''Yucca'' × ''schottii'' is a plant species in the genus ''

Yucca ''Yucca'' is a genus of perennial shrubs and trees in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae. Its 40–50 species are notable for their rosettes of evergreen, tough, sword-shaped leaves and large terminal panicles of white or whitish flo ...

'', native to southern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and the northern parts of Sonora and Chihuahua. The common names are Schott's yucca, hoary yucca, and mountain yucca. The "×" in the name indicates that this is a

nothospecies #REDIRECT Hybrid name In botanical nomenclature, a hybrid may be given a hybrid name, which is a special kind of botanical name, but there is no requirement that a hybrid name should be created for plants that are believed to be of hybrid origin. ...

, regarded as being a natural hybrid between two other species. In this case, ''Yucca'' × ''schottii'' is believed to have originated as a hybrid between '' Y. baccata'' and '' Y. madrensis''. ''Yucca'' × ''schottii'' is firmly established and does reproduce freely in the wild. ''Yucca'' × ''schottii'' is called mountain yucca because it is found at higher elevations than other tree-like yuccas. It occurs in the

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...

s at the north of the

Sierra Madre Occidental The Sierra Madre Occidental is a major mountain range system of the North American Cordillera, that runs northwest–southeast through northwestern and western Mexico, and along the Gulf of California. The Sierra Madre is part of the American C ...

cordillera A cordillera is an extensive chain and/or network system of mountain ranges, such as those in the west coast of the Americas. The term is borrowed from Spanish, where the word comes from , a diminutive of ('rope'). The term is most commonly us ...

. It is found in extreme southeast

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, then the smaller bootheel region of southwest

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

, and the neighboring northern

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 ...

states of

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is d ...

and extreme northwest Chihuahua. Most of its range, about half is in Arizona. The mountainous regions of Arizona are in the northeast

Sonora Desert The Sonoran Desert ( es, Desierto de Sonora) is a desert in North America and ecoregion that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the southwestern United States (in Arizona ...

, as well as Sonora; the region of New Mexico–Chihuahua lies on the extreme northwest border of the

Chihuahuan Desert The Chihuahuan Desert ( es, Desierto de Chihuahua, ) is a desert ecoregion designation covering parts of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. It occupies much of far West Texas, the middle to lower Rio Grande Valley and the lower P ...

. This specific region at the intersection of these two deserts, is a

Basin and Range Basin and range topography is characterized by alternating parallel mountain ranges and valleys. It is a result of crustal extension due to mantle upwelling, gravitational collapse, crustal thickening, or relaxation of confining stresses. The e ...

area, with

sky island Sky islands are topographic isolation, isolated mountains surrounded by radically different lowland environments. The term originally referred to those found on the Mexican Plateau, and has extended to similarly isolated montane ecosystems, hi ...

s, named the

Madrean Sky Islands The Madrean Sky Islands are enclaves of Madrean pine–oak woodlands, found at higher elevations in a complex of small mountain ranges in southern and southeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and northwestern Mexico. The sky islands are sur ...

for the Madrean pine forests of the

. ''Yucca'' × ''schottii'' is a tall species up to 5 m in height, with thin trunks rarely more than 30 cm across, branching occasionally well above ground. Leaves are lanceolate, broad and tapering at both ends, stiff and rigid, up to 60 cm long and up to 8 cm wide, with a hard spine forming the tip. Flowers are white. Fruit is fleshy and egg-shaped.McKelvey, Susan. 1938. Yuccas of the Southwestern United States. Jamaica Plain: Arnold Arboretum. File:Yucca schottii 20070226-1535-58.JPG, Mountain yucca
(Schott's yucca)

References

External links

NRCS: USDA Plants Profile: ''Yucca schottii'' Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, ''Yucca schottii''.photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical garden, type collection of ''Yucca ''×'' macrocarpa'', a synonym of ''Yucca x schottii''photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical Garden, ''Yucca x schottii''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yucca schottii schottii Plant nothospecies Flora of Arizona Flora of New Mexico Flora of Sonora Flora of Chihuahua (state) Flora of the Southwestern United States Flora of Northwestern Mexico New Mexico Bootheel Taxa named by George Engelmann Garden plants of North America Drought-tolerant plants