A Mexican cactus has sprouted flowers for the first time in almost 30 years.
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The plant, which is growing in an Armidale garden, is almost 50 feet tall, property owner Bob Willis said.
“The plant itself has been there all the time and it started growing that stalk three months ago and has extended up very high,” he said.
“Apparently there was one in a glass house in England and it grew to 25 feet and pushed the roof out of the glass house.
“It seemed to grow overnight … it’s a phenomenal thing, just incredible.”
Mr Willis and his wife Lucy had been living on the property since 1988 and had never seen the cactus, officially known as a Agave salmiana cactus [or a Centenary plant] flower – until this week.
“It was dead when we arrived,” Ms Willis said.
“Only just this last week it has started to flower.”
Native to central and southern Mexico, the plant only flowers for a short period of time every 30 years and typically prefers a Mediterranean climate and sandy soil –making it rare in the New England region.
