Mohave Yucca
Yucca schidigera
Also called the "Spanish Dagger," this evergreen shrub or small tree has a few upright branches and bayonet-like leaves from 2 to 4 feet long and 1-1/2 inches wide. The trunk is grayish-brown and 6 to 12 inches in diameter. The Mojave Yucca grows to a height of 16 feet.
Flowers of the Yucca genus -- which includes the Joshua Tree (Yucca brevifolia) -- depend on the small, white Pronuba Moth for pollination. This moth, in addition to gathering pollen, actually deposits her eggs in the ovary of the yucca flowers. The Pronuba larvae feed on the developing fruit, but leave some seeds to mature.
Range
Mojave and Sonoran deserts of southeastern California, Baja, southern Nevada and western Arizona.
Habitat
Rocky desert slopes and Creosote desert flats below 7,000 feet.
Flowers
Upright, branched clusters of purplish-white, bell-shaped flowers between 1 and 2 inches long bloom in springtime in the desert. Mojave Yucca can be seen in bloom along the coast as late as August and September.
Fruit
A cylindrical, curved, dull-black berry with thick, edible flesh matures in late summer. The berry grows to 2 to 4 inches long by 1-1/2 inches wide containing many small black seeds. The berry dries and falls from the tree before winter.
Animals - Wildlife | Wildflowers-Plants | Minerals - Geology | Desert People
Click here to read about the yucca moth.
Click here to read about the Joshua Tree
Interesting Facts About Yucca Plants . . .
- Yucca wood has the lowest ignition temperature of any other wood, which makes it useful as a fire-starter.
- The state flower of New Mexico is the "yucca flower."
- Yucca plants are reliant on the yucca moth
for pollination.
We have an online wildflower field guide that is designed to help you identify desert wildflowers by color, scientific name, region and common name. The pictures are sized to work on the iPod, iPhone, iPad and similar devices. With your iPod or phone you will easily be able to identify wildflowers while in the desert. Links for downloads are on the bottom of the Wildflower Field Guide page.
Photo tips: Most digital point-and-shoot cameras have a macro function - usually symbolized by the icon of a little flower. When you turn on that function, you allow your camera to get closer to the subject, looking into a flower for example. Or getting up close and personal with a bug. More on desert photography.
Mojave Desert Wildflowers - This book is the standard by which all other wildflower books are measured. The author, Jon Mark Stewart, has combined super photography with concise information. This book has an entire color page for each wildflower covered, with a discussion of the wildflower. 210 pages with 200 color photos. More...
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