Rarely Seen Flower

Occasionally, you will see something that makes you take a "double look".  This cactus is a good example of just that. It resides on the street where MSM lives. It is so beautiful.  There are over 300 varieties of the Cactus Americana. From what I have read, the large leaves of the cactus at the base have characteristics which can help to identify the species.

I believe that this may be Agave Americana with the powdery blue leaves. Reportedly, it is the most tolerant of all the Agaves and for that reason it has the widest distribution.

Description: Solitary or slowly clumping large leaf succulent with a basal rosette (up to 4 m wide)

Leaves: Thick and massive grey-blue up to 150-200 cm long and 25 cm wide, and have sharp spines on the margins and tips. The margin spines are recurved like fishhooks and the tip spines can be more than 2,5 cm long.

Flowers: The inflorescence of the Agave Americana is branched can reach epic proportions, soaring 3 -7 m or more, and bears large (6-10 cm) yellow-green flowers. Inflorescences look like asparagus spears as they grow.

Sometimes it is called The "Century Plant" but it doesn't really take a century to bloom. But it does take 10 years or so in warm regions and as much as 60 years in colder climates. It dies after blooming,  but produces offsets or "pups" throughout its life and these remain to continue the lineage.

I thought this is so beautiful that I wanted to share it with all of you flower-plant lovers.

I hope you are having a Wonderful Day. My days have been filled with lots of activities. More on that next time.