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Featured Plant

Aeonium arboreum

Profile:

Scientific Name: Aeonium arboreum 'Schwartzkopf'

Common Names: Schwarzkopf Black Rose

Family: Crassulaceae

Plant Type: Succulent

Environment: Full sun on the coast to light shade inland. Hardy to 25 - 30° F -does not tolerate long periods of freezing temperatures. Cut new heads in spring and harden off to propagate. Tolerates infrequent watering.
Prefers sandy soil

Bloom: Large conical clusters of bright yellow star-shaped blooms periodically throughout the year.

Uses: Drought tolerant plantings, sculptural and color interest.

Other: Debra Baldwin's World of Succulents
"Dry Climate Gardening with Succulents" edited by Huntington Botanic Garden Director James Folsom, Scott 1995.

Location:

Aeonium arboreum is located in: 

Entry Garden and the Succulent Garden, (Beds 5C, 49 and 50).

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March

About

Aeonium arboreum

Succulent is a Latin word meaning juicy, and is descriptive of many plants and plant families that store water in their leaves, stems and roots. Succulents can survive long periods of drought, even to a year, with this storage capacity. You have only to pinch their leaves to feel the water held within. The ever invasive Ice Plant is a succulent, as well as, Aloe, Cactus, Yucca, Sedum, the wildflower, Lewisa, Aeonium and many others.

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Aeoniums have handsome rosettes of fleshy leaves, one of which bears a spectacular terminal holding many golden flowers. The plant then dies, flowering only once in its lifetime. It is a repetitive process called monocarpic, and is also evident in the Century Plant, a member of the Agave family.

Aeonium arboreum 'Schwartzkopf' is a cultivar with glossy satiny rosettes so dark as to appear black. It will keep this color even in winter as long as it has sunlight. Native to the Canary Islands, Aeoniums do well in our climate but need protection from frost. The entrance border holds these in full bloom. 

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IN BLOOM CONTRIBUTORS:

Joanne Taylor and Kathy McNeil, Profile Contributor: Fred Bové

ARCHIVES: IN-BLOOM

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