Morning Glory and other poisonous plants

[Megonies]

Our chickens were free range for a full year, having access to everything in our yard. The second year they had to be put into a run as our neighborhood dogs got too curious.
Both years they were in proximity to morning glory, the second year it grew naturally on their coop, without issue. Going off of that and that it grows so well here in Texas, I decided it would be a perfect cover for the run and had plans to not only encourage what grew there naturally, but plant more seeds. Now I find out it’s poisonous to chickens! Needless to say I didn’t plant the seeds, but now I’m worried about how to control the wild ones around their run. Any thoughts on this? Do chickens avoid poisonous stuff naturally or no?

 

[U_Stormcrow]

IF YOUR CHICKENS HAVE A CHOICE, they generally won't eat enough of anything toxic to cause them significant trouble.

People run into problems when the birds are hungry and have no choice - i.e. move the chicken tractor over a patch of "x", with nothing else to eat for the day. We have wild, native soda apple (VERY toxic - to pretty much everything) and bracken fern (somewhat toxic) and even a sorghum/sudangrass hybrid (I just seeded more of it actually) which can be dangerous when its shoots are very young. The birds don't touch any of it. They have acres, so they have choice.

Plenty of the "lists" going around disagree, are lifted from lists for humans, or are based on cunsumpton of stupid amounts of a small portion of the plant in question. Absent dosage info, they are nearly useless - I largely disregard them. Suggest you do the same.

and yes, I have a definite bias against monocultures - more likely to create a dietary imbalance, even if they aren't specifically toxic.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

I had morning glory growing on my run fence one year. The flock never touched it.

@U_Stormcrow is right above about choice. It’s only in the absence of choice they’ll make bad decisions.

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

I was just thinking of this, since so many plants that grow naturally where I live are toxic. I figure they'll have other good stuff to eat and forage, even in their fenced area, that they shouldn't bother the bad stuff.

 

[raingarden]

Kudzu is not toxic, chickens will eat the leaves, and it will cover the run in no time

Our chickens often forage around morning glory.

 

[Callender Girl]

My chickens have access to plenty of wild morning glories and have never shown any interest in it.

They much prefer eating my beloved hostas .

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

Don't plant kudzu - unless you live in Asia. It's extremely invasive and can take over entire forests in a few short years. It's on many places banned list for this reason. Please don't encourage this plant. A short article that is US based: https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-...na/stories-in-indiana/kudzu-invasive-species/

 

[raingarden]

Don't plant kudzu - unless you live in Asia. It's extremely invasive and can take over entire forests in a few short years. It's on many places banned list for this reason. Please don't encourage this plant. A short article that is US based: https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-...na/stories-in-indiana/kudzu-invasive-species/

Sorry. That was an attempt at a joke. Morning can get a little out of hand too though.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

My chickens have access to plenty of wild morning glories and have never shown any interest in it.

They much prefer eating my beloved hostas .

Yes, Hosta are very popular with many chickens. I keep thinking of planting some, but I don't have a great place for them. I do have a good place in mind, just haven't commited to it yet.

Kudzu is also popular with chickens - but as our North American ancestors discovered, its MUCH more trouble than its worth. Please don't.

 

[scamp]

I see a lot of not-quite accurate information flying around. First, distinguish between bindweed (smallish white flowers, perennial, nearly impossible to eradicate), which chickens love and is not at all toxic to them, and morning glory (annual, big blue-pink range flowers). Our chickens (cooped) happily eat morning glory leaves and vines early in the season along with the other plants that get thrown in. HOWEVER, once the plants begin to flower, the seeds are hallucinogenic and, in large enough doses (which is not much for a chicken), will kill them. We discovered this one day when visitors fed weeds to the hens, including morning glory flowers. At the end of the day, one hen was acting, well . . . stoned. She was alert but, on the other hand, couldn't stand up well, flopping over onto the ground, "forgot" to go up to bed, and so on. Luckily, she survived the night and now is none the worse.