What is Agavaceae?
{{Taxobox | name = Agave family | image = Agave americana a-m.jpg | image_width = 250px | image_caption = ''[[Agave americana]]'' | regnum = [[Plant]]ae | divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]] | classis = [[Liliopsida]] | ordo = [[Asparagales]] | familia = '''Agavaceae''' | familia_authority = Hutchinson | type_genus = ''[[Agave]]'' | type_genus_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]] <!-- | subdivision_ranks = Genera | subdivision = See text. --> }} '''Agavaceae''' is a [[family (biology)|family]] of [[plant]]s. Many of these plants grow in dry, hot [[climate]]s. Some grow in the [[desert]]. Well-known plants of this family are the [[agave]], [[yucca]], and [[Joshua tree]]. The family includes about 550-600 [[species]] in around 18 [[genus|genera]]. It is widespread in the tropical, subtropical and warm temperate regions of the world. It is not quite clear how large the family really is. There are genera which some biologists leave out of the family. This includes for example ''[[Cordyline]]'' and ''[[Dracaena (plant)|Dracaena]]'', which are sometimes separated off into a separate family, [[Dracaenaceae]]. Recent research has tended to incorporate these into a larger family [[Ruscaceae]], though. ''Nolina'', ''Beaucarnea'', and ''Dasylirion'' are sometimes recognized as Nolinaceae or placed in Ruscaceae. Conversely, data from [[molecular systematics]] now suggest that Agavaceae should be broadened to include a number of genera previously classified elsewhere. Among them are ''[[Chlorogalum]]'', ''[[Camassia]]'' and the family [[Anthericaceae]]. This would enlarge the family with anything up to 22 genera. The [[Angiosperm Phylogeny Group]]'s APG II classification places Agavaceae, along with a number of other families (including Ruscaceae) in an expanded family [[Asparagaceae]]. However, APG II allows the alternative of keeping some of these families, including Agavaceae, separate. In this case, it recommends expanding the family to include the genera currently classified in [[Anemarrhenaceae]], [[Anthe