Agave attenuata in Florida?

[Emman]

Why is agave attenuata not utilized more in Florida, they are rated to zone 9b so they can technically be grown in places like Orlando and Tampa but they seem to be absent.

Is it the high heat and humidity levels,  agave americana seems to do well in Florida so why not agave attenuata?

[Silas_Sancona]

16 minutes ago, Emman said:

Why is agave attenuata not utilized more in Florida, they are rated to zone 9b so they can technically be grown in places like Orlando and Tampa but they seem to be absent.

Is it the high heat and humidity levels,  agave americana seems to do well in Florida so why not agave attenuata?

Had a couple when i lived there. Melted within 6 months.  Not a big fan of the heat = Humidity during the summer there.. While we lack the sustained, FL. -level humidity during the summer,  A. attenuata  isn't the easiest to cultivate here in the desert here either.

" Zones " mean nothing if X plant can't tolerate other factors that influence how well ..or terribly.. it may preform in 2 or 3 versions of X zone.

 

[Merlyn]

@Emman part is probably just that not many people grow agaves in Florida...at all.  You see Americana and Lophantha around the Orlando area, but that's about it.  As far as Attenuata goes, they are not at all frost tolerant.  I've tried several normal ones and named types like Boutin Blue, Raea's Gold, Kara's Stripes,etc.  All struggled here.  One or two are still alive with pathetic little leaves.  I have ~250 other agaves that are doing well...and killed ~225 agaves, aloe and cacti trying to find ones that will survive our oppressive summer heat, humidity, and frequent frosts.

One that is somewhat similar looking that does well for me is Mitis v. Albidior.  It's not quite the same shape, and isn't totally frost hardy either, but is thriving after 4 years in the ground.

[Eric in Orlando]

Agave attenuata has grown well here at Leu Gardens in Orlando. But they are frost sensitive. I see them occasionally in South FL landscapes. One thing here is that if they start to develop a stem they don't stay upright long. Our sandy soil doesn't give good footing and they get heavier from the higher rainfall and water uptake. Aloe arborescens does the same thing.

 

Agave demeesteriana is much more popular in FL than A. attenuata.

[Eric in Orlando]

17 hours ago, Merlyn said:

@Emman part is probably just that not many people grow agaves in Florida...at all.  You see Americana and Lophantha around the Orlando area, but that's about it.  As far as Attenuata goes, they are not at all frost tolerant.  I've tried several normal ones and named types like Boutin Blue, Raea's Gold, Kara's Stripes,etc.  All struggled here.  One or two are still alive with pathetic little leaves.  I have ~250 other agaves that are doing well...and killed ~225 agaves, aloe and cacti trying to find ones that will survive our oppressive summer heat, humidity, and frequent frosts.

One that is somewhat similar looking that does well for me is Mitis v. Albidior.  It's not quite the same shape, and isn't totally frost hardy either, but is thriving after 4 years in the ground.

You should grow Agave weberi. It is a big blue one like A. americana but slightly smaller. It usually doesn't have teeth along the leaf edges, just a terminal spine. I never see it for sale anymore, just old plants in yards. But it has naturalized in some locations. There is a nice variegated cultivar called 'Arizona Star'. 

Agave sisalana and A. angustifolia 'Marginata' are also common ones in older landscapes. They do get some damage below about 28F.

 

[Merlyn]

4 minutes ago, Eric in Orlando said:

You should grow Agave weberi. It is a big blue one like A. americana but slightly smaller. It usually doesn't have teeth along the leaf edges, just a terminal spine. I never see it for sale anymore, just old plants in yards. But it has naturalized in some locations. There is a nice variegated cultivar called 'Arizona Star'. 

Agave sisalana and A. angustifolia 'Marginata' are also common ones in older landscapes. They do get some damage below about 28F.

I have 7 blue-green Weberi and 4 "Arizona Star" in the ground, they have all thrived here!  There's a running joke among the agave nuts (myself included) that, "You don't just own one Weberi, you actually own 1000 Weberi."  Oddly enough all my blue-green types have remained solitary, even the one that's getting close to 8' in diameter.  The Arizona Star have been prolific.

I haven't had good luck with Sisalana of any type, they seem to struggle and then get burned by my yearly upper-20s frost.  Angustifolia/Vivipara Marginata have done great.  I bought one back in May 2021 and it grew to 3-4 feet of trunk and flowered this summer.  I had an easy replacement with an offset.

One that is a personal favorite is the wacko "Octopus" agave Vilmoriniana.  I have three giant ones in the ground for 5 or 6 years, one is getting ready to flower.  They are even more "polite" than Weberi, effectively toothless.  The "Stained Glass" type has struggled and I probably won't keep them around much longer.  The miniature octopus agave Bracteosa have done really well.  A bunch of those survived the "Palmageddon" at Austin's Zilker Botanical Garden.

[Silas_Sancona]

2 hours ago, Eric in Orlando said:

You should grow Agave weberi. It is a big blue one like A. americana but slightly smaller. It usually doesn't have teeth along the leaf edges, just a terminal spine. I never see it for sale anymore, just old plants in yards. But it has naturalized in some locations. There is a nice variegated cultivar called 'Arizona Star'. 

Agave sisalana and A. angustifolia 'Marginata' are also common ones in older landscapes. They do get some damage below about 28F.

 

If it wasn't as massive < limited space situations > ( and prolific offset-wise ..One i'd originally picked up there in FL at least )  it would be the ideal, pretty much toothless blue green -toned Agave..  Have done everything possible to torture / kill mine yet, ..it lives on,  even if it throws a couple pups to keep living, lol.

That said, if one has the space, a far better Agave option than A. americana  in the sense that you won't be donating blood each time you attempt trying to keep it under control / in it's allotted space.
 

[hbernstein]

A. attenuata does great in S. Florida. Yes, individual stems will elongate and eventually flop over, but plants will steadily grow into an attractive clump. It actually likes much more water than most other agave species. The species likes our seasonal rainfall pattern and doesn't need special soils mixes. Of course it will rot if subjected to heavy irrigation all the time.

I agree that there just aren't many agave species grown locally; most folks in the Miami area seem to want nothing to do with landscape succulents

[TropicsEnjoyer]

14 hours ago, Eric in Orlando said:

You should grow Agave weberi. It is a big blue one like A. americana but slightly smaller. It usually doesn't have teeth along the leaf edges, just a terminal spine. I never see it for sale anymore, just old plants in yards. But it has naturalized in some locations. There is a nice variegated cultivar called 'Arizona Star'. 

Agave sisalana and A. angustifolia 'Marginata' are also common ones in older landscapes. They do get some damage below about 28F.

 

i’ve seen a lot of angustfolia in miami, i want one now 😅

 

[Merlyn]

10 hours ago, TropicsEnjoyer said:

i’ve seen a lot of angustfolia in miami, i want one now 😅

This was my original May 2021 Angustifolia/Vivipara, flowering in April 2024 at about 4 feet of trunk and 6ish feet tall overall.  You can see a band of leaves about halfway up that were damaged in the ~27F + heavy frost:

And here's the replacement, a trunking offset from the original plant.  I did stake both of them to give the trunks a bit more support in my soft sandy area:

[TropicsEnjoyer]

9 hours ago, Merlyn said:

This was my original May 2021 Angustifolia/Vivipara, flowering in April 2024 at about 4 feet of trunk and 6ish feet tall overall.  You can see a band of leaves about halfway up that were damaged in the ~27F + heavy frost:

And here's the replacement, a trunking offset from the original plant.  I did stake both of them to give the trunks a bit more support in my soft sandy area:

are they more sensitive than desmettiana? could explain why i don’t see many 

[Merlyn]

3 minutes ago, TropicsEnjoyer said:

are they more sensitive than desmettiana? could explain why i don’t see many 

In my experience they are a lot hardier than Desmettiana.  I gave up on Desmettiana because they'd get torched with any frost near freezing, and then look bad the rest of the year. 

Here's my front yard agave bed after ~27F and medium frost.  You can see the Sisalana significantly burned, but the rest are in good shape.  The small Angustifolia/Vivipara has a few edema spots but grew out of it quickly.

From the other direction you can see the devastation of bananas and heliconia, but the Angustifolia/Vivipara to the right of the big Whitelockii is pretty much ok.  It had some edema damage later, but not a whole lot:

My last variegated Desmettiana on the lower center is mostly mush but did survive.  The bigger all green Desmettiana just behind is was protected from frost by the palm, and was mostly ok.

 

[TropicsEnjoyer]

1 hour ago, Merlyn said:

In my experience they are a lot hardier than Desmettiana.  I gave up on Desmettiana because they'd get torched with any frost near freezing, and then look bad the rest of the year. 

Here's my front yard agave bed after ~27F and medium frost.  You can see the Sisalana significantly burned, but the rest are in good shape.  The small Angustifolia/Vivipara has a few edema spots but grew out of it quickly.

From the other direction you can see the devastation of bananas and heliconia, but the Angustifolia/Vivipara to the right of the big Whitelockii is pretty much ok.  It had some edema damage later, but not a whole lot:

My last variegated Desmettiana on the lower center is mostly mush but did survive.  The bigger all green Desmettiana just behind is was protected from frost by the palm, and was mostly ok.

 

oh ok, i guess they’re simply not as popular for whatever reason then bc i see desmets quite a bit. good to know. i’m wanting to start a mini cactusy bed next spring with like 1 or 2 agave and a yucca color guard. just ideas so far tho.  on a side note i hate how winter makes everything look so pale 😭

[Merlyn]

1 hour ago, TropicsEnjoyer said:

oh ok, i guess they’re simply not as popular for whatever reason then bc i see desmets quite a bit. good to know. i’m wanting to start a mini cactusy bed next spring with like 1 or 2 agave and a yucca color guard. just ideas so far tho.  on a side note i hate how winter makes everything look so pale 😭

Yeah, Desmettiana pup like mad and are mostly unarmed, so they sell a little easier in the big box stores.  I had no luck with yucca here, they melted in the first frosty winter.  I'm not sure if I got a dud, or if they just don't like FL either.

[TropicsEnjoyer]

@Merlyn Yeah i see desmettiana form clumps quite easily. also poor yucca. i’m not sure which species you had but do you think these would do fine in 9b? 

tag says filamentosa

[Merlyn]

@TropicsEnjoyer I tried Gloriosa "Bright Star," that was the one that turned to mush.  The landscape size "Spanish Dagger" type grows great here, so there may be others that work in central FL.

[Cape Garrett]

Agave attenuata does great here.  Stems up quickly.  Fast growth.  Doesn't mind the Summer rains.  I've even seen neglected ones in pots throwing off their foxtail flower stalk.  I don't get frosts.  But the humidity is like a swamp down here in SWFL.  In Summer anyway.  It doesn't seem to mind it.  Blue flame does great too.  These make great border accents to palms, bromeliads, aloes and yuccas.

[Merlyn]

I spotted my front yard Attenuata the other day, it is growing really well!  It's in a spot with full AM sun and PM shade.  There is an overhanging Cycas Pectinata-ish plant for frost protection.  I will get a photo in the AM if I remember!  Blue Flame has also been tough out in the open, for the same frost reasons.  This year I have seen 3 significant frosts annd a couple just barely visible ones.

[Josue Diaz]

Maybe it's just about availability. I feel that succulents are to California what bromeliads are to Florida. Alcantarea and many aechmea grow beautifully in California but you'd be hard pressed to find very many. 

[TropicsEnjoyer]

10 hours ago, Josue Diaz said:

Maybe it's just about availability. I feel that succulents are to California what bromeliads are to Florida. Alcantarea and many aechmea grow beautifully in California but you'd be hard pressed to find very many. 

Yeah I think succulent gardens are under appreciated and underutilized in Florida

[LaurenRaeBB]

I have 20+ Agave Attenuata herein zone 11 (South Florida) and I love them! They are all super happy here