Plant in full sun in a well-drained soil and irrigate little to occasionally. It is both drought and frost tolerant. We have been told of locations in Utah where this plant has withstood temperatures down to -13°F. The overall structure and form of this yucca gives a finer textured look than many other tree-formed yuccas.

Yucca elata is native to the Chihuahua and Sonora deserts of Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. The name given to the genus by Linnaeus was perhaps by mistake, as it is the Latinized derivation of "yuca", the Caribbean name for Cassava (Manihot esculenta), an unrelated plant in the Euphorbia family that is native to the Caribbean area. Interestingly it was also Linnaeus who applied the name Manihot to Yuca. The specific epithet is the Latin word for "exalted", "lofty" or "high" in reference to how tall this species can grow. Our plants from seed field collected northeast of Deming, New Mexico in July 2008 by Brian Kemble of the Ruth Bancroft Garden. We offered this plant in our nursery from 2011 until 2017. 

The information about Yucca elata displayed on this web page is based on our research conducted in the nursery's horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also include observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments we receive from others and welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share cultural information that would aid others in growing this plant.