Just wondering if this has caused anyone any issues regarding the use of bunny berries in their garden.
Herbicides/Pesticides in Pelleted Rabbit Feed
- Thread starter Darrin
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Rabbit manure has been the absolute best for gardens here. Over the years I've used quite a few different feeds, including some local brands as well as national brands like Manna Pro, Purina and Nutrena. I've never had anything but outstanding results. I've actually got people that drive over 150 miles one way each spring and fall to get rabbit manure to build up their poor soils, and they're so happy with it that they've been coming back for the last 5 years! (Don't know why they don't just raise rabbits themselves, but that's another question!
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That's great!Rabbit manure has been the absolute best for gardens here. Over the years I've used quite a few different feeds, including some local brands as well as national brands like Purina and Nutrena. I've never had anything but outstanding results. I've actually got people that drive over 150 miles one way each spring and fall to get rabbit manure to build up their poor soils, and they're so happy with it that they've been coming back for the last 5 years! (Don't know why they don't just raise rabbits themselves, but that's another question!
I'm in coastal Alabama...terrible soil. And the only organic feed I can find costs twice as much as everything else. The better my soil gets the more I can grow for them. Until then I'll be depending solely on pelleted feed.
It's not a crazy question. Here's an article from NC State on the topic. The "pot" test they describe toward the end could help put your mind at ease. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/herbicide-carryover
I've been using bunny berries outdoors successfully. Even indoors -- just a few mixed into potting mix for houseplants.
We are in hay country and I get hay from local farmers who don't use chemicals. Hadn't thought about the herbicide potential in the rabbit pellets, but personally, I haven't seen ill effects on the plants. (I am not ready to pay double for organic feed. But I will be growing some crops specifically for the rabbits this year to supplement their feed.)
I've been using bunny berries outdoors successfully. Even indoors -- just a few mixed into potting mix for houseplants.
We are in hay country and I get hay from local farmers who don't use chemicals. Hadn't thought about the herbicide potential in the rabbit pellets, but personally, I haven't seen ill effects on the plants. (I am not ready to pay double for organic feed. But I will be growing some crops specifically for the rabbits this year to supplement their feed.)
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I had thought about starting some seedlings, green beans or something, just to test them out on.
We've all heard horror stories of people using manure from cows or horses in the gardens that turns out to be tainted with persistent herbicides such as grazon. Just wondered if it was an issue with feed pellets. What I've read here makes me feel a lot better about it.
kusanar314
Well-known member
Grazon kills all broadleaf plants, so since rabbit feed is mostly alfalfa it wouldn't have it in there because the Grazon would kill the alfalfa. Now, it COULD be on corn since corn is a grass, and it could be in timmothy hay, but shouldn't be in the bulk of the pellets.
From my experience, and others who posted, I think you'll be fine. But pea shoots taste good. If they grow well, you'll feel better. (And if you don't like pea shoots, the rabbits will!)
If they grow well, you'll feel better. (And if you don't like pea shoots, the rabbits will!)Yeah, I'm starting to feel better about it. So is my pocketbook.From my experience, and others who posted, I think you'll be fine. But pea shoots taste good.
ohiogoatgirl
Well-known member
Legumes are the most sensitive to pesticides. Use some in a pot and put some beans and/or peas in. Then another pot of known clean soil/compost with more of the same beans/peas.
I moved to a new property on very rocky soil 4 years ago, spent lots of money installing raised garden beds and filling them with several hundred dollars of raised bed soil, mixed with a popular composted cow manure, which is recommended by a well known Television gardener. My beans sprouted and then died. My tomatoes grew but never thrived and produced poor fruits. I did some research and found it was probably Grazon damage, which has been a gardeners problem for years.
I did the pot test using bush beans. Four pots each of bean seeds in some fresh raised bed soil only (no manure), four pots in the soil out of my garden and four pots using Jiffy seed starting soil. I fertilized and watered them all the same. The results showed it had to be the manure. I don't know if it was because it was not well composted or if it was contaminated with Grazon, but I had to shovel out every garden bed, treated the bottom with activated charcoal and filled the beds with peat mixed with pine shavings and perlite (the Mittleider method). I spent a fraction on this mixture than I did on the raised bed soil and manure mixture. My garden is better than ever and I'll never trust commercial garden soil again. You just don't know what's in it.
I do the pot test now any time I buy hay or straw before it's used by my rabbits because anything they eat will go through into their poop and good rabbit poop is always the best fertilizer ever.
I did the pot test using bush beans. Four pots each of bean seeds in some fresh raised bed soil only (no manure), four pots in the soil out of my garden and four pots using Jiffy seed starting soil. I fertilized and watered them all the same. The results showed it had to be the manure. I don't know if it was because it was not well composted or if it was contaminated with Grazon, but I had to shovel out every garden bed, treated the bottom with activated charcoal and filled the beds with peat mixed with pine shavings and perlite (the Mittleider method). I spent a fraction on this mixture than I did on the raised bed soil and manure mixture. My garden is better than ever and I'll never trust commercial garden soil again. You just don't know what's in it.
I do the pot test now any time I buy hay or straw before it's used by my rabbits because anything they eat will go through into their poop and good rabbit poop is always the best fertilizer ever.
