Species · genus Yucca · Asparagaceae

Palmella

Yucca elata (Engelm.) Engelm.

Also known as: Soaptree · Soaptree Yucca · Soapweed · Soapweed Yucca

Growth habit

shrub or tree

Native range

Arizona, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, New Mexico, Texas

Reference · Y. elata

Cultivars of Y. elata

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under Y. elata yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

Yucca elata is a woody shrub or tree native to the arid grasslands and deserts of the American Southwest and northern Mexico, built to store water and endure long dry spells. Give it the brightest, most direct light you can offer and a gritty, fast-draining mix; water deeply only once the soil has dried out completely, roughly every two to four weeks, and far less in winter. Standing moisture is the main threat, so let it run dry between drinks rather than keeping it damp.

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 14-28d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Direct sun

Water

≈ every 28 days

Humidity

Low — average room

Temperature

5–33 °C

Soil mix

Deep, gritty, fast-draining sandy mix

Propagation

Seed (solitary — few offsets)

Fertilizing

Rarely needed; light feed in spring only

Growth rate

Slow

Flowering

Rarely flowers indoors

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Toxic to cats & dogs

Saponins — vomiting, drooling. This is where toxicity lives: every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 14-28d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ASPCA

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Palmella yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.