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People have been watching and waiting for the Century Plant located on 2nd Avenue to bloom! Well, the blooms finally happened!
The Century Plant typically only lives only 10-30 years. The plant dies after flowering, but produces shoots from the base, which continue its growth
If the flower stem is cut before flowering, a sweet liquid called aguamiel (“honey water”) gathers in the hollowed heart of the plant. This can be fermented to produce the alcoholic drink called pulque. The leaves also yield fibers, known as pita, which are suitable for making rope, matting, or coarse cloth. They are also used for embroidery of leather in a technique known as piteado. Both pulque and maguey fiber were important to the economy of pre-Columbian Mexico, where the fermented drink was known as octli.[18]
(Wikipedia )
Although the century plant dies after blooming, it can take thirty years or more to reach blooming size. Legend says it blooms only once a century, giving it its common name. Beware of its sharp spines when caring for this plant.
(To see the plant, turn by the basketball court at First Baptist Church…proceed to the 4 way stop… the plant is on your left in the next block. As large as it is, I almost missed it…it kind of fads into the tall oaks)
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