Number 8 in a series of my experiences with CA natives in my garden. My house is in the Crescenta Valley which is northwest of Pasadena and has the typical climate of the inland valleys surrounding LA, although we are about 1000 feet higher elevation than Pasadena, Burbank or Glendale which surround us so our winters can be a little colder at night than those areas. Our entire valley is made of alluvial runoff from the surrounding mountains, the soil is sandy, rocky and very fast draining.

Nolina parryi or Parry's Nolina

This is a great alternative to many agaves. The leaves are not sharp, you could plant this next to a walkway without worrying that it would injure someone. Also, unlike agaves, this is not monocarpic, it blooms every year. The biggest drawback is its very slow growth. This is 12 years old, planted from a 1 gallon and the leaf mass is about 4 feet tall. I understand that eventually it will grow a trunk but that must be after many years. This is in a very dry, sandy area that gets full sun with no supplemental water. I ignore it and it flowers every year. Somewhere in its life it developed multi trunks as evidenced by the 4 flower stalks. This is one of my favorite plants.