Russian tortoises should eat a primary diet of weeds and some grasses. During the winter months when fresh landscaping may not be available, you can offer grocery store greens and lettuces, alongside dried weeds and tortoise pellets. Russian tortoise diet is pretty simple – high fiber. But, if you need to supplement with lettuce, look for safe grocery store greens for Russian tortoises. As long as you keep it varied, your tortoise should be ok.

Safe grocery store greens and lettuce for tortoises can include:

Arugula
Bok choy (occasional)
Boston lettuce
Butter lettuce
Chicory
Collard greens (occasional)
Dandelion greens
Endive
Escarole
Grape leaf
Green oak leaf
Kale
Mesclun lettuce
Mustard greens (occasional)
Oak leaf
Radicchio
Red leaf lettuce
Romaine
Turnip Greens (occasional)
Spinach (sparingly)
Spring Mix lettuces
Watercress

If you are shopping at your local grocery store, market or a large chain store, you’ll find that feeding a tortoise safe greens regularly can get expensive. Try planting lettuce seeds for tortoises to save money. It may take a little patience, but growing your own greens for Russian tortoises will save you money in the long run. Plus, if you’re planting them in an outdoor enclosure, your tortoise can natural graze on them throughout the day.

Oxalates in Greens for Tortoises

Oxalates help protect plants from bugs. However when consumed in large amounts, oxalates can become overly concentrated in the body and can crystallize, causing health problems in the kidneys or gallbladder. Oxalates can also interfere with iron and calcium absorption.

You can feed your Russian tortoise foods that contain oxalates, like spinach and kale, but you want to make sure that you feed them alongside a varied diet. Do not feed foods high in oxalates as a staple for a daily diet.

Lettuce that is moderate to high in oxalates include:

Collard greens
Dandelion greens
Kale
Mustard greens
Turnip greens
Spinach
Swiss chard

Although, these greens are high in other vitamins and minerals that are beneficial, they are also high in oxalates. So you want to limit feeding your Russian tortoise these higher-oxalate greens.

You don’t have to pick out the spinach found in some Spring Mix lettuce mixes. You just want to make sure that if you offer any of the darker lettuces, you do so as a part of a varied diet.