Manfreda maculosa
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| Texas tuberose | ||||||||||||||
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| Manfreda maculosa (Hook.) Rose |
The Texas tuberose (Manfreda maculosa), also known as the Spice Lily, is a plant of the Agave family, notable for its fleshy green leaves covered with purple spots. It is endemic to southern Texas and northeastern Mexico.
The plant is acauline (without a stem) and the leaves often lay flat on the ground. In a drought, the leaves will wither and disappear, leaving little or nothing visible above ground. Sufficient precipitation yields an inflorescence 60 cm (24 in) tall in the period April-September. The new flower stalks (inflorescences) are fed on by small mammals, which can end the flowering effort for that season.
The flowers open and change colors over 3-4 days of life, from white to pink to dark red. The inferior ovaries turn from green to purple to black as they mature as seed pods.
Caterpillars of the rare Manfreda giant-skipper or "Aloe Skipper" (Stallingsia maculosa (= Stallingsia smithi)) depend on this plant for food, and they also lay eggs on the leaves. A reduction in population of M. maculosa plants could threaten the existence of the moths.
[edit] References
Lehman, R.L., O'Brien, R., and T. White. 2005. Plants of the Texas coastal bend. Texas A&M Univ. Press. 352 pp.
Scott, J.A. 1986. The butterflies of North America: a natural history and field guide. Stanford Univ. Press. 583 pp.
