Hesperaloe funifera (Coahuilan Hesperaloe, Giant Hesperaloe, or Mexican false yucca)[2] is a plant species native to Texas (Val Verde County) and northern Mexico (Coahuila, San Luis Potosí, Nuevo León), but sometimes cultivated as an ornamental elsewhere.[3][4][5][6]

Hesperaloe funifera
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Asparagaceae
Subfamily: Agavoideae
Genus: Hesperaloe
Species:
H. funifera
Binomial name
Hesperaloe funifera
(K. Koch) Trel
Synonyms[1]
  • Agave funifera (K.Koch) Lem.
  • Hesperaloe davyi Baker f.
  • Yucca funifera K. Koch

Hesperaloe funifera grows on rocky slopes and open plains in the Tamaulipan mezquital and the eastern edges of the Chihuahuan Desert. It is a rosette-forming perennial. It has long, narrow, yellow-green blades up to 200 cm long but only 5 cm across. Flowering stalk can be up to 250 cm tall, with long branches. Flowers are green or white, often tinged with purple, about 25 mm across.[3][7][8] The specific name funifera is derived from the Latin funis "rope" and fero "I bear" and thus signifies "bearer (provider) of rope" in reference to the plant's strong fibre, which may be used for this purpose.[9][10]

References

edit
  1. ^ The Plant List, Hesperaloe funifera
  2. ^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "​Hesperaloe funifera​". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  3. ^ a b Flora of North America v 26 v 441, Hesperaloe funifera
  4. ^ BONAP (Biota of North America Program) floristic synthesis map, Hesperaloe funifera
  5. ^ CONABIO. 2009. Catálogo taxonómico de especies de México. 1. In Capital Nat. México. CONABIO, Mexico City.
  6. ^ "Der Palmenmann, Fröhlinde, Germany, March 2014, Hesperaloe funifera". Archived from the original on 2014-03-11. Retrieved 2014-03-11.
  7. ^ Koch, Karl Heinrich Emil (Ludwig). 1862. La Belgique Horticole 12: 132.
  8. ^ Trelease, William. 1902. Annual Report of the Missouri Botanical Garden 13: 36.
  9. ^ Steven P. McLaughlin and Susan M. Schuck Economic Botany Vol. 45, No. 4 (Oct. - Dec., 1991), pp. 480-486 Fiber Properties of Several Species of Agavaceae from the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico
  10. ^ Google translate: language: Latin.