'Northern' Yucca

Yucca filamentosa Origin: New Jersey & Massachusetts Improvement status: Landrace Seeds per packet: ~25 Germination tested 11/2024: 50% Life cycle: Perennial Native to coastal areas of the US Southeast, Yucca, or "Adam's Needle," has become naturalized across much of eastern North America. These seeds come from plants growing at the EFN flagship farm in Elmer, NJ, along with some foraged from a naturalized population in Massachusetts. A member of the Asparagus family (Asparagaceae), yucca's stalk, flowers, and fruit are all edible — and its root is used to make soap. The flowers and flower buds can be pickled or brined, with a result that tastes much like olives. The emerging flowering stalk resembles a giant asparagus spear (see photo), but unlike asparagus you probably will not enjoy it raw (unless you like the taste of soap). Cooking breaks down the saponins that give raw yucca its soapy flavor and ability to make soap. Yucca leaf fiber is useful for making cordage and basket we