bear grass

English - English

Definition of bear grass in English English dictionary

stemless plant with tufts of grasslike leaves and erect panicle of minute creamy white flowers; southwestern United States and Mexico yucca of west central United States having a clump of basal grasslike leaves and a central stalk with a terminal raceme of small whitish flowers yucca of southern United States having a clump of basal grasslike leaves and a central stalk with a terminal raceme of small whitish flowers

yucca of southern United States having a clump of basal grasslike leaves and a central stalk with a terminal raceme of small whitish flowers

yucca of west central United States having a clump of basal grasslike leaves and a central stalk with a terminal raceme of small whitish flowers

Either of two species of North American plants that make up the genus Xerophyllum, in the lily family. The western species, X. tenax, also known as elk grass, squaw grass, and fire lily, is a smooth, light-green mountain perennial with a stout, unbranched stem and grasslike, rough-edged leaves at the bottom. It flowers at five to seven years, bearing a large cluster of small, creamy white flowers at the top of the stem. The turkey beard (X. asphodeloides) of southern North America is a similar plant that grows in dry pine barrens. In the southern and southwestern U.S., the name bear grass is given to various kinds of yucca and to the camas (Camassia scilloides) and the aloelike Dasylirion texanum

plant of western North America having woody rhizomes and tufts of stiff grasslike basal leaves and spikes of creamy white flowers

stemless plant with tufts of grasslike leaves and erect panicle of minute creamy white flowers; southwestern United States and Mexico

Related Terms

beargrass

Xerophyllum tenax, a grasslike perennial closely related to lilies, formerly used in basketweaving by the Native Americans

Hyphenation

Bear grass

Turkish pronunciation

ber gräs

Pronunciation

/ˈber ˈgras/ /ˈbɛr ˈɡræs/