452 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1911. 



Almost as conspicuous as the cactuses are the Yuccas, a group of 

 desert plants whose members are variously known as Spanish dagger, 

 soapweed, Spanish bayonet, palma, palmilla (pi. 1), or datil. There 

 are seven species that grow in New Mexico, at least one of them in 

 every part of the State except the higher mountains, and one species 

 does extend into some of the ranges as high as 9,000 feet. Usually 

 they grow on the plains and mesas or in the foot hills. Most of them 

 are low, consisting of a cluster of long, narrow, more or less rigid, 

 sharp-pointed leaves 2 feet long or shorter, arising from a short stem 

 or caudex. From this mass of leaves appears the inflorescence, which 

 takes the form of a raceme or panicle crowded with nearly white, 

 bell-shaped flowers (pi. 7). In southern New Mexico three species 

 grow much larger, having trunks often 6 or 8 and rarely 15 feet high, 

 surmounted by a cluster of leaves above which are thrust up the 

 panicles to a height of 3 to 5 feet more. 



The yucca which is of greatest economic importance, perhaps, is 

 the datil (Yucca haccata, pi. 8), which grows in the foothills of the 

 northern part of the State in great abundance, and extends in lessened 

 numbers south to the Mexican border. It is one of the low forms, 

 never more than 2 or 3 feet high, but it is noteworthy from the fact 

 that its fruit, unlike that of other species, is fleshy and edible. In 

 form the fruit is cylindrical or conical and usually 6 inches long, 

 with a smooth skin. When ripe it somewhat suggests a banana, 

 because of its shape and yellow color, and is palatable despite the 

 large black seeds with which it is filled. No use has ever been made 

 of it by the English-speaking people and little by those of Spanish 

 descent, but it was an important food among the Indians, who do not 

 altogether ignore it now. The Navahos made more extensive use of 

 it than any other tribe, possibly because the plant grows so luxuri- 

 antly in their territory, where it sometimes covers the foothills with 

 almost unbroken ranks. Regular expeditions were made to gather 

 the fruit when it was ripe. Some of it was eaten fresh, either raw or 

 cooked, but often it was preserved for whiter use. The ripe fruits 

 were dried by the fire on flat stones, then ground and kneaded into 

 small cakes, which were laid in the sun and allowed to dry still further. 

 These cakes were stored until wanted, when they were broken up and 

 mixed with water and in this form eaten with bread, meat, or other 

 dishes. 



The Zunis, and probably some of the other Indian peoples, ate the 

 seed capsules of the dry-fruited species after they had been boiled 

 and made into a sort of pickle. These must be very inferior to the 

 fruit of the datil, for they have an unpleasant taste before being 

 cooked, besides being hard and not at all fleshy. 



The roots of all yuccas contain a high percentage of saponin and are 

 employed as detergents. After being dug and grated or otherwise 



