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of this characteristic, that is constant in many species. There are others than never die after they 

 flower but continue to grow new buds next to the ones that produced the flowers. Therefore the 

 Agave americana, Salmiana, Verschaffelti, etc.are of this type and the Agave densiflora, 

 chiapensis, dasyliroides, geminiflora, etc. continue to produce Vegetation after they bloom. This 

 characteristic is important in the description of each species. It seems to be more constant than 

 the other one that you told me about but that I did not find constant: I am refering to the absence 

 of a stem. Certain species remain the same until they bloom and then die.For example the Agave 

 Schidigera. that Lemair and Jacobi want to distinguish from the Agave filifera, mainly because it 

 has a stem; I am otherwise convinced together with Koch, that it is a simple seminal variety of 

 the filifera. 



Now I want to teil you a little of the bud that normally becomes a flower and that I have sent 

 you. According to the gardener from Lyon these grow on the shafts of the Verschaffelti. It is 

 similar to the phenomenon that frequently occurs in the Agave americana, of which you have 

 much knowledge ( it has been described by many authors for example Siricius in 1709). 



I want to talk to you about the young subterranean offspring of the Agave americana, that even 

 though they are only a few centimeters tall, flower at the same time as the plant giant that gave 

 them birth. They therefor form miniature florescence of 10 to 90 centimeter at the side of the 

 one whose shaft is 7 to 8 meters tall. The Agave americana, of which I send you a photograph, 

 shows remarkable examples of the flowering offspring; that is not well seen as they are hidden 

 among the large leaves of the plant. I sent you a drawing of the different types of unusual 

 phenomena. Sometimes these small flowers grow on branched shafts; at othe times it is a single 

 grape or a Cluster. With our Agave Verschaffelti, we have a unique flower that grew in the 

 middle of a Cluster. 



I have here a perspective of the flowering of the following Agaves that are already more of less 

 developed: 



Agave mitraeformis ( of the Salmiana or Jacobiana variety) 



Agave Schidigera. 



Agave dialbata (dasyliroides) 



Agave densiflora hybris Ousselghemiana. 



This year there will be without doubt some Ag. Verschaffelti that are flowering, but until now 

 there are no developed shafts. 



In regards to your Agave Shawnii, I suppose, according to the people I have talked to here, it is 

 perhaps identical and perhaps very close to the species that is frequently cultivated here and 

 carries the name of Agave Ghiesbrechtii (Lemaire). The seeds Coming from your pods are 

 already quite big and therefor their identity can be well defmed. This plant has the name of 

 Agave squalidens ( teeth of sequins). 



