Yucca
Parts Usually Used
Roots
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
: A perennial, to 9 feet in flower. Leaves in a rosette; stiff, spine-tipped, oblong to lance-shaped, with fraying, twisted threads on the margins. Flowers whitish green bells on smooth branched stalks; June-September. Yucca glauca: Blue-green perennial, 2-4 feet tall. Leaves in a rosette; stiff, sword-like; rounded on the back, margins rolled in. Flowers whitish bells; May-July.
Both species are recognized by their sword-shaped, stiff, sharp-tipped leaves. The bell-like flowers are in an erect spike.
Where Found
: Sandy soils in southern New Jersey to Georgia. Cultivated elsewhere. Yucca glauca: Dry soils. Iowa to Texas; Missouri to North Dakota.
Medicinal Properties
Anti-inflammatory, antirheumatic, laxative, alterative in both cases
Biochemical Information
Saponins
Legends, Myths and Stories
The root is split lengthwise before drying (it should be used only after it has been dried). At one time it was considered an important source of phytosterols and used in the manufacturing of steroidal hormones.
Uses
Historically, herbalists utilized Yucca filamentosa and Yucca glauca as remedies for gout, urethritis, prostatitis, neuritis, neuralgia, and rheumatism, and regarded the plant as a blood purifier and an agent for joint inflammation. In regional folk practice, clinics in the Sonoran desert region of Arizona were reported to recommend yucca preparations for arthritis. Traditional hygiene practices involved soaking the chopped roots in water to produce a natural lather for washing the body and hair, with claims that it addressed dandruff and baldness.
Western Native American traditions similarly prepared the roots as a cleansing soap substitute and consumed the shoots as a stimulating tonic. Additionally, Native American groups applied the root as a poultice for inflammations, sores, and skin conditions, employed it to arrest bleeding, and incorporated it into steam baths for sprains and broken limbs. Beyond medicinal applications, traditional practices included using the leaf juice for poison arrows and placing pounded roots into waterways to stupefy fish for harvesting.
How Sold
Capsules
Warning
Occasionally there are some purgative side effects that may be accompanied by intestinal cramping. This can be prevented by adding as an antidote some ginger and prickly ash bark, which also will aid its antiarthritic properties. Long term use is said to slow absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, but these findings require further study. Root compound (saponins) are toxic to lower life forms.
Bibliography
The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. The Herbalist Almanac , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, copyright 1988, fifth printing, 1994 Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A. , Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes. , Copyright 1988, published 1992 Prescription for Nutritional Healing, Fifth Edition: A Practical A-to-Z Reference to Drug-Free Remedies Using Vitamins, Minerals, Herbs & Food Supplements , by James F.
D. and Phyllis A. , Special Sale Catalog, 1996 The Rodale Herb Book: How to Use, Grow, and Buy Nature’s Miracle Plants (An Organic gardening and farming book) , edited by William H. Hylton, Rodale Press, Inc. , 1974