"Based on this study, it looks like the only plants favored in both periods were in the daisy family. The other plants dominating the diet were buttercups, poppies, and Brassicaceae (cabbage family)."
"Based on this study, it looks like the only plants favored in both periods were in the daisy family. The other plants dominating the diet were buttercups, poppies, and Brassicaceae (cabbage family)."
Basically, although tortoises live in arid and semi-arid areas, they don't eat much grass or perennials. Their diet consists mostly of annual leafy greens, or weeds. A good way to simulate that in captivity is to offer plants like lettuce, collard, dandelion, mustard greens, kale, endive, and plantago. You can also offer them flowering plants like poppies and buttercups. Here is a good website on feeding Russian tortoises in captivity: