How to Grow & Care for Aeoniums (Tree Houseleeks)

Aeoniums make excellent, low maintenance house plants that need very little care. Aeoniums are fleshy, succulent plants native to Madeira, the Canary Islands and North Africa. Members of the Crassulaceae family, they have rosettes of glossy, waxy leaves and range in height from a few centimeters to up to a meter.

The main growing season for aeoniums is spring and autumn, when the temperature and light levels are perfect for their growth. They need less water at this time as they can live off the water and nutrients stored in the leaves and stems.

How to Grow

Aeoniums are very easy to grow from cuttings. Using a very sharp, clean cutting tool, cut off a younger stem piece containing a leaf rosette. Simply cut a stem and rosette of 10-15cm and leave it in a dry place for around two weeks. Place the cutting on its side in a dry, warm, and shady spot for about three days to allow the cut end to heal. A free-draining compost is important, so use a 60:40 mix of peat-free, multi-purpose compost and perlite, horticultural grit or sand.

Place the severed, callused end of the cutting into the potting mix, just deep enough to hold it upright. When planting a flat-topped aeonium such as Aeonium tabuliforme, tilt the pot at an angle so rainwater can drain off it easily outdoors. If planting an aeonium in the ground, ensure your soil is free draining – sandy soil or a gravel garden is ideal.

Care for Aeoniums

Keep your aeonium plant in full or partial sunlight. Keep soil moist but not wet or waterlogged. Plant in sandy loam or a regular potting mix amended with perlite. Grow in the ground as perennials in warm regions, or as potted plants on decks or patios in colder regions. Fertilize during the growing season according to the maturity of your plant.

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