Agave parryiParry's Agave

The Agave parryi, commonly known as Parry's Agave or the Artichoke Agave, is a compact, tightly packed rosette succulent from the high deserts of Arizona, New Mexico and northern Mexico. Broad, short, powder-blue leaves are edged and tipped with dark chestnut spines, and overlap so closely that the rosette reads as a single sculpted mass.

It is one of the coldest-hardy agaves and one of the neatest, holding an almost geometric form without any attention at all. It is used as a repeated accent in gravel gardens, planters and median beds.

Specifications

• Height0.5 to 0.8 metres as a rosette, with a flower spike to 4 metres at maturity
• Width0.6 to 1 metre
• Native toArizona, New Mexico and northern Mexico, at high desert elevations
• FoliageBroad, short, powder-blue leaves with dark chestnut marginal teeth and terminal spine, tightly overlapping; evergreen
• Growth rateVery slow

Conditions

• SoilRequires sharply drained gravelly or sandy soils; rots quickly in heavy or wet ground
• LightFull sun
• WaterVery low; strongly drought-tolerant and intolerant of overwatering
• ClimateThrives in hot arid and semi-arid regions and tolerates hard frost, being a high desert species

Additional Features

• FormTight, symmetrical, almost artichoke-like rosette holding an exact geometry with no maintenance
• UsesGravel and xeriscape gardens, repeated accents in median and roundabout beds, planters and podium schemes
• SpacingPlant 0.8 to 1 metre apart for a rhythm of individual rosettes
• Low MaintenanceRemove offsets where spread is unwanted; keep clear of paths because of the terminal spine
• Pest ResistanceFew significant pest or disease problems where drainage is sharp
• Drought ToleranceVery high, needing no supplementary water once established
• Frost ToleranceAmong the hardiest agaves in cultivation, widening the sites where it can be used
• ToxicitySharp terminal spine and marginal teeth; site away from paths, play areas and seating

Parry's Agave is the neatest of the blue agaves and the one that holds its geometry longest without intervention.