Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) was said to be 5 feet 3 inches tall, which gives you an idea of the size of the plants in the photo.
Height is just one of the impressive features of plants from the Agave group. Their large basal rosettes of thick, fleshy sculpted leaves ending in a sharp point, plus a range of interesting flower structures are too very affecting.
Many gardeners know Century plants for their life cycle: they eventually produce a large flowering scape, set seed, and die. This process is both fleetingly tragic and beautifully poignant, much like the life of Frida Kahlo..
Agave are predominantly from Mexico and native to the wider arid and semi-arid areas of Mesoamerica and North America. There are currently 292 named species in the genus Agave, that now sits in the plant family Asparagaceae.
Images were taken during a photo shoot for Vogue magazine entitled “Senoras of Mexico” in 1937 by photographer Toni Frissell (1907-1988).
