Yuccas are presently one of the trendiest plants around. Drive past any strikingly modern home and chances are you’ll see a yucca plant through the window or somewhere in the architecturally planned garden. But you don’t have to be on the upper rungs of the real estate market to enjoy these tropical plants, they look great in almost any setting.
The yucca most commonly available as an indoor plant in New Zealand is the Yucca Elephantipes. Known variously as the Spineless Yucca, Spanish Dagger, Adam’s Needle, Spanish Bayonet and Soapweed yuccas are hardy perennials that generally range from 30 cm to 2.5 meters in height. They have thick woody stems that bear, at their upper ends, clusters of long, dark-green, spear-shaped leaves.
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Symbolism: Transmutation, Protection, Purification
During late spring and summer, yuccas may produce dramatic clusters of white, bell-shaped flowers. So striking are these flowers that early settlers of the south-western United States called them “Lamparas de Dios” or “Lanterns of God”. Pollination and proper yucca care are necessary for the formation of these flowers on indoor plants.
A member of the Agavae family, the yucca is closely related to the lily and has its origins in Mexico and Central America where it was prized by indigenous peoples for the medicinal and nutritional properties of the yucca flower. North American natives, too, found the plant useful, using it to make clothing and soap (yucca roots are rich in saponins).
If you want a houseplant that will grow in most conditions and which requires minimal care, you won’t go far wrong with a yucca – in fact the plant is so hardy it is sometimes called the “No Water Plant”.
Yucca plants fare best in bright light situations. Indoor yuccas should therefore be placed near windows to take advantage of natural light.
Yuccas like sandy, well-drained soil. Use an appropriate potting mix and place a 5 cm layer of pebbles in the bottom of the pot for optimum yucca care. Do not put a catcher or plate under your yucca’s pot. Waterlogged roots are one of the most common killers of this plant.
Though yuccas are almost set-and-forget houseplants, they will benefit from a dose of fertilizer two or three times a year.
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