Decade-old giant agave enters 'death bloom' stage

People are being given a final chance to see a giant, decade-old plant which has entered its final stage - or "death bloom".

The agave sisalana, also known as sisal hemp, at Birmingham Botanical Gardens has reached a height of 5.5m (18ft), and, like other agaves is monocarpic, meaning it will bloom just once before dying.

The plant has grown so large it is poking through the roof of their Arid Glasshouse.

The final phase can last more than half a year for larger plants and the botanical gardens has invited people to come to see the event.

The plant will live on through its offspring, a spokesperson added, because it had released hundreds of tiny plants known as bulbils, which can be used to grow new agaves.

The death bloom is the result of years of effort for the plant, which the gardens said had "finally gathered enough energy to produce a spectacular flower spike".

The process was "the botanical world's ultimate farewell tour" which would see "years of stored energy unleashed in one flowering display before the plant reaches the end of its life", they added.

The gardens said the tiny plants released by the dying flower would be collected and stored for future planting.

They have already started growing four clones of the mother plant, called pups.

The plants can grow for up to 20 years and is also known as Bahama hemp, the Royal Horticultural Society said.

Mature plants may produce a tall spike with branching clusters of small yellow-green flowers, after which the rosette dies off.

The species is used in the commercial production of sisal fibre, traditionally used for rope and twine.

The Birmingham Botanical Gardens agave can be found inside the Arid Glasshouse, which houses a collection of cacti, succulents and plants from dry regions of Africa, the Americas and Australia.

Access to the display is included with admission to the gardens.

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