Wildflowers, Trees, Grasses, Reptiles, Birds, Mammals in Arizona
AZ Mammals
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AZ Birds |
AZ Reptiles |
AZ Insects |
AZ Wildflowers
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AZ Cactus |
AZ Trees, shrubs and grasses |
Agave Throughout the region are found a large number of species of agave (Agave desertii, A. utahensis and others), a second classic example of a prehistoric food plants. These include the century plant, so known for the odd mythology that the plant only blooms once every hundred years, which is fortunately untrue. The life history of the plant is, in fact, rather brief. Actually, it only takes some 12 to 15 years before it reaches maturity. As they grow, they emerge into small rounded heads or "cabbages." Over the years they enlarge, throwing out fibrous leaves tipped with an armor-like spike. Then in a remarkable burst, a central stalk shoots to the sky growing with great rapidity. In the largest species, the stalk may grow to be 20 to 30 feet tall and 18 inches in diameter at the base. From the top of the stalk clusters a bevy of bright yellow blossoms, thousands in number—the century plant’s swan song, for it then dies. |
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 Map of Arizona
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 Map of the reservations and Four Corners
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