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Agave lechuguilla Agave lechuguilla Torr. Agave lophantha Schiede var. poselgeri (Salm-Dyck) A. Berger Agave poselgeri Salm-Dyck Agave multilineata Baker Agave heteracantha Hort. Agave univittata var. tamaulipasana Agave univittata var. subcanescens Agave univittata var. gracilior Agave univittata var. brevifolia Agave univittata var. caerulescens Agave univittata var. angustifolia Agave lophantha var. tamaulipasana Agave lophantha var. subcanescens Agave lophantha var. poselgeri Agave lophantha var. pallida Agave lophantha var. caerulescens Agave lophantha var. brevifolia Agave lophantha var. angustifolia Agave lophantha var. gracilior Agave caerulescens Lechuguilla, Shin Dagger
Lechuguilla is a common North American native species. It is an indicator species of the Chihuahuan Desert. Indigenous cultures relied on this plant’s saponins to produce soap, as this 1922 report describes. This is a highly variable species, as is implied by the many past scientific names that have since been found to be the same species. Identification: The leaf rosette is 10-18" (25-45 cm) tall and 16-27" (40-68 cm) around, composed of 8-60 leaves, but usually around 20. It often produces ”offsets”—new nearby plants. Leaves are thick, curved, and tipped with sharp spines (hence the name “shin dagger”). They have irregularly spaced teeth on the leaf edges. After about 30 years, the lechuguilla grows a stalk 6½-16' (2-5 m) high, blooms with red- or purple-shaded yellow flowers, and keels over dead. (This rather extreme approach to flowering is shared by most agaves.) Edibility: Poisonous
Agave lechuguilla, Garcia, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. • 9/7/2005 • by Carlos Velazco References:
Irish, Mary & Irish, Gary, Agaves, Yuccas and Related Plants: A Gardener’s Guide, Timber Press, 2000, p. 132 Online References:
Agave lechuguilla on Desert-tropicals.com Agave lechuguilla on Chihuahuan Desert Plants Agave lechuguilla on www.explorenm.com Agave lechuguilla on eFloras Agave lechuguilla on the USDA Forest Service's Fire Effects Information Database Agave lechuguilla description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 8 Feb 2012. © FloraFinder.com. All rights reserved. |
The tall foreground plant is the lechuguilla; the cactus behind is probably Engelmann prickly pear (Opuntia engelmannii). · 11/20/2010 · Living Desert, near Carlsbad Caverns, Elev. ~3200', NM Range: Zones 7-10:
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Several agents in lechuguilla
make it unpalatable to people; but sheep, goats and sometimes cattle are poisoned when they
attempt to eat it. This is easily avoided by making sure more desirable forage is available.
