Agave tequilana weber azul (aka Blue Agave)

This is also known as Blue Agave, the exclusive agave for producing tequila. The plant prefers a hot dry weather and is susceptible to hard frosts. Our experience in western Fresno County is the plants may show tip burn and curling during cold events. The picture here is a two and a half year old plant that has survived temps in the mid twenties. We have yet to suffer any mortality due to frost. We recommend planting 900 - 1,000 plants per acre spaced 4 ft. down the row and 11-12 ft. centers. In MX, plants typically mature in 7-8 years and are generally dry farmed. Given that CA has longer & hotter summers together with the use of drip irrigation, we hope to grow a larger plant in 5-6 years with more sugar. Early indications from those harvesting weber azul in CA bares this out. Water use is apx 3 inches of water/ac/yr. Primary pests are gophers and weeds.