poke weed and poke berries

[laughinghen]

Anyone know if it's ok for hens to eat poke weed leaves and/or berries?

 

[Matt A NC]

It is toxic and most likely your birds won't touch it.

It can be eaten if cooked and cleaned thoroughly. Dad loves poke. Mom and I can't stand the smell.

Matt

Forgot to add: Wild Birds eat the berries and leave those purple poops everywhere.

 

[Gonzo]

Quote:
Ahhh... I'm a poke sallet addict! I crave it!

if the birds won't touch it, I'd pull it up and outta there!

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Poke is a common weed over a large part of the U.S. I've never noticed any animals eating it unless they were starving. The exception are the ripe berries. Those wild birds will often eat and chickens as well sometimes. They don't seem to cause any harm.

.....Alan.

 

[SurprisingWoman]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRF24LY5pvw

:cool:

 

[luvmyfowl]

My free rangers seek out the poke week in the pasture and eat the berries. The leghorns get the stains on their necks from all the gorging. They have been doing this for years, spreading the poke weed seeds in their poop. Nothing has happened to them. And we have new chicks as well. Chickens are awesome and know what to eat.

 

[jmbwholesale]

Poke is not actually poisonous. It is very high in vitamin A. To prepare poke for human consumption, pick the young tender leaves. Boil in water, pour the water off and refill with water, bring to a boil, pour the water off a second time. Some people boil it a third time, I don't. Strain off the water and place the cooked leaves in a skillet with a little olive oil. Get your eggs out and mix eggs into the skillet, cooking until your eggs are done. Eat!
Chickens eat poke without causing any harm. Wild birds love poke also. The berries are only toxic to humans while juicy. The dried berries are safe and have been used as a remedy for toothaches since , well, forever. Its a native American thing.

 

[VintageLilFarm]

I am searching the threads here now beggar an old farmer told me poke berries are the best thing to provide to chickens to worm them. He said any southern old timer will tell you they work better than anything you can buy... hmmmm

 

[hhill1970]

Anyone know if it's ok for hens to eat poke weed leaves and/or berries?

OMG my chickens LOVE the ripened poke berries! They will jump up off the ground to try to get to all of the ripened berries. It is a hilarious sight to see the Chicken High Jumping Competition at my house! I swear that I have Olympic gold medal high jump winning chickens here!
Then, of course, there is the gorgeous purple coloring that my white hens change into at this time of year... No one has ever died, or gotten sick from eating these berries ALL day long during the Fall. I even bend over the tallest level filled with berries for them to enjoy. I believe that most animals KNOW what is poisonous to them, and keeping that insight is paramount. When they 1st started this berry enjoyment, they only ate a couple of them, probably trying to see what the affect would be on them eating the berries. A trait that even most animals do.
If they get sick within a half hour of consumption of a new plant, they will NOT eat it again. Off subject, but I leave baking soda out for my goats, who automatically consume it, if they happen to eat anything noxious while browsing on the weeds in my fields. (They also eat minerals when needed)
I have noticed that the chickens check out the baking soda occasionally...

 

[jenniferschickens]

hey, your reply was posted 6 years ago, i’m not sure if you’re active anymore but did your chickens get sick and/or die after they ate it? my chicken just ate a berry and i’m worried about her.

I would start a new thread about it at this point . If you read the rest of the thread it's pretty self-explanatory though.