CHAPTER XVIII: THE YUCCAS 



Family LiLiACEyE 



The traveller who is a close observer of trees will be astonished 

 to find the lily family well represented in our Southern silva. 

 Now, a lily is formed by the rule of three, as shown in the flower 

 and in the seed pod. It has parallel-veined leaves and a stem 

 with bundles of fibres distributed through its softer substance, 

 much like the stems of corn or bamboo. 



The yuccas are our arborescent lilies. There are nine species 

 that attain the form and stature of trees. They are beautiful 

 flowering trees, especially prized in countries of scant rainfall. 

 They are planted for hedges. The fibrous leaves furnish material 

 for ropes, mattings and baskets. The fleshy roots are used as a 

 substitute for soap. 



The Spanish Bayonet {Yucca aloijolia, Linn.) grows 

 along the coast from North Carolina to Louisiana, preferring the 

 borders of swamps or sand dunes, and moving inland on sandy 

 soil. It is a low tree, rarely 25 feet high, with three or four main 

 branches above the short, thick trunk. The leaves clothe the 

 trunk until it is quite well grown, when they are found only on the 

 branches, the newest ones clustered in rosettes at the ends. 

 These bayonet-shaped leaves are smooth, dark green, about 

 2 feet long, stiff pointed, and saw toothed on each edge. 

 The base of each widens into a crescent. Large panicles 

 of flowers, leathery, white, purple tinged, are followed 

 in autumn by green, soft, cucumber-like fruits, 3 to 4 

 inches long, which turn black and dry up on the stem. 

 They are eaten by birds and occasionally by people. This 

 yucca is very common in gardens. It is a fairly hardy 

 species. 



The Spanish Bayonet, or Spanish Dagger {Yucca Trecu- 

 leana, Carr.), of Texas, has blue-green leaves, which are lanceolate 

 and rough on the under side. The flowers of this species are 

 brightly flushed with purple. It grows wild in considerable 



