Yucca jaliscensis

''Yucca jaliscensis'' is a '' Yucca'' species native to the highlands of southwestern Mexico. Common names for this species include Jalisco Yucca, Jalisco Soapwort, Izote Yucca. It is native to mountainous areas at about 5000 feet in the States of Jalisco, Colima and Guanajuato.

Description

''Yucca jaliscensis'' is a tall tree-like species. Although at old age it can grow up to in height, with a spread to , it is usually found at less than in height. It may have a somewhat thickened trunk base and it maybe single trunked or it can be mildly multitrunked. The usually short trunk base is often found at 0.5 to 2 feet wide, but can grow to over 4 or 5 feet in diameter on old specimens. There is usually around 5 to 8 branches growing upright off the short trunk with the leaves at the top of the trunks. The leaves are stiff to flexible, variably blue to green colored, strap-like, spineless, up to in length, and up to in width. The old leaves usually self clean from the trunk over time. The branched, upright or sideways inclined inflorescence is to long, erect or with drooping fruit, canescent with blunt thick hairs to densely pubescent, filaments have blunt hairs and are pilose. The fruits are 4–5 cm in diameter. The ball-shaped white flowers bloom September to May or sometimes almost any time of the year. Flowers are 2-3.5 cm long and 1-1.5 cm wide.Trelease, William. 1920. Contributions from the United States National Herbarium 23(1): 92–93, ''Yucca jaliscensis'
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Distribution & habitat

''Yucca jaliscensis'' grows in Mexico near the Pacific coast in the states of Jalisco, Colima, and Guanajuato on plains and low hills between about 3000–7000 ft. Associated with ''Agave colimana'' and other '' Agave'' species. It is often grown as an ornamental around homes or settlements and is not found in the wild often. In nature, ''Yucca jaliscensis'' can be found in ravines that are forested, in narrow, winding stream gorges, in deciduous tropical type forests, but most often found in pine, oak, or other broad-leaved trees forests that are in or near narrow and winding stream gorges. Other habitats include dry hills or steep rocky volcanic slopes, with semi-arid and rocky subtropical short oak tree forests; mixed and patchy, also it's sometimes found in open fields with corn or other crops.

Taxonomy

The accepted species name is known today as ''Yucca jaliscensis''. The first mention of that name was by William Trelease in 1920. It was formally thought to be a variation of '' Y. × schottii'' in 1902 by Trelease, but later studies showed it clearly to be a distinct species being both more branched and larger in size as a whole, so Trelease named it ''Yucca jaliscensis'' in reference to the area where it can be found (Jalisco, Mexico).Trelease, William. 1902. Annual Report of the Missouri Botanical Garden 13: 99–100. 1902
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Cultivation

The species can be grown in a variety of soils and is drought-tolerant. ''Yucca jaliscensis'' is rare and is geographically isolated from other representatives. It is closely related to ''Yucca schottii'', '' Yucca madrensis'', and ''Yucca grandiflora''. It is little known and rare in cultivation. In dry conditions, ''Yucca jaliscensis'' has been cold hardy in Albuquerque, New Mexico where temperatures can fall below 5 °F (pers. comm. Ferguson), old specimens can be admired here.Fritz Hochstätter. Yucca (Agavaceae) III Mexico and Baja California. 2004, S. 26–27, Fotomaterial S. 100–103, S. 270 Propagation is by suckers, cuttings or seed.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1661284

jaliscensis
Endemic flora of Mexico
Flora of Jalisco
Flora of Guanajuato
Flora of Colima
Plants described in 1867
Plants described in 1902
Plants described in 1920
Taxa named by William Trelease