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January 10, 2008 : Beschorneria albiflora
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Keywords: Agavaceae | Beschorneria albiflora Matuda | University of California Botanical Garden, Berkeley, California, USA
Thank you again to Eric in SF@Flickr (also see: PlantWorld) for sharing a couple of his great photographs with BPotD (original 1 | original 2 | BPotD Flickr Group Pool. Appreciated, as always!
The genus Beschorneria contains perhaps a dozen species. Most of the species are endemic to the mountains of central and southern Mexico, with the exception of Beschorneria albiflora; its range extends southwards from Mexico into the northern Guatemala.
A 1989 article in The Plantsman (10(4): 193-199) by Michael Maunder, “A Survey of the Genus Beschorneria in Cultivation” contains perhaps the best account of this group of plants, with brief descriptions of all species known at the time. For Beschorneria albiflora, the distribution and ecology: “Found in the highlands of Oaxaca and Chiapas states, and northern Guatemala. In Chiapas it is found in dense montane scrub on the exposed ridges of the Sierra Madre...There it occurs with genera of arcto-alpine affinities such as Alchemilla pinnata, Arenaria bryoides, Draba volcanica, Gaultheria spp. and Vaccinium spp.”
Maunder also cites Matuda (the author of the plant name for this species) when writing that the fresh flowers (of some species) are sometimes eaten fried in egg.
A third photograph of this particular plant, showing its habit, was taken by Stan Sheb and shared via the Wikimedia Commons.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at January 10, 2008 8:52 AM
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Posted by: Margaret-Rae Davis at January 10, 2008 9:56 AM
The flat black seeds in the lower photo completely reminded me of Necco Wafers as I was shooting it.
Posted by: Eric in SF at January 10, 2008 10:12 AM
Haven't noticed what goes for this genus in gardens here but it fruits, so same pollinators are either present in both regions or the same exact species are not required for this to take place.
Posted by: Ron B at January 10, 2008 11:53 AM
Doesn't albiflora, mean white flowered?
Posted by: Old Ari at January 10, 2008 1:16 PM
Yes, it does - and you only get a hint of it with these photographs. Check out the image by Stan Sheb though (I had to track this one down, too).
Posted by: Daniel Mosquin 
at January 10, 2008 1:19 PM
Please share your comments about the photograph(s) and accompanying write-up. Telling a story about the subject of the photograph(s) is also much appreciated! If you have a gardening question, the best place to ask is on the UBC Botanical Garden Forums. Thank you!
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Botany Photo of the Day is a project of the UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research, located in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada. UBC BGCPR is a department of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems within The University of British Columbia.
This is great. I wonder if a special hummingbird pollinates these flowers.
Thank you for today Photos,
Margaret-Rae