Desert Love in trouble

Philosophical question of the day: Is déjà vu a good thing? 

Yahoo has the answer: "For your own safety," one user writes, "'deja vu' should be understood for the same reason a venomous snake should be understood, or more mysteriously, an unidentified creature." 

 What now?

"Sometime it happens right before a seizure," somebody else says, "but that is very rare. So don't think you are going to have a seizure."

Whew, good to know!

"It is neither, or both, depending on your reaction," states a very smart person. "It is an experience that can awaken an awareness of what is going on in your life, and you need to just pay attention! There are things to be learned."

Time for a learning moment—maybe.

Agave ovatifolia 'Frosty Blue' in February 2018

Almost a year ago I lost an Agave ovatifolia 'Frosty Blue' and an Agave 'Snow Glow' to rot. I was never able to figure out definitively what happened. I removed the rotting carcasses and drenched the area with two kinds of fungicide. Then I planted an Aloe africana and an Agave 'Desert Love', a Plant Delights hybrid involving Agave ovatifolia, Agave parrasana and possibly Agave asperrima.

Agave 'Desert Love' in February 2019

Compare 'Frosty Blue' in the first photo with 'Desert Love' in the second. Now you know what I mean  by déjà vu!

Here's a closer look:

Agave 'Desert Love' just the other day

Is it simply bad luck? Is it a curse? Is it something in the soil? Or is it just another unfortunate combination of rain and rapidly cooling temperatures? A few other plants nearby are affected as well (see below).

I decided to dig up 'Desert Love' and put it in a terracotta bowl for the time being. Fortunately, the roots look healthy as does the back half of the agave.

Agave 'Desert Love' in its temporary digs

I'm keeping 'Desert Love' completely dry until I see signs of growth. In the spring I'll look for a different spot in the ground.

I have a second 'Desert Love' in a large ceramic pot, and it's turned into quite a looker:

Agave 'Desert Love' #2

Here are the other plants in the beds along the driveway that show signs of rot:

Agave montana

×Mangave 'Rio Verde'—in spite of the extensive rot the center still looks good

Aloe alooides

I wish I could say with some degree of confidence what's going on. A certain amount of rot is par for the course when it's cold and wet for any length of time. At this point there's nothing else to do except wait. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that these plants will simply outgrowth the damage.



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