I'm starting a new experiment with yucca.

I'm in the process of harvesting yucca leaves and processing them down into raw fiber right now. I have a full time job so it's a "what I can, when I can" type of situation.

Goals for this project:

*Find out how finely I can separate each fiber bundle without breaking the fiber (four groups, plain water boiling, laundry soda water boiling, raw, and retting)
---data on raw: not very fine. About a coarse horsehair consistency, after beating and twisting wet
---no data on boiled yet
---not enough significant data on retting yet

*Finding out how fine a thread i can spin with the yucca while having it still be average sewing thread strength
--no data at all yet

*Weaving a fine plain weave cloth from 100% yucca fiber
--no data yet, but should be possible

I'm not ready to be a fully feral wild human, there are creature comforts of the modern age I love, like Internet and medical care.  I'm not even that "crunchy", but I am moderately monetarily disadvantaged and I would like to pull as much underrated free stuff out of the ground as possible.

My yucca species is Yucca filamentosa, which is so, so good at making fiber. Lots of tow too. I could make a mattress next 🤔 but not yet.

I will drop updates here when applicable but don't hold your breath as it will be very very slow.

I am looking forward to seeing how this plays out! I've wondered about it, myself, but don't have any yucca.

Btw, welcome to permies!! It's good to have you. And, it really is pretty amazing what we are freely gifted, on this amazing Earth!!

Hmm, I must check on my yucca - I think it overwintered OK but I don't remember spotting it recently. Hopefully it is doing OK on my drivebank still....

I'd forgotten yucca was good for fibre Amanda, so thank you for starting this thread. I had read that the flowers make a good edible vegetable (perennial veg yay!) and they seem to grow OK here on Skye despite the strong salt winds, so that's my main reason for trying the plant.

Here's a link which could help with the process:-
https://permies.com/t/357844/Retting-Yucca-Leaves