Ornatec InternationalSpecies reference sheet ยท ornatecinternational.com
Yucca filamentosa
Adam's Needle
The Yucca filamentosa, commonly known as Adam's Needle, is a stemless evergreen rosette plant from the sandy woods and dunes of the south eastern United States. Stiff, sword-shaped blue-green leaves carry curling white filaments along their margins, and a tall branched panicle of nodding cream bells rises well above the foliage in summer.
It is unusually cold-hardy for a yucca and equally at home in heat, which gives it a very wide site range. It is used at ground level in gravel gardens, median beds and mixed dryland planting where an evergreen architectural form is wanted below eye height.
Specifications
- Height0.6 to 1 metre as a rosette, with a flower panicle to 2.5 metres
- Width1 to 1.5 metres
- Native toThe south eastern United States
- FoliageStiff, sword-shaped blue-green leaves with curling white marginal filaments and a soft tip; evergreen
- Growth rateSlow
Conditions
- SoilRequires well-drained sandy or gravelly soils; tolerates poor and alkaline ground and dislikes wet feet
- LightFull sun to partial shade
- WaterLow; strongly drought-tolerant once established
- ClimateThrives in arid, semi-arid, Mediterranean and coastal regions, and tolerates hard frost as well as extreme heat
Additional Features
- FormDense stemless rosette holding a precise architectural outline at ground level with no pruning
- FlowersTall branched panicle of nodding cream bells in summer, held well above the foliage
- UsesGravel and xeriscape gardens, median and roundabout beds, mixed dryland planting, container and podium planting
- SpacingPlant 1 to 1.5 metres apart so each rosette is read individually
- Low MaintenanceRemove the spent flower stem and any dead lower leaves; no other intervention required
- Pest ResistanceVery few pest or disease problems where drainage is good
- Drought ToleranceHigh, holding foliage and form through long dry periods
- Frost ToleranceTolerates hard frost, well beyond the range of most architectural succulents
- Salt ToleranceTolerates coastal salt wind and sandy saline soils
Adam's Needle supplies a hard evergreen architectural form at ground level, on a plant that will take both frost and desert heat.
Availability by project review. Sizes, quantities, origin and export readiness are confirmed after your plant schedule is reviewed against destination, timing and quarantine requirements. MEWA certified for supply into Saudi Arabia; Australian Export Registered Establishment.
Enquiries: sales@ornatecinternational.com
310 Donkin Rd, Utchee Creek QLD 4871, Australia
Prepared 12 September 2026