Oak Trees and Acorns: Safe or Deadly?

[Cindiloohoo]

Quote:
Tannins. The Indians supposedly put them in the river to wash away the tannins. White oak has the least tannins. Quercus alba. I planted some so I would have acorn flour for bread by the time I am gray haired, lol.

I can ship you some LOL! We have two HUGE trees that drops a LOAD of acorns in our yard..one is IN the chicken run

The tannins do not hurt them, it just makes them bitter. My goats ate them like candy, they are used to finish off hogs for prime pork meat as well. LOTS of uses for acorns. I don't think the chooks even notice them.

 

[wildeflowers]

Oh, gosh, if acorns were toxic to chickens, we'd be in trouble. I have about a billion acorns all over the yard right now. At night, you can hear them hitting the ground and rocks all night long. Plonk, plonk, plonk. I'm surprised no one's been beaned in the head yet.

Our chickens don't eat them though, that I can tell. At least there's not dent to the bunch that are in the run. I'll probably have to rake them out.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Quote:
Tannins. The Indians supposedly put them in the river to wash away the tannins. White oak has the least tannins. Quercus alba. I planted some so I would have acorn flour for bread by the time I am gray haired, lol.

I can ship you some LOL! We have two HUGE trees that drops a LOAD of acorns in our yard..one is IN the chicken run

The tannins do not hurt them, it just makes them bitter. My goats ate them like candy, they are used to finish off hogs for prime pork meat as well. LOTS of uses for acorns. I don't think the chooks even notice them.

 

[sourland]

Wild animals (deer, swine, turkeys,squirrels, groundhogs) have been feeding on mast (acorns, nuts, wildberries) for hundreds of years. Chickens, ducks, geese, domestic swine can safely do the same. Two possible dangers: getting hit on the head by falling acorns or choking while trying to swallow too large an acorn.