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Plant · P-968
Lechuguilla
Agave lechuguilla
Lechuguilla is a small desert agave native to the Chihuahuan Desert of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, where it is an indicator species of limestone and alluvial desert scrub. Its tough leaves yield a strong fibre once used for rope, twine, brushes, basketry and cloth, and Aztec medicine combined its juice with salt as an antibiotic wound treatment. The flowering stalk stores a mineral-rich sap that is still sold in Mexico today as a sports drink.
Record at a glance
Growing profile
- Sun
- Full Sun
- USDA zone
- USDA 7–10
- Soil
- Sand · Loam · Clay
- Moisture
- Dry · Well-Drained · Moist
Vertical layer
Groundcover- Soil pH
- 6.6–8.5
- Plant type
- Perennial
- Mature height
- 24 in
- Mature spread
- 24 in
- Plant spacing
- 20 in
- Root type
- Fibrous-shallow
- Spread pattern
- Root
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The deeper layer
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- Primary
- Locked ecological function
- Secondary
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- Byproduct
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Behind the record
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