Mangel Beets

[SarahMelisse]

Has anyone used mangel beets successfully? Do you chop and dry the beets or feed them fresh?

I am thinking I would like to grow a large bed or two of beets for the rabbits this year since our other root crops do beautifully. My goal is to feed naturally using mangel beets, oats, alfalfa, and BOSS. Shredded beet (pulp?) is super expensive around here, but oats and alfalfa are realitively cheap. Wheat is also very expensive and I can't find barley at all. Thoughts?

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

i havent really found anything on feeding it. but i also want to try growing some to feed my animals.
interested to see what others post

 

[lissapell]

mine eat the tops but mostly ignore the beet itself. I am looking through beets to find ones that are made more for tops b/c of this.

 

[SarahMelisse]

Hmm... Well, supposedly mangel beet were used for fodder for livestock: chickens, pigs, goats, rabbits. But I can't find anywhere how they prepared them for feeding. Did they dry store them or pull and toss in? I have no idea. Would you have to slice it for a rabbit? Mangel beets get to be 10-20 pounds so I can't imagine just sticking one in their cage...

 

[Joe n TN]

I will be growing them this year for the first time. I have read that the rabbits love the tops and will eat the root when cut into slices. That is only what I read though.

I will post back when I actually have tried feeding one.

Joe

 

[Frosted Rabbits]

I, too, hope to actually try growing some mangel beets this year Johnnys Select seeds has three varieties-- two of which are globe in form (weigh less), So I will try one or both of those.

my understanding of forage crops, like beets and turnips is that If the animal is pastured, one simply lets the animal dig up the root-- and I have had rabbits dig the roots of Curly dock once the tops have been eaten. If you live in an area where the ground freezes, MULCH the beets heavily in the fall, and then, dig them as you need them. This accomplishes several things--
Storage space is not needed--
In the spring, the greens will start growing as soon as the ground starts to warm up
The cooler weather will increase the sugar levels within root

Now, if you have deer in the area, and any number of underground root eaters, you may lose part of the crop, but a good farmer plans for such things...

 

[lissapell]

I pick them earlier than 10lbs and give them around softball size. They play with them more than eat them. I imagine they would eat more of them if I didnt give them much of anything else. I have not sliced them. I give them radishes the same size and they will eat both. I did find the one that ate more of the bulb had shorter teeth.

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

the ones people used to grow and use for livestock feed are supposed to be HUGE. i have never heard of any varieties of them. finding any info on them at all is hard enough.
my thought on feeding them was to cut them into chunks. i think there were chopping/shredding machines that were used to make them more manageable for the livestock to eat.

 

[Demamma]

I would skip feeding barley. My rabbits dig it out and won' t eat it. On the other hand they love wheat.

 

[SarahMelisse]

FrostedRabbits: we have SOOO many deer and moles here! So anything I grow must have a 6-8 foot fence around it if I ever want to see it again.

OhioGoatGirl: you know, beets for livestock now come in pellet form or shredded so it stands to reason just a rough chop would be okay.

Demamma: that's good because I can't find barley around here anywhere and wheat is crazy expensive.

 

[hoodat]

I would skip feeding barley. My rabbits dig it out and won' t eat it. On the other hand they love wheat.

Isn't it odd how much rabbits differ? Mine eat the oats first, then the barley and leave the wheat till last, even though I feed it mixed. Don't ask me how they sort it out. They don't toss any of it out of the bowl, fortunately.

 

[Mickey328]

I ordered some seed this year too. Ours won't eat the extruded beet pulp I bought specifically for their grain mix but I'm not sure if it's the flavor or shape or what. The chickens don't like it either. I'm thinking that if I ferment it, the chickens should eat it though.

They're definitely odd little critters, Hoodat...very much individuals. The only thing mine kick out of the feeder is the beet pulp. They're oddly not much interested in carrots and totally turn their noses up at raisins, which I've been given to believe is usually a super treat. They'll eat a bit of apple, but they don't go crazy for it. The one thing I've found so far they do go nuts for is rose leaves! I pulled a few off the dormant bushes last night and even the most timid of our buns scurries over to eat it right off my hand, and they even go so far as to pull them out of each others mouths. One of the three is nuts for fresh wheat grass...the other two will eat a bit of it, but don't seem too impressed.

Haven't given ours any wheat yet but they seem to love the barley and oats in the grain mix. They never kick out the BOSS either although one likes it a lot better than the other.

 

[Demamma]

Mine will eat the beet pulp no problem. I am actually about to go with a pellet diet as they are driving me nuts with all their waste. I also need a faster weight gain as I have a buyer but he wants more weight on them.