''Beschorneria yuccoides'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of succulent plant belonging to the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Asparagaceae, subfamily

Agavoideae Agavoideae is a subfamily of monocot flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, order Asparagales. It has previously been treated as a separate family, Agavaceae. The group includes many well-known desert and dry-zone types, such as the agaves ...

Etymology

The epithet ''yuccoides'' is a compound of the botanical name of the genus ''

Yucca ''Yucca'' is a genus of perennial plant, perennial shrubs and trees in the family (biology), family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae. Its 40–50 species are notable for their Rosette (botany), rosettes of evergreen, tough, sword-shaped Leaf, ...

'' and the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

suffix -ό-εἶδος (''o-eidos'') ''oides'' meaning "likeness".

Subspecies

* ''Beschorneria yuccoides subsp. yuccoides'' * ''Beschorneria yuccoides subsp. dekosteriana'' (K.Koch) Govaerts

Description

''Beschorneria yuccoides'' is a stemless plant with 20 to 35 linear, lanceolate, leathery leaves that are widened at their base. They are gray-green to green, about long and wide. The leaf margins are finely denticulate. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

reaches a height of , with a maximum of . The stem and the bract are red. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are 40 to 50 mm long. The fruits are elongated to almost spherical, long and wide.

Distribution

''Beschorneria yuccoides'' is present in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

,Encyclopedia of Life
/ref> in the states of

Hidalgo Hidalgo may refer to: People * Hidalgo (nobility), members of the Spanish nobility * Hidalgo (surname) Places Mexico * Hidalgo (state), in central Mexico * Hidalgo, Coahuila, a town in the north Mexican state of Coahuila * Hidalgo, Nuevo Le� ...

, Puebla and

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

, at an elevation of above sea level.Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants
/ref>

Cultivation

This plant is not tolerant of severe freezes, and is best suited to warm, sheltered south- or west-facing places in full sun, where temperatures do not fall below . Alternatively, it can be grown under glass. It grows outdoors at Earlscliffe,

Howth Howth ( ; ; non, Hǫfuð) is an affluent peninsular village and outer suburb of Dublin, Ireland. The district as a whole occupies the greater part of the peninsula of Howth Head, which forms the northern boundary of Dublin Bay, and includes ...

, Co. Dublin,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, at a latitude of 53.3º N, where it benefits from the unusually favourable microclimate. In cultivation in the UK it has gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nor ...

’s Award of Garden Merit.

References

Biolib
* Urs Eggl
The International Plant Names Index

External links

San Marcos Growers

Agavoideae Flora of Mexico Garden plants {{Asparagaceae-stub