Scentsational

Garlands of pale yellow acacia flowers drape over the spiky century plant, the tiny powder-puff blooms perfuming the late winter garden. Adding a spicy edge to the floral sweetness is the aromatic myrtle foliage, whose soft colors repeat the tones found in its companions. Contrasting small leaves and miniature flowers with bold, waxy foliage keep to a simple color palette of soft gray and yellow and create a wholly feminine composition.

This evergreen trio promises foliage, flowers, and fragrance for many years. In summer the myrtle will add its sweetly perfumed flowers to the mix, the seeds maturing to blue-black berries that will show up well against the lighter colors. At some point the long-lived variegated century plant will bloom, heralding the end of its life and shifting the balance of this composition while the younger plantlets mature.

Site: full sun  Soil: average to dry, well-drained  Zone: 9-11
Season: year-round
Foliage Framework

Variegated century plant (Agave americana ‘Variegata’, also sold as Agave americana var. marginata) Attractive blue-gray and creamy yellow variegated succulent foliage grows in rosettes. Tall flowering stalks on mature plants...