‘Our Lord’s Candles’ Light Up East Valley

This year’s rains and relatively mild temperatures have brought forth a spectacular June display of the Valley’s native Yucca whipplei parishii, nicknamed “Our Lord’s Candle.”

“This is as good as it gets,” said Dustin Alcala, 35, manager of the native flower nursery at the Theodore Payne Foundation of Sun Valley. “I’ve lived here my whole life, and I’ve never seen them as abundant.”

This type of yucca can be found elsewhere in the Southwest, but they reach their tallest--8 feet and more--in the east San Fernando Valley.