This "Elephant Ear" has huge bright green arrowhead shaped leaves. It is a great for a tropical effect in sun or part shade. Cut back plants after the frost kills the tops and mound 10 inches of coarse sand over the stubs and mulch over with pine straw. As weather warms, remove this covering to allow new shoots to emerge. Given rich soil and ample water, these plants will thrive during hot summers. Perhaps originally native to the West Indies but widely grown and naturalized elsewhere in warm climate areas.
Shiny Xylosma is sometimes listed as Xylosma senticosa. It is an attractive heat and drought tolerant evergreen shrub with glossy leaves about 3" long and 1" wide. It is much grown in California and the Southwest as a hedge, screen planting, or small tree. The greenish yellow flowers are not conspicuous but fragrant. This plant is uncommon in southeastern U.S. landscapes but has done very well here in our area. It should have a sunny or slightly shaded area with good soil and good drainage. This plant is native to eastern Asia.
Widely cultivated in the South and West. Usually forming short trunk. Has wide, pliable bluish-green leaves which droop at the ends. Native range questionable. Supposedly the central Gulf Coast.. (See O&T)
This big slow-growing tree-like yucca can be single stem or branched. The leaves are 2-3 feet long and 2-3 inches wide. Large branched clusters of white bell-like flowers follwed by large fleshy seed capsules are borne at the top of the mature plants. Native to west Texas it is an imposing plant in desert landscapes there. Large specimens transplanted to some southeastern landscape plantings from Virginia southward have proven hardy and adaptable.
Tall, sparingly branched, tree-like yucca with attractive narrow blue-green leaves at terminal ends of stems. Hanging old dead leaves may persist on upper trunks. Showy tall spikes of white bell-like flowers. Very old specimens in the natural habitat may be taller than size given. A taproot makes it difficult to tranplant from the wild. Plant in full sun in very well-drained soil. Adding lime may be beneficial on acid soils. Grown from seed from Reeves County, Texas.
Izote Yucca is a large tree-like yucca from desert areas in central Mexico. The tall simple or branched trunks are crowned by relatively long narrow sword-like leaves typical of yuccas. The white bell-like flowers in tall terminal branched spikes atop the mature plants are likewise similar to other yuccas. This rarely offered yucca appears to be relatively hardy and adaptable and would make a bold statement in any landscape where it could be grown.
A clumping or sometimes solitary stem Yucca with narrow blue-green leaves 1-3 feet long. Stems lacking or up to 3 feet tall. Dense panicle of white bell-like flowers not held high above the leaves. A plant of very deep sandy soils or dunes in west Texas. Might prove good on sandy sites in full sun.
Grown from seed collected in Ward County, Texas
This Yucca with relatively short narrow blueish leaves is native to dry areas in west Texas, Mexico, and southern New Mexico. Tall showy spikes of white bell-like flowers are followed by fruits with a pointed tip which give it its common name. It is considered one of the prettiest Yucca species. May slowly grow into a single or multiple trunk specimen. Has proven hardy in Dallas which is colder and wetter than its natural range. Plant in sunny site with well-drained soil.
Torrey Yucca is a relatively hardy tree form yucca from desert areas in west Texas, New Mexico, and southward. It can be single or multi trunked. The green to bluish leaves are stiff with a sharp point but it is often disheveled looking with a skirt of dead leaves giving it the common name of "Old Shag". When in bloom it does have showy dense clusters of white flowers on tall spikes. Plant in sun with well-drained soil.
This essentially trunkless Yucca found sparingly in central Texas has been considered by some to be a hybrdid between Yucca thompsoniana and Y. rupicola. It is found primarily in the Edwards Plateau where it is usually on limestone soils. An unusual and attractive Yucca that can be single or clump forming with multiple heads. Yucca-do nursery reports it has been cold hardy to Witchita, Kansas. As with other Yucca species it should be grown in a sunny well-draines site and kept free of competing vegetation.
Spanish Bayonet Yucca is native along the southeastern U.S. coast and is commonly grown as an ornamental throughout the South. The tall trunks of this arborescent yucca can be in clusters and are topped with stiff leaves 1-2 feet long and several inches broad. These are tipped with very sharp points which one must be careful of. The large showy spikes of white bell-like flowers appear in summer and are followed by firm fleshy green fruits. This plant thrives in sunny locations with well-drained soil and is popular for an exotic, desert, or tropical effect.
Small thorny tree or large shrub with glossy compound deciduous leaves which turn yellow in fall. Small greenish-yellow flower clusters in early summer followed by reddish fruits containing black seeds which are ground and used as pepper in Japan. Dirr says:àperhaps the most ornamental member of the genus.à (See DIR)
Zamia pumila (umbrosa) is the form of this low cycad native in eastern Florida. It has stiff evergreen fern-like leaves from a large tuberous root which is the source of arrowroot starch and once much used by the Indians. It is not a palm and is actually more closely related to ferns. It is a popular landscape plant in Florida but hardy in much of the Coastal and Lower South. Somewhat tolerant of salt spray and slightly saline soil. Winter mulch is advisable for young plants in areas where palms are marginal. Can be grown as a container plant and protected in winter. Male and female cones produced on separate plants.
Trunk short, sometimes underground, tuberlike. Pinnae leaves to 6 inches long and 1/4 inches wide.A heavy winter mulch is advisable for young plants in areas where palms are marginal. Or, the plants may be potted when received and kept inside the first winter.
Bold green foliage on long petioles and showy flowers make this a favorite in many mild climates where the ground doesn't freeze. This clone developed in England is more winter hardy and sun tolerant according to Armitage. A good poolside plant where cool, moist, and fertile soil that is well-drained exists. (See O&T, ARM) Cut back plants after the frost kills the tops. Mound 10 inches of coarse sand over the stubs. Mulch over with pine straw. As weather warms, remove this covering to allow new shoots to emerge. Given rich soil and ample water, these plants will thrive during hot summers.
