2000 



YUCCA 



tivated in the western states, but emerges from the pupa 

 Joo late to pollinate Y glauca ~**Sgg'SffB t 

 for Y. gloriosa. See Kept. Mo. Bot. Gard. 3.99, 4.IH- 



The great Yuccas, or "Yucca Palms," of southern 

 California (Fig. 2760) are chiefly Y. arborescent. They 



2762. Flower of Yucca 

 filamentosa (X %). 



2763. Flower of Yucca 

 Whipplei. 



Three petals removed 

 to show structure of 

 blossom. 



grow in the higher lands bordering the Mojave and ad- 

 jacent deserts, reaching a height of 15-20 ft. The old 

 plants are exceedingly weird and picturesque. Occa- 

 sionally this species is transferred to gardens, but it is 

 apparently not in the trade. 



A. Fr. erect, capsular: seeds thin 



and flat 



B. Stigma capitate, on a slender 



BB. Stigma 8- or 6-lobed, termi- 

 nating a stout style 



A. Fr. pendent, not dehiscent. 

 B. Seeds thin: fr. wall thin and 

 soon dry: Ivs. usually en- 

 tire 



BB. Seeds thick: fr. pulpy, sweet 



and edible. 



c. The fr. without a core, pur- 

 ple - fleshed : Ivs. rough- 

 margined 



CC. The fr. with papery core 

 and yellowish flesh. 



D. Lvs. rough-margined 



PD. Lvs. with detaching mar- 

 ginal fibers when adult. 



1. Whipplei 



filamentosa 



flaceida 



glauca 



5. gloriosa 



6. aloifolia 



7. Guatemalensis 



Treeuleana 

 baccata 



1. Whipplei, Torrey (Y. graminifdlia,Wood. Y.Cali- 

 fdrnica and Y. Ortgiesiana, Hort. ). Figs. 2761, 2763. 

 Acaulescent: Ivs. % in. wide, stiff, flat, striate, glau- 

 cous, needle-pointed, rough-margined : panicle very 

 tall, narrow, long- stalked. Coast Range, California. 

 G.C. II. 6:196. Gn. 35, p. 561. R.H. 1886, p. 61. B.M. 

 7662. Rep. Mo. Bot. Gard. 3, pi. 11, 12, 54. R.H. 1884:324 

 (as var. violacea). G.F. 8:415. Grows everywhere in 

 southern Calif, and is a glorious sight when in bloom. It 

 is an easy plant to handle and has been known to flower 

 in three years from seed. Because of its peculiar stigma, 

 this is sometimes placed in a distinct genus, Hespero- 

 yucca. 



YUCCA 



2. filamentdsa, Linn. Figs. 2762, 2764-5; 1052. Some- 

 times called ADAM'S NEEDLE, BEAK GRASS, SILK GKASS, 

 or THREADY YUCCA. Acaulescent: Ivs. 1 in. wide, rather 

 weak, somewhat concave, glaucous when young, short 

 and stout, pointed from the acute apex, with curly mar- 

 ginal fibers: panicle loose, long- stalked : fls. creamy 

 white; style white. Southeastern U. S. B.M. 900. A 

 yellow- or white-margined form is var. variegata, Carr. 

 B.B. 1:427. Var. concava, Engelm. (Y. concava, Haw.). 

 Lvs. broadly spatulate, plicate, concave. N. C. 



3. flaceida, Haw. ( Y. pubtrula, Haw. Y. orchio'ides, 

 Carr.). Lvs. more flexible, recurving, not pungent, 

 gradually tapering, with thinner and less curly tibers. 

 Eastern U. S. B.R. 22:1895. B.M. 6316. -Usually culti- 

 vated for the preceding, and comprising several forms. 

 Vars. exigua and Integra have the leaf -margin brown, 

 without detaching fibers. 



4. glauca, Nutt. (Y. angustifolia, Pursh. Y. Hdn- 

 buryi, Baker). Fig. 2766. Lvs. less than % in. wide, 

 thin but stiff, flat, acutely and pungently pointed, with 

 white margin from which slender fibers detach them- 

 selves, whitish green : panicle with 1 or 2 short branches 

 within the cluster of leaves, or usually reduced to a ra- 

 ceme : fls. greenish ; style green. Rocky mountain region 

 and plains. B.M. 2236. G.F. 2:247. Rept. Mo. Bot. Gard. 

 6, p. 7. B.B. 1 :427.-Var. stricta, Trel. ( Y. stricta, Sims). 

 Inflorescence freely branched at top of the leaf-cluster. 

 Southern plains. B.M. 2222. 



5. gloriosa, Linn. Nearly stemless or with slender 

 trunk, 10-15 ft. high: Ivs. 1-2 in wide, thin but not re- 



2764. Adam's Needle Yucca filamentosa. 

 From a plant 4 feet high. 



curved, somewhat concave, glaucous when young, pun- 

 gently pointed, brown-margined : panicle with ascend- 

 ing branches, short-peduncled: fls. often with a reddish 

 or brownish shading. Carolina coast region. A form 



