Soapweed yucca

Questions about soapweed yucca

Does soapweed yucca need sun or shade?

Soapweed yucca grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day).

It wants dry, sharply drained soil, on the lean side, with no feeding, and little watering once settled. Once settled in, it stands drought.

What zones does soapweed yucca grow in?

USDA zones 3 to 10. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).

Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.

When does soapweed yucca flower in my zone?

In zone 5 it flowers mid June to mid July. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.

Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.

How far apart should soapweed yucca be planted?

2½ ft (80 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 3 ft (90 cm), so a group knits into one patch.

It grows 2½ ft (80 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.

How many soapweed yucca plants do I need?

At 2½ ft apart, set out in staggered rows:

• 2 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
• 4 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
• 5 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own

In a mixed border, plant it as one, with clear ground around it: a feature plant is seen as an object, and a group of them is a thicket.

In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.

Is soapweed yucca poisonous to dogs and cats?

Yes: mild toxicity to dogs, cats and horses. Can cause vomiting and diarrhoea in pets if eaten.

Rated from NC State Extension and the ASPCA. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.

Is there a pet-safe plant like soapweed yucca?

These come closest to doing what soapweed yucca does, and no toxicity is recorded for them:

• Abelia 'Kaleidoscope': the same job in a bed and the same colour; 4 in wider, flowers mid June to early October.
• New Jersey tea: the same flowering time and the same colour; a drift, not a specimen, 4 in wider.
• Blue oat grass: the same job in a bed and the same flowering time; 8 in narrower, tan, not white.

Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.

Do deer eat soapweed yucca?

Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.

What flowers after soapweed yucca?

Soapweed yucca is over by mid July. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:

• Blue grama 'Blonde Ambition': from mid July to mid October, 2½ ft tall (a recorded partner).
• Black-eyed Susan: from mid July to mid September, 24 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
• Lilyturf: from early August to mid September, 16 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.

What does soapweed yucca look like in winter?

Soapweed yucca keeps its blue-green and silver leaves all winter, so it is one of the plants that hold a bed together from November to March, when the perennials have gone.

Is soapweed yucca good for bees and butterflies?

Soapweed yucca is visited by bees, butterflies and moths.

It is a host plant: the caterpillars of yucca moth feed on its leaves. A butterfly can only lay its eggs on its host plants, so these do more for it than any nectar flower.

It is native to the United States and Canada.