GREENS

An article from Agapornis News, the Newsletter of: The African Lovebird and Foreign Parrot Society of Qld Inc.

One type of food which helps in giving lovebirds a well balanced diet is greens. Greens are essential as they contain many vitamins and minerals, that lovebirds need to stay healthy. Some people like to use grass clippings, grass seeds in the milky stage, dandelion, and different types of trees branches. the variety of greens is practically unlimited. Experiment with different types. Don’t give up until ample time has passed.

As to what types to use, it is really up to the breeder and the availability. You may choose from plants both wild and domesticated, but you must take precautions before feeding them to the birds. The greens should be thoroughly washed. Wild and domestic plants alike can be contaminated by wild birds which carry diseases that could affect your birds. With both, pesticide residue may be on them. This residue can cause problems such as infertile hens, and dead in the shell. With prolonged use, a build up of toxins in the bird will bring about death, so make sure you wash all greens.

Growing your own greens is a good way to supply your birds with greens. There are many methods to choose from. For those of you who like to raise a flower and herb garden each year, you could use part of the garden to raise greens. Some types you may be raising anyway. Some are mums, daisies, mustard and chicory. There are many types out of the vegetable garden that are good to try. They are, to name a few, cabbage, lettuce, turnip greens, spinach, broccoli and kale. You might even let a little patch of dandelions grow there also. If you haven’t a place for a garden, a window box could be used for the same purpose.

Another way of growing greens is to plant seeds in a small plastic tray. (Some gardeners call them six-packs.) It would be better to plant at least two trays for each cage, more if colony breeding. You will want to protect the plants from being completely eaten up. To do this you can place the tray in a wire container. 1/2 x 1/2 inch hardware cloth will work fine. The height of the container should be about 3/4 inch taller than the tray. Having extra trays you will be able to alternate them when needed. In planting these trays you may want to use potting soil. This way you will know the soil is not contaminated with pesticides and dangerous bacteria. Also make sure the trays have sufficient drainage. This is beneficial to the plants, and helps to prevent the growth of mould and other fungus.

Sprouted seeds are also a good greenfood for lovebirds. See previous issues for procedure for sprouting.

Your local produce shop usually carries some form of dehydrated alfalfa. Being dehydrated can cut down the chances of spoiling or moulding, if left in the cage very long. I have seen alfalfa packed in different shapes, loose in small bales, compressed cubes, and in pellet form. Being packaged in different shapes makes it easier to buy alfalfa in the form that best suits your needs. In large aviaries, the small bales would be more practical. The cubes could be used in small flights, and pellets in the individual breeding cages. I use the pelleted form, and my birds seem to like it. Some prefer it over some types of fresh greens. I just sprinkle some in with their food daily. In time I learned how much each pair would consume, so there is little waste. Alfalfa is rich in supply of A and B vitamins and has a high protein and mineral content. The dehydrated form is not as nutritious as in green form, but using the process of flash drying has helped the alfalfa retain much of its nutrients. You might want to give alfalfa a try.

Whatever types of greens are used, they should be fed on a regular basis. Every now and then would not be of much use. In order to have better success in raising lovebirds, you have to give them a well balanced diet, and greens should be included.

In the following table, the mineral and vitamin values are given to show how greens are beneficial to the birds’ diet.

Food	Wt. (grams)	Iron (mg)	Ca (mg)	Phos. (mg)	Potas. (mg)	Sodium (mg)	Vit. A (IU)	Niacin (mg)	Vit. C (mg)
Carrots	150	.9	45	55	600	75	18000	-	6
chicory	180	28	300	129	400	150	13000	-	7
Collard	150	1.2	280	75	475	110	16000	1.6	25
Comfrey	150	3.4	350	150	500	90	16000	1.4	50
Dandelion	180	5.6	337	126	760	130	27000	1.3	29
Lettuce	100	.2	35	26	260	9	1900	.3	6
Spinach	100	2.0	124	33	480	8	11800	1.3	24
Turnip Green	145	3.5	375	75	-	-	15300	.6	28
Kale	110	1.3	130	57	260	29	8000	.8	60