Agave shawii

Photographs

My photos:

This plant was growing on a hillside at Torrey Pines. The photo below shows the same plant in relation to other plants around it - it is large!

More photos:

click photo to enlarge

Plant Information

Liliaceae

In the garden:

Agave shawii is a large fleshy succulent with a short trunk clothed with old leaves. The leaves are up to 20 inches long, glossy green, and edged with large red prickles. It blooms from December to March with numerous greenish-yellow flowers, each filled with a sweetish nectar. After flowering, the old plant dies, but is replaced by numerous suckers, which appear around the base of the old clump. This succulent is one of the finest native to California and it’s use is highly recommended. It is most useful for covering sunny banks and slopes, because it spreads and within a few years, will form large clumps. Because of the sharp spines on the leaves, this plant should not be placed where small children can get hurt by them. Propagate by seeds, which will germinate readily, or by removing the suckers from the base of older plants.

In the wild:

Native to the immediate coast of Baja and San Diego. Shaw's Agave is almost extirpated in the U.S. and should be reintroduced at selected coastal sites utilizing native seed as source material. All existing sites should be protected. A small population still grows at Border Field State Park within meters of Mexico. It has been introduced at Cabrillo National Monument, Torrey Pines, and other locales. A few plants occur naturally just south of Point Loma College. Data Base reports a vigorous population south of the Point Loma College site near the Fleet Combat Training Center west of Woodward Road.

Shaw's Agave is an abundant sometimes dominant shrub of the northern Baja coast, growing by the many thousands. North of Ensenada, near La Fonda, it covers hundreds of acres.

Ethnobotany:

The stalk was roasted for food by native people.

Field Trips
Anza Borrego Caspers Holy Jim Canyon Idyllwild
Joshua Tree Mt Palomar Rancho Santa Ana Torrey Pines

Index
Home