Right,neonut, The agave is not your average 'house plant'.I'd say that one must weigh about 1 ton,maybe more. Lisa,yes,the leaves are wet from the mist machine operating when I took the picture. You can see it in the foggy background. But the brachts and petals are the proper color,very bright,almost neon like,at all times. John,thanks for the comparing photo. I could not find the previous post that you posted pics on,so this was helpful. I'm going to try and find out the difference in the species, but where to look? Heres another photo of 'Patricia' that I located that shows it in better earlier color. Truly,a good looking Aechmea.Maybe some chantinii & 'Little Harv' in it ? And an earlier pic of 'Marcelino'

a place to start Here is a link that might be useful: info

There are plenty of plants that will give you the "tropical look" while still being hardy for your climate. None of them need your special misting and many of them are actually quite drought tolerant. MEDIUM SHRUBS -- Abutilopn hybrids FLOWERING MAPLE Camellia sasanqua (and related) SMALL CAMELLIAS Cordyline stricta AUSTRALIAN TI PLANT Fuchsia triphylla SHRUB FUCHSIA Hibiscus rosa-sinensis (hardiest: Agnes GaltÂ, ÂBrilliantÂ, ÂCrown of BohemiaÂ, ÂRoss EsteyÂ, ÂWhite WingsÂ) HIBISCUS Malvaviscus arboreus TURKÂS CAP Salvia darcyi RED MOUNTAIN SAGE Salvia regla MOUTAIN SAGE SUBSHRUBS-- Impatiens sodenii (I. oliveri) POOR-MANÂS RHODODENDRON Lobelia laxiflora angustifolia MEXICAN LOBELIA Melianthus major HONEY BUSH Rusellia equisetiformis FIRECRACKER PLANT Thunbergia battiscombei SCRAMBLING SKYFLOWER Trachelium caeruleum BLUE THROATWORT SMALL VINES-- Asarina antirrhinifolia VIOLET TWINING SNAPDRAGON Asarina barclaiana MEXICAN VIPER Bauhinia corymbosa CLIMBING BAUHINIA Hibbertia scandens GUINEA GOLD VINE Lapageria rosea CHILEAN BELLFLOWER, COPIHUE Maurandya barclaiana CLIMBING SNAPDRAGON LARGE PERENNIALS -- Alpinia zerumbet SHELL GINGER Anigozanthos species and hybrids KANGAROO PAW Hedyciuim coronarium WHITE GINGER Hedychium gardnerianum KAHILI GINGER Musella lasiocarpa HARDY "BANANA" Phormium species and hybrids NEW ZEALAND FLAX Salvia involucrata ROSELEAF SAGE Salvia guaranitica BLUE ANISE SAGE Strelitzia reginae BIRD-OF-PARADISE Zantedeschia 'Green Goddess', 'Hercules' SMALL-MEDIUM PERENNIALS -- Asparagus densiflorus ÂMeyeriÂ, ÂSprengeri ASPARAGUS FERNS Astelia chathamica SILVER SPEAR Begonia grandis HARDY BEGONIA Bergenia cordifolia, B. crasifolia BERGENIA Clivia miniata KAFFIR LILY Cymbidium hybrids CYMBIDIUM ORCHID Dianella intermedia NEW ZEALAND BLUEBERRY Epipactis gigantea HELLEBORINE Liriope muscari BLUE LILYTURF Ophiopogan jaburans GIANT LILYTURF Salvia buchananii BUCHANANÂS FUCHSIA SAGE Setaria palmifolia PALM GRASS Tradescantia pallida ÂPurpurea PURPLE HEART GRASSES AND GRASSLIKE PLANTS -- Austrostipa ramosissima AUSTRALIAN PLUME GRASS Baumea rubiginosa ÂVariegata STRIPED RUSH Carex dissita BUSH SEDGE Carex phyllocephala 'Sparkler' SPARKLER SEDGE Chondropetalum giganteum GIANT CAPE RUSH Chondropetalum tectorum CAPE RUSH Elegia capensis BROOM REED Elegia equisetacea HORSETAIL RESTIO Juncus effusus ÂSpiralis SPIRAL SOFT RUSH Ophiopogon planiscapus ÂNigrescens BLACK MONDO GRASS Rhodocoma capensis ELEGANT RESTIO Rhodocoma gigantea DEKRIET, BAMBOO RESTIO FERNS -- Cyrtomium falcatum HOLLY FERN Pyrrosia lingua JAPANESE TONGUE FERN HARDIEST BROMELIADS -- Aechmea recurvata and vars. benrathii and ortgiesii Billbergia distachia and var. maculata Billbergia nutans Billbergia pyramidalis and var. striata Billbergia ÂSanta Barbara Bromelia balansae Dyckia ferox Dyckia fosteriana Dyckia fosteriana x brevifolia Fasicularia pitcairnifolia Puya alpestris Puya berteroniana Puya chilensis Puya raimondii Puya spathacea Tillandsia grandis Tillandsia ionantha Tillandsia recurvata Joe

It's a Crassula Moonglow:). Another one that has enjoyed the rain;). With cactus I can usually avoid getting poked if I handle them with kid gloves, but with Puya doesn't matter how you handle them they will just hook into you. Glochids I try to stay away from;). They call Puya chilensis the Sheep-Eating Plant. Here's a quote from I science times: " The plant, Puya chilensis, native of Chile, grows to 10 feet and is colloquially known as the sheep-eating plant for its bizarre methodof eating. Sheep and other animals get caught on its sharp spines, then starve to death. When the animal decays, the plant absorbs the animal's nutrients, like a fertilizer." I know most plants absorb nutrients from the ground, but those hooks have to be there for a reason. They're to evil not to have a purpose;). I could totally imagine getting stuck in a big one and then not being able to get out. Especially if you're covered in wool;).