Yucca filamentosa, Adam's needle and thread, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae native to the southeastern United States. Growing to tall, it is an evergreen shrub valued in horticulture.
Description
Usually trunkless, it is multisuckering with heads of long, filamentous, blue-green, strappy leaves. Y. filamentosa is readily distinguished from other yucca species by white, thready filaments along the leaf margins. Flower stems up to tall bear masses of pendulous cream flowers in early summer. bear-grass, needle-palm, silk-grass, and spoon-leaf yucca.
Distribution and habitat
Yucca filamentosa is only native from Maryland south to Florida and westwards to Louisiana. Inland it is native to Tennessee and West Virginia, but is introduced to Kentucky. It has also an introduced plant in New York and Massachusetts and is also reported in France, Germany, Italy, Albania, Hungary, Romania, and Turkey. Other moth species, such as Tegeticula intermedia, also use this yucca as a host plant to lay their eggs.
Cultivation
Y. filamentosa is widely cultivated in mild temperate and subtropical climates. A fairly compact species, it nevertheless presents a striking appearance with its sword-like leaves and dramatic flowerheads. It is naturally a focal point in the landscape, also providing a tropical touch in temperate gardens. It needs full sun and a well-drained soil, preferring an acid or slightly alkaline pH range of 5.5 to 7.5. It develops a large, fleshy, white taproot with deep lateral roots. Once planted and established, it is difficult to remove, as the roots keep sending up new shoots for many years. It is normally hardy down to , or U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) hardiness zones of 5 to 9: UK H7).
Cultivars
'Bright Edge', a dwarf cultivar with yellow-margined foliage and creamy flowers tinged with green, has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. 'Color Guard', with broad yellow stripes all year plus red stripes in the winter, has also won the award.
Other cultivars include:
- 'Golden Sword' - with yellow centered leaves and green margins.
- 'Ivory Tower' - with larger, branched inflorescence.
Uses
Once the seeds have been removed, the fruits can be cooked and eaten. The large flower petals can also be eaten in salads.
The leaves, stems and roots of this plant can be used to stun fish. The Cherokee used it for this purpose.