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Thread: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

  1. #1
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    Default Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    I'm confused...again. When I look at some lists of "safe" trees/leaves for squirrels, OAK LEAVES and bottlebrush are listed as NOT OKAY.

    I bring Muggsy a fresh oak branch once a week...I let it sit in the sun for a bit, then I "groom" it for weird stuff, but he has free range of what he chooses to do with it. He loves the nodules along the stems...and an occasional leaf.
    Am I poisoning him?
    Oh, and I was thisclose to bringing him a bottlebrush cone the other day.

    Also, we have cypress trees in abundance around my yard. I know not to use cypress that is aromatic (like in shavings)...but are cypress branches and needles okay for squirrels?! The wilds in my yard annoyingly eat the cypress seed balls, and then fling the shells onto our cars...leaving BRIGHT ORANGE spatters everywhere! So...could I bring to Muggsy a limb from one of the cypresses? I wouldn't, obviously, let him munch on a seed ball thingie.

    Another couple of trees in my yard are a mimosa and a palmetto palm. Not a cycad (I know those are poisonous, and we have those, too...but I steer clear because they cause me to break out in a rash). Palmettos are the ones that have the berries a couple of times a year that birds love. The "scales" of the trunk look like they'd be fun for a squirrel to shred...but I never see anything on here about that.

    So, in short...what do you think about mimosa, cypress, and palmetto? All fresh and de-loused!

  2. #2
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    Default Re: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    A big NO on mimosa. Lots of info regarding toxicity to humans and animals. Cypress appears to be okay. Palmetto should be okay. Did you know that if you reach into the center of a small palmetto and pull the center shoot straight out, what you basically have at the end is "hearts of palm"? I grew up in So. Florida and used to snag them when I was out rambling around in the woods as a kid. It DOES kill the plant though...

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    muggsy'sgm (12-14-2017)

  4. #3
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    Default Re: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    Good to know about mimosa. That's funny about the heart of palm! My hubby and I took a couple of wilderness survival courses, and that and cat tails are pretty much guaranteed anywhere in Florida!

    Had no idea about the mimosa, though. I've used it for a fireboard and spindle...for friction fire. Sounds like that might not be too wise, seeing as it is toxic...and I am leaning over it, breathing in smoke!

    I'm going to grab some palmetto fronds. Someone down the road has a date palm, and I was hoping to grab some of those, too!

    Thanks for the excellent info!

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    Default Re: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    http://www.ratchatter.com/forum/index.php?topic=2986.0

    The outer dead bark of the oak is high in oxalates and tannins, both which are anti-nutrients that lower calcium uptake. And though in the wild they don't pay as much attention to oak bark save to bite it where branchlettes interscect the main branches to get sap, or later in spring when they may remove the outter bark to get to the inner live cambium layer that contains nutrients including calcium; in captivity, where their choices are few, they will chew on most anything, including plastic that is very bad for them. It is best for this reason to remove the outter bark.

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  7. #5
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    Default Re: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    He only messes with the little nodes or whatever...but I'll get all oak out of his room tomorrow. There's a 12 foot limb that he doesn't even touch! No more oak for Muggsy.

    I'm thinking that I'll chop down a 5 ft or so tall pine from our work property. I may hit it with my garden torch to get rid of creepy crawlies...

    My hubby can build a stand for it...and there are thousands of saplings available on the wetland portion of our land...so I won't feel guilty if he gets a couple every now and then.

  8. #6
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    Default Re: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    Once again, in the wild pine isn't much of an issue, yet in a confined space where it may becomes the focus of bark striping even more than the oak. Since pine sap contains tars it also may present a problem.

    For this reason I prefer using non toxic pine untreated lumber, that is lighter in weight that can be added to a a surrogate indoor habitat. Smaller diameter pieces of no more than 2 inches, like dowel shapes, make nice surrogate branches to climb and play on, when well secured. Natural branches, even those laid on the floor, that can roll or shift, potentially could result in accidental injuries.

    Open growth pattern Christmas tree, not Doug firs or other similar really dense formed fir trees, make a nice temporary play tree when well secured. Be sure though not to put the in water, for the tannins in the bark will leach into the water making it toxic.

    We had a Christmas tree one year that was full of spiders for some reason, I thought perhaps that trees may be sprayed and this one wasn't; yet again it may just have been one of those years when bugs get out of hand. In anycase, I had to wash it off, and still wondered if some of the bugs made it into the house? Since then I came up with a plan, just incase I ever got a buggy one again, to use organic liquid vegetable glycerine without anything added, which works well to route spiders, mites, and other bugs that hang out in conifers.

  9. #7
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    Default Re: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    I forgot to add that the organic vegetable liquid glycerine, is the soap to add to a spray bottle, which attaches to the hose, to use to spray the tree with. Of course, rinsing well with water afterwards is needed.

  10. #8
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    Default Re: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    Okay...we nixed the pine tree idea, and have removed almost all bits of oak from Muggsy's room. There's still a VERY large branch in there...that he doesn't even touch.

    We put some fresh cypress branch and needles in his cage play area yesterday, and he seems to like those!

    Going to get some palm fronds and husks in a bit.

  11. #9
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    Default Re: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    Cypress is listed as unsafe toxic on this list.

    https://www.thespruce.com/safe-and-t...r-rats-1238293

    I would edit this list with this one for Gerbils, that refines the list for Birch, Hickory, and Oak. Both Silver and White Birch are not toxic to tree squirrels, though other species are toxic. Maple is also non toxic, and some Beech is as well. See the notes on Oak and Hickory as some are not toxic, as oak is listed as toxic due to some being toxic, not all.

    As for the buds flowers and fruits of some listed toxic, they arent' all toxic either, but fine to feed if organically produced.

    http://www.egerbil.com/safe_woods_for_gerbils

  12. #10
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    Default Re: Trees from North FL Okay to Introduce

    As for the buds flowers and fruits of some listed toxic, they arent' all toxic either, but fine to feed if organically produced.

    http://www.egerbil.com/safe_woods_for_gerbils
    I thought to clarify that I was referring to tree fruits and flowers like the magnolia. I see Kiwi is included, and though I don't know much about this particular source of wood, theh fruit is known to contain raphides (sharps micro needle-like crystals made of Oxalates) that not only irritate the mouth and tongue, often evident in tongue thrusting, but can cause the throat to swell and even cut off the airway. Typically this is seen with tropical plants that are high in oxalic acid.

    Using references from Mammalogy studies, not just blogs, is needful to sort out misinformation from fact. Asking on our board is of course good to do for a references, along with other sources.

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