Rose-of-Sharon / Hibiscus Grandiflora ?????'s!

[blondie098]

I have been hand-picking the Japanese beetles off my ROS, which is finally about 8-9 ft tall this year... I also have a scent trap to draw the beetles away, so I don't use any pesticides straight on the plant. Would the flowers be safe to feed Xena & Crash & new baby? Or could the beetles have left anything on the petals that could harm dragons?

They've been feasting on my dahlia / daylilies, but the daylilies are coming to an end of bloom, and the dahlia only give me new flowerheads about once a week. The dragons are loving the flora this summer!

ALSO -- does anyone know about the large hybrid hibiscus (hibiscus grandiflora) -- is it safe, too? I have one of them that gives dinner-plate sized white flowers -- they are mega-huge, no joke, they are about 8-10 inches across the bloom! But the bloom only lasts one day, then it dies off. Here is an idea of what they look like, but mine are white:
http://www.usefilm.com/image/1061001.html

 

[Judah'sHuman]

Im not sure about the Hybrid, but I do know that Hibiscus, Rosella (flower and leaves) are safe for beardies, and humans for that fact (well the flowers anyways.)

Perhaps you shoudl send and email to www. beautifuldragons.com she looks up new things for people all the time.

 

[blondie098]

I emailed Veronica, and she wasn't sure -- but she would be happy to add them to the list if they are safe... So I'm debating on the hibiscus grandiflora until it blooms (it's making flowerheads now).

I did offer Xena a ROS flower (I have the double-blooming type), I pulled the petals off & washed the petals individually. Also made sure that there were no Japanese beetles attached! She snarfed them up quicker than I could refill her bowl! She loved them!
This is what my ROS looks like, I've been pampering this since it was only 2-ft. tall, I always wanted one! I have the same purple flowers:

Do you need to stick to just the petals? Or are the stamens ok too -- I wasn't sure if the pollen was bad for beardie -- or would stain their scales!?

my daylilies are different than some peoples' -- I have the triple blooms like this:

I always pick off the petals and wash them, I don't let the dragons have the stamens or stem

 

[jcot13]

beardies can eat Rose of sharon petals?

 

[blondie098]

According to one of our mods, Denise Bushnell, the R-o-S petals are safe -- here is her post from another thread in April:

Rose Petals are also safe for him to eat, as long as you don't spray them with anything like a pesticide or some sort of fertilizer or chemical.

The flowers from a Rose of Sharon bush/tree are also safe, as they are a member of the hibuscus family of plants.

My biggest worry was my JB infestation, but I do NOT treat with chemicals, just blood, sweat & tears the old fashioned way.

This is the "approved plant list" from Veronica's site beautifuldragons.com, and I emailed her with this question (as well as posting this thread) -- RoS isn't on her list, but as long as it can be verified safe, she will be happy to add it :mrgreen: she told me yesterday that she wasn't an expert on the plant list, but adapted the info from the anapsid site.

Plants proven safe for Bearded Dragons:

Alfalfa, Astilbe, Baby's Tears, Basil (leaves and flowers), Chinese Lantern (flowers), Carnations (petals), Chamomile-English, Clover, Dahlia (flowerhead), Dandelion (leaves, flowerhead), Day Lilies (flowers), Dracaena (cornplant), Fennel, Ficus (leaves), Geranium (flowers, leaves), Grape (leaves, fruit), (not ornamental grape ivys), Impatiens, Johnny-Jump-Up (flowers), Hibiscus, Tropical & Blue (flowers, leaves), Hollyhock (leaves, flowers), Hens and Chicks, Lavender, Maple (leaves), Mesquite (leaves), Mint, Mulberry (leaves), Nasturtium (flowers, leaves), Oregano, Pansies (flowers), Pea, Green Bean (leaves, pods), Peppermint, Petunia, Phlox, Pinks (petals), Rose (petals), Rosemary (leaves, flowers), Sage (leaves, flowers), Spider Plant (leaves, sap may be a skin irritant), Split-Leaf Philodendron (leaves), Squash / Zucchini (flowers), Thyme (leaves, flowers), Violets (Not African Violets (flowers, leaves), Wandering Jew (leaves, sap may be a skin irritant), Yucca (flowers)

 

[Judah'sHuman]

yaaaa! Its always good when you can find out new things for them to eat, especially when you have theme in your own back yard!

Your flowers are SO pretty! I love the Lilly! I have never seen anything like that, God makes some retty amazing things. Lillies have always ben my fav, I love the bright Orange ones. Nice work on them! It is so hard with Organic gardening, but it is so worth it in the end. Thankfully they make alot of Organic plant helpers now. We always have alot of trouble with Aphids and this strange white fungus. I have found an Organic wax spray from Bonide, that works really great. You have to put it back on when it rains, but it does the trick for both pests and fungus.

Judah use to really love the Hunnysuckle clover flowers, last year he couldnt get enough of them. This year he is not as intersted in them, but he will eat them if I stick the stem in his mouth.