Sticking To The Point!

  It has been a while since I have paid much attention to the yucca plant back behind the greenhouse.  It is far more noticeable when it is in bloom except when you happen to bump into the leaves.  Those things have needles for tips!  Today, I found out just how sharp they really are.  I was throwing a blanket over the night-blooming cereus plants since there may be a frost tonight and backed into the yucca.  Oww!  The tip of one leaf poked a hole in my ankle.  I did not think much of it but, later, I realized that the thing actually drew blood!  So, I washed it good and changed the sock.  Things are good but....of course....it got me to pondering things.

  The yucca plant is used for so many things.  Shampoo and soap can be made from the stems and roots.  The plant has some medicinal uses and the dried leaves and stems can be used  as fire starter.  I guess those points make you overlook the other "points"...the stabby ones.  Granddad made sure that I knew a lot of "survival" tips long before the "prepper" craze of today.  He was the first to instruct me in the uses of the yucca plant.  One of the things that was most fun for a pre-school age kid was when he helped me to stitch together a soft fabric with the "threads" and needle from the yucca plant.  He showed me how to carefully snip the point (needle) of the leaf and strip it down the side (thread).  The small pouch we made (complete with a braided drawstring) was my first attempt at sewing.  I admit that I never got much further than that but, hey, I made something!...and from a plant!

  I have heard-tell that the blossoms of the yucca plant are edible but I have yet to try them.  Some folks argue the point saying the blossoms will cause stomach problems so I do not want to take the chance.  Things may change once the plant blooms, however, as I have been known to eat some pretty strange things. Right now, though, being stabbed by the needle was enough of an encounter with the yucca plant..
 

Ouch and Double Ouch!

  I love sharing plants with folks who visit the Bayou.  If I have it, I can either give you cuttings, seeds or a small rooted sapling.  My granddad always used to tell me "If you share your plants, it makes yours grow better."  I am not sure how that works but it did instill in me the fact that it is always grand to share what you have.  Years ago, I gave my sweet niece a small rose bush that had rooted beneath the parent plant.  These roses make large clusters of tiny pink roses and it does not take long before the long canes will cover a fence or arbor.  She loves it.  Her husband does not.  Erik calls this the "Devil Plant" as it always "reaches out to grab me with its thorns."  Well, admittedly, it is covered with thorns and is quite "grabby" if you get close enough to it.  

  Well, Erik, I think I have you beat.  I have found the "Devil's Sword" plant!  I fully agree that those rose thorns are wickedly sharp, but I expect them to be on the rose canes.  This other plant gets me every time because I am not familiar with the thing.  A few years back, my brother brought me a plant because he felt sorry for it being on a trash pile.  "Here, you can have this."  So...what do you do other than plant the thing.  The plant in question is a type of yucca, I think.  It looks highly similar to the wild yuccas that grow down the hill.  I made the mistake of planting this one beside the pathway.  Not smart.  The thing was small when I received it but has grown exponentially since planted.  

 The plant has blades (like all yuccas) and each of those blades is tipped with a needle sharp point! Those things hurt like crazy when they stab you!  So, instead of being "just another yucca" this thing has been dubbed the "Devil's Sword" and I have a feeling that it will be moved far down the hillside (if not to a trash pile without a word to my brother.)  Can I share this plant with anyone??  Any takers??  It is wicked!