Plant in full sun and irrigate infrequently. It is drought tolerant and cold hardy to around 25° F and a little lower for short durations - we have heard from a grower in Austin, Texas who noted that they had leaf damage after 2 nights with temperatures down to 25° F for several hours.

Agave desmetiana is plant that has a very confusing history. It was first described from plants growing in a garden and not in the wild. While it possibly grows naturally in Veracruz, Mexico and perhaps also in the Caribbean, it was apparently first described by Georg Albano von Jacobi in 1866 from a plant growing in a garden, presumably from Rancho El Mirador near the town of Huatusco in Veracruz, Mexico. The American botanist William Trelease used the name in his 1920 treatment of Agave in Paul Stanley's Trees and Shrubs of Mexico where he noted the plant presumed to be from Rancho El Mirador though also noted it was "said to be from Brazil". Howard Scott Gentry in his Agaves of Continental North America noted that he was following Telease's treatment, but also described the Neotype in 1952, but it was also from a plant growing in a garden, and this time a garden in the western state of Sinaloa, Mexico. The specific epithet "desmetiana" honors Louis De Smet (1813-1887), a Belgian horticulturist and nurseryman - this is sometimes misspelled as desmetiana with two "t's".

Surprisingly, the current treatment of this species as listed in the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew database has Agave desmetiana as a subspecies of the very different looking Agave horrida, as Agave horrida ssp. horrida. Most grow both of these plants, know them to be quite different from each other so take issue with this treatment. We also have grown a variegated cultivar of this plant called Agave desmetiana 'Variegata' and two other variegated plants, Agave 'Galactic Traveller' and Agave 'Joe Hoak' that certainly look to be Agave desmetiana cultivars or hybrids have of this plant. 

The information about Agave desmetiana displayed on this web page is based on our research conducted in the nursery's horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also include observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments we receive from others and welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share cultural information that would aid others in growing this plant.