Growing things for your rabbit to munch on, maybe for you too

[bellaterra214]

So this year I have start a patio container garden of some simple plants, not only for cooking, but also snacks for my little ones. Little ideas I have found over the internet that can save you money and provide fresh healthy snacks for your rabbit.

Regrowing vegetable - cut about 2 inches from base. soak base on water until you see leaves form. plant and harvest the leaves for a rabbit snack.

Celery
Endive
Romaine

Sweet potato leaves/stems- Had some old sweet potatoes under the sink. Put them in water on the window sill. you can harvest the leaves and stems for a rabbit snack.

Herbs

Rosemary
Dill
Chives
Oregano
Basil

Oat grass - My oat hay comes with oats, so to minimize them eating the oat I separate the oats, soak them in some water, lay across some potting soil and keep moist. You will soon have oat grass which my bunnies love. Much sweeter than cat grass. And if you take care of it, it can last you 3 or 4 months.

As for the containers, I have recycled our 2 litter bottles of soda, poked holes on the bottom, cut of the dome (but don't throw it away) and plant your seeds. The dome of the bottle can be used as a little green house as your seeds germinate. Doesn't cost you anything and your recycling too!

Do any of you guys have something you grow for rabbit snacks? Gardens geared for rabbits to enjoy? Looking for different ideas another bunnies owners have come up with; either for enjoyment or to be more cost effective on their veggie budget.

 

[Azerane]

Just a word of caution, bunnies should not be eating chives, as they are in the onion family, none of which should be fed to rabbits. I grow all the other herbs you listed though, you can also grow parsley and cilantro/coriander though. Some people grow lavender too

 

[3willowsbunny]

I was planning a potted garden on our deck again this year (the wild rabbits ate all my tomatoes and zucchini when I planted them in our unfenced garden a few years back), I had some awesome tomato plants and huge zucchini last year because the buns couldn't get to them! I want to plant all sorts of lettuce for Stewie.

We just started a romaine "butt" 3 days ago it is already growing tiny leaves from the middle! My kids love watching it grow and it will have some nice leaves for Stewie in a couple weeks.

 

[bellaterra214]

=) haha that's great. Chives must have slipped in there. I have quite a few containers for human consumption also.

Had a question about green beans though. Rabbits don't process legumes properly, right? Can they properly digest fresh green beans? I pulled some bush beans off the vine and all 4 of my little ones wouldn't get near it.

 

[bellaterra214]

Parsley, coriander, lavender and cilantro.... gonna run out today and grad some seeds. How well does lavender grow? I have partial sun on my patio, so full sun plants don't flourish.

Thank you!

 

[PaGal]

I planted lavender back before I had buns and had no issues with getting it to grow. It did have goo sunlight for part of the day though.

We grow several herbs including parsley and basil. Basil grows really well and the one year we let it go to seed we had tiny basil plants everywhere the next year. Mint I love but it's best to plant in a container because it will take over. You could grow some clover for your buns or even dandelions if they don't already grow in your yard.

You could grow sweet potatoes in a planter in your home. They have the prettiest leaves from green to purple. Carrots are good since you can eat the carrots and the buns can eat the tops.

For keeping deer and such out of our garden we purchased fencing from a big home improvement store. It's green so it kinda blends in from a distance so isn't much of an eyesore if you're worried about that. It's a heavy plastic. We simply drive some aluminum poles (used to be for a tent) into the ground and zip tie the fence to it. Once the season is over we take it down and store it in the shed. The fencing was pretty economical and has lasted a long time since it's not out all year. We can't quite cut the grass right up to it so the weeds grow to the bottom a little which seems to help keep critters from digging their way in under the fence.

For larger seeds like corn or beans, I use a glass baking dish (other sorts of containers can be used as well). I place across the bottom a layer of damp paper towels, then I place as many seed onto it as I can then layer some more damp paper towels. I cover this and place in a warm, dark place. I will check it every two days to make sure the towels stay wet. Usually within three days though roots will have popped out of the seed. If not many have popped roots then I know the seed is not good. This way I do not waste time waiting for seeds to grow in the ground that will not. It saves some time from the whole growing time and it is easier to plant the seeds then to transplant seedlings.

If your seedlings come up tall and very thin then most likely the soil you used was too easy for them to grow through. This is usually due to using potting soil, it's so light and fluffy the plants don't have to fight their way through and so do not grow strong. I use some soil from my rad and just mix in a little potting soil. My seedlings grow strong this way.

This year I am determined to finally plant some black berries.

 

[BlueMoods]

I have a kitchen herb garden of Parsley, Basil, organo, cilantro, chives and, chocolate mint. The rabbits get all but the chives, and the humans get all of it from time to time.

Onions are not good for any animal (don't bother a pig much if it's just a bit in kitchen scraps) and you shouldn't feed anything in the onion family to a rabbit.

Outside we have raspberries, blackberries, Simpsons and Romaine lettuce and, clover for the rabbits in addition to the human garden.

Grass and dandelions simply grow anyway so, the rabbits get those too.

 

[bellaterra214]

"If your seedlings come up tall and very thin then most likely the soil you used was too easy for them to grow through. This is usually due to using potting soil, it's so light and fluffy the plants don't have to fight their way through and so do not grow strong. I use some soil from my rad and just mix in a little potting soil. My seedlings grow strong this way."

omg, is that what I am doing wrong? My dill is so lengthy and not bushy at all. My basil started that way too. I use potting soil with perlite. What is a rad? For container growing, which soil would you recommend?

 

[3willowsbunny]

Leggy seedlings can also mean not enough light.

 

[bellaterra214]

Does anyone grow fodder for feed?

I was reading about growing fodder until the wee hours of the morning and think I might actually try it. Its growing the seed without soil and that way, you feed seed, roots, shots and grass; the whole thing. It looked like a great sustainable feed source, while also being very cost effective.