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Agave Bracteosa ( a - GAH - vee brak - tee - OH - suh ) is a perennial succulent plant that originates in Mexico ’s Sierra Madre mountain array and ordinarily found growing on bouldery slopes and limestone cliffs .
This rut and the sun - sleep together plant is a fellow member of the Asparagaceae family of plants .
You may hear it commonly referred to as :
Reasons To Love Spider Agave, aka Squid Agave + Care Tips
Agave Bracteosa Care
Size and Growth
Spider Agave grows in a rosette form that can lift to a stature of 4′ foundation with an adequate width . This is a slow - growing plant life , so it takes quite a while for it to attain this maximal stage of maturation .
It ’s easy to keep the plant at a height and width of a foot or so in pots or container .
When planted in the landscape , Squid Agave be given to spread and manifold through suckers that form at its base , commonly forming a dependency of plants .
Flowering and Fragrance
Candelabrum Agave blank flowers are minor and fragrant . The bright white or yellow flowers grow in a clump atop an flowering spike that ordinarily resemble a bottle brush . The densely compact flowers also suffer between 3′ and 5′ feet high .
Blooming is a rare and one - time occurrence for Squid Agave . The flora does not bloom until it reaches full maturity . This can take many old age .
As with most agave plant , blooming is the harbinger of decease . When the flush have faded , the mature plant will perish ; however , it will leave lots of pups behind to take its position .
Foliage
The Calamari Agave mintage typically present with about 20 grey - green leaves per rosette . This plant is grown more for its interesting , year - stave leaf than for its rarefied bloom .
Its interesting candelabra - like leaves are characterise by its clumping rosette . In increase , the succulent leaves of this plant are not sharp or dangerous .
The plants ’ long , tapering leaves explicate their common names , Spider , Squid , or Calamari Agave .
As the leave grow longer , they tend to distort and curl , consecrate the appearance of long leg or tentacles . For this reason , the plant is sometimes confused with Octopus Agave ( Agave vilmoriniana ) , which is exchangeable .
Light and Temperature
Spider Agave grows naturally on ironical , rocky mountain ranges . It flourish well in filtered sun or light refinement .
Moreover , the plant likes secure ventilation and lots of sunshine . As a natural tidy sum habitant , it can tolerate evenhandedly low temperatures , but without sizeable Christ Within , it will suffer stunted growth and failure to flourish .
The too harsh afternoon sun or direct sunlight may cause dark-brown , unattractive sunburn spots . In very red-hot climate , it is good to lay your Candelabrum Agave in a setting that have full , direct morning sun and mottled or partial afternoon Sunday .
This plant is winter hardy in USDA hardiness zones 7b and above . In winter , it can survive temperature range from 10 ° to 50 ° degrees Fahrenheit in a land of winter dormancy . This rest period benefit ’s the yield of suckers in the springtime .
It is also possible to keep this compact American aloe as a houseplant through the winter calendar month .
Keep the plant at normal room temperature in a setting where it can meet bright , collateral sunshine throughout most of the day . Near ( not in ) , a south - facing windowpane is a secure positioning .
Watering and Feeding
As drouth - tolerant plants go , Spider Agave is a bit of a contradiction . Although it does well in a xeriscaping situation , it involve regular watering , especially during its grow season ( saltation and summer ) .
This American aloe should be planted in sharply draining soil and given soaking - and - dry lachrymation on a regular basis to prevent source damage and encourage dear growth .
To know how often you should irrigate , you must keep an centre on the leaves . After supply a exhaustive watering , you should see that the leaves become plump and hard . When it ’s metre to water again , they will become slimly gentle and even shrink slightly .
The accurate amount of meter you could allow to pass between lachrymation will vary look on the weather .
During the hot , ironical days of summer , you ’ll water more . As the days shorten and cool in the autumn , you should deoxidize watering .
In winter , you wo n’t water plant in the landscape at all . Even indoors , lacrimation should be keep at a lower limit during winter to prevent problem with root rot .
Always pour water through the soil of potted plants and urine close to the undercoat for plant in the landscape painting . Avoid overhead watering because water supply snare between the plants ’ leaves can stimulate foliage and pennant rot .
Agave is not a hungry industrial plant , and you may not take to fertilize at all if you’re able to allow for a top dressing of insect castings in the springtime .
If you wish to use a commercial-grade fertilizer , pick out a liquid product with an NPK proportion of 3 - 3 - 2 . put up only a half or quarter dose every calendar month throughout the maturate time of year .
you’re able to also use liquid fertiliser during the summer months to encourage healthier and fuller growth . Stop inseminate altogether in the fall .
Soil and Transplanting
As with most succulents and cacti , agave likes to be plant in well - draining or sharply draining soil .
A good timbre commercial succulent or cactus admixture will do , or you could mix up your own substrate by combining half - and - half high - character standard potting admixture and a compounding of constitutional matter ( e.g. , senior compost , leafage mold , or manure ) and coarse matter to improve drain .
Examples of coarse drainage fabric include perlite , pumice stone , or vulgar sand . you may also throw in a chip of os repast for nutrition .
If you survive in a very dry mood , you ’ll go a footling bit heavier on the constitutive thing to help keep the right amount of moisture near the roots .
If you survive in a very humid climate , you should add a gravid proportion of coarse affair to promote just drainage and monish radical rot .
When potting Spider Agave , prefer a wide , somewhat shallow container that has plenty of drainage holes . It ’s honest to use a roomy container that will give up the flora to spread out and produce pup .
Agave does not involve to be able-bodied to develop deep root , and in fact , if the roots grow too deep , they will be more potential to moulder .
When you place your agave in a broad , shallow container with plenty of open surface area , the land can breathe , and the plant can reproduce . you could keep it in this container until it is crowding the sides , which may take several geezerhood .
Grooming and Maintenance
Candelabrum Agave needs very little preparation and care . When sure-enough , low-down leaves course turn jaundiced and wither , pull or clip them off .
If a leaf becomes damaged , diseased , or overrun with pests , prune it off and apply fungicides , pesticides , etc . , as needed to decimate the trouble .
If your plant life get a heyday spike , you’re able to take away it when the flowers have faded . Check the top of the spike for little plantlet that may have sprouted . you could employ these for propagation .
Know that you will soon need to remove the plant life because it will pass off and die . You should be able to simply pull it out of the heart of a ring of branch .
How To Propagate Agave Bracteosa
This century plant naturally spreads by rambling antecedent , so the most common multiplication method for wanderer agave is division , which is usually carried out during the farm season or when repot .
To do this , just get rid of the counterbalance from the female parent plant by abbreviate through the substructure .
you’re able to also propagate Squid Agave by carefully pare away the fall guy and rooting them . Allow the sucker to air for several day before potting it up in its own mass . This will take into account the pruning wound to callus over so that fungus or bacterial contagion will not set in .
Care for the transplanted gull just as you would a matured flora . It should set roots within a couple of weeks .
If your industrial plant produces plantlets atop a bloom stiletto heel , process them as suckers . Plant them in their own pots , and care for them as fledged plants .
It is also potential to grow Squid Agave from seeded player ; however , it takes a very long meter . If you project to collect your own seeds for propagation , you ’ll need to be sure that cross - pollination has occurred so that your seeds will be viable .
With viable seeds and proficient conditions , the germination rate is quite gamy . To produce this agave from seed , you should seed the seeds gently over a moist ejaculate start out intermixture .
Cover the mix lightly with charge plate , and place the tray or container in an expanse that receives consistent warmth and ample bright , indirect sunlight .
Keep the seed starting admixture equally moist ( not marshy ) . You should see sprouting within ten mean solar day . When this happens , you could slay the plastic .
empathise that it will take years of measured aid for your tiny baby agave plant to come upon any significant size .
Agave Bracteosa Main Pest or Diseases
With the right counterpoise of sun , body of water , and external respiration , your Spider Agave will stay pest and disease free . Too much water or humidity and too picayune sun and airing can conduce to bacterial and fungal infection , such as :
Healthy agave will resist pests . Those that have been compromise by hapless conditions and the development of bacterial or mold diseases may become promiscuous prey to common garden and houseplant pest , such as mealy bug , scale insects , and armoured scale insect .
Agave Snout Weevils present a specific danger to agave plants . Some mallet , such as Longhorn Beetles , can also be quite damaging .
Prevention is the best therapeutic for pest infestation , but if your agave does develop a pest trouble , deal with it by manually removing as many of the creepy crawlies as you may .
Correct any problems that may have enable plague to get a foothold .
If you are unable to eradicate the pests with these steps , you may want to unpot your plant and disinfect it by washing the entire plant , roots and all , with a soft soap and water solution . wash the plant life and permit it to air for a few days while you treat its former localization for plague .
When you repot your plant , handle it with a pesticide . Be sure to use an entirely fresh potting premix and a brand name - Modern ( or sterilise ) container .
Is the plant considered toxic or poisonous to people, kids, and pets?
Even though Squid Agave ’s leave are not sharp , the sap deep down can be irritating to the skin and eye .
touch may cause irritation , dermatitis , blisters , and the like . symptom may recur sporadically for as long as a twelvemonth after contact . uptake of the sap can cause gastric distress .
Always wear glove and eye aegis when handling and pruning your agave . wash away up promptly subsequently .
Keep agave plant out of the grasp of children , pets , and livestock , and be sure to situate these plant life in areas where they will not be trample or bumped against .
Is the plant considered invasive?
The Succulent Agave is not report as invasive in any localization . In fact , it is listed as permitted for all placement in Australia ( where almost every works tend to grow wild with wild abandon ) and is not portion any control category by the government .
Suggested Agave Bracteosa Uses
Agave Bracteosa is an fantabulous pick for xeriscaping in any hot , dry climate as it ’s a deer and drouth - patient of plant .
It also make a beautiful gain to a careen garden and can be used as a high basis cover over larger , open , gay arena .
you could also mix this attractive works with cactus , making it highly suitable for succulent garden and Mediterranean gardens .
It ’s also perfect for raised planters , patio containers , and modest planting spaces .
In cold climates , this adorable , low - acquire , compact succulent make a courteous container works to be displayed on the patio , porch , or poolside in the spring and summer and by a cheery window in winter .
