328 
Cultivation  of  Agaves. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
July,  1900. 
Nearly  all  the  agaves  are  natives  of  Mexico,  Central  America 
and  the  Southwestern  United  States,  a  few  others  being  found  in 
South  America  and  the  West  Indies.  Agave  Americana,  the  best 
known  species,  is  cultivated  along  the  Mediterranean  in  India  and 
Africa. 
The  thick  fleshy  leaves  of  agaves,  arranged  around  a  very  short 
axis  in  the  form  of  a  tuft,  are  in  most  species  armed  with  stout 
terminal  spines  and  prickly  or  horny  margins.  The  young  leaves 
wrap  very  tightly  around  each  other,  forming  a  long  cone-shaped 
central  bud.  The  outer  surface  is  adapted  to  resist  the  evaporation 
of  moisture,  and  the  roots  as  well  as  the  leaves  contain  a  large 
amount  of  mucilage  and  saponin,  which  retain  water  with  great 
tenacity,  and  enable  the  plants  to  live  in  the  most  arid  regions. 
These  plants  grow  slowly,  and  under  cultivation  are  so  rarely 
known  to  bloom  as  to  have  long  been  called  "  Century  Plants." 
Under  their  natural  conditions  they  reach  maturity  in  from  three  to 
fifteen  years,  according  to  the  species.  When  this  period  is  reached 
the  new  leaves  become  smaller  and  narrower  and  the  central  bud 
thickens.  The  flower-stalk  appears  and  rapidly  shoots  upward, 
sometimes  reaching  a  height  of  forty  feet.  In  some  species  this 
flower-stalk  looks  like  an  immense  candelabra  bearing  many  flowers 
of  a  greenish-yellow  color.  Such  a  great  expenditure  of  vitality 
usually  exhausts  the  plant,  and  after  sending  out  suckers  or  offsets 
it  dies,  to  be  succeeded  by  the  next  generation.  Some  species, 
however,  bear  annual  leaves  and  may  bloom  annually,  but  these 
are  not  of  great  economic  importance. 
There  are  over  1 50  described  species  of  agaves,  about  one-half 
of  which  are  indigenous  to  Mexico,  but  when  these  plants  become 
better  known  there  is  no  doubt  but  that  the  number  of  species  will 
become  greatly  reduced. 
Much  remains  to  be  done  in  the  way  of  studying  these  plants,  as 
in  but  few  cases  can  their  well-known  and  important  economic  pro- 
ducts be  referred  to  a  certain  species. 
ECONOMIC  PRODUCTS. 
The  uses  to  which  agaves  have  been  put  are  almost  as  extensive 
as  those  of  the  famous  cocoanut  palm. 
Of  the  more  important  economic  products  may  be  mentioned 
ropes,  twine,  thread,  sacks,  hammocks,  saddle-cloths,  hats,  baskets, 
