June 11, 2025
Do you enjoy squid games? I sure do — if they involve one of my favorite agaves, the gloriously tentacled squid agave (Agave bracteosa). One look at its curvy, balletic “arms,” and I think, “That’s ink-redible!”
Here in my Central Texas garden, squid agave is heat proof, cold proof, drought proof, deer proof (although never say never with deer), likes shade, and is all-around fabulous — in a pot. I seem never to stick a squid agave in the ground, so I can’t speak to that.
Why? Because squid agave is my favorite focal-point plant that looks great all year and doesn’t take up a ton of space. Whenever I need to 1) lift the eye from the tedium of a low garden bed, 2) draw attention to a gate or mark a step, 3) or terminate an axis view, I stick a squid on it.
I get a tall container, fill it with garden soil mixed 50-50 with decomposed granite, pop a squid agave in, maybe add extra height with a piece of garden art, top it off with a layer of gravel, and voila! Instant focal point.
Squid agave requires little maintenance. Occasionally I blow or fish out leaves and acorns that fall from my oaks. And when pups (baby squid agaves) appear alongside the mother plant, I gently tug them out. This keeps the mother plant neat and tidy, and I end up with extra squids to plant elsewhere or share with friends.
Wear gloves when you do these tasks. Although squid agave lacks dangerous spines, the leaf edges may cut you if you run your hand along one.
Craving something a little different? Try the variegated cultivar of squid agave called ‘Monterrey Frost’. I like it too, although it’s slower growing and more sensitive to sun scalding.
The regular green squid agave is a stalwart plant that makes a beautiful accent. Get kracken and get yourself one.
Note: My Plant This posts are written primarily for gardeners in Central Texas. The plants I recommend are ones I’ve grown myself and have direct experience with. Check online forums for your region or local independent nurseries to see if a particular plant might work in your area.
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Digging Deeper
My new book, Gardens of Texas: Visions of Resilience from the Lone Star State, is available for pre-order at Amazon and other online book sellers. It’ll be released on October 14th, and while that’s several months away, pre-orders are tremendously helpful in getting my book noticed by readers and reviewers. Please consider pre-ordering if you’d like to read it this fall; more info here. Thank you for your support!
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