Benefits of Comfrey for your animals

ruralherbalist
Jan 23
2 min read

Comfrey! lets talk comfrey for our animals!

Comfrey (Symphytum) is indeed an excellent choice for animal feed, known for its rapid growth and high nutritional value, especially during drought conditions. Its ability to regenerate quickly after harvesting makes it a sustainable option for livestock. We have been using this daily on our pig, lamb & chickens and they are thriving on it, even when others are struggling, our egg production is up while others have completely gone off the lay, due to the heat.

Additionally, its low maintenance requirements make it an ideal plant for farmers looking to enhance their animal's diet without the added labor. Just be cautious about its use in large quantities, as it contains alkaloids that can be harmful in excess; moderation is key to maximizing benefits while ensuring animal health. Its a great plant to have, once you have one root in the ground growing, you simply get your shovel out dig a piece of the root, then simply dig it into the ground and hello more comfrey will grow. Its amazing.

Benefits of comfrey for animals:

-Protein: Comfrey is high in protein, with a dry-weight protein content of 15–30%.

-Minerals: Comfrey is high in calcium and phosphorus.

-Milk production: Comfrey can improve milk production and increase the amount of cream in the milk.

-Mastitis: Comfrey can reduce mastitis in cows.

-Egg quality: Comfrey can improve egg quality in poultry.

-Digestion: Comfrey can improve digestion in sheep.

"It is used as a pig fodder successfully in amounts up to 80 to 90% of the diet! For poultry, it can reduce the need for other feed (be that your concoction or processed feed) by 50%. Egg quality will improve with yolks being brighter."

"Cows don’t bloat when eating comfrey like they do with clover. And too much clover can taint the milk – not a problem with comfrey. Also, mastitis is reduced in cows fed comfrey."

"Wilted comfrey mixed with straw fed to sheep at a ratio of one part comfrey to one and a half parts straw increases the digestion of the straw."

(Permaculture Reflections, www.permaculturereflections.com/2009/02/species-of-month-comfrey.html)

How to feed comfrey to animals

-Animals usually prefer wilted comfrey leaves.

-You can grow comfrey along the edges of paddocks or runs.

-You can dry comfrey and feed it to animals in the winter.

-You can mix wilted comfrey with straw for sheep

Enjoy, Bridget