Whole flax is safe to feed horses but what do you do about the flax seeds that germinate in the horses’ paddocks? I now have it coming up everywhere. It’s supposed to be problematic if the plant is damaged by frost. I want to continue to feed the flax, preferably whole as it’s easiest but how do I get rid of the plants that are now growing? Do the horses generally eat it or avoid it?
what do the flax plants look like?
Hahaha, I’ve never heard of that happening.
Time to buy a coffee grinder before you feed the flax?
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It’s supposed to be problematic if the plant is damaged by frost.[/QUOTE]
How so?
https://www.google.com/search?q=flax+plant&sa=X&biw=320&bih=460&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&ei=D5v2U5OZCYGj8AGwsIEQ&ved=0CC8Q7Ak
My dream is to to someday get rich from
some weed:)
Pretty plant though
it is normal for some of the whole kernels to pass through the animal entirely.
You have that with oats, sunflower seeds, etc…
Apparently you don’t have birds that like those.
but you can get a coffee grinder and grind small amounts at a time, problem solved. Larger amounts get rancid and produce cyanite(?)
Can you mow before a frost?
I just found this and if I am reading it correctly, there should be nothing to worry about.
Actually that article says exactly what you thought. The toxins are released when processed, exposed to frost or drought, ect. I would need to know that for sure they are not dangerous after a frost.
I always ground mine in a food processor since flax seed can pass through completely undigested which defeats feeding it in the first place.
For flax to be an effective supplement, it must be ground up fresh, preferably daily. My horse gets ground flax to boost his omegas because he has really sensitive skin. W\e grind it once a week and keep it in the fridge.
Per my vet flax is useless if its fed whole, or goes “bad” if its ground up and then left to sit for a few days.
Interesting… there are a few that frequent this board that insist that whole flax is just as diegestable as ground…
Well, the fact that the OP’s horses are passing solid seed seem to contradict this.
I tried feeding flax whole - and the birds started going nuts picking my horse’s poop apart. I thought this was proof that whole seeds were being passed, but others said it was probably just the hulls that the birds were after.
I stopped feeding whole - because those birds were making a mess of things!
