Feeding frozen greens

[Southbound_SF]

We had our first true killing frost last night (and snow!), and I hadn't finished using up all the chard in our little garden. It's still frozen, and the sun hasn't hit it yet (north side of a 4 story building). Can I feed it to the rabbits? They are used to eating it, just, you know, more alive. What about once it does thaw but before it starts getting visibly gross?

SB

 

[MaggieJ]

I can't give you a definitive answer. Some sources say never, never feed "frosted" greens, but on the other hand, I don't suppose wild rabbits stop eating greens after a killing frost. My feeling is that fleshy or watery greens would be more of a problem than dry greens like plantain, raspberry, willow etc. I generally call an end to gathering once things get well and truly frozen, but I have fed late willow leaves when the tree sheds a branch.

 

[Bad Habit]

i have harvested and fed pickly pear cactus fruit well into winter, and the buns love it and don't have issues, for what its worth

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Your chard might surprise you... one year I went out to the garden and found my spinach frozen solid- the color had even deepened to the dark green of frozen spinach, and when I tapped the leaves they were completely rigid. A couple of hours later when it had warmed up, I went back out and the spinach was perfectly fine! :shock:

 

[Dood]

Chard goes slimy once it thaws and i doubt a rabbit would want it, plus it quickly rots once defrosted.

I would feed it today but that's it for fear of fungus and bacteria messing up their gut.

I have had great luck with feeding kale over winter. It very frost hardy but I usually put it in my cold cellar anyway. As a bassica species you shouldn't feed too much but I give a leaf or two every other day for added variety and fresh greens and I'm going to re-try sprouting barley this winter

There are many native woody plants that are cold hardy and can be harvested over winter, I keep picking willow, maple, ash, grapevines, rose and raspberry.

 

[Southbound_SF]

Thanks for the feedback, guys! They each got a couple of icy leaves this morning, but the rest will probably just get turned under. Kale's still going strong, though, and these buns are down with the brassicas. The raspberry leaves were also unaffected.

SB