Agave polianthiflora

Agave polianthiflora, Tuberose-Flowering or Red-Flowering Agave, is an exceptionally beautiful small-growing Agave from the northern Mexican states of Sonora, Sinaloa and Chihuahua where it grows on barren rocky outcrops and amongst the oak and pine forests in the mountains of the Sierra Madre Occidental at elevations between 1200-2000m.

It has a diminutive habit with a compact rosette of dark green leaves with white bud-print markings and many white filifers. It has no marginal spines but there are very minute toothed serrations near the base of each leaf. The terminal spine is relatively weak. 

It is named for its strikingly unusual tubular flower which resembles the flower of Polianthes tuberosa except it is a bright pinkish-red in colour, as is the the stem which reaches up to 2m in height. This flower with its short tepal lobes and the proterogynous exsertion of its pistil is unique amongst all the Agaves. Agave polianthiflora rarely offsets but is more likely to  do so after flowering.

Its small stature makes Agave polianthiflora ideal for pot culture and it looks highly ornamental in a sympathetic terracotta container. It is however, a hardy Agave and providing it has excellent drainage will survive outdoors in the UK. It needs to placed near the front of a garden near the path or ideally perched on a rock at a higher level where it is less likely to be lost in the overall planting or swamped by the foliage of larger species.

Agave polianthiflora was first described by Howard Gentry in 1972 in his book, 'The Agave Family in Sonora'. His notes indicate he first collected it in the Sierra de Majalca mountain range on June 24 1936 at an altitude of around 1800m. This was at a time when Gentry was working on his monumental 'Rio Mayo Plants', a work which although centred on Sonora also included trips to the ridge tops of the Sierra Madre Occidental in neighbouring Chihuahua.

A choice collector's Agave, rarely available. Recommended.