Plant and herbs for aviary, help needed?

[Rkwh]

Hi again everyone,
We are building a outdoor aviary for our flock of cockatiels and conures. I want to put some plants in there that are safe for them to nibble etc I grow a bunch of herbs and also have a laurel bay leaf tree. Does anyone know if the laurel bay leaf tree is toxic to our birds? Also what other small trees and bushes etc would be good and non toxic for the aviary?
Want to make it feel fresh and natural in there so really hoping I can get some advice on non toxic plants to put in there. I’m in the Uk also so we have warm summers, cold and wet winters.

 

[cnyguy]

Plants in the laurel family are known to be toxic to birds.

Some herbs listed as safe are peppermint, spearmint, parsley, dill, chamomile and lemon balm. Nasturtium isn't always considered an herb but would be safe in an aviary and is edible. An online search for bird safe plants and trees will give you more options to consider.

 

[clark_conure]

I would plant millet.....I don't know if it would grow were I live but I think it would be fun like plants vs, Zombie (parrots)

 

[BirdyBee]

The plants listed by above users are fine.

I would reccomend planting them in pots because birds will chew wooden planters. A good mix for planting is one part soil(or peat), one part vermiculite(or sand, preferably river sand but beach sand is ok. Sand/vermiculite helps with filtration), and one part compost(this feeds the plants).

I also reccomend letting the plants grow to full size(or relatively big)before planting them over because baby plants will get easily killed.

 

[Talaya]

Indoors I have a guava bush/tree. Bottle Brush (callistemon-Red) grows well outdoors here (UK). I agree with Pipp to use large plants/bushes as they quickly get destroyed. New growth is the first to get eaten.
I have also used this list as a ‘general‘ guide. (Then cross referenced it with my species)

Safe and Toxic Wood Branches and Trees - Budgie World

Here is a list of all toxic and safe wood or branches you can use as perches for your parakeets. Do not forget, you should never use wood from any pla

www.budgieworld.org