Actual size and flowering may vary slightly based on season.
Royal Flush Agave
Royal Flush Agave is a small, slow-growing agave with dark green leaves edged in wide, creamy yellow bands. Curly white threads run along the leaf edges in place of teeth. It stays about 1 foot tall and 1 to 2 feet wide, so it suits a patio pot, a small bed or a mixed succulent planting. Once rooted, it needs little water.
Best for: patio pots, mixed succulent plantings and small beds where the leaf color can be seen up close.
At about 1 foot tall and up to 2 feet wide, it fits a patio pot well. Use a pot with a drainage hole and a lean, fast-draining mix, and water only when the mix is dry.
Its creamy yellow edges brighten a mixed planting of succulents in a bed or a big container. It also works along a border, set back from the walkway.
It grows slowly and stays compact, so it suits a small bed by an entry. A spot with morning sun and afternoon shade keeps the leaves looking their best in summer.
In hot summer areas it needs shelter from afternoon sun and reflected heat. Soggy soil can rot it, so plant it where water drains away fast. Each leaf ends in a sharp tip, so keep it back from walks.
- Group or mass planting2 ft apart
Plant into dry soil and wait about 1 to 2 weeks before the first watering, or up to a month in cool weather. Then water about every other week while nights stay above 60°F. Light shade cloth for the first few weeks helps it settle in.
Water deeply when the soil is completely dry. About every 2 weeks in summer and every 3 to 4 weeks in spring and fall is plenty. Keep it dry in winter.
In the Valley, give it morning sun and shade from the hot western afternoon sun. Keep it away from walls and paving that reflect heat.
It can take cold down to about 15°F. On colder nights, drape frost cloth to the ground and take it off in the morning. Potted plants can move to a sheltered spot by the house.
Most agaves need no fertilizer. If you feed it, use a light balanced fertilizer in spring or early summer, never on a new transplant and never in fall or winter. It does not need any pruning.
Drainage test first. Dig the hole and fill it with water. If water is still sitting in the hole a day later, you likely hit caliche, clay or hard soil, so fix the drainage before planting. If it drains very fast, the soil is sandy. Standing water around roots is a common reason new plants fail.
Weed cloth. Cut it away from the planting hole and where the roots will spread. Remove any plastic sheeting completely, since it keeps water and air out of the soil.
Rock or decomposed granite with no soil underneath. Bring in soil close in texture to your native soil, mix it with the soil below, and build up enough depth for roots before planting.
If you can break through. Use a breaker bar, pick, or jackhammer. Dig through the caliche and break out the solid chunks. Backfill with the soil you dug out, with no compost or manure in the hole. Confirm drainage before planting.
If you cannot break through. Dig narrow holes through the hard layer beside the root ball, not under it, and refill them with the same soil, not gravel. If it still will not drain, plant on a low mound of the same soil.
Root ball. Check the outside edges for any roots circling around. Loosen or cut those so they grow outward. Do not break up the center of the root ball.
Depth. The top of the root ball should sit at or just slightly above the surrounding soil level. Planting too deep can lead to rot and kill the plant.
Drip emitters. At planting, put the emitters on the root ball, on different sides of the plant. After about 2 months, move them to the outer edge of the root ball. Over the first year, add emitters farther out toward the edge of the branches as roots grow. Once a plant is rooted, never water only at the trunk.
What is Royal Flush Agave?
It is a selection of Agave schidigera, a small agave from the uplands of Mexico. Its dark green leaves have wide, creamy yellow edges, with curly white threads along the margins instead of teeth.
How is it different from Durango Delight Agave?
Both are forms of Agave schidigera with white threads on the leaf edges. Durango Delight has dark green leaves with white markings. Royal Flush has wide, creamy yellow edges on each leaf.
How big does Royal Flush Agave get?
It grows slowly to about 1 foot tall and 1 to 2 feet wide. It stays a good size for a pot or a small bed for years.
Does it need shade in Phoenix?
It takes full sun in mild places, but in hot summer areas it needs protection from afternoon sun and reflected heat. In the Valley, give it morning sun and afternoon shade, away from hot west walls.
How often should I water it?
Water when the soil is completely dry. Once rooted, that is about every 2 weeks in summer and every 3 to 4 weeks in spring and fall. Keep it dry in winter.
How cold hardy is it?
Agave schidigera can take cold down to about 15°F. On colder nights, drape frost cloth or a sheet to the ground, not plastic, and take it off in the morning.
Does Royal Flush Agave bloom?
It blooms only once, after many years, usually 10 to 20 years or more. The main rosette dies after it flowers.
Can I grow it in a pot?
Yes, it does well in a container. Use a pot with a drainage hole and a lean, fast-draining mix. Pots dry out faster than the ground, so check the mix more often in summer.
Is it sharp?
The leaf edges carry soft white threads, not teeth, but each leaf ends in a sharp tip spine. Keep it back from walks, patios and pools, or snip off the tips, which do not grow back.
Is it poisonous to pets?
Agave sap can irritate a pet's mouth and skin and upset the stomach if chewed, though it is rarely serious. The tip spines can also poke. Keep pets from chewing on it.
Why is my agave soft or mushy?
Too much water or soil that stays wet is the common cause, since it rots the roots and base. Overwatered agaves also draw snout weevils. Cut back on water and make sure the soil drains.
Royal Flush Agave for sale in Arizona, delivered to you
Royal Flush Agave is a variegated selection of Agave schidigera, the same small thread-leaf agave as Durango Delight. It brings creamy yellow leaf edges to a compact rosette. Below is what to expect in a Valley yard, from size and sun to water, cold and blooming.
Sourced from trusted Arizona growers and delivered directly to your door, job site, or property. We deliver across the Valley and to nearby towns, and quote delivery anywhere else in Arizona.
What is Royal Flush Agave?
Royal Flush Agave is a variegated selection of Agave schidigera. Its dark green leaves carry wide, creamy yellow edges, and curly white threads run along the margins. It grows slowly into a compact rosette.
Royal Flush Agave vs Durango Delight
Both are small forms of Agave schidigera with white threads on the leaf edges. Durango Delight has dark green leaves with white markings. Royal Flush adds wide, creamy yellow edges to each leaf.
How big does Royal Flush Agave get?
It grows slowly to about 1 foot tall and 1 to 2 feet wide. That makes it a good fit for pots, borders and small beds.
Sun and water for Royal Flush Agave in Phoenix
In the Valley, give it morning sun and shade from the hot afternoon sun, away from reflected heat. Water when the soil is completely dry, about every 2 weeks in summer. Keep it dry in winter.
Is Royal Flush Agave cold hardy?
Agave schidigera can take cold down to about 15°F. On colder nights, drape frost cloth to the ground and take it off in the morning.
Royal Flush Agave in pots
It does well in a container. Use a pot with a drainage hole and a lean, fast-draining mix. Pots dry out faster than the ground, so check the mix more often in summer.
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