Small herb garden

[jaylach]

Quite a while back I talked about starting an herb garden the bottom of my cockatiel's penthouse and just may have found the perfect pots for free. To understand you have to consider that the Bird From Hades' penthouse is 3 feet wide by three feet deep by 4 feet high with a full spectrum light on top. I strongly believe that both fish and birds need full spectrum lighting.

One may think "why would one want to grow herbs where a bird is going to poop on them" but that isn't really an issue. Cockatiels are sort of picky about where they poop; usually doing so from specific perches. Even if some poop hits the herbs it would be the same if done outside. Wash before using.

I got four of these and they are actually designed for raising the height of a bed but they look perfect for what I want. Not counting the rim they are about 5.25 inches in diameter and an average of a little over 7 inches deep. This sounds good to me for most green herbs. As an added plus each unit has dividers so seeds can be segregated to specific sections. Would have to drill drainage holes in each section but that is not an issue.

I would pretty much only be able to do green herbs. Can't do any kind on onion or garlic as they are toxic to my bird.

Here are the potential pots.

 

[davros]

Can't do any kind on onion or garlic as they are toxic to my bird

Wow. never would have guessed that!

 

[jaylach]

Can't do any kind on onion or garlic as they are toxic to my bird

Wow. never would have guessed that!

It can be a bit surprising as to what can harm the beastie. For instance avocado, if he ate it, would kill him in a heartbeat.

Even apples can be a problem. In moderation the apple 'meat' is healthy for them but Apple seeds contain very small amounts of cyanide, and if the seeds are eaten they can be toxic so you must be sure that no seeds are included. I just play it safe and stay from giving apples period.

Now and then I try giving him fruit and stuff but always research first to make sure it is not toxic. Haven't had much luck with fruits but he does like shredded carrots. For the most part he just wants his seed mix and cuttlefish bone.

Then there are things that you would think should not be fed to the critter. Given in small quantities as a treat, pasta is actually fine and healthy but, if cooked, should be boiled without any salt. While it sounds odd it sort of makes sense. I mean pasta is basically egg and flour. Flour is just ground wheat seed and eggs; well yolk is what the lived on when still in the egg.

Keeping birds isn't all that different than keeping fish. In both cases you need to research what is good and bad. To be extreme, while I only have the one bird, I would not add a hawk to the situation as the cockatiel would just become food just like one would not want to mix cichlids and guppies in a tank as the guppies would just be food.

 

[fishorama]

An interesting idea. I had lovebirds & a Quaker parakeet. The lovebirds liked some people foods, mostly just veggies & fruit, but I never tried just herbs. I would not give oregano. The LD50 (lethal dose for 50%) for oregano oil is pretty low in people. My bro used it for some health thing I don't recall but I did warn him. I wonder if other mint family herbs like marjoram & basil are similar but I don't know that...

My quaker would anything we did except of course avocado (& pokeberries, not a people food either, but native wild birds love them). That was before good internet info. His favorite words beside "Hi Reggie" & "Good Boy" were "Want some?".

Part of your problem (besides what is bird safe) is your pots are quite small. Many plants would outgrow them before very long. I wonder too, about the safety of different soils &/or ferts. My sister grows indoor herbs hydroponically, but not in a bird's cage. Maybe growing herbs on your windowsill would be safer.

 

[Colin_T]

Weeros (Cockatiels) feed on dry and green/ unripe grass seeds in the wild. This is easy to replicate at home. Just sow some bird seed and let it grow. The birds eat the grass leaves and when the seeds develop, they eat them too. I used to have pots of seed growing and every week move a pot of green grass seed into the aviary and the birds would strip it in a day.

I also used to collect wild oats and other grass seeds from the vacant block next door. This is fine to do if the area doesn't get sprayed but if you are unsure how safe it is, leave it and grow your own.

Any bird seed can be sown in pots with potting mix or even grown hydroponically, and the unripe seeds on their stems can be harvested and fed to the birds. You cut the seed stem just above where it comes out of the plant. the ideal time to take the seed stem is just before the seeds start to turn yellow or brown. They should be green but close to maturing.

You can also soak seed in a container of water overnight, then rinse and drain it in a sieve. After that you put the seed in a ziplock or plastic bag that can be filled with air and sealed up. Leave that in a warm place for 24 hours and the seed starts to germinate and you can see a tiny root appear. Rinse the seed and feed it to the birds.

If you want to leave the seeds to grow a bit longer you can do that too and feed the seedlings when they are about one inch long.

 

[jaylach]

I think there is a misunderstanding here. I'm not talking about growing bird food. I'm talking about growing herbs for my own use especially those like basil and rosemary and both are cockatiel safe. I'd also like to do thyme but won't as it has some compounds that can cause digestive issues for the bird.

My main idea of using the cage is that it is plenty large enough and already has full spectrum lighting.

At this point it is just a thought and I don't know if I'll follow through. While the main purpose for the herbs would be for my use I would consider it fine if he did some munching as I would not grow anything except what is good for him if he did munch. LOL! The danged bird from Hades would probably figure out what I liked best and eat it all just to irritate. We have a sort of love/hate relationship. I love him and he hates to show that he sort of likes me too. He is a bit of a rescue bird and has some issues. Reach in his cage and he will hiss and get aggressive as he is cage bound and it is his 'safe place' and he defends his area. Outside of his cage he is totally different and will even crawl up under my shirt and sort of cuddle on my chest. I don't know what his original owners did but it was not good.

 

[fishorama]

Good to know fresh basil is bird safe, it's my favorite. Last time I bought a bunch of basil I rooted some extra in a glass on my kitchen counter. It grew lots of roots & I should have potted it but it gets too cold here to move it outside. Maybe that would work for you in a way. Root some, plant a couple pots to share with your 'tiel & more to plant if he likes it too much.

My quaker was "wild caught" from a beach colony in DE. I think he might have been a "released" or escaped pet bird. He was brought to the wild bird hospital I worked in with a wing injury. He was never going to be able to keep up with a flock so I said I or someone should adopt him. After he healed up, I was told get your bird out of here, he was chewing any wood he could reach. He "finger trained" very fast & when he weakly flew around he didn't know where to land. I would say "Uh oh, let me help you". Within a week or 2 he said Uh Oh pretty clearly. We were close friends, my husband good enough if I wasn't available. He even "purred" during sleepy petting. Yes, it sounded very catlike.

But the point of this, is after 6 years or so he turned into a hormonal? monster!! We were both bitten hard, a lot! Especially reaching into his cage. I wasn't sure we could keep him, he was that scary! It lasted almost a year but then he calmed down, mostly, only rare less, scary rages.

So, back to your bird. How long have you had him? Was he always so territorial about his cage? That may be why he was rehomed. It helped to allow Reggie to come out on his own timeline. Sweet & loving = food & cuddles; biting & screaming = back in the cage & maybe covered too.

My lovebirds like to "play" (ahem) with sweat socks, so I gave Reg 1. He liked too & it may have helped him to have an outlet. But then he started chewing it & I worried about sock fiber ingestion. I gradually weaned him off that & he went back to his own sweet self. Just a thought...Yours may age out of some cage aggression...Maybe basil is a calming herb?...Socks & basil? LOL.

 

[jaylach]

My bird is gating better as time goes by. Not sure how old he was when I got him so can only guess at around 7 tears old. I've had him for around 6 years. He was pretty much a rescue bird and totally ignored. Shoot, his cage was also WAY too small. He soon had a penthouse of 3 feet wide, 3 feet deep and 4 feet high. I get a pretty good deal on the cage. It was $300.00 USD but on sale for $200.00 USD. Before I got him he had a bonded mate that died. I don't really know but she probably got egg bound from lack of calcium. I base that on the fact that it took probably over a month before he realized that a cuttlefish bone was something to munch on.

At first he would not come out of his cage at all but now is frequently out. He likes to catch the sun hanging on my window screen.

Here is most of his penthouse and a couple of him on the window screen. His talons are so fine he doesn't even harm the screen.

Pretty nice cage.

Catching some sun.

He saw a robin on the lawn. Don't know why but he does NOT like robins.

 

[fishorama]

Cute pics! He's a pretty boy. My birds were out almost anytime we were home. We taught them to be afraid of the front door. Your cage is bigger than mine had but they had lots of free flying time, bath & toys daily. The lovebirds did chew the wallpaper in the bathroom, they liked to perch on curtain rods...& I was embarrassed to have to return a library book with chewed edges once. It was 1 of my husband's TA students. I saw her & coworkers laughing in their office. No charge, but I still felt guilty!

In some ways I miss my birds, but I don't miss tracking seeds all over, especially in our bed, lol.

Thanks for the trip down memory lane!

 

[jaylach]

LOL! Not only is he pretty but he also likes aquariums. This was him winning pet of the month a ways back... The cichlids seem just as interested.

 

[Innesfan]

LOL! Not only is he pretty but he also likes aquariums. This was him winning pet of the month a ways back... The cichlids seem just as interested.

View attachment 363534

I knew parrot cichlids were hybrids but...

 

[jaylach]

Actually the fish are Smiling Dwarf Cichlid; Laetacara araguaiae although common names are always a variable.

 

[fishorama]

Another cute pic. Ours liked to bathe in the HOB filters, yummy! & tried to eat the small gravel through the glass.

 

[jaylach]

Another cute pic. Ours liked to bathe in the HOB filters, yummy! & tried to eat the small gravel through the glass.

Mine also likes water. Not any where near to every day but I will fill one of my kitchen sinks with slightly cool water about chest level on the bird. He will sit in that water for ages.

When I first started researching cockatiels the gravel aspect surprised me a bit. Many birds need "grit' in their diet to help break down the seeds. Not true with a cockatiel, and possibly other hooked bill birds. Adding grit to their diet can actually cause serious digestive issues. This is one of the things that I really like about his cage. At the bottom of the "living area" there is a grate that separates the cage area from the litter base so the bird can't get to it.

Sigh, to me, this is rather sad. Sure my bird now has a penthouse but his original cage was tiny and, to be honest, not healthy. I still have the original cage but the only time I'd even think about using is if I had to take him to a local avian vet as a travel cage. Even though I have not had a reason to use them I like the attitude of a local vet I found. There are two things that stuck out to me.
1) They flatly will not 'clip' a bird's wings. Their attitude is that a bird is meant to fly and to remove this is cruel.
2) They will refuse to remove the back claws on a cat. They say that the back claws are the most potent defensive weapons a cat has and they will not remove.

Here is what I mean about the original cage being so totally inadequate. The original cage is white and in front of his penthouse.

 

[jaylach]

I knew parrot cichlids were hybrids but...

LOL! Sorry but I think you meant this as a joke and I didn't get. I mean Cockatiel, Parrot fish... Cute! Does that qualify as a form of a pun? Sorry if I'm wrong in how I now see the post.