Century Plant, Parry's agave, Mescal
Agave parryi
Family: Agavaceae
What it is like
Bloom Color: White. Form: Rounded.
Agave parryi is an evergreen Perennial growing to 0.5 m (1ft 8in) by 1 m (3ft 3in) at a slow rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 8 and is not frost tender. It is in leaf all year. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Moths, bats. Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.
Height (m): 0.5
Where it is found
Semi-arid land, 1300 - 2400 metres. Gravelly to rocky places in grasslands, desert scrub, chaparral, pinyon-juniper, and oak woodlands, 1200 - 2800 metres Ariz., N.Mex.; nw Mexico.
South-western N. America - Arizona to New Mexico.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 3
The heart of the plant is very rich in saccharine matter and can be eaten when baked. Sweet and nutritious, but rather fibrous. It is partly below ground. Seed - ground into a flour and used as a thickener in soups or used with cereal flours when making bread. Young flower stalk - raw or cooked. It was generally roasted. Tender young leaves - roasted. Sap from the cut flowering stems is used as a syrup. Nectar from the flowering stems is made into a sweet syrup. The sap can also be tapped by boring a hole into the middle of the plant at the base of the flowering stem. It can be fermented into 'Mescal', a very potent alcoholic drink.
Sap: usually of trees and usually but not always used as a drink.
Seed: includes nuts, cereals, peas and beans.
Stem: this often intergrades into leaves.
Medicine
Rating: 1
The sap is antiseptic, diuretic and laxative.
Antiseptic: Preventing sepsis, decay or putrefaction, it destroys or arrests the growth of micro-organisms.
Diuretic: Acts on the kidneys, promoting the flow of urine.
Laxative: Stimulates bowel movements in a fairly gentle manner.
Miscellany: Various medicinal actions that need more clarification.
Other
Rating:
The leaves contain saponins and an extract of them can be used as a soap. It is best obtained by chopping up the leaves and then simmering them in water - do not boil for too long or this will start to break down the saponins. A very strong fibre obtained from the leaves is used for making rope, coarse fabrics etc. A paper can also be made from the fibre in the leaves. The thorns on the leaves are used as pins and needles. The dried flowering stems are used as a waterproof thatch and as a razor strop.
Fibre: Used for making cloth, rope, paper etc.
Miscellany: A rag-bag of items that are difficult to categorise.
Needles: Used for sewing, darning etc.
Paper: Related to the entry for Fibre, these plants have been specifically mentioned for paper making.
Pins: Used as needles and pins in sewing etc. Also used to lance boils, extract splinters from the skin etc.
Soap: Plants used directly as a soap substitute.
Thatching: Used for making thatched roofs.
Historic Crop: These crops were once cultivated but have been abandoned. The reasons for abandonment may include colonization, genocide, market pressures, the arrival of superior crops from elsewhere, and so forth.
Management: Standard: Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.
Staple Crop: Basic Starch: The Carbon Farming Solution. Eric Toensmeier.
Historic Crop: These crops were once cultivated but have been abandoned. The reasons for abandonment may include colonization, genocide, market pressures, the arrival of superior crops from elsewhere, and so forth.
Management: Standard: Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.
Staple Crop: Basic Starch: The Carbon Farming Solution. Eric Toensmeier.
Carbon Farming: Plants that can be a critical part of the solution to climate problems. The Carbon Farming Solution - Eric Toensmeier.
How it is grown
Landscape Uses:Border, Container, Foundation, Ground cover, Massing, Rock garden, Specimen. Requires a very well-drained soil and a sunny position. This species is probably the hardiest member of the genus, it survives outdoors grown against a warm wall at Kew. In the wild, plants often experience snow during the winter with temperatures as low as -18°c for short periods. A monocarpic species, the plant lives for a number of years without flowering but dies once it does flower. However, it normally produces plenty of suckers during its life and these take about 10 - 15 years in a warm climate, considerably longer in colder ones, before flowering. This plant is widely used by the native people in its wild habitat, it has a wide range of uses. Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer. Special Features:Attracts birds, Attractive foliage, North American native, All or parts of this plant are poisonous, Flowers are rare, Attractive flowers or blooms.
Propagating it: Seed - surface sow in a light position, April in a warm greenhouse. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 3 months at 20°c. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots of well-drained soil when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a sunny position in the greenhouse until they are at least 20cm tall. Plant out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts, and give some protection from the cold for at least their first few winters. Offsets can be potted up at any time they are available. Keep in a warm greenhouse until they are well established.
Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds; South Wall. By.
Habit: Perennial
Hardiness: 9-11
Growth: Slow
Soil: Light (sandy), medium
Shade: No shade
Moisture: Dry, moist
Things to keep in mind
The plants have a very sharp and tough spine at the tip of each leaf. They need to be carefully sited in the garden.