Aeonium arboreum is native to the Canary Islands, although the one above is growing in my front garden. My plant came from friends who no longer had room in their garden. It does quite well, most of the year, but tends to struggle in very hot weather. After doing a little reading on the habits of the aeronium, I learned that they like to be in a light place, but do not do well in full sun. Sadly I’d placed mine in full sun. Tomorrow I’ll give it a slightly shadier position in the garden. Fortunately, it’s growing in a pot, so can be moved easily. I also learned they can’t survive temperatures below 50 degrees and prefer a sandy porous soil. I like to make my own soil mixtures, and below is the recipe I use for succulents and cacti.

Cacti and Succulent Potting Mix Recipe

Two Parts Potting Soil

One Part Perlite

One Part Pumice

Place the above ingredients in a large dry container and mix well

These three ingredients are found easily in garden departments, or nurseries. It’s much less expensive to make your own mix, and all types of succulents and cacti do well with this mixture.