Hi everyone. I have been scouring the internet for info on an interesting flowering plant I found on a recent hike about a week ago. To be honest, I have no clue what to search for! I am more familiar with fauna than flora. I am attaching the images to this post. This plant was found in the hills near where I live in Riverside County. Elevation is approx. 1700 ft. Climate is usually dry with a fair amount of rain in the springtime. The plant is a little more than 2 meters tall. The "stem" or "stalk" was thick - about 3 inches in diameter. Flowers are... well you can see them in the pictures. The plant reminds me of a giant, flowering asparagus with lots of rigid, sharp leaves at the base. I believe it is some sort of yucca but I can't seem to find any info on any with purple/pinkish/red flowers. Also, a little about myself since this is my first post... I am a student studying biology. My hobbies are photography and other visual arts, hiking and exploring, and building lasers. Thanks in advance for any and all info!
Hesperoyucca whipplei (syn. Yucca whipplei) or close species: http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/img_query?rel-taxon=begins+with&where-taxon=Yucca+whipplei
Thanks! I have seen the white flowers before but never purple and this is the first "hesperoyucca" I've seen in this particular area of Riverside. I suppose it's just a different phenotype of the same plant...
This colored variety is very much like yours: http://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/imagelib/imgdetails.php?imgid=300989 Wikipedia also mentions white to purplish flowers: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesperoyucca_whipplei
Saw one growing in hmmm... Berkeley Botanical Garden, I think, that very closely matches this one for colouration.
I was told by an expert that the purple variants are found southward from San Gorgonio Pass. The moths that pollinate them are black. Moths north of the pass are white with a few small black spots.
@David in L A Thanks for the info. I would like to try to get photographs of those moths... now if only I can remember where I found those flowers... Thanks everyone for the helpful replies. Much appreciated. :)
