Back to the page
  • Welcome
  • Visit us
    • Visit us
    • Opening times & information
    • Visiting – travel, dogs, toilets, etc.
    • Ticket Prices
    • Pre-book tickets
    • Garden map
    • Group Visits
    • Tours
    • Press and photography
    • The Garden Café
    • The Garden Shop
  • Accessibility
  • What’s on
  • The Garden
    • The Garden
    • About the Garden
    • Horticultural Collections
    • Understanding Plant Labels
    • History of the Garden
    • Wildlife
    • Plant picks of the week
  • Learning
    • Learning
    • Schools
    • Colleges and Universities
    • Adult Learning
    • Family Activities
    • Communities
    • Science on Sundays
    • Trails for Adults
    • Certificate in Botanical Horticulture
  • Science
    • Science
    • Our Science Staff
    • Our Staff Publications
    • Your Science
    • Supporting Your Research
    • Phenology Project
  • Collections
    • Collections
    • Living Collections
    • Seed Bank
    • Herbarium
    • Cory Library
    • Archives
    • Living Collections Portal
    • Botanic Dyes
  • News
  • Support Us
  • Friends
    • Friends
    • Join the Friends
    • Friends’ Events
    • Corporate Support and Corporate Friends
    • Gift Memberships
Donate
Cambridge University Botanic Garden
menu

Today's Opening Times:
10:00am - 6:00pm

  • News
  • Support Us
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
  • Home
  • Visit us
    • Ticket Prices
    • Opening times & Information
    • Visiting – travel, dogs, toilets, etc.
    • Garden Map
    • Group Visits
    • Tours
    • Pre-book tickets
    • Press & Photography
    • The Garden Shop
    • The Garden Café
    • Accessibility
    • Virtual Visits
  • What’s on
  • The Garden
    • About the Garden
    • Horticultural Collections
    • Understanding Plant Labels
    • History of the Garden
    • Wildlife
    • Plant picks of the week
  • Learning
    • Schools
    • Colleges and Universities
    • Adult Learning
    • Family Activities
    • Communities
    • Science on Sundays
    • Trails for Adults
    • Certificate in Botanical Horticulture
  • Science
    • Our Science Staff
    • Our Staff Publications
    • Your Science
    • Supported Publications
    • Supporting Your Research
    • Phenology Project
  • Collections
    • Living Collections
    • Herbarium
    • Seed Bank
    • Cory Library
    • Archives
    • Collecting Expeditions
    • National Plant Collections ®
    • Living Collections Portal
    • Botanic Dyes
  • Friends
    • Join the Friends
    • Gift Memberships
    • Friends’ Events
    • Corporate Support and Corporate Friends
  • Open search panel
Close search panel
Agave heteracantha
Home Plants Agave vivipara
Share Created with Sketch.
  • Email Share this with Email
  • Facebook Share this with Facebook
  • Twitter Share this with Twitter
  • Pinterest Share this with Pinterest
  • WhatsApp Share this with WhatsApp
  • Google + Share this with Google plus

Agave vivipara

View all plants

Our Agave has finally decided to reveal its flowers to us in the Arid Lands House.

The genus Agave belongs to the asparagus family, Asparagaceae, and the flower stem, or ‘mast’, of this species resembled asparagus on steroids when it first started putting on growth. The mast of all species within the genus emerge from the centre of a basal rosette of succulent leaves which are toothed, or serrated. In this species the rosette is monocarpic, so will produce one flower stem, and the entire rosette may die off after flowering. As the mast extended it produced branches of petal-less flowers. These comprise both male and female flowers, which are self-pollinating, though these may also be pollinated by birds in their native habitat. We were uncertain of the true identity of this plant, which was originally labelled as Agave heteracantha, so its flowering has provided us with an opportunity to identify it. We now believe it to be A. vivipara, which occurs in Mexico and the south eastern United States, though will only be able to confirm this if it produces seedlings in the flowers. The specific name vivipara comes from this characteristic of some plants, and means bearing its own babies, as mammals do.

University of Cambridge Museums and Botanic Garden

Social

  • Follow us on YouTube
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • Follow us on Instagram
  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Threads
  • Follow us on LinkedIn

© 2025 Cambridge University Botanic Garden

  • Privacy policy
  • Contact us