Many agave species only flower after decades, which is why seeds for propagation are correspondingly rare and difficult to find. So it comes in handy for hobby gardeners that most agaves themselves lay the basis for the expansion of the plant population via offshoots called Kindel.

Agaves reproduce themselves via Kindel

The right time to separate the Kindel

In principle, the children can be separated at different times, since agaves that are not frost-hardy overwinter in the house, but some agave species are also cultivated in the house all year round. In the case of specimens in pots, the buds often form during the winter dormant phase. To minimize stress for the plants, removing them together with repotting after the winter has ended is a good idea. Choose the dryest possible weather phases in spring and early summer so that all interfaces can dry well for at least a few days after cutting. In the case of smaller species of agave, the children should be at least 5 cm long, and in the case of the larger species, around 10 cm.

Detach kindel with own roots

Some children grow in the agave pot at a certain distance from the mother plant, but are still connected to its root system. In these cases, undermine the root connection and cut cleanly with a sharp knife or pruning shears. Wait at least a few hours or even days to allow the interface on the mother plant to dry out. Then you can refill the missing substrate. Beware of watering too often: the mother plant should not be watered more, but rather less, to compensate for its reduced root mass.

Cut off any childlets that are attached directly to the stalk

With some agaves, the so-called Kindel form directly on the plant stem and initially without their own roots. With these offshoots, you should make sure that you cut off the children deep enough so that their leaf rosette does not fall apart. At the same time, you must not cut too deeply into the stalk of the mother plant. You can also dust the interfaces with some charcoal to be on the safe side. The Kindel are rooted about 1 cm deep either in special cactus soil or in a mixture of ordinary potting soil and one of the following substrates:

  • pumice gravel
  • lava sand
  • quartz sand

After about a week, keep the substrate for the rooting kindling evenly moist. Basically, only water very sparingly, otherwise agaves will quickly show disease-like symptoms.

tips

When a large species of agave flowers after more than 20 or 30 years, the plant usually dies. Under certain circumstances, you can avoid this natural dying of the plant if you separate all the children in good time and repot the magnificent specimen into another planter.

Category:

Vegetable garden