Plant profile: Beschorneria albiflora

Latin name: Beschorneria albiflora ("beh-SHORN-ah-ree-ah ahl-bee-FLOR-ah")
Common name: Mexican Lily, Amole
Originally from: Southern Mexico - Cerro Azul in Oaxaca and Chiapas, also found in Guatemala and Honduras. Found on very steep, rocky slopes in moist, mossy oak forest at high altitude (2000 m / 6600 ft.) 
Blooms: Green to creamy white flowers are held above the foliage in late spring/early summer.
Light: Full sun to part shade
Water: They are said to like a bit of summer water if they are in full sun, but we don't give them any.
Height x width: 2-6' x 3-4'
Zones: 9b-11b
Where to find in P. Garden: One at the very top of PG, a couple dotted around PRG.

Is it a Yucca? Is it an Agave? Is it even a Furcraea? At first glance you might think any one of those.  Yes, it's an Agave relative - it grows dense wide rosettes of 2-3 foot long medium green leaves, but they are softer to the touch and a bit floppy towards the tips.

Then it grows a trunk up to 6' tall and flowers annually with the most crazy, 5' long pink and red branching infloresence with cream to lime green flower bells. And when you see that you say "uh, wait... what?"

(You and the hummingbirds, who are all over this stuff and are the plant's pollinators in the wild.)

There are 10 species in the genus, but this is the only Beschorneria that forms an above-ground stem.  The name Beschorneria was given to the plant in honor of Friedrich Wilhelm Christian Beschorner (1806-1873), a German botanist.

Dr. Dennis Breedlove, Curator Emeritus of the California Academy of Sciences started cultivating the plant and it has been grown in the Berkeley Botanic Garden and Strybing Arboretum for many years. It's pretty rare in cultivation, so come and check out ours.