Agave macroacantha Zucc.

Description

The rosette is composed of many narrow, pointed, bluish-grey leaves 25-35 cm long. The leaf margins bear short, dark brown toothed spines, while at the tip there is a strong spine (about 3 cm) of a whitish brown colour. The inflorescence consists of a stem about 2 metres tall, from which lateral branches bearing clusters of violet-green flowers spread out. Often, after flowering, “bulbils” (small, already formed plantlets) appear next to the flowers; they will fall to the ground and give life to a new colony of Agaves.

Cultivation

In open ground, where the climate allows it (coastal areas and islands). In pots, where minimum temperatures below zero are expected during the winter. In the latter case it is a good idea to use wide bowls where the massive root system of A. macroacantha can find room. Every two years it is useful to repot the plant, shorten its roots and remove the suckers, which would take nourishment away from the mother plant and limit its growth. As with all Agaves, during the warm season it should be given copious watering and good feeding with a high-potassium fertiliser.

Propagation

by sowing, suckers and bulbils