To send in the ducks or not??? Pest control in the garden?

[Jlw0903]

I have a very large garden which tends to attract lots of bugs. My duckies wont willingly go into the garden but I know i could probably convince them it is safe. However I am not sure that it IS safe for them. I know that tomato leaves are toxic for ducks. And since ducks are not known to be the smartest (and im pretty sure one of my girls is a little extra derpy) i. Afraid they will try to eat the tomato leaves and get themselves sick.
They do seem to be selective about what plants they eat and ive never seem them go after bees either so maybe they are smarter than i give them credit for but i wanted to reach out and see what other peoples experiences have been with this?
Im wondering if it would be better to see if my neighbor would let me borrow some of her chickens for the day?

 

[cheezenkwackers]

My ducks have lived in my garden for years. They have never eaten tomato or potato leaves. Now, pepper plant leaves, lettuce, young okra, radishes, turnips, and many others don’t stand a chance if I don’t fence them off.

 

[Jlw0903]

My ducks have lived in my garden for years. They have never eaten tomato or potato leaves. Now, pepper plant leaves, lettuce, young okra, radishes, turnips, and many others don’t stand a chance if I don’t fence them off.

Good to know as we have lots of peppers as well. and i know they would go after the lettuce because i often pick more than i need for a day and then give them the left overs.

 

[KaleIAm]

My ducks, while seeming to have no survival skills, have also not eaten tomato leaves. I have spent lots of time with them in my garden. They'll stand on tippie toes and jump to harvest all the tomatoes they can reach. They destroy the lettuce on the ends of the rows and rip off chunks of the lower kale leaves. They stomp on herbs when they are small, but leave them alone otherwise.

And they do an amazing job at eating slugs and other bugs! I really enjoy them in the garden with me.