Creature Feature: Chaparral Yucca

Chaparral Yuccas stand like sentinels over the chaparral in spring. Each one blooms only once, a strong, yet ephemeral flame.

If you venture into San Diego's parks and wildlands this time of year, you're likely to see what look like bright, white flames rising above the green scrub.

Fittingly, this month's featured creature is sometimes called Our Lord's Candle. Others call it Spanish Bayonet, because of its sharp, shin-dagger leaves. Scientists say Hesperoyucca whipplei, and the Kumeyaay know it as sha'aa. Its most common name is Chaparral Yucca.

When in bloom like they are now, these plants are a sight to behold. That flower stalk can reach over ten feet, bearing hundreds of large, white and purple flowers. The blue-grey rosette at the base is beautiful year-round, extremely drought-tolerant, and often survives wildfires.

If your shins are feeling lucky, and you can get close enough to peer inside a yucca's flowers, you might find tiny, white Chaparral Yucca Moths. (yes, these plants have their own special moth!)

Yucca Moths (pictured above, top right) have a codependent, mutually beneficial relationship with yuccas; they carefully pollinate the flowers, while laying their eggs inside the plant's seed pods. The moth larvae eat through a portion of the seeds, leaving the rest for the plant to drop into the soil. If the yuccas disappear, the moths do too, and recent research on iNaturalist data says that short, extreme weather events may seriously disrupt this perfect pair.

Finally, the ethnobotanical value of this plant cannot be overstated. Chaparral Yuccas have been used for thousands of years by generations of indigenous tribes across the southwest, including our local Kumeyaay peoples.

Those long, sharp leaves contain strong fibers, often used for weaving, clothing, shoes, cradles, cordage, and shelter. The heart of the plant is peeled, roasted and eaten, while the flowers are usually boiled and eaten.

Come see some yuccas (IRL) on my next Wildflower Walk, or find them from Torrey Pines to the Laguna Mountains and anywhere in between. In the meantime, you can learn more about Chaparral Yuccas from the San Diego Botanic Garden here.