The agave or pita (or maguey in Mexico) originates from Mexico and makes its home in regions with low rainfall. After thousands of years of evolution, it is perfectly adapted to survive in dry regions, where water and nutrients are scarce. Agave plants require well-drained soils and are very resistant to drought and high temperatures, and can withstand frost – if it is not frequent – down to 27 ºC below zero.

There are about 300 different species of these succulent plants, which are characterized by the formation of large rosettes of thick, fleshy leaves. The roots tend to be long to capture as much water as possible. All that water is stored in the leaves as an energy reserve for the blossom. In the plant kingdom, agaves are the most efficient producers of biomass in water deficient conditions.

Agaves have different strategies for reproduction: they actively reproduce asexually from the rhizomes of abundant leaves as well as sprouting from seeds and bulbs. The inflorescence is a true spectacle: the flower stem grows up to 1.5m per week, reaching from 1.8m to 12m in height. The stem starts to sprout when the plant has reached the age of between 7 and 30 years. The fruit appears in the form of capsules with numerous flattened black seeds. The rosette, which caused the growth of the floriferous stem, dies after the blossoming.

I. The Flowering and Dying Process of an Agave.

The plant saves water throughout its life and flowers only once in its lifetime. The saved water enables the agave to develop a fast growing and maybe the tallest flower on earth. After its time of flowering, the life of the agave plant ends with the dispersal of its seeds and a hardening of its stem into wood. Follow the whole lifecycle below or watch our video on YouTube

II. The Growing of the Giant Asparagus

The Agave develops a flower stem after 7 years, and sometimes it takes more than 30 years. The flower stem resembles a giant Asparagus which can be, depending on the species, as high as 12 meters and can grow at a rate of up to 1.5 meters per week (14-20 cm a day!).

III. The Evolution of the Flower Bud

After blossoming, the flower dries out and forms a seed pod.

The autumnal winds spread the seeds for reproduction and the rains of the winter help them to germinate.

The kernel (known as Piña), which resembles a giant pineapple, is revealed by cutting away the leaves. The revealed kernel contains the highest quantity of sugar which is used for a great variety of bio-products, now produced on an industrial scale. Examples of these products are bio ethanol, a number of drinks and Inulin.

Aguamiel, translated into English as “honey water”, can be extracted from plants aged from 6 to 8 years. A big Agave can supply between 8 to 15 liters per day and up to 1000 liters per plant. This nutritive juice contains more calcium than cow milk and a total of 8 Minerals and 4 Vitamins. The extracted Aguamiel can be transformed into a healthy sweetener in the form of Syrup, which contains 70% fructose and 90% carbohydrates. Compared with the sugar obtained from cane or beetroot, it tastes 20% sweeter and can be used by diabetics.

The Aguamiel can be fermented for a period of about 10 days after which a traditional Mexican drink named Pulque is produced. This fermented beverage is also known as Agave beer or Agave wine. Pulque has been brewed for at least 2000 years and has been used in ceremonies and rituals throughout the ages.

Tequila is the most famous alcoholic beverage produced from A.Tequilana and it is consumed all over the world. Mexico produces more than 200 million liters of Tequila per year and it is one of the biggest and most important economic export products of the country. The purity is controlled by the “Consejo Regulador de Tequila” (CRT). International law states that other kinds of Tequila spirits can only be sold as “Tequila” if they contain at least 51% Agave. Another type of spirit obtained from the Piña is known as Mezcal.

☉ Big plants can have roots of 7 to 8 meters in diameter.

☉ When found on hill sides they help protect the land from erosion.

☉ The roots are a fantastic source of Saponin and can be perfectly used to make soap or shampoo.

☉ Under good conditions an Agave can grow up to 20 leaves per year. The average life span of a leaf is 10 – 15 years. Generally spoken, the leaves are glabrous and contain long fibers, which is an important character for them to be utilized for the production of natural fibers (Sisal, Henequén or Ixtle).

☉ The roasted leaves are used as tiles or to cover walls in bio-construction.

This film has been created by Timbe after visiting an Agave factory for Sisal fiber extraction in Awassa, Ethiopia, in 2008: Watch video on YouTube

☉ The Agave is a flowering plant which produces capsules at the end of the dry season to increase its reproductive possibilities. At maturity (beginning of the rainy season), the capsules split apart to release the seeds within.

☉ To secure the reproduction, some varieties reproduce themselves through inflorescence bulbils, which grow on the flower stem up to 12 meters above the ground. A single A.Sisalana mother plant produces between 1000 to 4000 bulbils to ensure a successful reproductive cycle.

☉ The flowers are good for food, prepared together with fried eggs. 

The fast growing wood is 100% sostainable.

It’s a precious gift from the desert.

The lifecycle of the agave plant is completed after its time of flowering. The wood is harvested only after the wind has spread the seeds and the plant has completely died. The stem grows approx. 1,5m per week(!!) and up to 12m in height, and as a result of this rapid growth it develops a fibrous but sturdy material with a resistant outside shell similar to that found in bamboo, but with a core like balsa-wood. The wood is very light in weight, really easy to split and work with, and has an exotic appearance with a range of beautiful natural colors. Harvesting at the right time and proper storage conditions are particularly important for the quality of the wood. The dried flower stems are used for the creation of musical instruments and many other handcrafted items, as well as for profesional Surfboards, roof beams in house construction, scaffolding, stools and ladders. They can even be split and hollowed for use as irrigation line half-pipes for the transport of water.

To use the wood, it can only be harvested on the death of the plant, which makes it a truly sustainable resource from the desert. While deforestation and the destruction of ancient forests continues, seemingly without end, the Agave wood is at least a small contribution on a way out of the worldwide environmental crisis that becomes more evident every day.

Humans have benefitted from the use of agave since pre-history. It has been particularly important in Mexican indigenous cultures, and also in many other parts of the world.

Many products have been created from agaves in the previous 10.000 years. The plant is among the highest in yields of biomass per unit, even higher than cultivated sugar cane plants in the tropical regions of Brazil. The agave is a source of biofuel, biogas and bio-alcohol and also offers a broad variety of side products with increasing industrial potential for the world markets.

In this time of climate change and demand for sustainable alternatives to industrial processes, the agave has many environmental, economic, and social benefits which are very important for arid and semi-arid regions of the planet where the majority of the world’s poorest people live. Cultivation of agave in these zones has the potential of transforming lives.

Scientific researchers inform us that the agave produces up to three times more sugar than sugar cane grown in Brazil, four times more cellulose than the fastest growing eucalyptus tree, and it captures five times more CO2 than the world’s best carbon capturing ecosystems. When properly maintained, it requires irrigation only three to four times per year. The by-products after the processing of the agave takes the form of bio-degradable organic matter which can be used as “compost” or as organic material to be returned to the land. In this way, they enhance soil fertility.

This is truly a “no waste” plant.

Industrial production facilities for dozens of bio-products made from the agave have been set up in more than 20 countries worldwide. Tanzania has a Ministry of Agave with more than two and a half million people working with the plant in the country. Tanzanian experts promote its usage as a life insurance plant for farmers. Everything can be used, and the monthly harvest has not failed in the last 100 years!

Brazil has six hundred thousand people working with the agave and is the world’s leader in the production of its fibre known as Sisal. China grows ten thousand hectares for bio-plastics, Australia grows forty thousand hectares for the production of bio-fuels and South Africa manufactures door insulation and accessories for Daimler Chrysler.

We at the Pita-Escuela have specialized in the integral usage of agave for more than twenty years. We offer a large repository of scientific information and documentation to teach and spread our knowledge. We can show you different techniques and procedures for the elaboration of various end products made from agave.

Examples of countries where the agave is used as an industrial resource

Principal Uses of the Agave with social-economic and agro-ecologic importanceness