Agave pygmae Dragon Toes

The Agave pygmae 'Dragon Toes' is a horticultural species with a compact size and slow growth. It forms a regular rosette composed of wide, imbricate leaves that immediately catch the eye with their superb bluish colour. Their very graphic shape is accentuated by the dark red thorns that spread out around the perimeter to a long, thin terminal spine. This hardy succulent plant will perfectly withstand the summer drought on the French Riviera. Elsewhere, it will be grown in a pot to overwinter away from frost and humidity. Unlike many Agaves, this species tolerates a semi-shaded exposure quite well.

Agave is now classified in the Asparagaceae family, alongside the astonishing Eucomis (pineapple flower) and the charming Peruvian Scilla. The Agave genus is very prolific with around 270 species, some almost dwarf-sized, while others exhibit leaves several meters long. The Agave pygmae is native to the extreme south of Mexico, near the border with Guatemala, where it grows between 900 and 1000 meters above sea level. It is a tropical species, tolerating light frosts (down to -4°C) and in its native habitat, it is exposed to fairly abundant rainfall (1000 mm/year).
'Dragon Toes' is a horticultural selection that captivates with its incredible bluish colour. This slow-growing compact variety eventually forms a rosette 30 to 35 cm in diameter and height, with a perfect geometric shape that enhances its ornamental interest. The succulent leaves are obovate in shape, with a narrow base that widens significantly in the upper third, then narrows sharply to form a sort of wedge, extended by an extremely sharp and prickly rigid spine, approximately 2 cm long. The entire leaf margin is armed with short, sharp spines, dark red in colour, like the terminal spine. The leaves are so compressed vertically against each other before gradually opening to expand the rosette, that they bear, as if printed on their surface, the outlines of neighboring leaves. The patterns of these "Dragon Toes" armed with their claws further enhance the decorative and somewhat fantastical appearance of the plant. The rosette, dense and regular, very open when the plant is in full sun, will be more compact in a subject exposed to semi-shade. As with other species, this Agave eventually flowers after many years of cultivation (10 to 20 years), producing a spike adorned with small yellow-green tubular flowers. The rosette, classified as semelparous, dies after flowering which lasts several months, usually giving off shoots that regenerate a new plant.

Tolerating light frosts, down to -4/-5°C, the Agave pygmae 'Dragon Toes' can reasonably be planted in the open ground only on the coastal strip of the French Riviera, where it will acclimatize very well to the Mediterranean climate. Its small size will allow you to find a place for it even in the smallest gardens, where you can plant it alongside other succulent plants with various shapes, like the Cylindropuntia tunicata. This compact Cactus also forms a dense clump that intrigues with its countless white spines covering it completely. For an aesthetic contrast with these compact silhouettes, you can opt for finesse with the "Red Yucca" (Hesperaloe parviflora 'Rubra') with its long, very fine leaves gathered in a rosette, producing an airy and spectacular summer flowering in salmon pink. In other regions, you will need to overwinter your Agave away from frost and winter humidity, but you can enjoy it on your balcony or terrace for much of the year.