Native Plants

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Wednesday - January 23, 2013

From: Marana, AZ
Region: Southwest
Topic: Cacti and Succulents
Title: Potential longevity of Century Plant bloom stalk from Marana AZ
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

What is the potential longevity of a Century Plant stalk/bloom? I would like to use it in my yard for ornamentation. Will it last for weeks, months or years or decompose relatively quickly?

ANSWER:

This must be a popular topic in Arizona this year. Here is a previous Mr. Smarty Plants answer on that very question, this one from Sedona, AZ. Also in that previous answer are several more links, which you should also read. There are several different members of the Agave genus that have the common name "century plant," but we usually choose Agave americana (American century plant) as our example.

From the Image Gallery

American century plant
Agave americana