Are you looking for the ideal Agave to brighten up your home? Then, the Agave ‘Blue Glow’ is an excellent choice!
This beautiful succulent is the perfect addition to any room in your house, and with proper care, it can be long-lived and healthy for years to come.
In this guide, we’ll discuss how to care for your Agave Blue Glow so that it looks beautiful and stays healthy year around.
in this article:
About Agave ‘Blue Glow’
The Agave ‘Blue Glow’ is an evergreen succulent with an attractive, colorful appearance. The blue-green chalky leaves are thick and rigid, in typical Agave fashion. They have a deep red line bordering the edges with an accompanying, thinner yellow line to add drama.
A red tip at the apex of each leaf finishes off the look. It forms a solitary rosette that requires about ten years to reach its full height!
It is a cultivar of Agave attenuata and Agave ocahui.
Related Article: Learn about different types of Agave succulents and common varieties
| Botanical Name | Agave ‘Blue Glow’ |
| Common Name | Blue Glow Agave |
| Family | Asparagaceae |
| Plant Type | Succulent |
| Origin | Garden Origin |
| Maintenance | Low |
| Height | 1-2 feet |
| Width | 2-3 feet |
| Light | Full sun, Partial shade |
| Bloom season | Summer |
| Bloom color | Yellow |
| Water needs | Low |
| Soil | Well-Drained, Loamy, Sandy |
| Tolerant | Deer, Drought, Salt |
| Toxicity | Mildly-toxic |
| Hardiness (USDA) | 8-11 |
Agave ‘Blue Glow’ Care
Agave Blue Glow is easy to care for, requiring only minimal attention once established. It is suitable for beginners because once established, some neglect here and there won’t hurt the plant irreparably.
Light
Agave Blue Glow appreciates full sun to partial shade. Full sun will give you the best leaf color, but partial shade is still good for protection from harsh sunlight and summer heat.
Soil
Agaves are succulents and need well-drained sandy, light, and airy soil. It should be amended with pumice or perlite to help it drain well. If the soil becomes too soggy, the Agave will rot.
Make sure your Agave’s roots have plenty of space and never get too much water at once—if they’re sitting in waterlogged soil, they’ll develop root rot.
Water
Water your Agave deeply but only when needed. Watering too much can cause root rot, a common problem with succulents.
When you water your agaves, add enough water to run out of the drainage holes in the bottom of their pots and collect underneath them. Letting potted plants sit in standing water is one of the most common causes of root rot.
Temperature and Humidity
Blue Glow agaves can tolerate the cold, but they’ll struggle in temperatures below 25 degrees Fahrenheit. A dramatic drop in temperature can cause your plant to lose its leaves and die. If you live in a climate where temperatures regularly dip below 25 degrees Fahrenheit, consider keeping this plant indoors or moving it to a greenhouse for the winter unless you’re sure it will be protected from extreme cold.
The ideal Agave ‘Blue Glow’ temperature is between 55 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit.
You should also avoid placing your Agave in areas with high humidity levels, as these plants are not suited for such conditions.
The best place to keep a Blue Glow agave is between 40 and 60 percent relative humidity (RH), although an RH of 30% is acceptable if you’re growing it indoors—make sure it doesn’t dry out completely!
Fertilizer
Agave plants don’t need fertilizer to grow, but you can use some to promote faster growth. Use a balanced fertilizer (10-10-10) for the most consistent results.
Use a fertilizer specifically made for succulents, as they have different needs from other plants.
Fertilize only in the spring and summer months, as the plant enters dormancy during winter.
Pruning
Pruning helps keep your Agave ‘Blue Glow’ in shape. Prune it every spring to remove dead and diseased leaves and old leaves that almost fall off the sides but are still attached to the basal rosette’s outer rim.
Potting and Repotting Agave ‘Blue Glow’
Potting and repotting Agave blue glow is effortless, even if you’ve never done it before. The best time to repot Agave Blue Glow is during the Spring or Summer when temperatures are nice and warm. Unfortunately, this plant goes into dormancy in the winter, so repotting during this time is a bad idea.
To promote the best growth, the size of the pot should be just a little bit larger than the size of the rosette. Also, note that the Agave Blue Glow is a slow-grower and only needs repotting every 3-4 years.
Prepare
How to Repot (Step-by-Step)
- Remove the plant from the pot
- Remove any soil and roots that look old and diseased.
- Fill the new pot with the potting soil and lower the root ball inside.
- Keep the soil moist and maintain relatively high temperatures (75 F) until the plant is established.
- Put the newly repotted Agave Blue Glow back in its original spot and give it another good drink of water, so it settles into its new home nicely!
Propagating Agave ‘Blue Glow’
Agave ‘Blue Glow’ is a tricky plant to propagate for various reasons.
Firstly, it doesn’t produce offsets naturally.
Secondly, cuttings rarely take root, making this process unviable.
And lastly, since this plant is a cultivar of two Agave species, any plant propagated by seeds will not be an authentic ‘Blue Glow.’ And that’s not even considering how hard it is to get this plant to flower.
The only option left for propagation is coring.
How to Propagate via Coring
While most agave varieties form pups naturally, you can also create them yourself by coring the plant. Coring involves drilling a hole through the center of the plant’s core, which forces it to produce offsets for survival.
Coring is a hit-or-miss process that requires sacrificing the parent plant in hopes of pups for the future. Only opt for this method if your plant is dying and there is nothing else to be done.
Once the plant starts producing pups, you can replant them in a new pot and establish them as individual plants.
Blooms
Agave Blue Glow is monocarpic, meaning it only blooms once before dying. The plant takes about 10 years to mature enough to flower.
Once your Agave is ready to bloom, you will see a spectacular 10-foot-tall stalk rising from the center of the basal rosette. The stalk branches slightly near the tip, but it remains primarily upright.
Agave Blue Glow produces greenish-yellow flowers that cluster at the stalk’s tip. But, funnily enough, the flowers aren’t nearly as eye-catching as the stalk they bloom on.
Toxicity
Agave ‘Blue Glow’ is mildly toxic, containing a small number of saponins which could cause irritation and rashes on skin if they come into contact with skin.
Although the Agave ‘Blue Glow’ is slightly toxic, the amount needed to cause actual harm is usually more significant than what would occur through normal handling.
NOTE: This page is not intended as a substitute for veterinary advice. The toxicity of an ingested substance varies depending on the amount ingested, the animal’s weight, and its sensitivity to specific allergens. Contact your veterinarian or local animal poison control center immediately if you think your pet may have ingested a toxic substance.
Common Pests
Pests that often plague Agave are:
AVOID
- Overwatering
- Placing under harsh sunlight
- Using poorly drained potting mediums
- Fertilizing during dormancy
Common Problems
Here are the most common problems that sometimes plague the Agave Blue Glow.
Overwatering
Overwatering is the number one cause of agave death. Therefore, agaves should not be watered regularly but should be watered when the soil is dry. Watering agaves pots should be done by hand (not with a sprinkler or hose).
Agaves need to be watered about once a week during the summer months and only once every few weeks in cooler months. Do not water your Agave excessively during wintertime!
Sunburn
Sunburn is caused by overexposure to the sun. You can prevent it by placing the plant under shade or in an area where it will receive morning and late afternoon indirect light. Avoid harsh afternoon sun, which can result in severe damage if left exposed for too long.
Frost Damage
You will want to bring the Agave inside when the temperature drops below freezing in cold climates. If this isn’t a possibility, cover it with a blanket or tarp. Frost damage will not kill an agave plant, but it will not recover from it either.
Frost damage presents as a white discoloration near the tips of the leaves. Affected plant parts rarely recover.
Gray Mold
Gray mold is a fungus that grows on agaves, especially during wet weather. It causes brown spots and patches on the leaves and appears as gray, cottony masses on the leaves. If your Agave has gray mold, it’s best to remove it from the plant before it does any more damage.
Gray mold can be treated using dishwashing soap available in most homes.
How to Grow Agave ‘Blue Glow’ (Video)