all just inside woodland.
Elena
Wise Old Thumper
I know the berries aren't, not sure on the flowers, I'm assuming they arent either as flowers turn into berries.
My plants are all starting to come through now, except my echinachea, I think it's dead
yesterday the bunnies had dead nettles, violas, fennel, celery leaf, goosegrass, sage, long strands of grass, dandelions, mint, marshmallow, chervil and lemon balm. Today I've been sowing some seed for hoomans and weeding the bed that I usually grow bunny food in, have calendula, nasturtiums and sunflowers all started off and ready to go in once hardened off, although the slugs have nibbled my sunflowers so I need to sow a few more. Also have various other things that I'm planning on putting in there but they aren't big enough yet.
Re Hawthorn buds & flowers.
They are used to make a herbal medicine which slows down the heart & it's highly effective.
An occasional flower doesn't matter but a branch full, is shall we say, imprudent.
There's a nasty cross reaction with cisipride which has been recently reintroduced to treat lower GI tract stasis.
The hawthorn berries contain very hard seeds. If a bunny bit on them he could break a tooth.
I know it's all fiddly, but it's very important to be safe too.
They are used to make a herbal medicine which slows down the heart & it's highly effective.
An occasional flower doesn't matter but a branch full, is shall we say, imprudent.
There's a nasty cross reaction with cisipride which has been recently reintroduced to treat lower GI tract stasis.
The hawthorn berries contain very hard seeds. If a bunny bit on them he could break a tooth.
I know it's all fiddly, but it's very important to be safe too.
Hi, I'd be interested to see if anyone knows about marguerites too... I bought one the other week and asked on here if it was bunny safe, people seemed to think it was so fingers crossed it is! Buns aren't allowed up that end of the garden at the moment so they're safe anyway!
Anyone have indeas for something bunny safe that I can plant in a thin strip of ground trapped behind their run? Is about a foot wide and 6 feet long with a rose and a fushcia in it at the moment. I'd really like to plant something tall so it sticks out over the top of the run (3feet ish) but I really don't want it to be anything that spreads?!! I was just hunting through old threads and was thinking maybe marshmallow or raspberry canes?? Ideally would like something that is pretty good cover to stop weeds and grass coming up too.
Thanks
