Postage : Seeds only $4 / Plants $20
A mid sized species forming a sphere of stiff, very blue, glaucous leaves, short and broad with prominent, red-black, sharks teeth around the margin and a wavy terminal spine.
Its globular form is a stunning counterpoint to modern architecture and coupled with an ironclad constitution and impressive armament it is an ideal candidate for municipal and commercial gardens, rooftops or in a pot on the deck. Otherwise plant a few in a sea of gravel with Freesia in your choice of colours for a cheap and stunning, irrigation free, permanent lawn substitute.
Doesn't run, pups are borne clustered around the base and if left attached form attractive clumps. I would expect it to be cold hardy in 99% of Australian gardens.
Flowers are limey green and in clusters on a giant asparagus like stalk, more graceful than some of the larger species but less grand.
A quick growing variety, small enough for a large pot but large enough to make a statement, with a stiff almost harsh demeanour, useful for stark architectural style or high contrast with softer forms, especially so in groups.
Sparse, slightly taller than spherical rosettes of very rigid, long, tapering, glaucous green leaves, generously edged with cream variegation, short, dark, marginal teeth and terminating in a short black spine.
Spreads moderately by underground stolons and such colonies are particularly attractive but need appropriate space.
Individual rosettes produce after many (10+) years a spectacular tree like inflorescence, the remains of which are often used in floral art, bearing thousands of erect, yellow green, tubular flowers, in tight clusters, which are much loved by nectar feeding birds and insects, and then rapidly decline and die to be succeeded by younger offsets or bulbils.