This is Yucca in bloom. The parts used for food are the rubbery white flowers. The above is a photo taken by my mother yesterday in her yard here in Georgia. I'm posting this, because like Huitlacoche (see below), it's a strange Native American food, consumed in a variety of ways, mostly in the southwest and rural and native villages in the northern most parts of Mexico. It's even made it's way into "haute Native cuisine," served mainly in upscale restaurants based on native foods in Indian Casinos (again, mostly in the southwest). But it what also makes it a fine Countdown To Halloween post, is that Yucca (not to be confused with the tuber Yuca) loves to grow in graveyards old abandoned mining towns. Spooky, no? So here are some mine and my mother's photos of this strange plant, both pre and post harvest from yesterday.
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| Pre-harvest different angle. |
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| Post-Harvest packed and delivered to my house |
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| Un-Packaged |
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| Close up of fleshy flowers |
There are several varieties of Yucca native to all over the Americas, including the Caribbean, this is the one of the most commonly cultivated type called Spanish Bayonet, Yucca filmentosa, also sometimes called "Bear Grass." It is native to the Eastern United States. The leaves, stems, and especially the roots can be used to stun fish and this is exactly what some of my ancestors primarily used the plant for centuries ago.
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| One very curious little kitty!! |
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