Succulents and More™

My previous post was about one kind of agave-related affliction: edema caused by sudden changes in temperature and/or light level. This post is about another — one that is far more serious because it’s almost always fatal. I’m talking about the dreaded agave snout weevil. I wrote about it before: in a neighbor’s garden , and in my own . After my last encounter, back in December , I treated the agaves near the infested plant in my garden with imidacloprid, an insecticide that kills on contact and also works systemically. It was effective because I haven’t had any other problems in that bed. However (isn’t there always a however?), I didn’t go far enough. I should have treated all the agaves inside the front yard fence. Then my beloved Agave ‘Sun Glow’ in the bed next to the front door might still be alive. I noticed a while ago that ‘Sun Glow’ was leaning forward more than before. I have seen ‘Blue Glow’ (the non-variegated parent of ‘Sun Glow’) do that as the rosette gets heavier and...

In August, I blogged about an agave snout weevil infestation in a friend’s house a couple of blocks away. I was definitely concerned about the agaves in my garden, but I didn’t notice any suspicious signs at the time. Maybe I didn’t take it seriously enough, didn’t look carefully. If I was too complacent, I no longer am now. The day of reckoning has come, because the agave snout weevil is officially here. Agave shawii × potatorum , a beautiful hybrid by Jeremy Spath I began with me noticing that the Agave shawii × potatorum in the front yard looked a bit lopsided. Granted, Agave shawii and hybrids involving Agave shawii often have a bit of a lean to them, as if they’re reaching for the sun. But the angle on this particular plant was more pronounced than you would expect. Sure enough, when I nudged it, it wiggled every which way – an agave firmly rooted into the ground wouldn’t do that. It took very little effort to lift the entire plant straight up. This is what I found on the unde...

Once upon a time, my friend Darell, who lives a couple of blocks away, planted an Agave americana ‘Mediopicta alba’ much like the one below: Agave americana ‘Mediopicta alba’ in our garden (removed last year because it was encroaching into the sidewalk) A while ago, Darell had noticed that his Agave americana ‘Mediopicta alba’ didn’t look so hot: The lower leaves were turning black, and the upper leaves had begun to shrivel at the base. He doesn’t water very much, and initially he thought it was because of that. When I stopped by his place yesterday, I suggested he remove his  Agave americana  ‘Mediopicta alba’ and plant something nicer instead. For fun, I kicked the center of the agave with my foot. It wiggled so much, it was immediately clear that it wasn’t attached to the soil any longer. A stronger push with my foot knocked the entire plant over, exposing this gruesome sight: At the bottom, a hole in the ground. At the top, a spongy mess: When I lifted up the remaining bot...