Aeonium
| Aeonium | |
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| Saucer-plant (Aeonium undulatum) | |
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| (unranked): | |
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| Genus: | Aeonium |
| Species | |
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About 35, see text | |
Aeonium (tree houseleek) is a genus of about 35 species of succulent, subtropical plants of the family Crassulaceae. Many species are popular in horticulture. The genus name comes from the ancient Greek "aionos" (ageless).[1] While most of them are native to the Canary Islands, some are found in Madeira, Morocco, and in East Africa (for example in the Semien Mountains of Ethiopia).
Description[edit]
The succulent leaves are typically arranged on a basal stem, in a dense, spreading rosette. A feature which distinguishes this genus from many of its relatives is the manner in which the flowers bear free petals, and are divided into 6 or 12 sections. Each rosette produces a central inflorescence only once, and then dies back (though it will usually branch or offset to produce ensuing rosettes).
Low-growing Aeonium species are A. tabuliforme and A. smithii; large species include A. arboreum, A. valverdense and A. holochrysum. They are related to the genera Sempervivum, Aichryson and Monanthes, as can be seen by their similar flower and inflorescences. Recently, the genus Greenovia has been placed within Aeonium.
Much hybridising has been done, resulting in several cultivars of mixed or unknown parentage. Of these, the following have gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit:-
Distribution[edit]
Most aeoniums are from the Canary Islands,[4]:160–173 but some are from Madeira, Morocco and East Africa (Ethiopia, Somalia, Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya) and Yemen.[5]
Some species have been introduced in California.[6]
Selected species[edit]
Images[edit]
Aeonium tabuliforme bearing inflorescence
Detail of Aeonium tabuliforme flower
Aeonium arboreum 'Atropurpureum'
Aeonium aureum
Aeonium castello-paivae
Aeonium decorum
Aeonium lindleyi
Aeonium nobile
Aeonium simsii
Aeonium tabuliforme
Aeonium tabuliforme × arboreum 'Zwartkop' #2
Aeonium undulatum
Aeonium valverdense
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References[edit]
- ^ Eggli, U.; Newton, L.E. (2004). Etymological Dictionary of Succulent Plant Names. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 3. ISBN 978-3-540-00489-9. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
- ^ a b "RHS AGM Listing Oct 2016 (Ornamentals)". Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
- ^ "Aeonium 'Zwartkop'". Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 3 January 2018.
- ^ Bramwell, D.; Bramwell, Z. (2001). Wild flowers of the Canary Islands. Madrid, Spain: Editorial Rueda. ISBN 84-7207-129-4.
- ^ "International Crassulaceae Network: Aeonium". International Crassulaceae Network. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
- ^ "Aeonium in Flora of North America @ efloras.org". www.efloras.org. Retrieved 2016-10-15.
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- R. Nyffeler, "Aeonium", in Urs Eggli, ed. Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants: Crassulaceae (Springer, 2003) ISBN 3-540-41965-9
