Agave xylonacantha

Agave xylonacantha is a plant species native to Hidalgo, Tamaulipas, Guanajuato and Queretaro in Mexico, but commonly cultivated as an ornamental on other regions. A. xylonacantha is an easy-to-grow member of the genus Agave. The specific epithet 'xylonacantha' means "wood spines".

Description

Agave xylonacantha produces a basal rosette of up to 180 cm in diameter. Leaves are sword-shaped, up to 90 cm long and 7.5 cm across, each ending in a spine about 4– 5 cm long. Margins of the leaves have spines up to 3 cm across. This gives the margins an undulating appearance. Flowering stalks can reach a height of 3.3 m. Flowers are up to 3.5 cm in diameter with greenish tepals.
Cultivars include:

'Frostbite': the leaf's edges are a creamy yellow
'Blue': the leaves are blue-green