Differences in Yucca & Cassava

Names

• The confusion between yucca and cassava arises because cassava is sometimes called yuca. It is also known as manioc, tapioca or bitter cassava. Yucca is also referred to by various names, depending on the exact species. Adam’s needle, Spanish bayonet or needle palm (Yucca filamentosa) and Spanish dagger (Yucca gloriosa) are two common species of yucca.

Climates

• Yucca is likely the better choice in most parts of the U.S., as cassava is a tropical plant, intolerant of frost, and will only overwinter in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 10 through 12. You can move it indoors or to a greenhouse and bring it out in summer. More cold-tolerant yucca varieties, like Adam’s needle, grow in USDA zones 5 through 10, while Spanish dagger grows in USDA zones 6 through 10.

Appearance

• Though cassava is generally associated with its root, which is somewhat like a sweet potato, it is a tall tropical plant, growing to between 6 and 10 feet tall and wide. It has large, palmate leaves that can be either variegated or green, and 3 to 8 inches across. It produces greenish-white flowers in all seasons. Yuccas are of varying sizes and are spiky, with little or no stem and long, sturdy sword-shaped leaves that put them at home in a succulent- or cactus-filled garden. Their towering flower spikes are hard to miss.

Uses

• Both yucca and cassava plants have ornamental value. The many varieties of swordlike grassy yuccas work in borders and desert scapes, and can also be used as accent plants. Cassava is rather plain unless you get the variegated "Variegata" cultivar, the leaves of which are green on the outside and white in the center. If you’re interested, you can also grow cassava for its roots, though beware they only become edible once cooked.