Of Squirrels, Lithops and Agaves

Innocent enough looking isn't it? Don't let it deceive you, because all kinds of mischief is going on inside that little brain. This winter they have been especially good at trying to chew their way into our attic. That battle continues.

But, worse than that, they have discovered one of our greenhouses. Our first evidence was the Lithops. They got into the greenhouse at night and ate 90% of the Lithops, leaving just empty shells scattered about the bench.

We patched the holes and thought we had won the battle of wits. No such luck. Two new holes dug in under the outside edge of the greenhouse. This time they decided the agaves were haute cuisine. And their tastes run to the more expensive, rarer varieties. This is war!

Dragonfly on Agave

Lynn-Marie had fun taking this pictures the other day. The dragonflies are back, doing their thing. Fascinating creatures.

Agave victoriae-reginae 'Kazo Bana' or 'Golden Princess'

This plant is about 40 years old and yet grows nicely in a 10 inch diameter pot. It's a wonderful plant to grow, of easy culture, and is even quite hardy to cold. As with most succulents, however, it doesn't like to sit in a lot of water!

Agave schidigera 'Shira ito no Ohi'

What more could you ask? It's relatively small in growth, has beautiful coloration and fascinatingly long and curly threads. In addition, like most agaves, it's quite easy to grow, even as a potted specimen in areas where it can't be grown outdoors year 'round. Can you guess? It's one of my favorites.

An Agave is Blooming in Brookings

The newspaper in Brookings, Oregon (on the Southern Oregon Coast) reported on the blooming of an Agave in the downtown area.

Actually there are quite a few agaves planted around Oregon and there are times when they bloom. Most of the information in the article is accurate. I just wish that writers would quit calling all things which are succulent and prickly a "cactus". This is not a cactus, and to call it such just confuses people, making it more difficult to learn how to grow them.
End of rant!

Agave schidigera 'Shira ito no Ohi'

This is a small, slow growing Agave, which is perfect for those who just don't have room or climate to grow the larger agaves. Growing to a foot across it can make an outstanding specimen in a nice pot, or grown in the ground in a dryer zone 8 or warmer.

Alien Creatures from Another Dimension?

Actually, these are offsets of Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor'. Lynn-Marie's been cleaning out the agave section and taking a few new pictures along the way.

However, one of our readers thinks the blog titles are too boring; things like "Oregon Cactus & Succulent Society Meeting" put people to sleep. So, in keeping with his criticism, I'm proposing a new title: "Strange People with Weird plants to gather in Rare location. Other succulent people invited."

Agave 'Creme Brulee' - again but larger

Yesterday I posted a picture of a small offset of this plant; this is a larger, more mature plant. The pink edges vary with the growing conditions, of course, and with the time of the year.

I think tomorrow I'll have to get the camera out an take some more photos. There's plenty to observe, but I always end up having something else to do. Like, tomorrow, we have to go out and get some plants from a wholesaler. Not a lot. And they're all plants which will be going out with orders very soon. (I know, we're on "vacation", but there some orders which have been hanging on and just have to get out...now!)

Agave guiengola 'Creme Brulee'

Even as tiny little starts, the coloration on this cultivar is already amazing.

Fall is definitely in the air. It's staying dry with no rain forecast for the next five days, but the days are getting cooler (50C). Daytime temperatures are staying very comfortable - in the low to mid 70s F (21-24C), but the daylight hours are getting shorter and shorter. And as a sure sign, not only are Halloween items in the stores, but Christmas supplies as well. I halfway expect to see Valentine's Day candies on the shelves any day now...:(

Agave attenuata 'Ray of Light'

Unfortunately, Agave attenuata isn't one of those hardy agaves that we can grow outdoors, but this relatively new cultivar is worth growing as a potted specimen and providing some winter protection.

It's called 'Ray of Light'. There are A. attenuata plants with more splashy variegation, but in my opinion this one has just the right amount of white, giving it a real elegance.

Enjoy your plants!

In the yard

Just a miscellaneous shot of some plants in the back yard. Nothing special. I'll try to get some new photos tomorrow.

Agave Table

Today I just took a snap at one of the tables with Agaves on it...plus a few other miscellaneous things. We didn't start out with many Agaves, but we kept adding more and more...and more. We just couldn't resist. Many are quite hardy in our area...if it weren't for all the rain. With excellent drainage and protection from the rain, many will get through our winters fine.

Enjoy your plants!

Agave montana 'Baccarat'

Finally, I'm back, computer problems behind me.  Tonight the featured photo is of Agave montana 'Baccarat', with its distinctive leaf imprints and showy spines.

We have always been drawn to agaves (not too close!) and even though we don't have enough room, our collection keeps growing. About half of them are on our unheated enclosed porch because there's no room in the greenhouses. It hasn't gotten extremely cold yet this winter, but we've had several hard freezes, and they're all doing fine.

Enjoy your plants!

Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor'

We didn't start out growing Agaves, but but we just couldn't help ourselves. Many were so striking we just had to add them to our greenhouses and this is one of them: Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor'. One of the nice things about this one is that it stays relatively small, a foot to two feet across and about a foot tall. Unfortunately, it's not reliably hardy for our area, tolerating - if dry - somewhere between 20 and 25 degrees F. Even if we have a mild winter and don't get into the low 20s, our cold is almost always wet. ... Oh well, it also makes a great potted specimen plant for the patio or deck!

x Mangave 'Bloodspot'

In some recent treatments of these genera Manfreda is placed within Agave, making this an interspecific Agave hyrid rather than an intergeneric. But the jury still seems to be out so we'll keep the x Mangave label for now. Whatever it's botanical name, it's still 'Bloodspot', a very appropriate name. It's probably quite hardy, but not hardy enough for us here in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. Not a big deal because it makes a very nice potted specimen.

Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor'

I took this photo last month. Just haven't had enough time during the last few days to take some pictures. This is Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor', one of my favorite variegated Agaves. It's not hardy enough to take our winters, but I don't know what it is...we just can't resist a nice Agave. And, luckily, many of them will stay quite small for quite a long time when grown as a pot specimen.

Naturally, it rained this morning, but it's supposed to be nice by this weekend. At any rate, there may be a bit of an absence on my part due to all the work of preparation and the long days at the sale. We'll see.

Agave guiengola 'Creme Brulee'

The coloration on these plants has been outstanding this year. Eventually they will grow to be very large, like the non-variegated species. But it's not especially cold hardy, taking temps down to the upper 20s F but objecting to anything lower. So...for warmth deprived areas such as ours, it makes a great larger pot specimen which is brought into cover during the cold of winter. Well worth the effort.

Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor'

Another group of plants which gives us color when there aren't many flowers are the Agaves, and one of my favorites is Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor'. It's one of those plants which improves with age. And it stays relatively small so it doesn't crowd you out of house and home.

Enjoy your plants!

Agave potatorum

Agave potatorum is an extremely variable species. This picture is of one we've had for quite a few years. It stays quite small but clumps and the patterns of the leaves and thorns can be quite fascinating.

Oh, and the name comes from the Latin: "potator", which translates as "of the drinkers", referring to alcoholic beverages made using this plant.