Lupines?

[RhodeIslandRed5]

Blue Bonnets grow wild in nearby towns, and they are quite beautiful.

 

[NHMountainMan]

My DH has a real affection for the little creeks and rivers that are in our area, where he has lived all his life. A few years ago he started making regular rounds to the popular swimming/party holes, especially on Sunday evenings, to pick up trash left by the weekend partyers. Month after month he would pick up soiled diapers, beer cans, odd food items and old shoes. He would leave an empty trash bag hanging on a stake near the parking lots, and remove full ones. Eventually the sites started to look cleaner, and he would find that folks cleaned up after themselves. We went to one of the places yesterday, and the only piece of trash we found was an empty soda can.
I'm not sure what the moral of this story is, but I just wanted to let you know not all country folks are pigs.

I agree - 99% of people anywhere are good. Maybe even 99.9 for country folk! But the 1% that don't give a damn make it so much harder on the rest. Before cancer, I was an avid hiker. Leave no trace is a big phrase in the hiking community. Most people carry out everything. I mean I'd even pick up and carry out my dog droppings. But there's always the one idiot dropping wrappers, etc. I started carrying a trash bag and cleaning as I went along. I've even seen people drop stuff in front of me. I'd even had a kid throw his trash in my bag as I was cleaning up - again - it's a small # of idiots, but they can be a pain in the butt to deal with.

 

[JanetMarie]

The last three dump-offs, yes we had to. I'm even considering having a few cans of dog food on hand just for such emergencies. The dump-offs are usually starving.

Yeah, I didn't mean to get off the subject of lupines by griping at the way people do. @JanetMarie , Lupine seeds are easily bought, you could grow you some if you miss them.

That would be a good idea having the cans of dog food on hand.

I'll probably start some Lupine seeds next year. I like the wild ones that grow in the northern U.S. to eastern Canada.

 

[NHMountainMan]

I contacted the Univ of NH Coop Ext about Lupines and whether they were poisonous to chickens after getting conflicting reports.
There response follow - but in summary - WILD lupines, which are all over my area, are poisonous to chickens. Looks like complete free ranging is out.

Their response follows for those interested:

An incomplete list of plants that are poisonous to chickens
includes daffodils, foxglove, morning glory, yew, tulips,
lily of the valley, azaleas, rhododendron, mountain laurel, monkshood,
amaryllis, castor bean, trumpet vine, nightshade, and nicotiana.

I have attached two articles that provide information regarding your question and may explain why you may hear it is okay or it is not okay to feed chickens wild lupines. First article says not to allow chickens to eat wild lupine and explains the impacts it may have on chickens. The second article points out how lupines may be used in chicken feed and I have bolded the text that basically says not to use wild lupines.

An article from Consumer Report by Jodi Helmer, a North Carolina-based writer covering food and farming topics, has the following information:

This herbaceous perennial grows 12 to 26 inches tall and produces
bonnet-shaped flowers that grow on a spike. The flowers come in a range
of colors from deep blue and purple to pink and white. All parts of
lupine plants, which are more common in mountainous areas, contain a
toxin called quinolizidine alkaloids that cause nervousness,
depression ,aimless wandering, muscle twitching and convulsions in
chickens. Because it’s difficult to control wild lupines, keep chickens
from accessing areas of the farm where lupines grow.

The second article is from a University of Kentucky professor on lupines and chickens.

Written by: Dr. Jacquie Jacob, University of Kentucky



The seeds of the lupin plant, also referred to as lupins, can
be incorporated in poultry diets, but the recommended level of
inclusion varies depending on the type of lupin and the poultry species
in question. The lupin species most typically incorporated in livestock
diets include white lupin (Lupinus albus), blue or narrow-leafed lupin (L. angustifolius), and yellow lupin (L. luteus). Unlike soybeans, lupins do not require roasting before they can be fed to poultry.



The main antinutritional factors in lupins are alkaloids, which together with phytates, protease inhibitors, and lectins have
led producers to restrict the use of untreated lupin grains in feed.
Breeding for low alkaloid content has resulted in the development of
so-called sweet lupins. Sweet lupins can make up 40% of broiler diets
with no adverse effects on growth, feed efficiency, or carcass
characteristics.



The use of lupins, even sweet lupins, has been somewhat restricted by
the level of pectins, indigestible cell-wall polysaccharides, in
lupins. Undigested pectins increase the viscosity of the bird's
digestive tract, which in turn reduces dry-matter digestibility,
reducing feed efficiency. Pectins also increase water-holding capacity,
which leads to increased water intake and wet droppings. Reducing the
amount of lupins in feed can mitigate wet droppings.



The amino acid profile is similar for all three colored lupin
varieties, although yellow lupins are higher in cystine content than the
blue or white varieties. The amino acid digestibility of lupins is
similar to that of peas and beans (about 85%). The hull represents about
25% of the whole seed. Dehulling lupins increases protein content and
energy utilization. Enzyme supplementation (with pectinases) of
whole-seed and dehulled lupins improves utilization of the nonstarch
polysaccharides (NSP) present.

 

[ChookieG]

My DH has a real affection for the little creeks and rivers that are in our area, where he has lived all his life. A few years ago he started making regular rounds to the popular swimming/party holes, especially on Sunday evenings, to pick up trash left by the weekend partyers. Month after month he would pick up soiled diapers, beer cans, odd food items and old shoes. He would leave an empty trash bag hanging on a stake near the parking lots, and remove full ones. Eventually the sites started to look cleaner, and he would find that folks cleaned up after themselves. We went to one of the places yesterday, and the only piece of trash we found was an empty soda can.
I'm not sure what the moral of this story is, but I just wanted to let you know not all country folks are pigs

Wow your DH is so admirable for doing that!

We have much to learn from the Japanese.. the streets are spotlessly clean. .there's no public rubbish bins as everybody brings home their trash.