Flowers?

[beardielove10]

What kind of flowers do your Beardies like to eat with their greens?

 

[icelore]

Mine eats dandelions pretty often, but his favorites flowers are pansies & spicy nasturtium. He'll totally pull squash blossoms off the plant and eat them when he's outside as well. Other things he will eat once in a while are red clover, he'll take the tips of my chives, baby's breath, snapdragons, some of my marigolds and chrysanthemums.

 

[beardielove10]

Are these flowers safe and nutritional for them for a treat? How did you find out which ones are safe and not toxic?
Thanks!

 

[icelore]

Yep, they are all safe. I changes my garden layout around this year to include more edible selections. You can google lists of edible plants and flowers. I wasn't sure if all edible flowers would be safe for reptiles, so I stuck with the most common ones to be safe. He eats more greens now then ever too - the different colors seem to really excite him!

 

[Gail]

chrysanthemums aren't safe http://www.aspca.org/Pet-care/poison-control/Plants/chrysanthemum.aspx

I include pansies, dandelions, petunias, and rose petals. Daylilies are good too but I didn't have enough bloom this year to share.

 

[icelore]

I know they're they're toxic to dogs and cats, but not for humans. My vet said that he found two varieties that were ok for reptiles, and others she didn't know about. The common bush varieties that people tend to grow aren't good for anyone's consumption (not to mention taste horrible imo!), but Crown Marigold, Garland and other cultivars are popular Asian foods. I personally like the stems sauteed in oil with sesame seeds. XD As for the flowers, the petals are the only edible part, the flower stamen and base are bitter. The petals have a nice peppery taste to them though.