Planting from scratch

[sandy]

Originally Posted by Hanako

My tortoises love nasturtium leaves, especially the young leaves.
Buttercups are poisonous, aren't they?

Some tortoises can eat buttercups without harm, but it can and does kill others. So best avoided.
I had one male that would eat the odd one I missed, without harm. But I always remove them, as its not worth taking the chance.

[CherryBrandy]

Originally Posted by Hanako

My tortoises love nasturtium leaves, especially the young leaves.
Buttercups are poisonous, aren't they?

yes I would steer clear if possible, I've always had them everywhere just in abundance this year. Some of mine will go for the flower with no ill results but I would urge caution, not sure on the flower bits but there must be good reason why listed. Its the ivy that's irritating. Cant get rid of it at all and that not good for torts, luckily its from next door and on the fences mostly.

[Ozric Jonathan]

Buttercups are not recommended though I've seen keepers say that their tortoise ate a small amount without any apparent problems. I don't think they are hugely toxic but I never feed them.

[Kirsty J]

On the other forum I used to be a member of it was always said not to be established flowers from a garden centre etc because the flowers were treated with chemicals. It was mainly Americans on the forum so not too sure if that was only the case over there. Sorry for hijacking your post but does that mean torts are safe to eat flowers directly from the garden centres over here?
If you are able my tortoise loves viola (pansy) and I beleive spider plants are really strong and it takes a lot to kill them. Also a cool hideout for them

[Ozric Jonathan]

I agree with Kirsty and any purchased plants will probably have been treated with insecticides so it's best to keep and grow the plant for a while before feeding any part of it.

[emma_mcraf]

I always wait until the first flowers have died (or I pick them off) and when the next flowers come I'll feed them. I also try and remove as much of the garden centre soil from the roots as possible before planting.