Care of the shrub Yucca baccata or Banana yucca |
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The genus Yucca, family Asparagaceae, includes about 50 species of evergreen shrubs native to Mexico, the United States, and the Caribbean. Some species are: Yucca baccata, Yucca carnerosana, Yucca aloifolia, Yucca desmetiana, Yucca elephantipes, Yucca filifera, Yucca mixtecana, Yucca rostrata, Yucca schidigera, Yucca thompsoniana, Yucca gloriosa, Yucca whipplei. Common names: Banana yucca, Datil yucca, Broadleaf yucca, Blue Yucca, Spanish Yucca, Spanish bayonet. This species is native to the southwestern US and northwestern Mexico. They are short-stemmed evergreen shrubs or acaules that reach 1 meter (3.28 feet) in height. The long bluish-green leaves reach 1 meter (3.28 feet) in length. The flowers can be white or cream with purple hues and appear on erect flower stalks above the leaves. They bloom in spring. The rosette that blooms dies after this blooming but first produces lateral suckers. The edible fruits have a sweet potato flavor. They are used on rockeries, on dry and sunny slopes, on edges and as isolated specimens. Yucca baccata needs full sun exposure and hot, dry weather. They resist frosts down to -15 ºC (5 ºF). They grow in any type of soil, be it rocky, sandy, clayey, poor or stony. These plants are very resistant to drought that only need occasional watering in summer. Fertilize in early spring with mineral fertilizer for cacti and succulents. Prune off wilted flower stems. They are plants resistant to the usual pests and diseases. They are propagated from seeds sown in spring in a sandy substrate and by separating suckers in late spring. |
Images of the shrub Yucca baccata or Banana yucca |
 Yucca baccata  Yucca baccata  Yucca baccata  Yucca baccata |