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Agave bracteosa 'Monterrey Frost' (Variegated Candelabrum Agave) - An unusual variegated form of the Candelabrum Agave (Agave bracteosa) that grows to 1 foot tall by a foot and a half wide. It has pliable unarmed arching narrow leaves with a sandpapery texture that are pale green edged with a creamy-white margin. This plant will offset sporadically once it matures and may flower though we have not heard of this cultivar doing so yet. Once the species plant matures it has a 4- to 5-foot-tall dense spike bearing small pale yellow to cream flowers with exerted stamens and pistils.
Plant in bright shade to part sun. It may take full sun along the coast. Water occasionally and protect from temperatures below 20 F. Agave bracteosa is native to northeastern Mexico, where it occurs in steep rocky areas and on cliffs in the mountains near Monterrey, Nuevo Leon and Saltillo, Coahuila. This cultivar has reportedly been passed along in California collectors' circles for more than a decade but has rarely been widely available. In 2007 Tony Avent acquired this beauty from Quail Botanical Gardens (now San Diego Botanic Garden) and got it to a micropropagation laboratory (tissue culture) to the benefit of all of us agavephiles! For more information on this species see our listing for Agave bracteosa. We also grow our own Agave bracteosa hybrid Agave 'Mateo' that we introduced in 2009.
The information displayed on this page about Agave bracteosa 'Monterrey Frost' is based on the research we have conducted about it in our nursery library as well as from information provided by reliable online resources. We also include our own observations made about this plant as it grows in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant have performed in the containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we have received from others and welcome hearing from anyone with information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information that will aid others to better grow it.
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