10 years after a variegated American agave in the arid house sent up a towering flower stalk, its life continues in a new generation. Earlier this month, one of these offspring was planted in the arid house, in the exact spot where the mother plant once put up her impressive stalk.
Sometimes called “century plants,” the name is technically a misnomer for the American agave; in reality, they typically flower every 10 to 30 years in desert climates. But this late bloomer nearly lived up to the name. Collected in 1934, the plant lived 80 years in the conservatory before producing its first flowering stalk in the Spring of 2014.
Two glass panels had to be removed from the arid house so that it could literally grow through the roof. Towering nearly 30 ft tall, the rare bloom drew onlookers from around the region to witness it.
The stalk grew 6 feet a day, bringing to mind the fairy tale about a certain beanstalk. But the agave is in the asparagus family, more closely related to the tender spring veggie, and the stalk looks the part.
Sadly, the beautiful bloom marks the beginning of the end for these agave - once they flower and go to seed, they die. But they flower in order to create more life! The flowering plant produced hundreds of seeds, and Mike Palmer, our conservatory horticulturist, planted some of them. Now, a decade later, two of those seeds have grown into young adults, continuing the legacy of this remarkable plant.
