PlantFiles: Agave
Agave colorata

I just bought this certain agave at a local Home Depot this past November.It has grown 3 new leaves as I keep it in a southern exposed window.Can't wait to put it out for the summer & see how well it grows.I wish we could grow agaves in our gardens here in CT.I think thier just so neat looking...

I have not grown this plant. Common name: Mezcal ceniza
This is one of the most difficult to cultivate agaves because duplicating the habital conditions at its native location is difficult. It thrives in a stony soil with good drainage. It has an attractive cross-zoning (horizontal color variation bands).

Great agave with wavy leaves and nice pale blue coloration. Slow to sucker and not a fast grower, which is a good thing since these are monocarpic. These can take over 12-15 years to flower so they may stay in your garden a long time. Very ornamental Mexican native.

Some say difficult to cultivate?? Yet I have treated it 'brutally' like most of my Agaves and found it as easy and durable as the rest. Had this plant for nearly 10 years, moved it about (transplanted), ignored it, let it get frost, overwatered it etc. and still never had a problem. Even dug out the suckers carelessly, stuffing them here and there about the garden, some with narry a root, and all so far are doing great. Perhaps in a more inhospitable climate than S California this might be a tougher grow, but here it seems pretty nonfastidious even in my icky clayey soils. Commonly sold at many nurseries here in Southern California.