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UTAH AGAVE - Agave Family Agave Utahensis      The agave looks like the yucca. You can tell the difference by the tall 15 foot stalk of the agave compared to the short 4 foot stalks of Grand Canyon yuccas. Also, agave leaves are angrily toothed along the sides. Many native American tribes eat the young stalk of the agave as well as roasting the "hearts."

   

Here are the agave leaves. For many years (15 to 25) prior to blooming, the leaf rosette is all you see. The plant dies after sending up the stalk and producing seed. An agave uses its last ounce of stored energy to reproduce, gloriously, martyring itself for the progeny.

   

Here is the top of the blooming agave stalk. Stalks grow at a furious rate--over a foot per day, about the same speed as the minute hand of a clock.

  Up to Trees and Shrubs  Ponderosa Pine  Pinyon Pine  Utah Juniper  Gambel Oak  Douglas-fir  Cliffrose  Apache Plume  Mormon Tea  Utah Serviceberry  Fernbush  Wax Currant  Big Sagebrush  Fremont Barberry  Rabbit Brush  Banana Yucca  Utah Agave  Mountain Mahogany Blueberry Elder Rock Mat Brickellbush Buffalo Berry