DELTA — Tommy Cantin and Cindy Hicks don’t know how the prickly, little shrub next to their home in Delta grew so tall, so fast.

For the time being, they plan to gaze in wonder at the living monument that’s drawing attention in the neighborhood.

“I’m excited,” Hicks said. “It’s like we’re having a baby.”

An Agave americana — commonly known as an American century plant — has sprouted a flower stalk that stands nearly 30 feet high and is on the verge of flowering. The name is a misnomer, as the mature agave lives between 10 and 30 years and is a popular sight in cactus gardens. Once in full bloom, the plant will die quickly but produce root sprouts that continue its growth.

The giant plant outside the Delta home the couple rents at Janice and Ouachita avenues was planted about 15 years ago by Obie and Wanda Webb, then the owners.

Pam Stokes, postmaster relief at Delta’s post office, has kept tabs on the agave’s history for Wanda Webb, who now lives on the Gulf Coast. Stokes noticed it got about 6 inches taller every day for a month and decided to email photos of the massive stalk.

“It was a gift from Wanda’s sister in Del Rio, Texas,” Stokes said. “They have never seen it bloom before now.”

Mayor Robert Ott, who lives a few doors from Cantin, said he knows how popular the plant has become and has tracked it over the past month or so.

The heart of an agave contains a sweet liquid, agua miel, or honey water, that can be fermented to make pulque, a milky alcoholic beverage common in central Mexico. An agave’s leaves contain fibers used for making rope, cloth and leather embroidery. A related species, the Agave tequilana, or “blue agave,” produces sap from its core that is fermented and distilled to make tequila.

So far, the heavy leaves on the ground and intimidating, sharp spikes haven’t kept Cantin, who owns The World Bar and Grill, from keeping the yard trimmed.

“It’s real hard to cut grass around it,” he said.

Hicks and son, Brady Smith, 14, an eighth-grader at Tallulah Academy, can hardly wait for the agave to reach its peak.

“It’s going to be so pretty when it blooms,” Hicks said.