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Agave angustifolia Caribbean Agave, is a small beautiful Agave with
stiff short, sword shape leaves with cream colored margins.
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Cultivation:
Description: It is a small-medim sized Agave with a dense round
rosette of leaves borne from a very short trunk. It forms clumps.
Height: 50 cm to 90 cm, Spread: 50 cm to 1,20 cm.
Leaves: The leaves vary considerably in length depending on
growing condition, but can reach up to 60 cm (or more) They are stiff,
sword-shaped, concave and revolute or plicate, , blue or blue-greenish
5-10 cm wide at their widest point and have a distinct narrowing in
their lower third and are furnished with thin marginal teeth and
a subulate-conical terminal spine. Leaves have marginal bands of
bright white, with occasional cream stripes to the inside.
Flowers:
Greenish-yellow to white in terminal panicles and approximately 5 cm
long. The flower stalks will reach up to 2.5 m in height.
Blooming season: Blooms after 10 years or more years (though not
a century) in spring, die after flowering, but new plants may develop
from suckers at their base and from bulbils along the flower stalk.
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Family: Agavaceae
Scientific Name: Agave
angustifolia var. marginata or
Variegated.
Origin: Native to tropical Costa Rica and Mexico
Common Names include: Variegated Caribbean Agave, Narrow
century plant.
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T
Culture: They are great
Agaves
for containers because of their small size, They need full sun to
partial shade or very high interior lighting. Plants are not so drought
tolerant and requires more water than most
agave species. Plants should be
watered and allowed to dry before watering again. Fertilize only once
during the growing season with a balanced fertilizer. When grown as a
houseplant, the temperature should never drop below 10° C. Not too frost
tolerant, during the winter months, only water enough to keep the leaves
from shriveling.
Ground cultivated plant are tollerant to drought, and salty seaside
conditions. Little if any irrigation is needed to maintain the plant
once established. The sharp spine at the tip of its toothed leaves is
sometime removed to protect people and
Propagation:
Agave angustifolia
'Marginata' is propagated by using suckers, which often are found
growing around the base of the plant. Fortunately, many plantlets will
form from the inflorescence, offering good opportunities for
propagation.
Uses:
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It is used to make
mezcal (tequila), rope, food, soap and other products are also made from
the fibers and pulp.
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As an ornamental plant it makes a dramatic
statement in the landscape and is much favored for use in rock gardens.
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