Named “sisal” because it was first exported through the port of Sisal, Mexico; also known in Hawaiian as 🌺malina referring to marine because marine ropes are made from it. In 1893 20,000 plants were introduced to Hawai’i from Florida and tried out on O’ahu where it thrived and spread to other islands. In 1918 3,000 acres were under cultivation and several companies were established. The sisal industry has continued to go downhill in Hawai’i since 1919 as other more profitable crops have been introduced. It is also used in hula skirts and for feed stock. Plant resembles a century plant with flowers rising to a height of 30 feet in six to nine years.
- Tolerant of most soil types
- Drought tolerant