Hohokam Agave (Agave murpheyi)

Family: Asparagaceae | Edibility: Edible (2/5)

Agave murpheyi is an evergreen Perennial growing to 1 m (3ft 3in) by 1 m (3ft 3in) at a slow rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 7. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Leaves

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Fall, Late Summer, Spring

Flavor & Culinary Uses

taste to a sweet potato (although containing inedible fiber) is nutritious with 347 calories and 3. — Edible Portion: Heart, Growing tip.; Agave murpheyi was cultivated by the Hohokam and possibly other Native Americans for both food and fiber.; For food the basal rosette was harvested just before the Hohokam agave sent up a flower stalk.; At this time the concentration of sugars in the rosette is at its highest The rosettes weighing about 4 kg were cooked for two or three days in a pit filled with hot stones and covered with hot coals and dirt.

Habitat & North American Range

Grows in warm temperate to subtropical highlands, arid to semi-arid. Plants are usually found in close proximity of major drainage systems on open, hilly slopes or alluvial terraces in desert scrub with pre-Columbian agricultural and settlement features. Agave murpheyi grows at elevations from 400 to 900 meters. (Zone 8)