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Products > Agave 'Blue Flame'   Agave 'Blue Flame'    [2nd Image] Habit and Cultural Information Category: Succulent Family: Agavaceae (Agaves) Origin: Mexico (North America) Evergreen: Yes Flower Color: Yellow Green Bloomtime: Infrequent Synonyms: [A. 'Dave Verity', A. 'Huntington Toothed'] Parentage: (A. shawii x A. attenuata) Height: 2-3 feet Width: 2-3 feet Exposure: Full Sun Seaside: Yes Drought Tolerant: Yes Irrigation (H2O Info): Low Water Needs Winter Hardiness: 20-25° F Agave 'Blue Flame' - This is a beautiful succulent that forms clumps with rosettes which individually are 2 1/2 feet tall by to 3 feet wide. Older clumps build up to form large dense masses to up to 5 feet tall or more. The flexible blue-green leaves have finely serrate margins and terminal spine. The blue cast to the leaves form from a glaucus waxy cuticle that covers the surface of the younger leaves. This feature can be enhanced by promoting new growth and vigor by giving regular irrigation and fertilizer and avoiding overhead water that can wash the leaf surface. Plant in full sun except in hot inland and desert gardens where light shade will prevent scorching of the foliage. Irrigate little or regularly for more vigor. Hardy to at least 25 F. The name 'Blue Flame' is both in reference to the blue in the foliage and also to the shape of the plant, which resembles a gas flame with its gracefully incurved leaf tips. This hybrid between Agave shawii (seed parent) and Agave attenuata (pollen parent) was created by Dave Verity in the early 1960's at UCLA's Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden. A specimen was planted at Huntington Botanic Garden (HBG 19706) where it first flowered in 1983. It is interesting that this is a cross between the subgenus Agave and Littaea with A. shawii (subgenus Agave), adding frost hardiness to the otherwise tender A. attenuata (subgenus Littaea). The hybrid inherits Agave attenuata's smooth, spineless, flexible foliage and graceful inflorescence while it gets a terminal spine and dark a finely serrate margin from Agave shawii - it is not as gentle as Agave attenuata but not as spiny as Agave shawii. The Huntington Botanic Garden has introduced this beautiful plant through the ISI (International Succulent Introduction) program in conjunction with Pacific Horticulture's PPP (Pacific Plant Promotions) in 2005 with the designation ISI 2005-6. Our original stock plants came from Rancho Soledad Nursery.  The description above is based on our research and observations of this plant growing in our nursery and in our own and other Santa Barbara gardens. We would appreciate hearing from anyone who has additional information or disagrees with what we have written.     [MORE INFO]