I like Yucca plants, and yet I’ve not photographed them much. I’ve photographed a few here and there, but I typically miss the flowering stage. . . but not this year.

To my eyes there are enough variations between Yucca plants to make them appear as if there are many members of the same family. According to THIS SOURCE (click to read about the plant), there are only two varieties around these parts, but they acknowledge wide variation of characteristics in specimen of each.

Around this time of year they are most noticeable because of their flowers. These particular plants were photographed, as I mentioned, all on Ute Pass.


The plants have an interesting reproductive cycle, as they are dependent on one species of moth for fertilization; the Pronuba Moth. The night-flying Pronuba drills a hole in the ovary of the flower, lays eggs, and in the process pollinates the Yucca. The Yucca then becomes food for the larva. The hole can be seen in every Yucca fruit.

That’s the other thing with these plants . . . I also like the empty fruit husks. They are photogenic in a variety of conditions; in the winter they offer contrast and texture to snowscapes.

Photos of the above dried specimen, and subsequent photos below, were all snapped along a dirt road near where I live. Yes, I went on a drive this past weekend, and took some pictures which will show up, along with a narrative, in future posts.







I was lucky to find one flower which was not pointing down. However, no moth . . . unless it had already fertilized the flower, and had long since moved on.

I plan to go out again this weekend, and perhaps catch a later stage of the flower-fruit -death cycle. Meanwhile, one last shot.

As usual, one can view all the above photos, and a few more, in a dedicated SmugMug Album. There one can examine the photo at full resolution. Why, I even turned on the option to display the camera settings.
Thanks for dropping by to look at, and read, my stuff.
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. . . my FP ward . . . chieken shit.