Yucca harrimaniae
| Yucca harrimaniae | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 7 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Evergreen | |
| Height: | 1' |
| Speed: | Slow |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Yucca harrimaniae (common name: spanish bayonet)
Propagation: Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. Pre-soaking the seed for 24 hours in warm water may reduce the germination time. It usually germinates within 1 - 12 months if kept at a temperature of 20°c. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse or cold frame for at least their first two winters. Plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer and consider giving them some winter protection for at least their first winter outdoors - a simple pane of glass is usually sufficient[K]. Seed is not produced in Britain unless the flowers are hand pollinated.
Root cuttings in late winter or early spring. Lift in April/May and remove small buds from base of stem and rhizomes. Dip in dry wood ashes to stop any bleeding and plant in a sandy soil in pots in a greenhouse until established[1].
Division of suckers in late spring[2]. Larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found that it is best to pot up smaller divisions and grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse or cold frame until they are growing away well. Plant them out in the following spring.
Cultivation: Thrives in any soil but prefers a sandy loam and full exposure to the south[3]. Requires a sunny position[3]. Plants are hardier when grown on poor sandy soils[4]. Established plants are very drought resistant, this species is also tolerant of cool damp weather[3].
Hardy to at least -30°c[5].
Closely allied to Y. glauca[6].
In the plants native environment, its flowers can only be pollinated by a certain species of moth. This moth cannot live in Britain and, if fruit and seed is required, hand pollination is necessary. This can be quite easily and successfully done using something like a small paint brush.
Individual crowns are monocarpic, dying after flowering[7]. However, the crown will usually produce a number of sideshoots before it dies and these will grow on to flower in later years[7].
Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[4].
Members of this genus seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits[7]
Range: Central N. America - Utah to Colorado.
Habitat: High plains grasslands to open coniferous woods[8].
Edibility: Fruit - the immature fruit is cooked. A bitter taste, but most of the bitterness is in the skin[9].
Flowers - raw or cooked[9]. They are delicious raw, and can also be dried, crushed and used as a flavouring[5].
Flowering stem - peeled, cooked and used like asparagus[5]. The whitish inner portion is eaten[9].
Usage: A fibre obtained from the leaves is used for making ropes, baskets and mats[10][9][11]. The leaves themselves can be used as paint brushes[12], brooms or woven to make mats etc[9].
The roots are rich in saponins and can be used as a soap substitute[9].
Pollinators: Hand
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Wind: Tolerates strong winds
In Leaf: Evergreen
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: The roots contain saponins[13]. Whilst saponins are quite toxic to people, they are poorly absorbed by the body and so tend to pass straight through. They are also destroyed by prolonged heat, such as slow baking in an oven. Saponins are found in many co
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References
- ↑ Sheat, Wilfrid. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. St Martin, 1948.
- ↑ Sanders, Thomas. Popular Hardy Perennials. Collingridge, 1926.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Bird, Alfred. Growing from Seed Volume 4. Thompson and Morgan, 1990.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Thomas, Graham. Perennial Garden Plants. J. M. Dent & Sons, 1990.
- ↑ McGregor, Ronald. Flora of the Great Plains. University Press of Kansas, 1986.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 Harrington, Harold. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press, 1967.
- ↑ Sargent, Charles. Manual of the Trees of North America. Dover, 1965.
- ↑ Buchanan, Rita. A Weavers Garden.
- ↑ Balls, Edward. Early Uses of Californian Plants. University of California Press, 1975.
- ↑ Foster, Steven and Billy Tatum. Medicinal Plants of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin, 1990.