Use this forum to discuss matters relating to Agave, Beschorneria, Furcraea, Hesperaloe, Hesperoyucca, Manfreda, Polianthes, Yucca and related species. This is where one posts unknown plant photos for ID help.
Hit the scenic Route 66 very early today as I had plans. Spent some time in Oatman (as Ron recommended in one of his post) and rushed towards Sitgreaves pass to see if I can find Agave mckelveyana. I went all directions but to no avail. Many flower stalks, but all Nolina bigelovii which can be told apart from quite a distance. After about 90 minutes I gave up and hit the road. On the way towards Kingman there is a store where I stopped to take some pictures of Fouquieria splendens and getting back to the car I thought to myself, business purpose of my trip aside, I didn't take an 11h flight (plus another 11h back) without seeing mckelveya
I drove back, very slowly and was looking for a single flower stalk. And there she was. Very high in rough terrain. Fortunately there was a spot for the car to park. Did some rock climbing to get there but it was worthy. And as always with Agaves, where there is one, there are many. The moral of the story? None, but I felt I might share... the rest is in the photos.
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They grow quite high, see the road below
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ride home :-)
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Once in a while agaves are easy to find and photograph, but they usually make you work for it. And mckelveyana pops are generally pretty thin, so you have to work even harder.
Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".
"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
Gee.S wrote: ↑Sun Apr 07, 2024 8:16 pm
Once in a while agaves are easy to find and photograph, but they usually make you work for it. And mckelveyana pops are generally pretty thin, so you have to work even harder.
I felt rewarded and didn't want to leave the place. My next stop was Hualapai mountain camp, about 10 miles from Kingman. Found many of them there too, this time even higher up. Absolutely different habitat to the type locality. Shady slopes had snow. But that's for another post. Here's a teaser
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Been to Hualapai many times, a mckelveyana stronghold. A. parryi there once upon a time, but apparently no longer.
Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".
"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
Gee.S wrote: ↑Sun Apr 07, 2024 8:16 pm
Once in a while agaves are easy to find and photograph, but they usually make you work for it. And mckelveyana pops are generally pretty thin, so you have to work even harder.
I felt rewarded and didn't want to leave the place. My next stop was Hualapai mountain camp, about 10 miles from Kingman. Found many of them there too, this time even higher up. Absolutely different habitat to the type locality. Shady slopes had snow. But that's for another post. Here's a teaser
I drove up that road last year as well. I was looking for them on the south facing aspect but couldn’t find any, even at the top of the pass. As I headed back down I started seeing them on the steep, north-facing aspects. Very odd for an Agave, especially one of the more northern species.
Gafoto wrote: ↑Mon Apr 08, 2024 4:56 am
I drove up that road last year as well. I was looking for them on the south facing aspect but couldn’t find any, even at the top of the pass. As I headed back down I started seeing them on the steep, north-facing aspects. Very odd for an Agave, especially one of the more northern species.
In my limited experience with them in the garden I found they like to be a bit shaded.
Siouxland: USDA Zone 4b/5a & heat zone 6/7. Extremes at our farm: 108 F to -38 F.
Arid grassland with dry sunny winters, moderate summers, 27" annual precipitation.
Gafoto wrote: ↑Mon Apr 08, 2024 4:56 am
I drove up that road last year as well. I was looking for them on the south facing aspect but couldn’t find any, even at the top of the pass. As I headed back down I started seeing them on the steep, north-facing aspects. Very odd for an Agave, especially one of the more northern species.
In my limited experience with them in the garden I found they like to be a bit shaded.
In Hualapai some were growing literally in the understory, deprived of direct sun light whatsoever. Found many among these bushes, usually by a stalk sticking out.
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Gafoto wrote: ↑Mon Apr 08, 2024 4:56 am
I drove up that road last year as well. I was looking for them on the south facing aspect but couldn’t find any, even at the top of the pass. As I headed back down I started seeing them on the steep, north-facing aspects. Very odd for an Agave, especially one of the more northern species.
In my limited experience with them in the garden I found they like to be a bit shaded.
I wouldn’t have known about this if I hadn’t been to the Hualapai mountains. My plant does well in full sun and is sending out pups all over. It overwintered almost as well as the parryi in my garden, just a leaf or two lost. Not sure why this plant isn’t grown in Salt Lake. I would assume mostly because it’s barely commercially available in Arizona.
I can judge how hardy a plant is by how well emergent pups do and quite of few of the mckelveyana ones survived the winter. Agave lophantha pups started dying fairly quickly at the surface, parryi pups mostly survived unscathed and the one toumeyana v. bella offset that started last fall took no damage at all.
