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We were thrilled how well Agave x protamericana ‘Silver Surfer’ came through the 11 degree F. cold snap this winter. This 2007 Plant Delights/JLBG agave introduction was our selection from a Yucca Do Nursery seed collection in Northern Mexico of a naturally occurring hybrid between Agave americana and Agave asperrima.
I live in Northern California, near Sacramento. I had a ‘Silver Surfer’ for 12 years. I finally removed it simply because it was too big for the space where I had planted it; I had bought it with the estimated mature size being 5′ x 5′. At time of removal, mine was 7’H x 12’W (as best I could measure), and the weight of the core and leaves total was almost 2000lbs! That said, it was beautiful and bullet-proof (through frost and rains in Winter to 100+ heat in Summer), well worth owning if one has the space.
Thanks for the heads up. Things certainly grow much larger in milder climates like Sacramento.
Agaves seem to grow larger in cultivation with plentiful water. My A. ovatafolia grew bigger than was forecast in the nursery catalog, and now one side has leave bent against the wall! And that is in Georgia, with far from a mild climate.
Most succulents don’t like our dense clay soil but many Agaves do not seem to mind it. They sure did not like the sub-20 temperatures this winter, though.
I lost many Agaves in the deep freeze of 2023, but Agave Harvardii and Agave Silver Surfer came through mostly unscathed. They are out of stock at Plant Delights, and I need to replace the dead Agaves of other species. If anyone knows where I can find ones that are medium sized to buy, let me know
We are rebuilding numbers on both and probably won’t have either prior to 2024.