winters is a challenge. It won't be enough to just plant them in the ground and hope for the best. Considerable preparation of the planting site is the first key to success. While many Agaves can cope with sub-zero temperatures and the effects of frost, when their roots are wet their ability to survive is considerably diminished. Even the cold-hardiest Agave will struggle in a poorly drained water-logged soil. Many of the Agaves from Mexico particularly from the warmer regions - will succumb in a cold wet winter. Those Agave species that grow naturally further north and at higher altitudes are more hardy. Hardy for where exactly? Its a good question... for cold wet climates? But, as we know, hardy in one location may not be hardy in another. Hardy in coastal Cornwall may not be hardy for a garden in a frost pocket in the East Midlands. Within the British Isles the regional variations in climate are considerable. And even two gardens in nearby geographical 1
locations may have such differing characteristics of drainage
and available sun that the same species of plant will survive in one but not the other. Experienced growers who have done their fair share of experimentation know that even within their own garden, one specimen may pull through a tough winter while another succumbs. So hardy therefore, must always be considered a relative term. It slides. It is variable and dependent upon a wide range of factors. This is written primarily for British gardeners. It will, however, also apply to much of northern Europe although conditions inland on the continent tend to be much colder. The closest analogues to the UK climate are probably parts of the coastal zone of the Pacific North West, particularly northern Washington and the southern sector of British Columbia. In the UK the climate is cold temperate and the winters are typically wet. The most important consideration when growing Agaves is drainage. An Agave any Agave, no matter how hardy it is - must have good drainage. A freedraining substrate of rock, rockdust, shingle, gravel, pumice, perlite and grit mixed with some sharp sand makes an ideal base. North American soils tend to be alkaline and most Agaves grow either in close proximity to limestone or in calcareous soils. Limestone chippings added to the mix will provide the necessary alkalinity. Organised into a raised bed with large rocks, rubble and hard-core at the bottom with
successively smaller grades of rock and gravel layered above
this base provides an ideal substrate. The mix needs very little organic matter as the Agave will extract much of its nutrients from the minerals in the substrate particularly if a basaltic rockdust is used. Further nutrients can be provided by granules of gradual-release fertiliser. Shelter from the cold north-easterly winds is an important consideration. If fencing, natural walls or boundaries can't be utilised, ways of creating a wind-break or shelter belt may need to be thought about. A driving north-easterly wind bringing cold air down from the Arctic will add a wind-chill factor of several degrees. Even a larger plant - a hardy Yucca species for instance - or a large rock placed on the northeast side of the Agave creates a small temperature difference by forcing the cold air to go around it and on either side of the Agave. If several rocks can be grouped together to form a miniature hill or mound it can make a small but significant difference to the temperature in its immediate proximity. Some natural overhead cover - the sparse overhanging branches of a tree - can be a valuable extra protective measure and will help to generate some natural insulation from frost without shutting out too much light. Not every garden, of course, will be so favoured but in planning your planting the more elements that you can build into it that will alter the microclimate and provide shelter and warmth the better.
Many Agaves grow on steep inclines, hillsides and slopes,
clinging to vertical cliff-faces or perched on rocky ledges. Their roots secure a tenacious foothold in cracks and crevices, anchoring themselves and extracting nutrients directly from the rock. So if the raised bed is on a sunny south-facing natural incline or if a gradient can be built up the drainage will be improved further. Flat rocks on the surface angled downwards provide excellent surface runoff and mimic the conditions that many Agaves grow in. Large rocks placed close to specimen plants will absorb heat during the day and radiate it slowly as the atmospheric temperature starts to drop. Making a xeric raised bed takes time and planning and you may have something more modest in mind. There are some favoured locations like London where the urban heat radiation and the relative dryness of the climate - compared to the wetter west coast regions - make it possible to grow desert plants with less effort. Yet still, the same principles apply. Every once in a while Nature will deliver a colder or a wetter winter than you can remember. If time has been spent making a south-facing raised xeric bed and particularly if this raised bed has a gradient for excess water to run off quickly then you have provided a very good foundation for an Agave to survive whatever the winter can throw at it well, almost
There are some other considerations will you provide any
further protection? Will you provide a rain-shelter, for instance? Some regions are wetter than others. In regions exposed to the prevailing wet westerly winds, where days or weeks of rainfall are not uncommon, a temporary structure may be the most sensible approach. To the east of the country - in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex and in London rainfall is less. Nontheless, a simple construction consisting of a wood frame and a pitched clear-plastic roof will ensure that your Agave stays dry over the winter no matter how much rain there is. Use polythene stapled to the framework or polycarbonate fixed or cable-tied to the woodwork. An overhanging eave will steer water away from the roots. Allowing a small part of two of the sides to be open will ensure a free cross-flow of circulating air. And then there is the question of whether to fleece or not. Many exotic gardeners in the UK lost plants in the winters of 2009 and 2010. After a run of relatively mild winters, the long extended periods of sub-zero temperatures in those years - particularly in the 2010-11 winter - took some by surprise. Many people in the exotic gardening community had gotten out of the habit of fleecing their plants. But even a large Agave is relatively easy to fleece. A couple of layers of heavy-gauge fleece will provide a very useful buffer of extra warmth that can easily be taken off again when temperatures pick up. Fleecing outdoor Agaves during spells of cold weather is sensible practice. At the Tropical Britain nursery,
I grow literally tens of thousands of Agaves, but once they
start to get to some size, losing one is never a good feeling. The simple expedience of covering them in fleece then letting them breath once again when the air temperature has warmed up is best practice. There is no glory in trying to grow a plant unprotected and then failing. I know because I have lost countless plants doing precisely that. If your plants have survived the last three winters unprotected that's great... but you will feel as sick as a parrot if they rot just because bravado prevented a more flexible approach. I'm a great believer in being sensible and not taking Mother Nature for granted... and being prepared to move quickly when the weather turns... There is just one other thing... Get to know your plants and let them grow on to some size before you plant them out. Spend a year or two hardening them off, letting them grow bigger and tougher. Growing them first in terracotta containers, perhaps spending the worst of their first winter or two under unheated glass will give you a chance to observe them in your locality and will give the plants time to grow stronger. When you do plant them out into their final positions always plant them in Spring, giving them as long a growing season as possible before the winter. They can be planted as early as you dare for your local conditions. Gardening advice for planting out plants is usually when the soil has warmed up. In the case of Agaves, it's not really soil
you are planting into - more a free-draining mix of rock and
shingle... but when it has warmed up, that is the ideal time to plant. Usually when the last frost has passed. If you can't wait that long... don't forget the fleece... Place the plant so it sits slightly above the surrounding substrate - about 1cm - and backfill with a mulch of rock and gravel. Here then is a quick checklist... Site preparation - good drainage in a raised xeric bed of rubble and rock with little organic matter Agaves like an alkaline substrate - rough limestone chippings will keep it alkaline Build the bed on a incline or create a gradient Plant out in the Spring after acclimatising and hardening your plants having first let them grow to a good size Be sensible. A rain shelter and fleece is sensible during the worst of the winter months - at least for the first few years Vigilance! Keep an eye out for adverse winter conditions and be nimble to act accordingly, fleece at the ready... The all important matter of choosing a suitable species...
When I first thought about writing this it was obvious that
many people would have differing opinions on what the hardiest Agave was. The horticultural community has always had people with strong opinions. So you may not agree with me. That's fine. I like a good debate. Ive grown succulents for longer than I care to remember but Im always learning something new. That is the wonder of horticulture and the wonder of botany you can go on learning new things everyday and you will never learn all there is to know. I find that enormously refreshing There are many other Agaves that will survive outdoors and are good candidates but that's a subject for another book. I've chosen an Agave that is relatively dependable and survives in its native range with frost, snow and rainfall. Here in the UK it has proved for me it can take the recent tough winters - the dreadful 2010-2011 winter, in particular.. although, of course you may have had a different experience. As I said right at the beginning, hardy in one location does not mean hardy in yours. But as a recommendation for growing - given the cultivation notes I've outlined, this is probably your safest bet. So, here it is then not just the Agave that in my opinion is the hardiest but the two hardiest Agaves the two Agaves that I consider to be the best for the British climate they are probably the best for northern Europe too
Agave parryi ssp
neomexicana
Agave parryi ssp neomexicana was for many years known by
the name Agave neomexicana until its reclassification in 1992 as a subspecies within the Parryi group. Its natural range extends over southeastern New Mexico, West Texas and across the border into the Mexican states of Coahuila and Chihuahua. It can be found growing in the Guadalupe mountains at elevations as high as 2600m and further north in the Sacramento Mountains to elevations of
2300m and forms the extreme northeastern range of the
Parryi group. Throughout its range it grows in several diverse habitats from Chihuahuan desert scrub and grasslands at low elevations up through rocky arrays of limestone to subalpine mountain slopes often under an open canopy of pine and oak, including Pinus monophylla, Pinus ponderosa and Quercus gambelii. At high elevations it can experience winter temperatures down to a mind-numbing -28C. These are temperatures we never experience in the British Isles. In the higher rainfall and moister atmospheric conditions of the UK winter, somewhere between -12C and -15C can be considered its limit. Like all Agaves it needs perfect drainage and the drier it is kept in winter, the better. Agave parryi ssp neomexicana has slightly thinner, shorter leaves than its type species, a more open, less compact form, larger flowers and a greener, less glaucous colouration. It can be a solitary species with a very striking symmetrical form but it is more common to find it producing numerous offsets and this can start occuring in plants as young as two years old. It is quite startling to see such prolific formation of offsets in plants so young. The hearts of Agave parryi ssp neomexicana (along with Agave parryi ssp parri) were baked in earth-ovens by the First Nations people of the mountain forests of New
10
Mexico - the Mescalero Apache - and formed a staple of
their diet. The Agave hearts were harvested before flowering when their sugary carbohydrate levels were highest, cut free from the fierce surrounding thorny rosette and roasted in the earth-ovens. When cooked they were dried and stored for future use. Fire-pits and earth-ovens have been found all over the American southwest but you may prefer to enjoy the noble sculptural beauty of their rosettes rather than eat them. Give it the best cultivation - as outlined above - that you can: it is the most reliable Agave for the cold wet conditions we get here in the UK. Read more about Agave parryi ssp neomexicana
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Agave parryi ssp
parryi
Agave parryi ssp parryi, (Parry's Agave), is my second
recommendation. It is the type species of the Parryi group, a medium-sized Agave with a large extended range. It is found throughout north and central Arizona, New Mexico and Texas and over the Mexican border into Chihuahua, Durango and Guanajuato. It forms exceptionally beautiful rosettes of greyish blue-green leaves with black marginal spines tinged with red and a black terminal spine. The broad leaves are slightly concave on the upper surface and together 12
with the tightly packed rosettes give Agave parryi a
particularly handsome compact symmetry. In time the rosette will grow to about 60cm across which is a good size for most UK gardens. In its native habitat Agave parryi can grow to over one metre in width. With its wide geographical range Agave parryi can be somewhat variable in form but all are very beautiful. Most importantly however, is its exceptional ability to tolerate extremes of temperature together with some winter moisture. Snow melt is a regular part of its winter experience in much of its natural range. Given good drainage it is capable of surviving severe freezes and heavy snow. In its native range it is often found at high elevations where it experiences frost, snow and rain with temperatures down to an at least -20 C and probably lower. In winter much of the moisture around its roots is from snowmelt. As always, the key to success is to ensure it has a very freedraining substrate as previously outlined. Although it will tolerate some wetness around its roots it is always better to keep it as dry as possible during the winter. Never just assume it will survive. Be sensible and take necessary protective measures if necessary. Read more about Agave parryi ssp parryi
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John Edmiston is a writer, artist, photographer,
psychotherapist and horticulturist. He is passionate about exotic gardening and is the wild-eyed visionary and driving force behind Tropical Britain. He has been growing Agaves for longer than he cares to remember. He built - with just a little bit of help from his Dad - his first glasshouse when he was twelve.
All Rights Reserved. The text and photographic images are copyright. 2015 John Edmiston for Tropical Britain
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