Biology:Agave fourcroydes

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Short description: Species of flowering plant

"Henequen" redirects here. For the film, see Henequen (film).

Henequen
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Asparagaceae
Subfamily: Agavoideae
Genus: Agave
Species:
A. fourcroydes
Binomial name
Agave fourcroydes
Synonyms[1]
  • Agave fourcroydes var. espiculata L.H.Dewey
  • Agave sullivanii Trel.

Agave fourcroydes or henequen is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae,[2] native to southern Mexico and Guatemala. It is reportedly naturalized in Italy,{{citation needed lead|date=March 2026} 4>Verloove, F.; Smith, G.F. (2024). "An update on Agave and Furcraea (Agavaceae; Asparagaceae sensu lato) escaped and naturalised in Madeira". Bradleya 42: 186–196. doi:10.25223/brad.n42.2024.a20. </ref> in the Canary and Cayman Islands, Hispaniola, the Lesser Antilles, and Cuba,[not verified in body] and in Costa Rica.{{citation need

Overview

The leaves of Agave fourcroydes yield a fiber also called henequen, which is suitable for rope and twine but not of as high a quality as sisal.[3] It is the major plantation fiber agave of eastern Mexico, being grown extensively in Yucatán, Veracruz, and Tamaulipas.[citation needed] It is also used to make licor del henequén, a traditional Mexican alcoholic drink.[citation needed]

The plant appears as a rosette of sword-shaped leaves 1.2–1.8 metres (3.9–5.9 ft) meters long, growing out of a thick stem that may reach 1.7 meters (5 ft).[citation needed] The leaves have regularly spaced teeth 3–6 mm long and a terminal spine 2–3 cm long.[citation needed]

Like sisal, A. fourcroydes is a sterile hybrid;[according to whom?] the ovaries never produce seeds.[citation needed] The plant does produce bulbils that may be planted, but commercial growers prefer to use the frequent suckers, which develop more quickly.[citation needed]

The first person of Spanish descent to document the plant and its usefulness for ropes and other naval utensils was José María Lanz,[according to whom?] a Mexican-born engineer in service of the Spanish Navy, who studied henequen in Yucatán in 1783.[non-primary source needed]

In mezcal

Henequen, like other species of agave, is used in the production of mezcal.[citation needed]

  • Henequen farm in Yucatán Peninsula.
    Henequen farm in Yucatán Peninsula.
  • Henequen being harvested in 1922 for pulp to make paper.
    Henequen being harvested in 1922 for pulp to make paper.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Agave fourcroydes Lem." (in en). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org/taxon/61980-1. 
  2. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named VerlooveSmith2024
  3. ↑ "Henequen | Agave fourcroydes, Mexican fiber, Sisal | Britannica" (in en). https://www.britannica.com/plant/henequen. 

Further reading

  • Gentry, Howard Scott (1982). Agaves of Continental North America. Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press. pp. 573–576. [full citation needed]
  • Lanz, José María (15 October 1783). Observaciones que el alférez de fragata D. José Maria de Lanz, forma sobre la planta nombrada henequen, sus utilidades, y lo conveniente de su fomento, en cumplimiento de la comision con que lo despacho á Yucatan para la inspeccion de la járcia de esta especie, el Sr. D. Francisco de Borja, jefe de escuadra de la real armada, y comandante de las fuerzas maritimas del departamento de la Habana. [publisher and location unknown]. [full citation needed] Reprinted in Lanz, José María (1846). "Title as above". Registro Yucateco: Periodico Literario, Redactado por una Sociedad de Amigos (Merida, Yucatan: Castillo Y Compania) 3: 81-95. https://books.google.com/books?id=wLctAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA81. Retrieved 12 March 2026. [full citation needed]

Wikidata ☰ Q136120 entry



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