Yucca filamentosa L. var. concava (Haw.) Baker
Yucca filamentosa L.
Adam’s needle, yucca
These yuccas are native to the southeastern United States, and are now found as far north as MA and as far west as Texas. Cultivars of these yuccas are popular with gardeners.
Plants: Like other yuccas, Adam’s needle looks sort of like an oversized tuft of grass. A group of evergreen straplike leaves, about 1″ (2.5 cm) in diameter, erupt from a central point.
Leaves: Up to 3′ (91 cm) in length. Like several other yuccas, Adam’s needle has thin, wiry curls or filaments on the leaves (hence the species filamentosa).
Flowers: Copious, downward-hanging urn-shaped flowers with sharply pointed petals on a stalk 3–8′ (91–243 cm) tall.
Fruits: Capsules are yellow-green to purple, about 1″ long ⨉ ½″ wide (2.5 ⨉ 1.3 cm).
Habitats: Common in sandy soils, especially in beach scrub and dunes, but also in fields, barrens, and rocky slopes, though it also grows well in silt or clay soils.
Edibility:
Medical:
The plant blooms by growing a central spike up to 8′ (2.4 m) high, covered with drooping, cream-colored flowers about 2″ (5 cm) in size. Plants die after producing these stunning blooming displays.
See the Yucca page for a comparison with other yuccas.
Online References:
References:
Irish, Mary & Irish, Gary, Agaves, Yuccas and Related Plants: A Gardener’s Guide, Timber Press, 2000, p. 246
Yucca concava Haw.
Yucca filamentosa L. var. concava (Haw.) Baker
Yucca filamentosa L. var. concava (Haw.) Baker
5/31/2010 · Mt. Lebanon St., Pepperell, Massachusetts 
5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts 
ID is uncertain 
10/1/2023 · Mill Pond Preserve, Arrowsic, Maine 
6/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts 
5/22/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts ID is uncertain 
10/1/2023 · Mill Pond Preserve, Arrowsic, Maine 
6/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 1 × 2′ (41 × 62 cm) 
7/17/2009 · Mt. Lebanon St, Trail, Pepperell, Massachusetts ID is uncertain 
6/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 12″ (20 × 31 cm) 
6/29/2023 · West Virginia 
4/14/2010 · Mt. Lebanon St., Pepperell, Massachusetts 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Liliopsida | Monocots (plants with a single seed leaf); includes the lily family |
| Subclass | Liliidae | Includes lilies, orchids, and many others |
| Order | Asparagales | A diverse group that includes asparagus |
| Family | Asparagaceae | Agaves, asparagus, hyacinths, and others |
| Genus | Yucca | Linnaeus mistakenly derived the genus name from the Carib word for (similar-appearing) cassava, yuca |
| Species | filamentosa | Refers to the tough wiry filaments interspersed among the leaves |
Yucca filamentosa description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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