is brackon poisionous???

[keekee]

As there is alot round the edges of my new field i asked the YO but she said they have no need eating it as it,s bitter and theres tons of lovely grass......still a worry tho

 

[Shilasdair]

Yes, bracken is poisonous...and carcinogenic too, I believe.
S

 

[merlinsquest]

Didnt they used to use it as a bedding material though,,, in the dark ages.....???? Shils should know

Merlin has been known to grab a mouthfull on a hack and so did all the riding school ponies when i was young...... and merlin at least is still with us.....

Is it a gradual poisoning then???

 

[keekee]

oh no what a worry theres tons of it

 

[Llwyncwn]

In quantity, yes it is poisonous. Google for more info.

 

[piebaldsparkle]

Yes it's poisonous. Most horses will eat grass in preference, but some do get a taste for it (especially if the grass starts to run short). Can't you fence it off?? I get some at the back of my field, but fence it off till I can pull it.

 

[Eaglestone]

[ QUOTE ]
Didnt they used to use it as a bedding material though,,, in the dark ages.....???? Shils should know

Merlin has been known to grab a mouthfull on a hack and so did all the riding school ponies when i was young...... and merlin at least is still with us.....

Is it a gradual poisoning then???

[/ QUOTE ]

Is that the same as Fern .... spookey as a chap at work was telling me this about the bedding only this afternoon

 

[hellybelly6]

Yes, it has the same effect as ragwort. Remove it.

Bracken and fern are the same things.

x

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

If you google bracken, it warns that it is indeed toxic if eaten in quantities and the spores (in volume) are believed to be carcinogenic to humans. Apparently though (if I read it right) when it is dry it is safe for bedding, unlike ragwort which is at its most dangerous dry as it loses the bitter taste. I've been on a hack where the horse leaned down and grabbed a mouthful of bracken in passing but I think this was just because it was green (poor starving horse) and ned was certainly no worse for it. The big problem with ragwort is that it's a cumulative poison. Not sure if the same is true of bracken. I guess the most sensible thing to do is to remove it - or remove access to it - to be on the safe side!

 

[Spyda]

Yes, it's supposedly poisonous. Was one of the plants pictured in my first Keeping a Pony book when I was young. Still remember it (30+ years later).

 

[kellyeaton]

yes it is posion it go on the computer and put posions plants for horses and it will tell you them all the most posioners toxic deadly is ragwort and the worst is you have no clue it is killing yours liver asd soon as they eat the time you relise its to late!