Beschorneria ID Help

[Allen Repashy]

Hey Guys,

I just stopped by to visit with Southwest Steve and check out a Beschorneria that he had in all it's glory.

Can someone out there with experience in the genus ID this plant? Steve said he got it as an offset from a large specimen quite a few years ago. At the time, and until it bloomed, he thought it was some kind of a Furcraea.

The plants are quite large as seen by the photo..... The flower spike is huge. My first thought is that is Beschorneria 'Ding Dong' but I am not sure if that plant has been around long enough to be the plant. It is quite outrageous whatever it is. I have a bunch of 'Ding Dongs' that I was growing along that I have been quite bored with, but picturing a big clump of these on my hillside has given me new inspiration! These things are monsters!

The leaf's are smooth on the top and have a bit of a sandpaper texture on the outer part of the leaf bottom.... but the center is smooth.....

Maybe Steve can give us more details on how old the plants are.....

BTW, to add to the confusion, there is an spineless Agave weberi in the left foreground of the clump, so don't think that is also a Beschorneria.

Anyone?

[Tony Avent]

Allen:

I'm far from an expert, but the only species I've seen this large is B. decosteriana. I'd check with Brian Kemble at Ruth Bancroft Gdn.

[Allen Repashy]

Thanks Tony,

So would you say it is your opinion from the pic that it is NOT 'Ding Dong'?

Allen

[Tony Avent]

Allen:

If it is, it's one of the biggest ones I've ever seen, but then that happens in So. Cal.

[STEVE IN SOCAL]

I think I got them as small offsets about 4 years ago. What you're looking at is Beschorneria and A.weberi that were small and put in 3x9 liners and placed in a bulb tray. One of those projects that got ignored and grew so big I got intimidated (and lazy) and never bumped them up. They get overspray from avocado irrigation.
I'm 6' tall, so I'd guess they're about 5' tall.
Will the main rosette die after flowering?

[Nick PGP]

I'm thinking the photos make them look bigger than they actually are. Up on a raised bed, right?

What you have there is the commonly grown B. yuccoides subsp. dekosteriana (AKA B. decosteriana) if you ask me. B. yuccoides subsp. yuccoides is similar, but is considerably rarer in cultivation. I've had the former reach 3m (10ft) in flower in cool, damp old England.

[Allen Repashy]

Thanks Nick,

They are growing pretty much out of the ground. Steve set the 3" pots on the ground and they grew through the bottom, busted the pots, and became what they are now.

Cheers, Allen

[STEVE IN SOCAL]

The liners are 9" tall, so subtract that from what you see in the photo. I still would say they're 5' tall.

[Allen Repashy]

If my variegated ones get anywhere near this size, they are going to be a site to behold!

[Nick PGP]

Originally Posted by Allen Repashy

Thanks Nick,

They are growing pretty much out of the ground. Steve set the 3" pots on the ground and they grew through the bottom, busted the pots, and became what they are now.

Cheers, Allen

Well, they are very chunky if they have leaves to 5ft tall!

I wonder, do they have any trunk below the rosettes? I've seen dekoster' in Ireland with quite an amount of trunk, but it was horizontal.

There is a form of B. albiflora with greyish leaves as opposed to the very green form and this species does of course form substantial (and more upright) trunks. I'm sure I've seen a large trunked B. albiflora at least once in CA with greyish leaves, but at the time I had the idea it might be a hybrid with dekoster'...