PPBN yucca is a HIT!!

[rockoko]

it is! I bet Rocky and Koko would love it! Is Sunny a wood chewer?

yes, Sunny would love them too!!!




love that cute lil pistachio forager

 

[saroj12]

I don't always comment about all of your pics...but sure do love seeing them all!

Can you guess how long the yucca lasts a GW macaw? no matter...it's nice for him to have soft as butter shreedable slices too

Love PPBN!

thank you for the nice comments
yikes..1 nanosecond for a GW with yucca? I'm almost out already and i just have lil guys!

Wow...luv the toys, very creative!
And like Doris said, I don't comment a lot about your pictures either...but I darn well make sure that I see every one of them...it's one of the high points here every day. Your pictures are always fun, but also so many times your pictures also bring on a conversation about something to learn from.

Ya know, until I saw all your posts today about Yucca, it just never dawned on me that I have a bunch of the smaller Yucca plants growing all over the place around me that I could be gathering stems from. The stems wouldn't do much for my feathered chainsaws (macaws) but I bet my eclectus might very well have some fun with the Yucca pieces.

James thank you so much, you are too kind
how cool to have yucca growing around you!! Can it be given fresh or will you have to dry it?

 

[Macawlvr]

Can it be given fresh or will you have to dry it?

That's a good question, especially since I have no idea since I have never before tried it...but I would 'assume' that it needs to be cut up and dried. Which I might add, drying doesn't take long here in the sizzling scorching hot south Texas sunshine.

 

[Thugluvgrl187]

Very cute. Saroj do you know if it is ok to feed our birds Yucca. We make it in our household and I would love to be able to give Squeeky some.

 

[Barbi]

We happen to live in the desert a hundred + miles away from any major cities or industry, so we give all of our woods to Krickett straight off the trees...yucca included. Do wait to harvest the yucca poles though until the flowers have gone to seed and the pods have opened and dropped their seeds. Otherwise, they will not continue to produce the poles...and then so much for next year's harvest
Even though Krickett is a mini, she is a wood chomper champ. Occasionally she gets yucca slices (coins) but if we want a toy to last more than an hour we make it out of the whirlies.

 

[saroj12]

That's a good question, especially since I have no idea since I have never before tried it...but I would 'assume' that it needs to be cut up and dried. Which I might add, drying doesn't take long here in the sizzling scorching hot south Texas sunshine.

at your description of Texas sunshine...

Very cute. Saroj do you know if it is ok to feed our bird Yucca. We make it in our household and I would love to be able to give Squeeky some.

Miriam I don't know but perhaps Barbi of PPBN can weigh in. I would like to know too!

 

[Barbi]

I wouldn't have a clue about the yucca root since it would be "bad for business" if we went around digging it up. I didn't even know it was edible until I saw it on another thread. But...we do occasionally run across a plant that has been uprooted so will bring some home and give it to Krickett (and try it ourselves.) I'm very brave about giving her something in "question". She will run from it if it is no good for her...instint rules.

 

[Thugluvgrl187]

at your description of Texas sunshine...


Miriam I don't know but perhaps Barbi of PPBN can weigh in. I would like to know too!

That would be great. We have been cooking yucca for years. First we boil it til its soft and then we season it. Of course Squeeky's would get it's own seasoning as he can't have garlic and onions. Hopefully someone can chime in

 

[saroj12]

That would be great. We have been cooking yucca for years. First we boil it til its soft and then we season it. Of course Squeeky's would get it's own seasoning as he can't have garlic and onions. Hopefully someone can chime in

does yucca kind of look like a sweet potato ...is it a root vegetable? I think I might tried it in India as a kid....

 

[Macawlvr]

We happen to live in the desert a hundred + miles away from any major cities or industry, so we give all of our woods to Krickett straight off the trees...yucca included. Do wait to harvest the yucca poles though until the flowers have gone to seed and the pods have opened and dropped their seeds. Otherwise, they will not continue to produce the poles...and then so much for next year's harvest
Even though Krickett is a mini, she is a wood chomper champ. Occasionally she gets yucca slices (coins) but if we want a toy to last more than an hour we make it out of the whirlies.

Thanks for the great info Barbi! I knew to let them flower and drop their seeds before cutting the stem/poles off. The ones here don't grow them every year...it seems like they wait a couple of years or so...then for some unknown reason to me, they all seem to do it at the same time.

We have Century plants here too...can the stem from those be used too? The sad part about them stemming and flowering is that the plant only does it once and then dies afterward.

 

[saroj12]

I wouldn't have a clue about the yucca root since it would be "bad for business" if we went around digging it up. I didn't even know it was edible until I saw it on another thread. But...we do occasionally run across a plant that has been uprooted so will bring some home and give it to Krickett (and try it ourselves.) I'm very brave about giving her something in "question". She will run from it if it is no good for her...instint rules.

oh i missed your reply Barbi, thanks!! yes we need the yucca for our birds so please don't dig 'em up for lunch
Talking of which... the grab bag of yucca..the coins are almost gone
When are you going to be getting just the coins? The sticks are sort of big for my guys (i forget the cute name you call the sticks )

 

[Barbi]

James, I saw a episode of a PBS show, "The Desert Speaks" recently that said that when a century plant dies, several new starts take it's place. Personally, we opt not to use the poles from them because we've had such a hard time drying them because they are so thick. We've pretty much decided we would need a kiln to dry them fast enough to keep them from fermenting. If you slice them up when the poles are still wet, they look miserable when they dry, but Krickett doesn't mind...we just can't sell them looking like that. I don't know where you are in TX, but if you have century plants, you probably have prickly pear cactus too? Krickett loves the meat in the leaves (?) of those as well.

 

[Thugluvgrl187]

I wouldn't have a clue about the yucca root since it would be "bad for business" if we went around digging it up. I didn't even know it was edible until I saw it on another thread. But...we do occasionally run across a plant that has been uprooted so will bring some home and give it to Krickett (and try it ourselves.) I'm very brave about giving her something in "question". She will run from it if it is no good for her...instint rules.

So you are leaning towards it being safe.

does yucca kind of look like a sweet potato ...is it a root vegetable? I think I might tried it in India as a kid....

What we eat is the root of the Yucca plant. We make it cuban style. Here are some pics of what it looks like. But remember if I gave it to Squeeky it would be without the onion and garlic. He would get it plain. The 2nd picture is what the yucca root looks like before it is peeled and cooked. The first pic is yucca raw and peeled. The third is yucca cooked and prepared.

 

[Macawlvr]

James, I saw a episode of a PBS show, "The Desert Speaks" recently that said that when a century plant dies, several new starts take it's place. Personally, we opt not to use the poles from them because we've had such a hard time drying them because they are so thick. We've pretty much decided we would need a kiln to dry them fast enough to keep them from fermenting. If you slice them up when the poles are still wet, they look miserable when they dry, but Krickett doesn't mind...we just can't sell them looking like that. I don't know where you are in TX, but if you have century plants, you probably have prickly pear cactus too? Krickett loves the meat in the leaves (?) of those as well.

I'm in south central Texas just northwest of San Antonio.

Thanks once again for all the detailed info, you're such an abundance of good information.

Oh yes, we have an overabundance of prickly pear cactus. So much so that they are considered a nuisance for the most part. There are people who eat those here but I never have. I hadn't thought about trying them with the birds until you mentioned it.

Again, thanks so much for all the information!!!

 

[Barbi]

Yes, Miriam...I'm leaning towards "safe". I honestly can't think of any reason that it wouldn't be...I'm gonna try it with Krickett as soon as I get some. I'll keep you posted unless you wanna try it first, then you can keep me posted
Saroj: No, you have my word, we won't be digging any up yucca plants, though I wish we would have known about eating yucca root 2 months ago when we pulled a yucca out of yard that was in the way and not producing poles. We do know where there are still some poles from last year. We'll have to go check on them one of these days soon to find out if they are still any good. The yucca beatles might have gotten into them already and laid their eggs, rendering them useless, in which case we'd have to wait until after the new poles bloom and all which might be Sept or Oct. (The sticks are what we call "whirlies") You do realize that 10 lbs of yucca coins would fill 2 5-gallon buckets, right!

 

[saroj12]

You do realize that 10 lbs of yucca coins would fill 2 5-gallon buckets, right!

Nevermind the free shipping idea then