Strange plant mystery solved

THE RECORD recently published a letter on its website from a resident of Alberton who had a very strange plant growing in his yard.

Since the online publication residents have shared their knowledge about the unusual shrub.

According to Zenobia Gouws, it’s called a Century Plant. “We had something similar growing in our yard. It ended up growing higher that the double-story house next door and apparently it only happens once every decade or two,” she said.

“In Afrikaans it’s a ‘Garingplant’. It grows wild in the Brits area,” said Henkie Bezuidenhout.

The RECORD called on the help of an expert to shed some light on the interesting specimen.

“The plant in the image looks like it’s part of the Agave plant group. It’s not native to South Africa but was introduced as an ornamental species and spread through the country,” said Ndumiso Dlamini, an environmental consultant.

“For now we can call it Agave spp (when the genus is identified but the species name is unknown “spp.” is added). The closest plant would be the Agave Geminiflora,” added Dlamini.

Some interesting facts about the Agave family of plants include:

1) These plants flower once in their lifetime;

2) The Agave tequilana is the plant that tequila is made from;

3) These plants vary in shape and size and may even look like aloes or other succulents.

You may also be interested in:

Mystery plant towers over house

10 plants that clean your indoor air

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