he Joshua Tree (Yucca brevifolia) is a tree-like species, usually solitary, erect, 3-12 tall, but occasionally up to 15 meters and canopy diameters of up to 6 meters. This tree has a top-heavy branch system. The long, pointed, rigid, leaves are borne in a dense spiral arrangement at the ends of branches. Yucca brevifolia, as the name suggests, has shorter leaves than other species of yucca; and it is taller than most. Flowers appear in short, panicles 30–55 cm tall and 30–38 cm broad, the individual flowers are erect, 4–7 cm tall, with six creamy white to green tepals. If it survives the rigours of the desert, it can live for hundreds of years; some specimens survive a thousand years. Three subspecies are recognized, the nominate form Yucca brevifolia subsp. jaegeriana and Yucca brevifolia subsp. herbertii, though both are sometimes treated as varieties or forms.