Plants for Birds' Enjoyment and Enrichment

There has been an interesting dialog on rec.pets.birds this month re: plants that captive birds can not only live on (and in!) but even eat. A couple of significant quotes:

from Bev:
"...this is a subject I've been greatly
interested in for some time as I dearly love house plants, but with
the birdies, was afraid for a long time to even try to have any. I
also have a 2 year old cat and a small (knee-high) 17 yr old poodle.

I don't remember everything I used to know about plants when I had an
almost forest in my home many, many years ago (like around 40 years
ago), but have in recent years really missed their beauty and decided
to start over again with them, As a very practical person, I
justified this, with my husband, as a natural way to add humidity to
our very dry house in the winter especially in the room the birds
inhabit the most as we were loosing viable eggs to dehydration,

Being on a limited budget, I researched 'bird safe plants' on the
internet, then set about asking friends and neighbors for starts of
plants they had that fit that category. What I didn't find they had
that they had I asked for on "Craigs List" and on our local Yahoo
Groups "FreeCycle". And eventually, bought a few 'Terrerium' plants
from local green houses.

After the plants were rooted, I potted them in coffee mugs and placed
them on top of the birdies nest boxes - adding humidity closest to
where it was needed the worst and forcing the nest box tops to stay
shut because of the weight (and had less escapeing birds when it was
not conveneint). It worked great! And the birds had a few 'greens'
as the plants got big enough for the birds to reach them through the
bars of the cages.

However, plants grow. And as they grew, they became too big for the
tops of the nest boxes so, the hanging and vining type were placed on
top of the cages and the more upright or bushy plants were placed on
stands near the cages and eventually theses later plants have ended up
in larger planters on the floor.

The problems I've had are: 1.) some of the birdies favorite plants to
eat have had to be replaced several times or put in another room to be
given a stem cutting and let regrow. 2.) the Mother-in-laws Tongue
once too big for the cages and put on the lower stand died due to the
cat liking it too well, not only eating it but then using it for a
litter box as well. 3.) my birdies have a 20% seed diet and thrown
or dropped seeds and shells end up in the pots and some, if it is
really fresh seed, sprout and you never know for sure just what you
may end up with. Seed shells can simply be blown out of the planted
pots. 4.) 30% of my birdies diet consists of cooked beans, legumes,
pasta, and grains and when they throw or play with this mixture and it
ends up in the plant pots, if I'm not vigilent and pick it out right
away, it will spoil and I'll have a mold problem. 5.) 20% of the
diet is fresh and frozen fruits and vegies and another 20% is
pellets. When these are tossed into the plants, they will also mold
and are harder to take out as the pellets always and some of the
fruits and vegies turn very mushy and are hard to remove from the
plants and their leaves. 6.) with birds comes bird dust and bird
poop. That means to have healthy plants the leaves must occasionally
be washed to keep the plants healthy.

So, in other words, having plants with birds is more work to keep
everyone and every thing healthy and happy, but in my humble opinion,
very well worth the effort."

from Ted, quoting Diana:

"I provide my birds with Sansevieria (mother in law tongues) plants.
These plants can take almost anything. Had one female cockatiel who
worked to bend down the leaf so it was horizontal. She liked just
sitting on her perch.

"My cockatiel loves Coleus--just lost the last plant--that I buy by
the flat in the summer and pot up for them to enjoy during the winter.

"Dracaena is another "bird safe" plant. As far as I know, orchids are
safe too but too expensive for me to let the birds tear up.
Cryptanthus is another bird safe plant but my birds didn't bother
them.

"I tried growing Tillandsia's but they didn't have a chance. The birds
thought they were the latest play toy and had lots of fun destroying
them.

"I don't know where you are but the local Meijer's store (big chain
out of Grand Rapids, Michigan) carries organically grown herbs in
their produce department. I check them every time I visit. My
cockatiel dearly loves his rosemary plant. He'll pull a leaf off and
chew on it for several minutes--always reminds me of grandpa's cows
chewing their cud. I always check to see if there are any rosemary
available and buy 2 or 3 of them. 1-for the birds and 1 for another
room in the house where it is protected. At $1.99 a plant, it is a
really inexpensive yet healthy bird toy.

"Here's a link to check out additional plants--I just wish they would
use the scientific name so I could be sure we were all talking about
the same plant. Take ANOTHER look at the url--it is NOT
plannedparenthood like I thought when I first found it.
http://www.plannedparrothood.com/plants.html

"If you have a place to grow in the sun, invest in a good sized pot of
hens and chicks (sempervivum species). Plant some in the garden for
lots of growth--plant up a small pot for inside.

"At one point in time, I bought some "Haworthia" plant starts off Ebay
from a nursery that uses no pesticides. Liberty cockatiel took care of
these plants for at least a year. He would walk around his container
of plants tapping each one and then he very patiently mixed the
chicken grit I use for a mulch on my succulents into the soil with his
beak. I call him my "Farmer bird". Unfortunately, while I was in rehab
with a new knee, the plants got mealy bugs and my Dad didn't notice
because he's never grown succulents. He just thought the white spots
were part of the plant.

"My lineolated parakeet (true parakeet--not a budgie) from Central
America likes hiding in my plants more than chewing on them. Of
course, he is a bird of the forest canopy and most likely hids under
leaves when the big birds come around.

"Tip: Check the list out of safe plants and then start some cuttings
that you can be sure have NEVER had pesticides on them. This pesticide
problem is one reason I now tend to stick to coleus and herb plants.
You just never know and the store often doesn't know the conditions
plants were grown in.

"I've tried growing "wheat grass" and my birds promptly rejected it.
Check into "sprouting" seeds. You can often find watercress. I'll grow
a package of these and both birds seem to enjoy the peppery taste.

And then, after I requested permission to share the information: 'You
may share the information, but please, not the email address. They
might want to visit livingwithpetbirds.com to see pictures/videos of
my very spoiled fids.'

"I forgot to mention that I've tried thyme and basil. They both
ignored the thyme. The basil plant was totally destroyed in just a few
minutes. Couldn't really tell how much, if any, they actually ate.

"Suggestion for your budgies: start offering them organically grown
greens. I am able to buy Earthbound brand but I suspect Canada will
have some brand available. They come in plastic "clamshells" and cost
about $3. There are different mixes including spring greens, spring
herbs, baby greens, etc. I feed a small handful everyday and the
container lasts about a week. Have to be sure to check expiration
dates. Don't feed ICEBERG type lettuce--just use the dark green
varieties. May take some time to get your budgies used to it but they
will be healthier."

The standard disclaimer: I make no warranty on the reliability of this information since it isn't my own; I'm providing it simply for informational purposes :). Also please note that usenet is public information, and is quote in numerous places on the 'net; therefore I don't believe I'm doing anything wrong by also quoting it here but if you have some evidence to the contrary, please feel free to let me know!