Consulta Plantas

Care of the succulent plant Furcraea selloa or Variegated Sword Lily

The genus Furcraea, family Agavoideae, comprises 20 species of succulent plants native to Mexico, South America and the Caribbean. Some species are: Furcraea selloa, Furcraea bedinghausii, Furcraea tuberosa, Furcraea andina, Furcraea cabuya.

Common names: Variegated Sword Lily, Variegated Wild Sisal, False agave. This species is native to Colombia and Ecuador.

They are succulent plants that reach 2 meters (6.56 feet) in height. They have long rosette leaves, sword-shaped, rigid and with spiny or serrated edges. The flowers can appear at 8-9 years of life of the plant in a huge pyramidal inflorescence several meters high; after flowering the plant dies but before it produces suckers at the base and in the flowers.

They are used on rockery and steep slopes. They are ideal for gardens with a Mediterranean climate.

Furcraea selloa needs full sun or semi-shade exposure and average annual temperatures of 10-21 ºC (55-70 ºF). They resist occasional frosts if the substrate is dry.

The soil can be a well-drained garden substrate with coarse sand and a little compost.

Water moderately in summer and spring; reduce watering in fall. Water sparingly in winter.

Fertilize with compost at the time of planting.

They are plants resistant to pests and diseases.

They propagate from the suckers that the plant produces at the base, from the adventitious bulblets that arise between the flowers or from seeds.

Images of the succulent plant Furcraea selloa or Variegated Sword Lily