Mangave Lavender Lady

The Mangave Mangave Lavender Lady is a very decorative small succulent plant that is part of an original hybrid series, resulting from the crossing between Manfreda and Agaves. From the agaves, they borrow a remarkably architectured persistent vegetation as well as a very lively temperament, while the Manfreda have bequeathed them unique colours, less sharp thorns and a faster growth rate. This compact Lavender Lady varietyfeatures foliage that evolves from finely powdered almond green with a touch of pink to dark grey.  Resistant to drought but not very hardy, it makes a lovely subject to grow in a pot on the terrace. In seaside or mild climate gardens, it will thrive in a rockery. 

The Mangave Mangave Lavender Lady belongs to the Agave family, now included by botanists in the much larger Asparagus family. This plant develops into a rosette 20 cm in height by 30 cm in width, composed of numerous rigid and succulent leaves. The leaves are short and quite wide, slightly concave, pointed, almost smooth at the edges. Their thick, matt, light green limb is finely speckled with lavender pink. The leaves gradually turn greyer, retaining a nearly white fine border. Flowering will appear in favourable climates on mature plants, from August to October. From the centre of the rosette emerges a branched floral stem bearing small star-shaped white flowers. Mangave Mangave plants thrive in dry, well-drained soil, capable of withstanding short frosts of around -3 to -7°C depending on the varieties. They should be placed in full sun or at a stretch in partial shade in warm climates. The vegetation persists in winter.

To create exotic scenes in mild climates, the Mangave Mangave Lavender Lady will be planted in a rockery, alongside other small agaves like 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 showcase it on the terrace or balcony by surrounding it with pots filled with joubarbes.