No, you cannot generally interfere with Nature - if the head's going to flower the head's going to die, and there's usually *not always* very little you can do about it. If it's already blooming the blooming head is on its way out, but since there are other heads, Greg, do the Alfred E Neuman and dance the 'What Me Worry'. It's part of life, life, taxes and the rest of that rot (unless you're in Greece...did I say that?). As to the link, I'm part of it. Here is a link that might be useful: Alfred E. Neuman Has One

1)Bayer's Tree and Shrub Insect Control. Mix 1 oz to one gal of water and drench the soil. May sure you keep your plants out of the sun for 24-48hrs. Either move it into shade or throw a couple of sheets of cheese cloth over it. Yes, it is expensive stuff but you will only need to do this once per year so it is not as expensive as it first appears. 2)The rosette that is blooming will die when it is finished flowering. Cut it off at that time, now if you don't like its look. The remaining rosettes will continue to grow. You may wish to remove all the heads and set them in fast draining soil. Your established plant will grow new heads and the heads will set roots and become new plants. **Remember: these are winter growing plants** If you choose to behead them, do so in early spring or fall when temps are cooler. They go dormant in the heat of summer and will not root. Hope this helps. Jo

DM - If you top our your plant it will send out new branches. If you place the tops in new fast draining soil they will root and make a new plant. You will want to do this as once a rosette has bloomed it dies. If you have several branches it is not a problem but a single branched plant like yours is at present would die. Here's the catch: Aeoniums are winter growers/summer dormant. Don't lop off its head in mid-summer. The best time is in spring or fall while temps are mild. In the words of a trusted friend: "In my experience, when an aeonium rosette is ready to flower, it's going to flower. I've beheaded the large-rosette types, such as 'Cyclops,' and had them bloom as soon as I get them back in the ground. What the beheading WILL do, at least with the thick-stemmed types, is encourage re-sprouting below the cut before it's too late." PatrickFB They do like alot of light but it is *my understanding* that a true "Zwartkop" (correct spelling) will always stay purple with possibly a little green near the center of the rosette. There is another hybrid (whose name I cant recall) that looks much the same but will revert to green in shade. HTH -Jo Here is a link that might be useful: A. arboreum v. atropurpureum *Zwartkop*

I've only had experience growing Echeveria from seed, so please keep that in mind. I've sown over 600 seeds last year with maybe 50% success rate for most. (One of the varieties only 4 out of 100 seeds germinated, but I think the temp was wrong for those). High humidity is absolutely necessary to get them to germinate. I actually sat all my pots in water while waiting for the seeds to sprout. My process was to place 2in pots filled with sterilized soil into a sterilized Tupperware container filled 1/3 with water. Then place the seeds on top of the wet sterilized soil with a skewer. Then put the lid on. That way the seeds would not be disturbed by any overhead watering. I kept it in a warm environment near some bright indirect light and was able to see if anything sprouted through the clear lid by using the flashlight on my cell phone. I did not open for at least a week, or maybe two. Once I saw that there were some sprouts, I cracked the lid open, but just a little. They were still sitting in water, so humidity was still very high with condensation forming on the lid and sides of the container. I did open the container to take a photo, 5 out of 10 Ebony seeds germinated in this batch. Once they got a little larger I opened the lid a little more and more but then I had a MAJOR problem with fungus gnat larvae eating the roots and leaves of my seedlings and killing them. So then I had to remove all the seedlings out of the soil with tweezers and a needle and put them into gritty mix. Took forever, but got rid of the bugs. Once they were past this stage they got stronger. I moved them to a protected area outside, this is from last month: I think light helps in the beginning of the germination process to provide some warmth for the seeds. Once they have sprouted, of course, the light becomes more vital. I didn't use any light/sun filter for the seedlings in the form of a paper or paper towel. There were some points where I put the tupperware underneath my red and blue LED lights, which were positioned about 10-12inches above. Some of the others: Hope this helps, I am still trying to figure out what works best in my climate. I water them frequently since the pots are small and get dried out pretty fast. Some more seedling pics can be found on my instagram.