The agaves, originally not native to Europe, have become an integral part of the landscape of many coastal regions on the Mediterranean. Interestingly, these plants often thrive in these areas in particularly exposed locations with relatively poor living conditions.
The agave feels at home in a mixture of potting soil and gravel
Plant agaves in a suitable substrate
Basically, agaves are not particularly demanding when it comes to care and can get along with different locations as long as they are as sunny and warm as possible. When repotting the agaves or planting them in the garden, make sure that the substrate at the location has the best possible water drainage. You don't necessarily have to buy special cactus soil. You can also mix 2/3 regular potting soil with 1/3 of the following:
- quartz sand
- pumice gravel
- lavalite
- lava granules
Open-pored materials such as lava stones promote ventilation and water drainage of the material and also ensure a permanently crumbly soil structure.
Agaves do not like waterlogging at all
If waterlogging persists in the soil area, agaves can develop yellow leaves or even die off completely. Therefore, specimens that have hibernated outdoors should be planted at an angle and protected from too much moisture. In a plant pot, there should always be a coarse drainage layer made of stones or potsherds in the lower area, and the water drainage through holes in the pot must be guaranteed.
tips
If you use commercially available potting soil for planting the agaves, it should not contain any peat (not only for environmental reasons). Since peat retains any water very well, it tends to be detrimental to the thriving of succulent agaves.