In many grassland areas of western Texas and southern New Mexico, _Y. elata_ dominates the landscape for miles. This species has been used as emergency rations for range stock during periods of drought, the chopped stems being mixed with concentrates such as cottonseed meal. A substitute for jute has been made from the leaf fibers. Indians eat the young flower stalks, which grow rapidly and are relatively tender. In its relationship with a moth of the genus _Pronuba_, the Yucca illustrates one of Nature’s interesting partnerships. The moth, which visits the Yucca flowers at night, lays her eggs in the ovary of a flower where the larvae will feed upon the developing seeds. But to be sure that the seeds do develop, the moth must place pollen on the stigma of the flower. Dependent upon the moth for this vital act of pollenization, the Yucca repays its winged benefactor by sacrificing some of its developing seeds as food for the moth’s larvæ. Fruits of the Narrow-leaf are dry capsules in contrast to the fleshy fruits of the Broad-leaf Yuccas. [Illustration: Plant silhouette] _Yucca whipplei_ is a much smaller plant than _Y. elata_, but produces a stouter flower stalk with a great spreading plume of small, delicate flowers. These graceful plumes appear at night as if aglow with an inner light, hence the name “Our Lord’s Candle.” (See Broad-leaf Yucca [p. 19] and Joshua-tree [p. 18].) [Illustration: Clematis ligusticifolia Clematis drummondi] Common Names: CLEMATIS, LEATHERFLOWER Arizona and Texas deserts: (_Clematis drummondi_). Cream. March-September. California desert: (_Clematis ligusticifolia_). Cream. May-September. Crowfoot family. Size: Climbing, vine-like perennial with stems 6 to 8 feet long. By no means limited to the desert, Clematis is found throughout the Southwest. Several species are grown as ornamentals, foliage, flower clusters and the cotton-like masses of hairy fruits all being effective. Petals are absent or rudimentary, the sepals which furnish color to the blossoms being either creamy or purplish-brown. The name “Leatherflower” has been applied to the latter group. CREAM [Illustration: Phragmites communis] Common Names: COMMON REED, (_CARRIZO_), RIVERCANE, GIANTREED Arizona, California, and Texas deserts: (_Phragmites communis_). Creamy. July-October. Grass family. Size: 8 to 12 feet tall.