Growing agave at home - instructions

Agave is an exotic plant that came to us from the deserts of Central America. In the wild, there are about 300 species, but only American agave is popular at home. This is a large bush with fleshy leaves, it blooms once every 10 years, and sometimes even less. Naturally, agave grows up to 5 m in diameter. Growing an agave at home produces a much smaller shrub and often depends on the size of the pot in which it grows. Agave flowers are yellowish, collected in small tassels. It blooms very rarely, once every 10 years, and sometimes even less often.

Growing agave in different ways - reproduction

Agave itself is an unpretentious plant, and it will not be difficult to grow it at home, but there are still several rules for this. Agave propagated by seeds. Cuttings can also be grown from root and stem processes.

Planting seeds: this method is not the best, because they develop and germinate for a very long time. Seeds are sown in a container in which the top layer of about 5 cm should be sand. In early February, seeds are sown in wet sand, to a depth of no more than 1 cm, cover the container with a film and put in a warm place. After a week, the seeds begin to germinate, the film is removed, and the seedlings are sprayed from a spray bottle. After 2 months, the plant grows up to 8 cm in height and 15 in diameter. And a month later, a socket is already forming.

Propagation by cuttings: Agave needs to be transplanted once a year, during transplantation, you can cut the cuttings and propagate the plants with them. But the cuttings must be cut correctly so that each of them has at least 1 bud. Cut cuttings must be dried within 3 hours after cutting, after which they must be planted in a container with wet sand. It does not need to be watered much, with warm water, then the cutting will quickly take root and begin to develop leaves.

Growing from root and stem processes: growing from children is not difficult. When children appear, they must be carefully separated from the flower with a sharp knife, and left to dry for a day. After that, a seedling must be planted in a pre-prepared mixture of fertilized soil and sand, it cannot be watered immediately, the first watering should be only on the third day. And in the future, until the flower takes root, it is watered little by little, no more than once a week.

Agave growing conditions and care

In the future, caring for the agave is not difficult, everything lies in the right lighting so that there is enough of it. Water rarely and in moderation, and feed the plant, the main thing is that the feeding is in moderation. And most importantly, dust must be wiped off the leaves.

Young plants need to be transplanted once a year, but those over 5 years old are transplanted every 2-3 years.

Agave watering should be correct, once every 10 days, but in no case should it be sprayed, drops of water can roll into the center of the outlet, and from the fact that there is too much of it, the plant can rot.

Top dressing should be applied in moderation and only in the summer. 1 time in 2 weeks, a little bit.

The soil of the flower should always be loose, best of all, if there are stones on the surface of the pot, and the rosette will be fixed by them, then oxygen will better reach the roots.

Agave diseases are very rare. A flower can only hurt if it is not properly looked after. Too often watered or applied too much.Agave pests can only have thrips or scale insects, and if you find them on your plant, then immediately wash the leaves with soapy water or boric acid. Washing should be repeated every five days, until the pest disappears completely.

That's all the rules, although initially it seems that growing agave will be difficult, due to the fact that the plant is exotic. In fact, it turns out that the main thing is to follow the simple rules of care and then the agave will always delight you with its beauty and its very rare flowering.

Growing agave, how to transplant - video

Agave plant photo