General Plant Information (Edit)
| Plant Habit: |
Cactus/Succulent
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| Life cycle: |
Perennial
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| Sun Requirements: |
Full Sun
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| Leaves: |
Evergreen
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| Fruit: |
Dehiscent
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| Flowers: |
Showy
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| Suitable Locations: |
Xeriscapic
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| Uses: |
Will Naturalize
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| Resistances: |
Deer Resistant
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| Toxicity: |
Other: The juice from many species of agave can cause acute contact dermatitis that produces reddening and blistering lasting approximately one to two weeks. Itching may recur up to a year later without a visible rash. Dried parts of the plants can be handled sa
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| Propagation: Seeds: |
Can handle transplanting
Other info: Sow in shallow pots with a well draining, sterile mix; 50/50 organic/inorganic of coarse perlite, pumice; sphagnum peat or good compost. Avoid manures. Irrigate from below. Provide bright, indirect light and a transparent cover to retain moisture.
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| Propagation: Other methods: |
Cuttings: Stem
Offsets
Other: Bulbils
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| Containers: |
Needs excellent drainage in pots
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| Miscellaneous: |
With thorns/spines/prickles/teeth
Monocarpic
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| Parentage: |
Agave asperrima x Agave nickelsiae |
- Agave
- Century Plant
- Maguey
Posted by
Baja_Costero (Baja California - Zone 11b) on Apr 20, 2024 2:36 PM concerning plant:
This smallish hybrid is usually sold under the apparently invalid species name Agave pumila. It is a dimorphic plant, with a compact, offsetting juvenile version to a few inches wide (for several years) and a spreading adult version to about 2 feet wide. Apparently one can hasten this conversion by putting potted plants in the ground.
Gentry treated pumila as a species but also considered the parentage of Agave lechuguilla (originally and currently spelled as lecheguilla) x Agave victoriae-reginae (compact form). The leaf underside strongly suggests the former parentage, despite what the CoL and the data above indicate (scabra=asperrima in the mix).
If the CoL is right that pumila = asperrima x nickelsiae (which I doubt) then Agave x pumila would be a synonym for Agave x nigra (one form of which is known in the trade as 'Sharkskin'), a very different looking plant without this odd dimorphic form.
In any case pumila was apparently collected in the 19th century and described on the basis of a Kew plant obtained from a Dutch trader, of unknown geographic origin. It was never found in nature (at least at the time of Gentry's writing).
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