Agave Americana (Blue Agave) Blooming

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About the Agave

  The Agave Americana (Blue Agave) was given to us by a friend in the mid '90s. We planted a few in our 'Agave Garden" on the Southwest side of our home surrounded by rock mulch. They are slow growers and can only tolerate temperatures of about 22 degrees. As they mature, they begin to produce pups which we have given to many friends here on Roanoke Island and on the Outer Banks. The pups have to be removed each year or they would soon take over the space. We were told that the plant would someday bloom having aged 8 or more years. After 12 years this summer, the first plant started blooming. It was massive and exciting to watch it develope. However the actual blooms were a little disappointing to us, but the bees were estatic! The following pictures show some progression of growth and the final bloom. After the plant blooms, it dies completely. So we have since removed the main plant but we have saved the bloom stalk of 23'. As it stands on the ground it makes a nice coat tree by our hottub on the roof. This plant is also the source for the nectar in the making of Tequila in Mexico. There they harvest the heart of the plant after about 8 years of growth. Enjoy

The initial bloom stalk

This bloom stalk seemed to appear out of nowhere. We were even working in a garden nearby and did not notice it for at least a week.

Continued growth

After about 3 weeks, arms began to protrude from the stalk. Most of the 23' of height had been reached by this time.

Flowers

This process began in late May. By early July we began to see the formation of flower pods at the end of each branch.

Flowers open

Here we are seeing stamens and the lack of flower petals. But because of the quanity of flowers there is an image of a lot of yellow.

A site to behold

Taken from my arial lift for cutting topiaries, this photo really shows the magnitude of the bloom stalk.

Looking down from the top, the last set of flowers

By the first of August the bloom period had reached the top of the stalk. We knew the end was near. This was all so exciting that we had an  "Agave blooming party" and invited many of our friends for an evening of pictures, wine and music. It is a shame that the plant soon dies after all of this effort, but we have several more plants that we now expect to bloom in the near fiture.

Photos

Feel free to download and use images.