Every great origin story starts with a little mystery—and in the case of the mangave, it involves a desert rendezvous between two unlikely succulents. From seed wild-collected in Mexico in the late 1990s came the discovery of a natural hybrid between mottled tuberose (Manfreda variegata, Zones 7–10) and an agave, most likely Mitis agave (Agave mitis, Zones 8–11). The new hybrid genus was christened ×Mangave. The first named mangave cultivar, ‘Macho Mocha’, was introduced in 2004, inspiring plant breeder Hans Hansen to embark on a decades-long journey exploring mangave genetics. Hans has named nearly a hundred cultivars so far, with ongoing efforts focused on variegation and cold hardiness.
x Mangave and cvs.
Recent genetic analysis indicates that species formerly classified as Manfreda properly belong within the Agave genus. This means that mangaves are now all technically agaves, but the original nomenclature is still prevalent in the nursery trade. In the interest of clarity, we have continued to use xMangave as the genus name, and mangave as the common name to differentiate this unique group of plants from traditional agaves.
Zones: 9–11, with a few cultivars hardy to Zone 7b
Conditions: Full sun; well-drained, poor to average soil
Native range: Hybrids of North American species
Care: Avoid overwatering and poorly drained soil, which can
lead to root rot.
Propagation: New plants can be propagated from the bulbils or aerial plantlets that occasionally form on flower stalks, or by separating and potting up the pups that form at the base of a blooming parent plant.
Pests and diseases: While quite rabbit- and deer-resistant, mangaves may be damaged by slugs and snails. In regions where agaves are commonly grown, keep an eye out for the agave snout weevil, an insect whose larvae burrow and feed on the core of the plant.
Growing tips: Provided with full sun and moderate water, mangaves thrive in pots or in the ground. In regions with cold, wet winters, they can be overwintered indoors as houseplants.
TRIAL PARAMETERS
The Chicago Botanic Garden evaluated 37 mangaves—all Walters Gardens introductions—in 2020 and 2021. Two individuals of each variety were evaluated.
How Long: 2 years
Zone: 6a
Conditions: Full sun; grown in a standard potting mix in large planters. The plants were overwintered in greenhouses from October 2020 to May 2021.
Care Given: Maintenance, consisting of weeding and watering when necessary, was kept to a minimum. In the first year of the trial, the mangaves were interplanted with annuals, which required more water than the mangaves. By the second year, the mangaves had grown too large to allow space for seasonal plants and were only watered when needed. Besides observing the mangaves’ ornamental traits, we monitored them to see how well they grew and adapted to environmental conditions, while keeping a close eye on any disease or pest problems.
Agaves (Agave spp. and cvs., Zones 5–12) are New World succulents adapted to survive in hot, dry regions. They have rigid evergreen leaves armed with vicious terminal spines. They are monocarpic, meaning they flower once after many years of growth, then die. Tuberoses, or spice lilies (Manfreda spp. and cvs., Zones 7–10), are also North American natives but often need more water to grow well. They feature rosettes of supple deciduous leaves and are polycarpic, meaning that they can bloom annually. Mangaves combine traits of each parent, although some cultivars look decidedly like agaves—right down to the wicked spines—while others favor the softer look and spotting of tuberoses.
Some mangaves are quick to flower in a year or two, while others play it shy like agaves. The green, yellow, or pink flowers are quite lovely, borne on burly asparagus-like stalks that can grow 3 to 8 feet tall. Flowering often causes the plant structure to loosen up and become less architecturally refined. I suggest sharing with friends the pups that form at the base of the plant. Left on, they can unbalance the exquisite symmetry of the main rosette.
With their capricious blooming habits, mangaves are really all about the leaves—colors, patterns, spines, and textures—and the strong architectural forms they create. Leaves may be stiff or fleshy, narrow or wide, patterned or solid, spiny or smooth. The architecture of the rosettes is due to the upright, arching, squiggly, or relaxed habits of the leaves and varies widely among cultivars. Shades of blue and green are the leaves’ base colors, but they are often speckled, mottled, or suffused with red or purple tints that become richer with plentiful sunlight.
Mangaves are low-maintenance and versatile garden plants. They are drought tolerant, but will thrive and grow well with a moderate amount of water, with a growth rate that is much faster than most Agave species. When it’s time to bring them inside for the winter, remember the spiny ones can poke you. Enjoy them in a sunny window when possible, or overwinter them in low light in a cool basement, where watering about once a month will generally be enough. I recently discovered a mangave I’d forgotten in my basement for 20 months, and it was still alive, green, and plump! Never mind what this says about me as a gardener, or about the state of my basement.
| ON THE HORIZON |
Hardier cultivars are in the works
If you can grow mangaves outside all year long, you are a lucky gardener. Most cultivars are cold hardy to Zone 9, withstanding minimum winter temperatures around 25o F. But Hans Hansen, who has overwintered mangaves outside at Walters Gardens in USDA Zone 6a, has observed that mangave hardiness is mostly about the plants surviving through winter wetness, rather than tolerating low temperatures. “In western Michigan, keeping wet, sloppy, lake-effect snow off mangaves gives them a better chance,” Hansen says.
In his trials, the winter-hardiest mangaves released to date include
‘Whale Tale’, ‘Falling Waters’, and ‘Blue Mammoth’.
‘Redwing’, ‘Bad Hair Day’, and ‘Permanent Wave’ are the next hardiest
selections. Work is currently underway to develop future introductions
that are even hardier.
Top Performers Worth the Investment
‘Aztec King’ has a commanding yet elegant form. Each whorl of the wide, silvery green leaves arches to form a broad and rigidly upright habit. At nearly 2 feet tall and 3 feet wide in the second year, it fell short of being the biggest plant—that honor went to ‘Navajo Princess’. We grew ‘Aztec King’ in full sun, so the burgundy mottling was quite pronounced. This mangave produced a few pups but did not flower for us.
Unlike the stout formality of ‘Aztec King’, ‘Desert Dragon’ has a more relaxed organic symmetry. The low-growing plant sported a sort of squashed habit. The squiggly, undulating lines of the leaves are tentacle-like, giving the impression that the plant could scuttle away at any moment. Its minty green leaves are generously freckled with burgundy spots and lined with small teeth. ‘Desert Dragon’ held its unique form because it did not flower or produce pups in the trial.
‘Dreadlocks’ is a stouter and wavier version of ‘Desert Dragon’ but not a look-alike. Dark green leaves with strongly undulating margins arch downward, making it perfect for cascading over the edge of a pot. Purple spotting—strongest in full sun—coalesces into central stripes on the leaves. It boasted a low and broad habit after two years. Mottled ‘Dreadlocks’ paired wonderfully with the slightly unsettling yellow-and-purple button-like flowers of eyeball plant (Acmella oleracea, Zones 9–11), which both softened and accentuated the strong lines of the mangave.
‘Lavender Lady’ is just the right combination of delicate and dangerous. Its habit has major agave vibes, due to the refined rosette and cinnamon brown terminal spines. The smoky lavender tone comes from subtle purple spots that pepper the broad blue-gray leaves. This soft, sophisticated complexion heightens the perfection of the water lily–like habit. Tiny white spines on the margins create a luminous shadow that further mellows ‘Lavender Lady’. The pups were as flawless as the mother plant but should be removed to preserve its form.
‘Purple People Eater’ is a great name for a colorful mangave. But as with all plants in this genus, leaf color is not straightforward. Burgundy speckles blush the blue-green leaves, giving them an overall purple cast that intensifies in sunlight. ‘Purple People Eater’ looks like a pricklier ‘Lavender Lady’ with a similarly neat rosette habit. Here though, the rolled-up margins show off the colorful spines, which start out yellow, turn cinnamon, and finally become dark burgundy; the terminal spikes are cinnamon, too. Its strong architecture alone warranted a high score, but all the colors put it over the top. ‘Purple People Eater’ was pristine during the trial but flowered a couple of years later in the greenhouse.
The toothy, silvery blue leaves of ‘Sponge Paint’ are purple-flecked and tipped with an orange spine. The waxy coating on the short, broad leaves makes waterdrops sparkle like quicksilver when they pool in the rosette. It was the smallest of the mangaves in the trial—8 inches tall and 14 inches wide; ‘Moonglow’ and ‘Frosted Elegance’ were also under 10 inches tall. However, the nearly 5-foot flower stalk of ‘Sponge Paint’ was jarring rising out of the tight, compact rosette. A downside was the numerous pups that crowded the mother plant but not in the charming way hens and chicks (Sempervivum spp. and cvs., Zones 3–8) nestle together.
‘Spotty Dotty’ looks freckled from any distance—the dark burgundy spots show distinctly and plentifully against the stiff green leaves. Its strong architecture is reminiscent of ‘Falling Waters’, which has leaves that are only faintly freckled. Lots of wide, curvy, and slightly undulating leaves give ‘Spotty Dotty’ its full habit. The leaf tips arch outward, while the margins fold up and are lined with rusty orange spines. Deeply red-leaved ‘Mission to Mars’ was a brilliant companion to the shorter ‘Spotty Dotty’—at 12 inches tall, it was about half the height.
‘Tooth Fairy’ favors agave in habit and texture, with eye-catching spines that turn from golden yellow to rusty orange to burgundy. It’s hard to escape the wicked teeth—there’s even a pronounced imprint left behind as each whorl of the gray-green leaves unfurls. Don’t get me wrong—the spines are so much of its charm, and that includes the prominent terminal spines too. The compact plants did not produce enough pups to ruin the exquisite form. Unfortunately, the thick leaves were brittle and easily damaged during planting and transplanting. The strong habit and colorful spines of ‘Tooth Fairy’ are a beautiful foil to the playful colors and soft strappy leaves of ‘Carnival’.
Contributing editor Richard Hawke is the director of ornamental plant research at the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe, Illinois.
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