BCSS - Forum

Attempting to post right way up!

Well the answer was no but sideways this time! My question concerns pruning. The stems with rosettes are long and I want to keep plant compact. Would pruning now be best or should I wait for warmer weather. Plant is indoors at present.

Aeonium 'Velour' is a naturally branching cultivar, so personally I would leave it as it is. As you are growing it indoors, the branches are more elongated due to lower light levels. However you could take a branch off and root it, then maybe give it stronger light to achieve a more compact plant.

I would do as Diane suggests. Also one that has better colour outside, once the spring weather has settled down. If need be bring it in at night if we have a sudden late frost. They grow more compactly outside and need sun, as well.

Thanks Liz and Diane
Comments noted. I will remove a couple of bits and plant up when warmer. Plant is only indoors as I don't heat greenhouse. I'll move it into conservatory now so it should colour up. Thank you for excellent advice again.

I am wondering if two different Aeonium clones are circulating as 'Velour'. I say this because the clone that I grow is very reluctant to branch and under my somewhat Spartan conditions it only branched after it flowered. I am fairly happy with the pedigree of my plant and it can be traced back quite a few years. My 'Velour' is very similar to 'Zwartkop in form but the leaves (even during the winter growing season) are a reddish-mahogany rather than the blackish-purple of 'Zwartkop'. The branching plant seems to have originated more recently from a Cornish nursery. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

Hi Terry S.
I attach label supplied with mine. Apologies it does say Velours not as I stated. It does not look as though it was grown in Cornwall although I bought it at local nursery here in Hampshire. Not sure if this helps?

Barry Tibbetts from our branch has a lovely compact plant of this, as Terry says it's much more coloured but Barrys plants is really short and compact with multiple branches, he got it from a RHS garden, may have been Wisley.

Terry S. wrote:I am wondering if two different Aeonium clones are circulating as 'Velour'. I say this because the clone that I grow is very reluctant to branch and under my somewhat Spartan conditions it only branched after it flowered. I am fairly happy with the pedigree of my plant and it can be traced back quite a few years. My 'Velour' is very similar to 'Zwartkop in form but the leaves (even during the winter growing season) are a reddish-mahogany rather than the blackish-purple of 'Zwartkop'. The branching plant seems to have originated more recently from a Cornish nursery. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

Terry
Rudollf Schulz's Aeonium in habitat and cultivation describes 'Velour' as "Catlin hybrid, 2000 (ISI200-41). A. arboretum 'Zwartkop' x A. canariense." It doesn't sound to me as if your plant is a 'Velour'.

I first came across 'Velour' in Attila Kapitany's garden (see here). It is a very impressive plant, not one I've seen for sale much, but I did finally get one at the RHS Chatsworth Flower Show last year. It seems happy at just about frost free in the greenhouse, but all the outer purple/black leaves have shrivelled and died, leaving just the green rosette centres. 'Zwartkop' rosettes look fairly similar just now, a bit more purple round the edges, but they colour soon enough when they start back into growth later in the year.

JaneO wrote:Apologies it does say Velours not as I stated.

You were correct with 'Velour', Jane. It's the label that's wrong.

I think that my plant is traceable back to the ISI offering and it corresponds well to the photograph in the American Journal. But with me, it does not branch freely whereas the plant now commonly available in the UK, viz. the garden centre purchases mentioned above, does branch freely.