MAGUEY PULQUERO: HISTORY, CHARACTERISTICS, HABITAT, USES - BIOLOGY - 2025

The pulquero maguey (Agave salmiana) is a succulent plant that grows in a rosette. It belongs to the Asparagaceae family and is native to central and southeastern Mexico, where it has been cultivated for the extraction of a sweet drink, pulque.

From the taxonomic point of view, three varieties and one subspecies are recognized: A. salmiana var. salmiana; A. salmiana var. angustifolia; A. salmiana var. ferox; and A. salmiana subsp. crassispina.

Salmiana agave. Stan shebs

Agave salmiana grows in a spiral-shaped rosette with large, erect leaves. These leaves are thick, dark green in color with a large tip at the apex and thorns at the edges. After unfolding, each sheet leaves an imprint on the next sheet.

The pulquero agave is a monocarpic species, since it blooms only once during its life cycle. Flowering occurs 15 to 25 years after the plant has been established and is characterized by producing an inflorescence with a flower stem of approximately 8 meters, containing yellowish-green flowers.

This plant is native to central and southeastern Mexico, although it has been introduced to gardens in the Mediterranean region and in some parts of Africa.

It is easy to grow, if it is established in well-drained, sandy soil and with direct sun exposure. During pot growing, it is advisable to use pots that are large enough for optimal growth.

History

The pulquero maguey is full of history related to primitive peoples. It is possible to mention the one that gives rise to the history of the Mexican agave during the period of the empire of the eighth Toltec monarch Tecpancaltzin, who took the throne of Tolán in 987 of the Vulgar Era.

In this story it is related that after 10 years of reign (AD 997), a nobleman arrived at his court, Papántzin, with his daughter Xochitl, who offered the king a glass of maguey honey, from which everyone was delighted and intoxicated.

Later, Tecpancaltzin kidnapped the young woman and hid her at the top of the Palpan hill, where they had a son whom they called Meconetzin (son of the maguey). This heir rose to the throne after the death of his father, and this resulted in a civil war that brought devastation to the Toltec people. According to this story, the discovery of pulque would be 1020 years old today.

The pulquero maguey is native to the new world and since ancient times it has been cultivated in the Alto Llano for the extraction of mead and for the production of pulque. However, this plant is not only in the central Mexican region, but also extends in the American continent from 34 degrees north to 6 degrees south.

In this sense, in a letter from Hernán Cortéz to Emperor Carlos V, the use of the pulquero maguey for the manufacture of mead by the Mexican Amerindian peoples is related.

Likewise, it is known that the Amerindian peoples used the tips of the maguey leaves as punches in religious penitentiaries and as pins to retain thick canvases.

During and after the colonial period, the pulquero maguey continued to be cultivated and its products continued to be used. After the restrictions and prohibition of pulque, the consumption of this product spread throughout the population.

Then, at the end of the 19th century, a great pulquera industry appeared that underwent a great expansion due to the appearance of the railroad and the consolidation of the estates.

characteristics

Bush

Agave salmiana is a bushy-growing perennial plant that forms a basal rosette 2 meters high and up to 2 meters in diameter.

Leaves

The leaves of the maguey pulquero are dark green and have a boat-shaped outline. In turn, mature leaves develop villi at the apex and remain erect without falling to one side. The length of the leaves ranges from 1 to 2 meters and the width is around 0.2 to 0.3 meters.

Salmiana agave. Source: wikimedia commons

Furthermore, the leaves have a lanceolate shape with an acuminate apex and are deeply ribbed. Likewise, each leaf has a fleshy or thick consistency and has margins armed with numerous straight or simple curved brown or gray teeth. These teeth are largest in the middle of the leaf blade.

Inflorescence

The inflorescence is massive with a pyramidal shape and is about 8 meters high. Furthermore, the flower stalk is covered with large bracts of a fleshy consistency, and contains up to twenty branches at the upper end like the outline of a fir tree. The lateral branches bear sets of dense non-bulbous flowers.

Inflorescence of the maguey pulquero. Stan shebs

flowers

The flowers of the pulquero maguey are funnel-shaped 8 to 10 cm long and have a fleshy consistency. In turn, each flower is erect with a compressed neck above the ovary and with a green color at the basal level (ovary); while the sepals are yellow.

The stamens mature before the carpels and disappear rapidly after anthesis. On the other hand, the perianth has six fused basal petals.

Taxonomy

• Kingdom: Plantae
• Subkingdom: Viridiplantae
• Under realm: Streptophyte
• Super division: Embryophyte
• Division: Tracheophyte
• Subdivision: Euphylophytin
• Infra division: Lignophyte
• Class: Spermatophyte
• Subclass: Magnoliofita
• Superorder: Petrosaviidae
• Order: Asparagales
• Family: Asparagaceae
• Subfamily: Agavoideae
• Genus: Agave
• Species: Agave salmiana - maguey pulquero

Habitat and distribution

Agave salmiana is native to central and southern Mexico, specifically in the states of Querétaro, Hidalgo, Mexico, Tlaxcala, Puebla, Morelos, and the Federal District. Also, to the north it colonizes the Sierra Madre Oriental, to the south with the South Pacific zone and to the west with the Central West zone.

Likewise, this plant has been spread to other regions of the world, especially in the Mediterranean region and in some areas of Africa, where it has been considered a great problem due to its invasive nature.

The relief of the natural distribution areas of A. salmiana is characterized by being mountainous; while the climate is basically temperate or semi-dry. This species is distributed in an altitudinal range from 1230 to 2460 meters above sea level.

Applications

The maguey pulquero, also known as maguey manso, is the maguey species with the greatest presence in the Mexican highlands and is cultivated for the production of mead and pulque.

In addition, all its parts can be used, even its pests. The products with the highest added value that are extracted from the pulquero maguey are mead, pulque, red worm, and stalks used to produce barbecue.

Pencas

They are used as containers by the peasants for food and to drink pulque. While the dried leaves are used as fuel to heat some homes.

In the same way, they are used by traditional medicine to treat different ailments and fiber is also extracted from them for the manufacture of fabrics, brushes, etc. Meanwhile, the spikes are used as hooks to close sacks and as nails.

Pineapple

Mead rich in different carbohydrates is extracted from pineapple. In addition, the dried pineapples can be used as fuel, pot and to make different musical instruments.

flowers

The flowers of A. salmiana are used in traditional Mexican cuisine and are part of different dishes such as gualumbos stews.

Uses in agroecosystems

From an agroecological point of view, rural producers use maguey pulquero plants for the conservation of agricultural soil, since it helps to maintain the nutrients in the soil.

In addition, this plant captures rainwater, due to its roseate characteristic, which allows it to be used by adjacent crops. For its part, Agave salmiana is used to form living barriers and thus divide different cultivation plots; This also brings about the protection of crops, since these barriers work as windbreaks.

Finally and most importantly, the maguey pulquero plants help in the conservation of biodiversity, since it is host to animals and insects, which also help crops.

Crops and care

Agave salmiana grows in dry areas of the altiplano of central and southern Mexico. For its cultivation, this plant requires direct sunlight, as well as well-drained soils. The pulquero maguey can be established in poor soils and is resistant to drought.

The maguey pulquero plants are widely used in central and southern Mexico for the production of mead and pulque. This species is easy to establish and according to some reports it does not require special care, since it is a very robust plant with vigorous growth.

However, it is important to bear in mind that during the first stages in the establishment of the pulquero maguey, it is necessary to provide the soil seedlings with moderate amounts of organic matter.

In conclusion, the sun seems to be the only limiting factor in the growth of Agave salmiana, since this plant does not tolerate shade for long periods of time.

References

1. Narváez-Suárez, AU, Martínez-Saldaña, T., Jiménez-Velázquez, MA 2016. The cultivation of maguey pulquero: option for the development of rural communities in the Mexican highlands. Journal of Agricultural Geography, 56: 33-44
2. National Center for Biotechnology Information. Agave salmiana var. ferox (K. Koch) Gentry. Taken from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
3. Puente-Garza, CA, Gutiérrez-Mora, A., García-Lara, S. 2015. Micropropagation of Agave salmiana: Means to Production of Antioxidant and Bioactive Principles. Frontiers in plant science, 6, 1026. doi: 10.3389 / fpls.2015.01026
4. Ramírez-Higuera, A. 2010. Evaluation of the prebiotic effect of maguey mead (Agave salmiana) on Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus. Master of Science thesis in Bio Progreso.
5. Rincón-Gallardo, P. 1898. El maguey. Taken from: biodiversitylibrary.org
6. Smith, GF, Figueiredo, E. 2012. A further species of Agave L., A. salmiana Otto ex Salm-Dyck (subsp. Salmiana) var. salmiana (Agavaceae), naturalized in the eastern Cape Province of South Africa. Bradleya, 30: 179-186.