Galapagos Species Database
The Galapagos Species Database shares the information about the species from our Natural History Collections.
Yucca gigantea
flor de novia, peine de indio, izote, spineless yucca, soft tip yucca, blue stem yucca
It is the largest of the yuccas, being able to exceed 15 m in length. height; it is highly branched, giving it a dense and majestic appearance. At the end of each branch the leaves grouped in clusters appear; They are narrow and lanceolate between 60 and 100 cm long. It is not necessary to fear it for its terminal spine, since it is soft and not very sharp. Its flowers are pendulous whitish bells that gather in huge, showy inflorescences (Málaga, 2022).
The base of the trunk is very swollen, resembling the foot of an elephant, since has its tissues adapted to accumulate water, which will be used as a reservoir for times of drought (Málaga, 2022). It is has environmental uses, as a medicine and for food. (POWO, 2022)
Domain
Eukaryota
Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Magnoliophyta
Class
Liliopsida (= Monocotyledoneae)
Order
Liliales
Family
Agavaceae
Genus
Yucca
Species
gigantea
Taxon category: Accepted
Syn.: Yucca guatemalensis Baker; Baker, Y. elephantipes Regel ex Trel. [Illegitimate] fide Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Missouri Botanical Garden (2010)
Origin: Introduced - established
Year of first record: 1985
Mode of introduction: Intentional
Introduction Pathway: Intentional
Subpathway: Agriculture/Horticulture
Introduced status: Human dependent
Invasive status: Unlikely to become invasive
Map of specimen collection localities or observation records for this species in our collections database.
Distribution: Its native range is Central Mexico to Central America. (POWO, 2022)
- Flores, E. (1985) Censo de Plantas Introducidas desde el Canal de Itabaca hasta Puerto Ayora. Tesis de Ingeniero Forestal, Univ. Técnica Luis Vargas Torres, Esmeraldas: 1-132.
- Clavijo, P. Valdebenito, H. & Hurtado, F. (1991) Plantas introducidas en las areas urbanas de las islas Galapagos. Typescript reports in files of Botany Dept.
- Jørgensen, P.M. León-Yánez, S. (eds.) (1999) Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of Ecuador. Monographs in Systematic Botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden 75. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis, 1181 pp.
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Missouri Botanical Garden (eds.) (2013) The Plant List, Version 1.1. Published on the Internet; http://www.theplantlist.org/ (accessed 1st January).
- Guézou, A. Trueman, M., Buddenhagen, E., Chamorro, S., Guerrero, A.M., Pozo, P., Atkinson, R. (2010) An extensive Alien Plan Inventory from the Inhabited Areas of Galapagos Plos One/ www.plosone.org. Volume 5/ Issue 4/e10276
You are welcome to download and use the information found in this page, acknowledging its source.
This page should be cited as follows:
"Galapagos Species Database, Yucca gigantea", dataZone. Charles Darwin Foundation, https://datazone.darwinfoundation.org/en/checklist/?species=17877. Accessed 30 April 2025.