What to feed

[FrankiesMom]

@ZEROPILOT I'm in the Tampa area. I'm reaching out to you since you're in Florida as well. I'm not sure what weeds to feed my leopard tort (Frankie.) I have hibiscus plants in pots and they keep getting covered in aphids and mealy bugs and then they get pathetic looking & die. I just bought a new one and am going to sprinkle food grade diatomaceous on it and see if I can prevent the bugs. I have a Mexican petunia plant and Frankie likes the purple flowers but isnt digging the leaves yet. Any weeds that you are familiar with here that are safe? I buy dandelion leaves from sprouts and am trying to grow some from seeds as well...but they take a while to grow. I have a spineless cactus that he enjoys. I feel like I'm feeding him the same things all the time. He gets endive too...more often than he should because it's easy to find. Any suggestions?

 

[ZEROPILOT]

@ZEROPILOT I'm in the Tampa area. I'm reaching out to you since you're in Florida as well. I'm not sure what weeds to feed my leopard tort (Frankie.) I have hibiscus plants in pots and they keep getting covered in aphids and mealy bugs and then they get pathetic looking & die. I just bought a new one and am going to sprinkle food grade diatomaceous on it and see if I can prevent the bugs. I have a Mexican petunia plant and Frankie likes the purple flowers but isnt digging the leaves yet. Any weeds that you are familiar with here that are safe? I buy dandelion leaves from sprouts and am trying to grow some from seeds as well...but they take a while to grow. I have a spineless cactus that he enjoys. I feel like I'm feeding him the same things all the time. He gets endive too...more often than he should because it's easy to find. Any suggestions?

I grow Hibiscus, Purslane and cactus and I rotate them into my feeding. I also pull thistle out of my yard and feed it to my torts.
Soapy water in a spray bottle will kill those aphids. Soak the HELL out of them with dish soap and water. Then rinse them off.

 

[FrankiesMom]

Oh, ok...I've tried the soapy water but didnt rinse it off. How long do you leave the soapy water on there?
What does your thistle look like? My yard is treated; however, there is a park in my sub with all kinds of weeds and it's not treated. Am I safe just pulling the grass and weeds and assuming all is safe for him? There is a lot of clover looking stuff and long leaf weeds.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Oh, ok...I've tried the soapy water but didnt rinse it off. How long do you leave the soapy water on there?
What does your thistle look like? My yard is treated; however, there is a park in my sub with all kinds of weeds and it's not treated. Am I safe just pulling the grass and weeds and assuming all is safe for him? There is a lot of clover looking stuff and long leaf weeds.

I do occasionally pick edible weeds here and there. But it's a crapshoot. So I won't officially recommend doing that.
Lots of places like parks get treated for insects and weeds.
Most of my foraging is in the uninhabited outskirts of the Everglades.