Succulents in bloom

As my April Bloom Day post was undeniably overblown, I skipped the succulent flowers with the thought of creating a separate post to address them.  But I didn't get around to that until now.  A few of the photos included here were taken in April but the majority were taken this week.

I'll start with the most floriferous succulent I've ever grown: Aeonium haworthii 'Kiwi Verde'.

The flowers are splashier than those produced by similar-sized succulents

These are just two of the clumps of 'Kiwi Verde' currently in flower.  They're in flower everywhere I've stuck a cutting in the ground.

Even small rosettes like the one I popped into this pot are blooming.  It's mildly annoying in that the rosette that bears the flower dies but, as the plants take off quickly as soon as cuttings are pushed into the ground, they can also be easily replaced by new cuttings.

I've only grown 'Kiwi Verde' for a few years but it's exploded with flowers each spring.  I've grown its cousin, Aeonium haworthii 'Kiwi', for decades.  It flowers too but never in the profusion demonstrated by 'Kiwi Verde'.

The flowers of 'Kiwi' (shown here) and 'Kiwi Verde' are virtually identical but 'Kiwi' forms a tighter mass of smaller rosettes, only a few of which bloom each year.  'Kiwi's' foliage is also more colorful.

Aeonium arboreum blooms in much the same fashion as 'Kiwi', always producing blooms here and there but never in significant volume.  The bloom spikes, like the succulent rosettes of this species, are large.

I cut and tossed the last of these flowers this week.  Like other Aeoniums, the rosettes are monocarpic so cutting off the spikes improves the overall appearance of the succulent clumps.

A lot of Aloes bloom during the winter months but I've got a couple in bloom now.

Aloe 'Rooikappie' only grows about a foot tall and its bloom spikes are also relatively small.  It flowers off and on year-round, which is unusual in an Aloe.

I picked up this Aloe striata x maculata at my local botanic garden in a 4-inch pot in 2018.  This is the first time it's flowered.

The flowers of the groundcover ice plant I inherited with the garden are small but they make a splash at this time of year by virtue of their sheer numbers.

I think this is Delosperma 'Violet Wonder'.  I've got it in a couple of areas but the mass shown here actually sits on the slope running from our property line to the neighbor's driveway.  It looks terrific for the brief period it's in bloom each year; however, the show is over within weeks.  It chokes out a lot of weeds but it'll also climb over other plants in its path, forming a twiggy mess. I've pulled it out in selected areas (on our side of the property line) for that reason.

It's gained a small foothold on my back slope too

One of my favorite succulents is also blooming right now.

This is Graptoveria 'Fred Ives'.  I grow it for the varied and changeable color of its succulent rosettes.  Its flowers are attractive but not abundant (at least in my garden).

There are a few more succulents blooming here and there.

Clockwise from the upper left are flowers of a noID succulent, a noID Crassula, Lampranthus 'Pink Kaboom', Kalanchoe blossfeldiana, and Sedeveria 'Blue Elf'

There are still more succulent blooms on the horizon.

The tiny blooms of Crassula pubescens ssp radicans are just getting started.  By mid-June there should be a mass of these flowers crowded around and between the 'Blue Glow' Agaves.

The bloom spikes of the Hesperaloe parviflora 'Brakelights' caught me by surprise.  Based on comparisons to records from prior years, it appears they're 3-4 weeks ahead of schedule.

A friend and I have a succulent-focused plant shopping trip planned for today.  There's always room for more...

Have a great weekend!

All material © 2012-2021 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party