Yucca elata (Soaptree yucca)

Yucca elata (Engelm.) Engelm.

Yucca angustissima Engelm. ex Trel. var. elata Engelm.

Yucca elata (Engelm.) Engelm. var. elata

Yucca elata (Engelm.) Engelm. var. utahensis (McKelvey) Reveal

Yucca elata (Engelm.) Engelm. var. verdiensis (McKelvey) Reveal

Yucca utahensis McKelvey

Yucca verdiensis McKelvey

Soaptree yucca

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
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	elata	Latin for "tall" (from Stearn's Botanical Latin)

About plant names...

Soaptree yuccas are natives of southwestern North America. Soapy material in the roots and trunks were used as soap. Its fibrous leaves were used for basket weaving.

Identification: These small trees are 4-15' (1.2-4.5 m) tall, with a thick brown trunk, sometimes branched, mostly covered in a skirt of dried leaves. Leaves are in dense whorls at the top(s) of the trunk(s). They are yellowish and leather-like, measuring 10-39" (25-100 cm) × ⅛-½" (5-13 mm) wide, with wiry white filaments. The flowers are white, bell-shaped, about 1-2" (3-6 cm) long. Flowers are on a spike that emerges well above the leaves. The fruits are capsules 1½-3" (4-8 cm) × ¾-1½" (2-4 cm).

See the Yucca page for a comparison with other yuccas.

Online References:

Yucca elata at Southeastern Arizona Wildflowers and the Plants of the Sonoran Desert

Yucca elata on Wikipedia

Yucca elata on DesertUSA: Exploring the Southwest

Yucca elata at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Yucca elata on cals.arizona.edu

References:

Irish, Mary & Irish, Gary, Agaves, Yuccas and Related Plants: A Gardener’s Guide, Timber Press, 2000, p. 241

5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, Arizona
≈ 4 × 6½' (1.3 × 2.0 m) ID is uncertain

Yucca elata description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

5/24/2009 · Arizona Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson, Arizona
≈ 4½ × 7' (1.5 × 2.2 m) ID is uncertain

5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, Arizona
≈ 4½ × 7' (1.4 × 2.1 m) ID is uncertain

5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, Arizona
≈ 4½ × 7' (1.4 × 2.2 m) ID is uncertain

5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, Arizona
≈ 10 × 7' (3.2 × 2.1 m) ID is uncertain

Range: Zones 7-12:

About this map...