Common Names: BEARGRASS, BASKETGRASS, (_SACAHUISTE_) Arizona desert: (_Nolina microcarpa_). Tan-cream. May-June. California desert: (_Nolina parryi_). White-cream. May-June. Texas desert: (_Nolina erumpens_). White-cream. May-June. Lily family. Size: Ragged clumps 4 to 8 feet in diameter and flower stalks up to 8 feet high.
The _Nolinas_ are sometimes confused with Sotol and the _Yuccas_ and occasionally with the _Agaves_. However, the _Nolinas_ resemble huge clumps of long-bladed grass, whereas Sotol leaves are ribbon-like and _Yucca_ leaves taper to a sharp point. Flower stalks of the _Nolinas_ are usually drooping and plume-like, and the numerous flowers are tiny. The many papery, dry-winged fruits often remain on the stalk until late autumn.
Beargrass does not grow on the flat mesas or sandy flats as do the Yuccas, but is confined to exposed locations on rocky slopes above the 3,000-foot elevation. The Parry Nolina of the California Desert is a larger and more spectacular plant than the species found in the Arizona and Texas-New Mexico Deserts. Indians are reported to use the very young flower stalks for food. Leaves are browsed by livestock in times of drought, sometimes with harmful results in the case of sheep or goats.
[Illustration: Dasylirion wheeleri Agave palmeri Yucca elata Nolina microcarpa]
Common Names: SOTOL, SPOONPLANT Arizona desert: (_Dasylirion wheeleri_). Creamy. May-August. Texas desert: (_Dasylirion leiophyllum_). Creamy. May-August. Lily family. Size: Leaves 3 feet; flower stem 5 to 15 feet.
At first glance, this plant may readily be mistaken for a Yucca, but its ribbon-like leaves (which are usually split at the tips instead of sharp-pointed) and tiny flowers instead of the bell-like blossoms of the Yucca, are distinguishing characteristics. The round heads of these plants grow close to the ground with the thick, woody stem beneath the soil. Leaves, when stripped from the head, come away with a broad, curving blade.
When trimmed and polished, they are sold as curios called “desert spoons.” In some portions of the desert near large cities, exploitation of the plants for this purpose has endangered the species and aroused the ire of conservationists.