Nina wrote:
> Hi Asecca, and many thanks for contacting us. Common names can often be
> misleading, as your Purple Clover isn't really a clover at all -- it is in
> the Oxalis genus and I'm afraid that it is not good to feed to your
> tortoise.
>
> It is not actually toxic, but all species of Oxalis are very high in a
> substance called oxalic acid. Oxalic acid is harmful if eaten in large
> quantities because it binds with calcium in the tortoise's diet and then
> prevents the tortoise from absorbing and using that calcium to make healthy
> bones and shell (and of course tortoises need a lot of calcium to do
> this), so eating lots of plants with oxalic acid can result in calcium
> deficiency in a relatively short period of time. So if your tortoise
> happened to nibble the odd leaf it would not damage him, but I definitely
> wouldn't feed it deliberately.
>
> Your plant is often grown in the UK as a houseplant, and it is very pretty
> (the shape of the leaves gives rise to the name Clover, because they look
> similar to the leaves of clover). We do have an entry for Oxalis species in
> general -- we don't have a photo of yours there, but the Oxalis
> triangularis/O. regnellii would be covered by the advice in this entry.
>
>
http://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/plan ... o_hC-fLiM8
>
> I hope that helps, and please don't hesitate to contact us again if you
> have any questions. Just a small thing -- if you are asking any questions
> about plants, we have a section of the forum, in the Plant Identification
> and Questions section called 'Questions about Plants', so it's best if all
> questions about plants (rather than questions about particular species of
> tortoise) can go there. It's fine that you posted here, but it is
> easier for your a question about plants to be seen and answered quickly if
> it goes into the Plant questions section.
>
> How nice to have a Horsfield in Chile! It''s amazing how widespread the
> keeping of Horsfields is (I have Horsfields here in the UK). They are a
> species with such great personalities, and I'll bet you live in an area
> where the climate is better for them than in England. Mine are due to wake
> up from hibernation soon, and it is absolutely freezing here now -- I'm
> even having difficulty in keeping their indoor enclosure warm enough (will
> have to put in extra heat and light lamps), and I just hope that Spring
> comes soon!
>
> Nina