Agave filifera 'Shiraito-no-Ohi'

'Shiraito-no-Ohi' ('queen of white threads') is a Japanese trade name given to an agave of the filifera group, whose leaf margins shed white thread-like filaments. The type species, A. filifera, grows on rocky ground at around 2,400 m in Querétaro, central Mexico, and has green leaves with white threads on the edges and white bud-prints on the faces. The closely related A. schidigera has at times been treated as a subspecies or variety of filifera, and in Japan has been sold as 'Taki-no-Shiraito' or 'Shiraito-no-Ohi'. A Japanese succulent encyclopedia lists Shiraito-no-Ohi as a cultivar of A. schidigera, while sellers label it variously as filifera or schidigera, and no published source pins the name to a particular clone. When buying, judge the plant by its narrow leaves and well-developed filaments. Filaments are sparse on young plants and increase as the rosette matures. Given sun, airflow and a dry regime it is a tough plant, and in Japan it is sold by succulent specialists and online shops.

The Agave filifera 'Shiraito-no-Ohi' grows to Little is published on plants sold under this name (A. filifera rosettes reach about 30 cm tall).

Light feeder; a little slow-release fertiliser in the growing season is enough