Mulberries OK?????

[Clay In Iowa]

I have huge old mulberry right where I want to put a run. Is it OK for chickens to eat large quantities of mulberries??? Should I avoid the area.??

I know other birds eat them like crazy. I have the purple stains all over ... everything... to prove it. It's more a case of eating large quantities. This tree produces TONS of berries e every year. In fact last year during peak production the berries were almost an inch deep around the base of the tree to a radius of about 10 feet. I've never seen a tree produce do many berries.

And what about the leaves??

 

[Akane]

The leaves aren't any more poisonous than the berries. I fed dried leaves to my chickens and have fed entire branches to my guinea pigs. The leaves can also be boiled and used in salads. They have been known to help regulate blood sugar. Now eating excessive amounts of unripe berries and mature leaves from one of the species of mulberries will cause some serious stomach upset and is a very mild hallucinogen. But that would take eating a lot and it's still not poisonous. You won't die. I doubt the chickens would eat enough to cause problems if they have other things to forage on and aren't just eating the tree all day.

 

[DrakeMaiden]

I know that ducks can eat them and enjoy them. I don't see why chickens wouldn't. The fruit is edible, but in large quantities can act like a laxative. The leaves are poisonous.

I would love to have a huge old mulberry tree -- lucky you!

 

[Clay In Iowa]

Lucky me?!?!?!?!

That one tree is responsible for the hundreds of seedlings I dig up every year, and the purple stains I have to wash off my my white siding. It's about 12 inches in diameter, 40 feet tall and 60 feet wide it's huge and make bushels of berries every year.

You can have as many seedlings as you want. I'll even help you dig them.

Thanks for the info I guess I'll stop my birds from accessing the entire area. It'll be a nice treat for them without over doing it.

Thanks
Clay

 

[MissPrissy]

Harvest them. Don't waste them. Mulberries make wonderful jelly, jam, syrup, and fruit for eating etc.

 

[Sebrightmom]

I made mulberry jam this year. It was great. I also made lots of pies. I frooze a lot of the berries for winter. They are so good. Here is the website where I got the mulberry jam recipe that I used. http://www.pickyourown.org/mulberryjam.htm

 

[DrakeMaiden]

Thanks for clarifying that Akane. The website I found seemed to think the leaves were poisonous. Even then, I wouldn't expect a chicken to eat more than a taste and then move on.

 

[Whirlwind]

I have several mulberry trees and my chickens have access. Never seem to hurt them yet. They don't seem to over eat them. I had a hen and chicks in a locked up pen and would feed them berries for a treat. They would go crazy for them.

Also seems like they will not eat what is not good for them. Had mistletoe berry's on the ground after wind or ice storm or both, can't remember which but they would peck at it once and walk away.

 

[MissPrissy]

Save those mulberries for yourself! LOL

 

[bubbazmommy]

glad you asked about mulberries. i feel your pain, we have one too. it hangs right over our driveway so we have a polkadotted car in the spring.