
Agaves, or century plants, grow for many years before reproducing. Some may do so as quickly as 20 years, while other will wait 40 years before deciding it's time. In their final month, they will put all their energy into producing a huge flowering stalk that can grow up to 15 feet tall. Their yellow flowers attract nectar-feeding bats, hummingbirds, and many types of insects. Birders searching for the Lucifer Hummingbird, found only in west Texas and southeastern AZ, would do well to closely watch the agave. Sadly, the plant dies after blooming. Similar species of agave are commercially grown in Mexico to make tequila.
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Itineraries across USA

Acadia

Arches National Park

Badlands

Big Bend

Biscayne

Black Canyon Of The Gunnison

Bryce Canyon

Canyonlands

Capitol Reef

Carlsbad Caverns

Channel Islands

Congaree

Crater Lake

Cuyahoga Valley

Death Valley

Dry Tortugas

Everglades

Gateway Arch

Glacier

Grand Canyon

Grand Teton

Great Basin

Great Smoky Mountains

Guadalupe Mountains

Haleakalā

Hawaiʻi Volcanoes

Hot Springs

Indiana Dunes

Isle Royale

Joshua Tree

Kenai Fjords

Kobuk Valley

Lassen Volcanic

Mammoth Cave

Mesa Verde

Mount Rainier

North Cascades

Olympic

Petrified Forest

Pinnacles

Rocky Mountain

Saguaro

Shenandoah

Theodore Roosevelt

Virgin Islands

Voyageurs

White Sands

Wind Cave

Yellowstone

Yosemite

Zion