Agave, Caribbean, Century Plant, Mescal Agave, Narrowleaf Agave 'Marginata'

On Feb 6, 2016, opal92nwf from Niceville, FL wrote:

I saw a beautiful specimen at a big box store in the houseplant section, I had to get it. Although from what research I did at the time I learned that it might not be cold hardy enough for my zone 8b. It thrived for a few years, and I would cover it when it would get into the low 20's and below.

It grew so fast. I would literally watch multiple leaves open from the center within weeks. I started out with one single, main plant, but very soon after, multiple little ones started sprouting up all over the place, even as far as 2 or 3 feet away. This would seem to be a bane for a lot of gardeners, but I actually thought it was neat: being a sign that the plant was as happy and healthy as ever.

From what I could tell, it would withstand at the lowest mid 20's wit... read moreh little or no damage. In the winter of 2014 however, we had upper teens which damaged it severely even though I covered it with towels. Then several weeks later we had a light coating of freezing rain during which it got to 20 degrees. For some reason, I think I forgot to cover it during that event and the original plant and many of the pups were very fried.

But still, it didn't miss a beat and continued to sprout up pups all over the place even though the mother plant seemed to be dead. But because this original plant was so damaged, I didn't want to deal with something that wouldn't survive our winters anymore, so I went ahead to remove it.

The task to pull it out was a nasty surprise. I can't remember if I knew the sap was poisonous or not at the time, but nonetheless I hacked and cut at that thing so much with garden clippers, large clippers, and a shovel. The smell of the rotten sap was so terrible. Still, I was able to cut most of the leaves away, and all that was remaining was the main stem. It was UNBELIEVABLY hard to pull out of the ground. I literally tied a rope to it and pulled and pulled, after which it FINALLY came out. Surprisingly I had no problems at all with the sap: maybe because I was wearing gloves and am usually careful handling spiny, sappy/messy plants.

But still, even after I pulled this main plant out, suckers still sprouted out for the next couple years (!!!) in the area where it had been.

It really was a beautiful plant and looked great in the yard. And besides the task of pulling out unwanted pups, I appreciated how easy it was to grow.

I'll post a picture of it in the photo section above.

On Nov 12, 2011, jerrytate from Lake Charles, LA wrote:

beautiful and fast growing.

On Jun 5, 2011, sugarmae from Hancock, MI (Zone 5a) wrote:

I was watching the 1951 scifi movie, "the thing from another world", and it was mentioned that the century plant eats mice. Is this true?

On May 16, 2010, TexasPuddyPrint from Edinburg, TX wrote:

This plant might be pretty to look at but I found out what a demon it is! Talk about the pain of hell and being on fire! YIKES!!! I had a friend cut back one that was growing in the back alley by my fence gate. I had no problem moving piling up the leaves but when I got the hose to rinse out the pole saw that debris splashed over my hands and arms. Talk about instant pain! My arms and hands were itching and burning! It felt 100 times worse than when you handle fiberglass! This reminds me getting zapped by an asp caterpillar!!!

I jumped into the shower and then applied some hydrocortisone cream. Relief at last!

It was only today that I googled for century plant allergies that I came upon the Dave's posts. Wish I'd known about it earlier!!! I had no id... read moreea this plant was such a demon! UGH!!!

On Oct 26, 2009, rancherrich from Austin, TX wrote:

I have Agaves in my front yard and at my ranch where i am cultivating them for sale. I actually really like the plants. They are easy to grow and maintain. Beware of Agave beetles, however. They can devastate a stand of plants in a matter of days! I found only one place in the US that sells the granules that will kill the beetles and it was in PA of all places.
Caution: do not "trim" the leaves with a chainsaw unless you are covered from head to toe. I used a chainsaw to trim some leaves that were posing a potential hazard to pedestrians in front of my home and the sap got on my arms (the only uncovered part of my body) and within 10 minutes my arms were ON FIRE! I scrubbed thoroghly, took some Benadryl and still got a few small blisters. According to the Internet, the sap ... read morecontains oxalate crystals and saponins, a substance that, when contacted with skin, can cause vascular damage!!

On Mar 19, 2008, jckristafer from San Francisco, CA (Zone 10a) wrote:

Agave is a beautiful plant, but be careful! My mother recently cut some down with a chain saw, only to find that that she is very allergic to its juice. Some splattered on her legs and very quickly it began to burn, and eventually blistered.

On May 3, 2005, cacti_lover from Henderson, NV (Zone 9b) wrote:

I don't seem to have problems with this plant either. It grew quite fast in the past three years, but only produced two pups. I cut one out to plant in another area, but it was slow to react. It can get frost-bitten, but usually recovers if the damage is not too extensive. I had another planted on my front yard that died due to freezing temperatures, so they are not very cold hardy. Still, they are beautiful plants that seem to behave well in my yard.

On Aug 26, 2004, Xenomorf from Phoenix, AZ (Zone 9b) wrote:

I have had no problems with this being invasive here in zone 9a. Don't know about other zones. It grows slower than some of my other agaves. Handsome looking plant.

On Jul 5, 2004, Xenomorf from Phoenix, AZ (Zone 9b) wrote:

Beautiful plant. Seems to be well behaved. The ones I've seen & the one in my yard don't seem to be invading anything.

On Apr 23, 2004, amorning1 from Islamorada, FL wrote:

Getting impaled by the spines are extremely painfull.

I dig a hole , insert a big clay pot and then bury, this will contain this demon, this method also works well with snake plant aka mothers in law's tounge.

On Aug 19, 2003, palmbob from Acton, CA (Zone 8b) wrote:

This was a cute little Agave I bought at a local succulent sale one year- attractive, slightly spiny at the time and had a nice variegation. Nothing was told to me about its growth habit. Be careful where you plant this thing- it will spread everywhere. I was beginning to discover that nearly all Agaves suckered profusely, and becoming less enchanted with them as they began to take over the cactus garden - limited somewhat on space, even though I did have over 500 species of plants in it.

I was already battling the Agave americana I had planted that was spreading out of control, but this species is far more insidious. Its roots travel quite a distance- up to 10-12' from the mother plant and shoot up everywhere little spiny offspring. They love to grow right out o... read moref the middle of another plant making their removal a challenge. And they are viciously spiny and fast growing. I dug out the mother plant and battled the babies for two years until the garden recently aquired a new owner. Good luck!

I could be wrong, but I am pretty sure Agave angustifolia marginata, and Agave angustifolia variegata are all the same as this plant... just fancy names added on by a nursery or seller to perk up the interests of the would-be buyer.

Just a note... I had never known nor had it ever occured to me to take a chain saw to an Agave like this until I read all the above posts. Not sure why one wouldn't just cut the leaves with a knife (they are quite easy to cut, and I'm sure you geta a nicer finished product than what you would with a chain saw). But did not know about the inflammatory sap until now... guess next time you'll use a knife instead?