What is a century plant and why is it called that?
“Century plant” is a common, but inaccurate, nickname for the approximately one-hundred and thirty different species of Agaves native to the Southwest and Mexico. Our local Agave is the Golden-flowered Agave (Agave chrysantha). As a group or species they are all commonly known as “Century plants” because of their supposed longevity. The truth is they don’t even live close to 100 years before sending up a huge flower stalk. Their average lifespan is only 6-30 years, depending on the species. Once Agaves flower they die – with a few exceptions. They reproduce themselves either by seeds from the often candelabra shaped flower cluster, by “pups” or “offsets” (known as “hijos” in Spanish) that sprout from the root system of the mother plant or, in a few species, by producing miniature plants on the flower stalks called bulbils. The pups and the bulbils are genetically identical clones of the mother plant.
