Yucca gigantea
Common name
giant yucca, spineless yucca
Synonyms
Wikipedia lists: Dracaena lennei Baker; Dracaena yuccoides Baker; Sarcoyucca elephantipes Linding., nom. superfl.; Yucca eleana W.Watson; Yucca elephantipes Regel ex Trel., nom. illeg.; Yucca elephantipes var. ghiesbreghtii Molon; Yucca ghiesbreghtii Baker; Yucca guatemalensis Baker; Yucca lenneana Baker; Yucca mazelii W.Watson; Yucca mooreana Baker; Yucca roezlii Baker
Family
Asparagaceae
Flora category
Vascular – Exotic
Structural class
Trees & Shrubs - Monocotyledons
Conservation status
Not applicable
Brief description
An arborescent monocot with a single or multiple stem; leaves firm to rigid but not spine tipped.
Distribution
An occasional indoor or outdoor plant in NZ. One wild collection of a rooted plant that appeared to have arisen from dumped garden waste.
Similar taxa
Yucca gloriosa is much more common in the wild in NZ than Y. gigantea and it has spine-tipped leaves.
Flower colours
White
Propagation technique
root suckers, cuttings, seeds
Year naturalised
2010 (first record was Patea, Taranaki)
Origin
Central America
Reason for introduction
Ornamental
Etymology
yucca: An name derived from a language in the Carib group, denoting another plant and mistakenly applied to this taxa.
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by Colin C Ogle, 14 Oct 2016