Weeds

[worms7]

In England there is a weed called
mayers tail is it safe for chickens to eat
cheers Phil

 

[manualname]

over here in australia i just feed mine aanything including nettles, ferndale chickens list of toxic plants does not have it in their database.
the link is https://ferndalechickens.com/plants-toxic-to-chickens/

 

[rebrascora]

Actually if you are referring to Horsetail which is what I would commonly refer to as Mare's tail, it is listed on the linked page as toxic to hens.
I'm usually of the opinion that animals will not eat things that are toxic to them unless there is nothing else and they are hungry.... most have an instinctive avoidance of such things. That said there are always individuals that don't conform to the norm so best not to deliberately expose them to something you know to be unsafe.

 

[lazy gardener]

I agree with above poster. And in reference to horse/mare's tails or any other plant: it's best to have the Latin name. B/C many of the local slang names can lead to a lot of confusion when identifying a plant. I visited a friend last summer who is an experienced herbalist. She had mare's tails growing in abundance in her yard. I asked her about them, and she said they are very useful as an expectorant. I wouldn't go chewing on them, b/c they are from my limited knowledge very high in silica crystals, but... she knows how to safely use them, and does!

 

[rebrascora]

Nice to know that there is some use for that awful plant because it is the bane of my garden!

 

[lazy gardener]

Agreed. They are terribly invasive!

 

[worms7]

Is there a weed killer for horses
tail that won't harm the chickens
cheers Phil

 

[lazy gardener]

IMO, there is no safe weed killer. You could try smothering them with a super thick mulch (good luck with that. their root systems go very deep, and their runners are atrocious as well, plus, I think they also spawn similar to a fern. It would take at least 2 years. ) You could pen your chickens over the mare's tails for a few years. They will scratch any new growth into oblivion. You could try changing the pH of the soil, but that may lave a long term affect on any future plant growth there. You could try doing successive green manure crops. but, if you till in the green manure, every time you break a bit of vegetative matter of the MT, it's likely to spawn a new plant. Pigs or goats just might do the trick. Or, you could turn it into a parking lot. There's a snippet of a song going through my head about putting up a parking lot. OK trivia fans, let's name and hear that tune!!!

 

[rebrascora]

Big Yellow Taxi....Joni Mitchell.... Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got till it's gone...They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.

Do I win a prize???

I have a sneaky suspicion that stuff would even come up through concrete given enough time. There is a reason that it has survived since prehistoric times....it's indestructible and inedible!

I would be surprised if there is any weed killer that will touch it let alone a safe one. I've been battling it for years and I'm still losing!

 

[lazy gardener]

Big Yellow Taxi....Joni Mitchell.... Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got till it's gone...They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.

Do I win a prize???

I have a sneaky suspicion that stuff would even come up through concrete given enough time. There is a reason that it has survived since prehistoric times....it's indestructible and inedible!

I would be surprised if there is any weed killer that will touch it let alone a safe one. I've been battling it for years and I'm still losing!

Yes, you get a prize. I'll give you a hand full of bonus points. I keep them in a jar on top of my fridge for moments just such as this! Yep, cockroaches, spiders and mare's tails. Stuff nightmares are made of.