Friday, November 13, 2009

Agave and Century Plants - the same thing?

Wikipedia says that agave and century plants are the same plant, called by a different name. However, the picture doesn't look like a century plant. Is there more than one kind of century plant, or is it a different veriety of agave? Are these two plants the same thing?

Agave and Century Plants - the same thing?
Agave is a genus with many species. They're called century plants because they grow for many years, flower once, and then die. This is a reproductive strategy for harsh environments called monocarpy or semelparity.





It costs a lot for them to reproduce because they are bat pollinated. They produce tons of nectar to lure the bats, and the inflorescences are really open so the bats can approach and land. The centers of the plants of one species (blue agave) where all the sugars are stored are harvested and fermented to make tequila.
Reply:Agave is the genius. The one most commonly referred to as century plant is A. americanus





tequila come from A. tequilana weber
Reply:Apparently 'Century Plant' is a broad term for all genus and species of Agave plant so that even if the species looks different,they are all 'century plants'


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