Agave palmeri

What to Eat

Edible parts: Bud, Plant heart, Sap - drink, Seeds

Agave palmeri is used to produce mezcal spirit and bacanora. Mezcal is made by harvesting mature plants from the wild, removing the leaves and roots, then slow-baking the remaining hearts — often in an earth oven — before mashing them and allowing the liquid to ferment for a few days prior to distillation. The plant is also collected for direct eating. The heart of the rosette, after roots and leaves are removed, can be slow-baked for several hours to convert carbohydrates into sugars; the heart can then be eaten, converted into mezcal, or dried for later use, with the best examples having a very sweet, syrup-like flavour. The slow-baked leaf bases are edible but very fibrous — they are chewed for their sweetness and the fibrous remains spat out. The young flowering stem can be cooked and eaten; it is sweet though sometimes fibrous. Flower buds and flowers can also be cooked and eaten. Copious nectar produced during flowering is sometimes collected and drunk; although sweet, it can be rather nauseous but improves when boiled with the froth skimmed off. Many people find agaves strongly laxative the first few times they eat them. The young, tender, emerging flowering shoots are still eaten in Mexico. This species is among the sweeter-tasting members of the genus, with little or no bitter sapogenins detected in most assays; however, leaves from one sample were found to contain 0.5% hecogenin, while several other samples tested negative. Parts used include caudices (crowns, heads, or hearts), flower stalks, flower buds, flowers, and seeds. Extensive preparation is often required, as cooking reduces saponins. Crowns can be gathered at any time but traditionally were harvested when flower stalks emerged; flower stalks are best gathered when they first appear (April to June) while still soft. Traditionally, Native Americans baked agave flower stalks and crowns in fire pits overnight; baked parts can be consumed immediately or stored. Agave syrup is made by boiling baked crowns with water.

Known Hazards

Where to Find It

It can tolerate temperatures to -12°C for short periods. It suits hardiness zones 8-11.

Australia, Mexico*, North America, USA,

How to Identify

A succulent plant with a rosette of spiny leaves. The leaves are dark blue. They are 1 m long and 3-5 cm wide. The plant can be 1.5 m across. The flower stalk can be 3-5 m tall. It has 8 to 12 branches. The buds are reddish and the flowers are white.

How to Grow

Agave species are found mainly in the arid and semi-arid regions of southwestern N. America, especially in Mexico. Many species can withstand at least a few degrees of frost and will succeed outdoors in warm temperate climates, but only in drier regions and where soils are very well-drained. Agave species generally require a sunny position, succeeding in most soils of medium fertility so long as they are well-drained. Most species are undemanding about the soil pH, though those found in the wild on limestone soils will grow better in neutral to alkaline conditions. Plants are generally very tolerant of dry conditions and drought. Most Agave species are monocarpic, individual rosettes living for a number of years without flowering before sending up an often very large flowering stem and then dying after flowering and setting seed. This species, however, occasionally produces several new rosettes from suckers towards the end of its lifespan, and these new plants will continue to grow after the death of the parent plant. Individual plants take about 7 - 15 years in their native habitat, considerably longer in colder climates, before flowering. This species is an important nectar source for the threatened Lesser Long-nosed Bat (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae). Members of this genus are rarely troubled by browsing deer. Bloom Time: Late spring to early summer. Wildlife: Flowers are better left for wildlife as they contain acrid compounds, making them unpalatable for human consumption. Environmental Impact: Some species are protected, so gathering may be restricted in certain areas. Challenges: Dislodging an agave is difficult and requires tools like a sharp axe. Preparation: Removing leaves to access crowns is challenging due to their toughness and spines.

Propagation: Sow seed on the surface in a light position in mid-spring in a warm greenhouse; germination typically occurs within 1–3 months at 15–20°C. Prick out seedlings into individual pots of well-drained soil when large enough to handle and grow on in a sunny greenhouse position until at least 15cm tall. Plant out at the beginning of the growing season and provide some protection from cold for at least the first few winters. Offsets and suckers can be potted up at any time and kept in a warm greenhouse until well established. Bulbils, where produced, offer an easy propagation method — pot them up and plant out at the start of a growing season once they reach 10cm or more in height.

Medicinal Uses

None known.

Other Uses

The leaves are a source of fibre used for making cordage.

Agave palmeri (also known as Palmer's century plant) is an especially large member of the genus Agave, in the family Asparagaceae.

Notes

There are about 250 Agave species. The Agavaceae are mostly in the tropics and subtropics.

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