22-Day Cycle of Soft-Leaf Yucca (Recurvifolia)

I took daily pictures of a neighborhood yucca that, coincidentally, totaled 22, same as "22-Day Cycle of Twist-Leaf Yucca (Rupicola)". The soft-leaf yucca has bell-shaped blooms and soft, flat leaves, as you can see in the YouTube video. Closer views of blooms start on July 9 (day 6). I did not create closer views for the final two days.

Bug alert for July 11 (very wee, without additional zoom image), 15, 17, 18, 20, 21. and 23. Weirdly, I found many of the bugs in the pictures after I spotted them during full-screen playback inspections. I got pretty good with creating and inserting new images of bugs in blooms. Most look like bugs that I wrote about in "Leaf-footed Bug Visitor".

Visit some recurvifolia-themed sites:

"Yucca recurvifolia"

Yucca recurvifolia, commonly known as the Curve Leaf Yucca, Weeping Yucca or Pendulous Yucca, is native to southeastern USA. Yucca recurvifolia is synonymous with Yucca gloriosa var. tristis, Yucca gloriosa var. recurvifolia or Yucca pendula. … Recurvifolia is derived from the Latin recurvo meaning ‘bend back’ and folium meaning ‘leaf’.

"Yucca recurvifolia Soft Leaf Yucca"

Soft Leaf Yucca is generally a single stem in youth and can become multi trunked with age. The growth habit is rosette in youth, with age the plant can become tree like. This Yucca will bloom late summer to fall, the flowers are creamy white and bell shaped and are borne on 3-5' spikes.

"Monrovia 3.58-Gallon Soft Leaf Yucca"
Succinct info:

Common Name Soft Leaf Yucca
Botanical Name Yucca recurvifolia

Sure, it's a sales page, I do like it for basic info and the clickable image, which you can pan and zoom for gleaning great visual details. Another site that has a good image that resembles my July subject is at Mortellaro's Nursery.

Matt Anders Landscaping Blog
"Soft Leaf Yucca"

Many soft leaf yuccas are a single trunk shrub but I’ve seen a few that have formed miltiple [sic] trunks. They bloom from summer to late fall, usually June through October. Once in bloom the they will sprout a 1/2? to 1? stem covered with white bell shaped flowers hanging downward.

The yucca that I took daily pictures of in July surprised me by sprouting a second stalk a couple of months after the 22-day cycle. More on that, along with an accompanying video in the next article.

22-Day Cycle of Twist-Leaf Yucca (Rupicola)

This yucca was the first one I'd been able to take daily pictures for its entire 22-day cycle, April 28 through May 19. All previous twist-leaf yuccas (rupicola) didn't survive. Deer chewed off stalks and blooms within four days of bloom beginnings. Closer views of blooms start on May 6 (day 9). I did not take close-ups of blooms for the final three days.

In rewatching my video, I spotted an ant. I hunted down the original image. It was a pleasant surprise to see not only one, but two ants. Click image for larger composite.

Click for an even closer look.

Specific to the Twist-Leaf Yucca (Yucca Rupicola)

From Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower center page for "Yucca rupicola":

New leaves are straight but become twisted with age. Flowering stalks often over 5 feet tall, bearing a cluster of bell-shaped, white flowers with petals up to 2 1/2 inches long and an inch wide, appearing from April to June.

Scroll past "Plant Database" fill-in section. Also, click the gallery link and scroll down to view images. Several of the bloom pictures resemble close-ups that are in my video.
From "Twist-leaf Yucca, Twisted-leaf Yucca, Twisted Yucca":

Its narrow, undulate, olive-green leaves twist as they age; the leaf margins can be yellow, orange or red, with minute sharp teeth. Rupicola means "lover of rock."

Dave's Garden "Twistleaf Yucca, Twist-leaf Yucca, Twisted-leaf Yucca, Rock Yucca, Texas Yucca" has very succinct info, but includes great pix!

General Yucca Links
 Overview of Yuccas

• "Yucca Facts"
• "Frequently Asked Questions about Yucca's"

 New Mexico State Flower

• "New Mexico State Flower"
• "New Mexico State Flower – The Yucca"

Extensive Yucca Info, Some with Pix or Links to Pix for Specific Yuccas

• "Everything you need to know about Growing and Caring for Yucca Plants such as Soapweed, Spanish Dagger, Spanish Bayonet, and Adam's needle"
• "Yucca Plant Varieties: Common Types Of Yucca Plants"
• "Growing Yucca Plants: Care In The Home and Garden"

Other Yucca Items to Pique Curiosity

• "Yucca Uses – Can You Grow Yucca Plant As Food"
• "Yucca Transplanting: How To Transplant A Yucca In The Garden"
• "What do I do with the stalk after my yucca bloomed?"