Common Name: Sotol

General Information

Dasylirion wheeleri is an evergreen, succulent perennial plant producing a stocky trunk around 50 - 150cm long upon which there is a rosette of leaves that can each be around 60 - 100cm long and 15 - 30mm wide. The plant usually flowers annually, producing a flowering stem that can be around 3 - 4 metres long[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and source of materials. It is sometimes grown as an ornamental[].
Dasylirion wheeleri has a very wide distribution, large population, is not currently experiencing any major threats and no significant future threats have been identified. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2019)[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

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Range

South-western N. America - southern Arizona, New Mexico, western Texas, northern Mexico (Sonora, Chihuahua).

Habitat

Open, rocky slopes; at elevations from 1,200 - 1,900 metres in Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico [].

Properties

Conservation Status	Least Concern
Edibility Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	1.50 m
Pollinators	Bees, Insects
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Requires a very well-drained soil in a sheltered sunny position[].
This species is not very cold hardy, and is said to require a minimum winter temperature of 10°c[], However, plants can survive outdoors in the very mildest areas of Britain if given some protection such as a south facing wall and a suitable soil[].
Plants are sometimes used in sub-tropical bedding schemes in Britain.
A dioecious species,both male and female forms need to be grown if fruit and seed are required[].

Edible Uses

The central portion of the plant and the bases of theleaf stems can be cooked and eaten[]. Rich in sugars[]. The crown of the plant was baked by the native North Americans then dried, pounded into a powder and made into cakes[]. They would also peel the baked crown, crush it, mix it with water then ferment it and use it as a beverage[].
The trunk is rich in sugar, the pith can be used to make the alcoholic beverage 'sotol'[].
The distilled liquor 'sotol' is made from the bakedpith and consumed locally. It is of inferior quality, having a strong taste and leaving a raspy feeling in the throat after swallowing[].

The flowering stems can be roasted, boiled or eaten raw[].

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

The tough leaves contain a fibre suitable for making rough cordage. This fibre also seems to be suitable for the manufacture of paper[].
The fibre in the tender leaf buds is used as cordage[].
The leaves, after the prickles have been stripped off, are often used in weaving, for making baskets, rough hats, mats, handicrafts etc.[, , , ].
The leaves are also much used for thatching[].

When one of the plants, covered with the dead leaves, is set on fire it will burn for some time, and the burned stumps are a familiar sight in regions where the plants occur. The leaf bases remaining on such burned plants, when removed from the trunk, make very satisfactory beds upon camping expeditions, for they are elastic and not uncomfortably hard[].

The trunks are used for posts in houses and corals[].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.