288 AMERICAN HONEY PLANTS 



ter lists it as important in Ventura County, where it frequently yields sur- 

 plus, blooming in June and July. 



YUCCA. 



Over vast areas of the arid west there is little for the bees. A few 

 plants stand the long continued periods of drought even where there 

 is no irrigation, and add to the total production of the apiaries in the irri- 

 gated regions. Among the attractive plants may be mentioned the yucca, 

 also called Spanish bayonet, Spanish dagger, Adam's needle, mountain 

 queen and Roman candle. There are about a dozen species, mostly from 

 Dakota west to the Pacific and southward. They are common in Mexico 

 and Central America. They are also to be found in the sandy sections 

 along the Atlantic Coast from North Carolina to Florida and Louisiana. 



When in bloom the plant is very ornamental. A single tall flower stalk 

 contains many large, white or cream-colored flowers. In many localities 

 where the plant does not grow wild, it is grown for ornament, as in Figure 

 151, which shows the late Eugene Secor admiring a beautiful specimen 

 that grew on his grounds. 



In "Honey Plants of California," Richter lists Yucca whipplie as an 

 important source of nectar, which, in localities where it is abundant, yields 

 surplus. In that State its blooming period is June and July. 



