Sisal is a species of flowering plant native to southern Mexico, but widely cultivated and naturalized in many other countries. It yields a stiff fibre used in making rope and various other products. The term sisal may refer either to the plant's common name or the fibre, depending on the context. The sisal fibre is traditionally used for rope and twine, and has many other uses, including paper, cloth, footwear, hats, bags, carpets, geotextiles, and dartboards. It is also used as fibre reinforcements for composite fibreglass, rubber, and concrete products.
Mezcal, sometimes spelled mescal, is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from any type of agave. The word mezcal comes from Nahuatl mexcalli[meʃˈkalːi], which means "oven-cooked agave", from metl[met͡ɬ] and ixcalli[iʃˈkalːi]. Traditionally the word "mezcal" has been used generally in Mexico for all agave spirits and it continues to be used for many agave spirits whether these spirits have been legally certified as "mezcal" or not, and it is also considered a drink of artisan origin.
Agavoideae is a subfamily of monocot flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, order Asparagales. It has previously been treated as a separate family, Agavaceae. The group includes many well-known desert and dry-zone types, such as the agaves and yuccas. About 640 species are placed in around 23 genera; they are widespread in the tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions of the world.
Henequen is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, native to southern Mexico and Guatemala. It is reportedly naturalized in Italy, the Canary Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Hispaniola, the Cayman Islands and the Lesser Antilles.
Agave americana, common names century plant, maguey, or American aloe, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, native to Mexico and the United States in Texas. It is cultivated worldwide as an ornamental plant, and has been naturalized in many regions, including parts of the West Indies, South America, Mediterranean Basin, Africa, Canary Islands, India, China, Thailand, and Australia.
Agave vilmoriniana, sometimes misspelled vilmoriana, and popularly known as Octopus agave, is a species of agave endemic to Mexico. It is known for its untoothed arching and twisting leaves.
Agave lechuguilla is an Agave species found only in the Chihuahuan Desert. The plant flowers once in its life and then dies.
Agave shawii is a species of monocarpic succulent plant in the genus Agave, commonly known as Shaw's agave. It is a rosette-forming plant characterized by glossy, green leaves with toothed margins. After several years of slow growth, the plant puts all of its resources to produce a towering stalk of flowers, and then dies. The death of the flowering rosette is compensated by the growth of numerous clonal pups. This species is segregated into two subspecies, one native to the coast of southwestern California and northwestern Baja California, known commonly as the coast agave, and another native to the Baja California Desert, known as the Goldman agave.
Plumeria obtusa, the Singapore graveyard flower, is a species of the genus Plumeria (Apocynaceae). It is native to the West Indies, southern Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Florida. but widely cultivated for its ornamental and fragrant flowers around the world, where suitably warm climate exists. It is reportedly naturalized in China.
Ixtle, also known by the trade name Tampico fiber, is a stiff plant fiber obtained from a number of Mexican plants, chiefly species of Agave and Yucca. The principal source is Agave lechuguilla, the dominant Agave species in the Chihuahuan Desert. Ixtle is the common name of the plants producing the fiber. Ixtle is also the common name of a species of bromeliad, Aechmea magdalenae, grown in southern Mexico for its silky fibers.
Agave utahensis is a species of agave known by the common name Utah agave.
Pulque, or octli, is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented sap of the maguey (agave) plant. It is traditional in central Mexico, where it has been produced for millennia. It has the color of milk, a rather viscous consistency and a sour yeast-like taste.
Agave is a genus of monocots native to the hot and arid regions of the Americas and the Caribbean, although some Agave species are also native to tropical areas of North America, such as Mexico. The genus is primarily known for its succulent and xerophytic species that typically form large rosettes of strong, fleshy leaves. Agave now includes species formerly placed in a number of other genera, such as Manfreda, ×Mangave, Polianthes and Prochnyanthes.
Tradescantia spathacea, the oyster plant, boatlily or Moses-in-the-cradle, is a herb in the Commelinaceae family first described in 1788. It is native to Belize, Guatemala, and southern Mexico but widely cultivated as an ornamental and naturalized in parts of Florida, Texas, Hawaii, and various oceanic islands.
Agave parviflora is a species of succulent perennial flowering plant in the asparagus family, known by the common names Santa Cruz striped agave, smallflower century plant, and small-flower agave. It is native to Arizona in the United States and Sonora in Mexico.
Agave america var. franzosinii is an evergreen plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae. It is widely cultivated in many places, and has been known by several names, including Agave franzosinii and Agave beaulueriana. The original reports say that the species is native to Mexico, but a more detailed location was not provided. The species has reportedly become naturalized in the Leeward Islands of the Caribbean. The leaves appear at the base of the plant, its flowers are funnel-shaped and yellow.
Agave palmeri is an especially large member of the genus Agave, in the family Asparagaceae.
Agave polianthiflora is a relatively small member of the genus Agave, in the subfamily Agavoideae, endemic to northern Mexico.
Agave decipiens, common names False Sisal or Florida agave, is a plant species endemic to coastal Florida though cultivated as an ornamental in other regions. The species is reported naturalized in Spain, India, Pakistan, and South Africa.
