This is one of the more stately members of the genus Yucca, forming trees to 15 m with solitary rosettes or few-branched canopies. Each branch is topped by a spherical to semi-columnar rosette of slender, sword-like leaves lined with marginal fibers which recurve in charming curls. The species is frost hardy as it can occur at elevations up to 2500 m, such as “Derek’s Hill”, a locality informally named for the late British Ferocactus specialist, Derek Bowdery (1932 – 2018), who discovered this remarkably succulent-rich habitat in northern Oaxaca state, near the border with Veracruz, Mexico. HBG 134383. $15.
Published in the Cactus and Succulent Journal, Vol. 90 (2), Summer 2018