Light: Full sun; tolerates light shade. Acclimate nursery-grown plants gradually to intense Phoenix sun.
Water: Low water once established. Water deeply but infrequently, allowing soil to dry thoroughly between irrigations. Provide occasional supplemental water during prolonged summer heat; reduce watering in winter.
Soil: Very well-drained sandy, gravelly, or rocky soil. Tolerates alkaline soil; plant on a raised mound where drainage is poor.
Mature size: Typically 10–20 feet tall and 6–10 feet wide; very old specimens may reach 30 feet tall.
Bloom: Mature plants bloom in spring to early summer, though not necessarily every year. Unlike agaves, the plant does not die after flowering.
Evergreen / deciduous: Evergreen.
Growth rate: Slow.