Mangave "Mission to Mars" aka "The Shambling Mound"
Most of the references online list Mangave "Mission to Mars" as measuring in at the relatively tame size of 1 foot tall by 1 to 2 feet wide. The reality is different - at least in my yard. What started out as a cute plant maybe measuring 10 inches wide has grown into a monster at least 3-4 feet wide and tall.
The amorphous form of "Mission to Mars" |
Over the last year or two it has become hard to describe it's shape - or maybe even where it begins or ends as it's sprouted several large pups. It's long leaves tend to twist and turn in every direction.
While I'd still consider it an interesting (and beautiful) plant, it's size and finely serrated leaf margins make it a bad choice near paths. Mine of course is planted along a path.
"Mission to Mars" flower stalks |
When I saw the flower stalk emerging last week I was surprised. I was even more surprised when I saw 2 more emerging from it's offsets. That's right - the parent plant and the pups are blooming at the same time. Weird.
Flower Stalk Close up |
The flower stalks have an other-worldly quality. The purple freckles look like they could have been splattered on by a water colorist.
I'm guessing by their size after a week+ that these stalks will grow quite tall. I don't know what to expect as the parentage is just described as 'complex'. This is a hybrid with several Agave and Manfreda parents. As usual San Marcos Growers does the best job providing details - Managave Mission to Mars
Updates to follow once the flower stalk has grown.
Updates:
Early June, 2021 |
The flower stalk in the above picture is about 10 feet.
Mid-September, 2021

Once flowering was finished - a few seed pods remained
Removal
In December the time came to reclaim the space occupied by this plant. I'll jump straight to the gory part...
As it turned out the plant had been growing dozens of offsets for some time and I have no doubt it would have continued to do so.
Oh my! That is weird. I've got one 'Mission to Mars', obtained in a very small pot and planted just 18 months ag. It's still dinky. If it grows like yours I'll have to find a new home for it. I wonder if your flower spikes will produce anything like bulbils, although I suppose you don't really need those as yours is clearly pupping like crazy.
ReplyDeleteI wonder too! Because it's parentage is complex I wonder if bulbils or see might revert or produce something else unexpected.
DeleteHow exciting! In addition to wondering about bulbils I wonder will the blooming plant die? I assume so. Looking forward to updates!
ReplyDeleteI was wondering that as well... and to be honest I'd be ok if the plant dies after blooming :) It's gotten too big for the space.
DeleteStrange, but in a good way. Frankenplant?
ReplyDeleteBring on the strangeness!
DeleteThese mangaves are throwing some real curveballs. My 'Mission to Mars' is still solitary and half that size, but they do seem to mature fast.
ReplyDeleteMy experience with this plant was something like: "I hope it survives." and then later "Oh, it's doing well - it's grown", and then "What the heck?! this thing is taking over!" Love to hear what happens with your plant.
DeleteHave one in a container that overwinters indoors. It has filled it in one year with a whole lot of pups.
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely a beautiful plant worthy of a pot. Maybe yours will stay at a size relative to the pot - I have a feeling if you got a bigger pot the plant would grow bigger.
DeleteCongratulations for growing the Mangave so well and thanks for posting this information which I have seen nowhere else.
ReplyDeleteMy Mission to Mars has been grown in ground for about 3 years and is now putting up a massive spike. Details and current photo can be seen here if interested: https://www.flickr.com/photos/pedroflor/51735579677/in/dateposted-public/
or search PedroFlor on Flicker.
Can you please update what has happened to your plant? Did it die after flowering? Did it produce seed or bulbils?
Do you know the parentage of Mission to Mars?
Regards,
Hi and thanks for stopping by. Your image on flickr looks great and leads me to believe this plant is prone to blooming much sooner than an agave. I'll update the post but in short my specimen did not produce bulbils - it did produce some seed pods not as many as the flowers might lead u to believe. I'm attempting to germinate about 100 of seeds now. I half expect what ever grows to look different than the parent plant - because it's a complex hybrid. As for the parent plant itself - I decided to remove it as its form had turned multi-headed and unkempt. A few of the leaves were browning at the ends, some dying but I think it would have struggled on for some time longer.
DeleteThanks for sharing. I am so happy that you posted your mission to mar pictures. They are beautiful. My plant is starting to get ready to bloom. Now I know what my plant will look like when it blooms. I have a baby that growing under it and it looks like the top of the mom plant. I had my gardener dig out all the babies over 2 months ago, I read somewhere that the more water it gets the larger it will get. I have mine planted in an area that is great for this plant to grow, but I don’t know how much larger it will get. I put the babies in large pots. They are doing ok for now. This plant is a great conversation piece. when people come over.
ReplyDeleteWhere did you buy your Mission to Mars mangave? I'd love to buy one that grows 3-4 feet tall.
ReplyDeleteHi. I bought mine years ago at a local nursery here in the SF Bay Area but have not seen it for sale since (anywhere). I saved a couple of pups which have been growing at my nursery since this post - although their form is seems a bit different. I'll take a picture one of these days and update the post.
DeleteMine have just started flowering.. this has been really helpful to know what’s to come 😝
ReplyDeleteWe have one that we planted next to our pool thinking it would only get a couple feet tall. We now have the flower shoot and the plant has gotten massive in the past year. This fall we will begin the undertaking of removing it. It’s a beautiful plant, but not something we should have planted poolside.
ReplyDeleteI have a couple of these in my backyard and one is flowering with a big flower spike and its pups are too which is crazy because they are small. I wish I could post a couple pictures but I’m not sure how.
ReplyDeleteWe have 3 of these side by side we've had them in the garden for 7 years and this is our 1st time seeing it bloom 2 have shot up and we were completely shocked thank for sharing we know know what to expect but definitely not a small plant 🫣
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