Mangave Pineapple Express

Mangave Pineapple Express is a succulent plant that is part of a series of amazing North American hybrids resulting from the cross-breeding of Manfreda and Agaves. From the agaves, they display a remarkably architectural evergreen vegetation as well as a very perennial temperament, while they have their unique colours, less sharp spines and faster growth from the Manfreda.  This Pineapple Express variety, with its dark red punctate leaves, forms an upright clump that looks like the top of a pineapple in its habit. Drought-tolerant but not very hardy, it makes a very beautiful specimen to grow in a pot on the patio. In coastal or mild gardens, it will thrive in a rockery. 

Mangave Pineapple Express belongs to the Agavaceae family, now included by botanists in the much larger Asparagaceae family. This plant develops quite rapidly into a rosette of 25-30 cm (10-12in) tall and 40 cm (16in) wide, composed of numerous succulent leaves. The long leaves are wide, gutter-shaped, tapered to a point, beautifully curved, and bordered by small, non-prickly cinnamon-coloured spines. Their thick, shiny leaves are mint green in colour, they are randomly spotted and speckled with burgundy. Flowers will appear in favourable climates on mature plants, from August to October. From the centre of the rosette emerges a branched flower stalk bearing small white star-shaped flowers. Mangaves are plants for dry, well-drained soil, capable of withstanding brief frosts of around -5 to -7°C, depending on the variety.  They should be placed in full sun or, at most, partial shade in hot climates. The plant is evergreen.

To create exotic scenes in mild climates, Mangave Mission To Mars can be planted in a rockery, alongside other small agaves such as Agave montana, other differently coloured Mangaves, small agapanthus, or grasses like Carex comans Milk Chocolate or Stipa tenuifolia. Collectors of cacti and other succulent plants can highlight it on the patio or balcony by surrounding it with pots filled with sempervivum.