Other Names:  Manfreda x Agave

Group/Class:  Mad About Mangave Collection

Brand:  Walters Gardens

Description:

This interesting selection produces a large rosette of blue-green succulent leaves with chartreuse stripes and red spotting that is more intense toward the center; grown primarily for foliage; a great low-maintenance patio plant; must have good drainage

Ornamental Features

Painted Desert Mangave is primarily valued in the garden for its cascading habit of growth. Its attractive serrated sword-like leaves remain bluish-green in color with distinctive dark red spots and tinges of chartreuse throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Painted Desert Mangave is an herbaceous perennial with a shapely form and gracefully arching foliage. Its wonderfully bold, coarse texture can be very effective in a balanced garden composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. Deer don't particularly care for this plant and will usually leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Painted Desert Mangave is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Painted Desert Mangave will grow to be about 12 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 20 inches. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 5 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant should only be grown in full sunlight. It prefers dry to average moisture levels with very well-drained soil, and will often die in standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.

Painted Desert Mangave is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing a canvas of foliage against which the thriller plants stand out. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.