CHASE, Kan. (AP) A 3-story cactus that has brought national attention to a small central Kansas town is blooming for the first time in decades.
And then it’s expected to die.
The Agave americana plant has been owned by Ed and Joyce Ward of Chase for 36 years. It was featured on a national news show and has drawn thousands of visitors to Chase.
The plant normally grows in the southwest. It is popularly known as the century plant because it lives about 30 to 40 years, blooms, and then dies.
The Wichita Eagle reports the plant has begun to bloom. Ed Ward says the top of the plant still hasn’t bloomed but the center is giving way. And he says he expects the plant to be dead within days.
