Furcraea foetida

Furcraea foetida (Giant Cabuya, Green-aloe or Mauritius-hemp) is a species of flowering plant native to the Caribbean and northern South America. It is widely cultivated and reportedly naturalized in many places (India, parts of Africa, Portugal, Australia, Thailand, Florida, New Zealand, and many oceanic islands).

Description
Furcraea foetida is an monocarpic-perennial (to evergreen) subshrub, closely related to the North American Agave and Yucca genera. The plants are generally stemless; larger, more mature specimens may develop a short, trunk-like stem over time, growing approximately one meter (3 feet) tall. The leaves (which are somewhat more pliable than those of the agaves) are sword-shaped, 1-1.8 m long and 10–15 cm broad at their widest point, narrowing to 6–7 cm broad at the leaf base to a sharp spine tip at the apex. The leaves emerge one-by-one, almost in a “rosette” formation from the ground, one leaf unfurling at a time. Leaf margins are entirely smooth in some varieties, or edged with hooked spines in others. The flowers are greenish to creamy white, 4 cm long, and strongly scented; they are produced on a large inflorescence up to 7.5 m tall. As with other monocarpic plants, the flowering section dies-back after blooming and setting seed, normally leaving behind young plants (or “pups”), which emerge from the roots and from the rhizome, surrounding the bottom of the main “mother” plant.

The plant is cultivated in subtropical and tropical regions as a fiber and textile product, and as an ornamental plant for appropriate gardens. Its leaves are mainly used to produce a natural fiber similar to sisal, with large plantations dedicated to its cultivation in East Africa.
 * Cultivation