Soaptree yucca
Yucca elata (Engelm.) Engelm.
Also called soaptree yucca, palmilla.
Branching native yucca with fine, fibrous leaves and tall stalks of white flowers in late spring. Classic grassland-desert silhouette.
Size over time
Typical landscape size 1.8–4.5 m (6–15 ft) tall and 0.9–1.8 m (3–6 ft) wide; slow growth, about 30 years to maturity. Intermediate sizes use the planner’s growth curve (k = 0.12) from the #5 install size.
Bloom
Creamy white flowers, May–Jun (northern-hemisphere months; timing shifts with region and season).
| Plant | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soaptree yucca : May–Jun |
Design notes
- Pollinated only by yucca moths, which depend on it.
- Slow — buy larger specimens from permitted salvage or nurseries.
Regions
Native range: Chihuahuan and Sonoran Deserts of Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico.
Native to these OpenLandscape3D pilot regions:
Native status describes where the species occurs naturally. It is not a promise that it suits a particular garden; site conditions decide that.
Related plants
Plan with Soaptree yucca
Place it in a design, check it against your zone, light and moisture, and see it at year three and year ten.