News crews have gathered and locals and vacationers are all amazed at the site of this incredible century plant that is currently in full bloom at Bricklanding close to nearby Ocean Isle Beach, NC.
Here is a link to a video from WRAL TV in Raleigh NC:
https://www.wral.com/lifestyles/travel/video/9793967/#/vid9810263
Wikipedia says:
Agave americana, commonly known as the century plant, maguey, or American aloe (although it is in a different family from the Aloe), is an agave originally from Mexico but cultivated worldwide as an ornamental plant. It has since naturalized in many regions and grows wild in Europe, South Africa, India, and Australia.
The misnamed century plant typically lives only 10 to 30 years. It has a spreading rosette (about 4 m/13 ft wide) of gray-green leaves up to 2 m (6.6 ft) long, each with a spiny margin and a heavy spike at the tip that can pierce to the bone. When it flowers, the spike with a cyme of big yellow flowers may reach up to 8 m (26 ft) in height. Its common name likely derives from its semelparous nature of flowering only once at the end of its long life. The plant dies after flowering, but produces suckers or adventitious shoots from the base, which continue its growth.
Cultivated varieties include the “marginata” with yellow stripes along the margins of each leaf, “medio-picta alba” with a central white band, “medio-picta aurea” with a central yellow band, “striata” with multiple yellow to white stripes along the leaves, and “variegata” with white edges on the leaves.
