When you consider the o/a appearance, you need to take into account that if you have a lot of branches emerging from the main stem at the same ht, you're going to get an ugly swelling there, something you can probably already see. Potentially, you have a LOT of plants growing on just the one in the picture, so I wouldn't really be to worried about messing up. If you have an aeonium, you have an aeonium for life, because they are so easy to propagate from cuttings. You can see the adventitious roots hanging off the plant now, which means that there are LOTS of preformed root primordia just waiting to be put to work. I think you have 2 choices insofar as pruning options go. When you do this sort of depends on where you live. 1) You could cut all the branches that emerge in the first whorl from the soil to different lengths, then truncate the main stem so it's slightly taller than any of the lower branches. If you do this, you'll get multiple branches occurring just behind the pruning cut, so you'll have a very compact plant with lots of rosettes at the end of every branch. It takes a little faith to do this, because your plant will be completely bare, but I do it all the time with not even a second thought. 2) You could truncate the main stem immediately above the whorl of lower branches. Then remove all but 2 branches from the branches in the whorl. The 2 branches you keep will be the one growing closest to verticle, and the one growing closest to horizontal. Truncate the horizontal branch about 2" away from the stem and leave the other branch to grow a while. Later, you'll truncate the verticle branch, and save 1 verticle and 1 horizontal; the horizontal branch should be anywhere from 2/3 of the way around the stem to opposite of the lower branch. Using that method, you will have clusters of rosettes at different hts and radiating out from the stem in a staggered pattern around the stem. Looking at thousands of bonsai plants has taught me how to bring balance to plant compositions, and it makes a huge difference in eye appeal. Even the choice of pot can be the difference between something that looks balanced vs just an incongruent plant or grouping. Al

Thank you for the additional info, Fizgig. I suppose if the rosettes were really huge, you could figure out that from a distance. I was just trying to get an idea. Your meas of 5-6" does the trick! =) The flower stalk (inflorescence) sounds really tall to me. I believe A. percarneum inflor are about 3 ft (1m). The rosettes can be as large as 16 in (40cm). I believe the bloom color is a match. There are 2 sites that show pix of this plant, but I don't believe we are allowed to link to them. I think it is okay to mention them, so you can Google the plant & go to their sites. I'll try & see if it goes thru... Dave's Garden & Xeric World. Perhaps you mean stamen for your "pollen heads"? Which botanical garden was it? Is their database online? Maybe I could take a look. Here is a link that might be useful: Many Aeonium with pix & info

Mature aeoniums tend to flower around late winter time, but theres always a few that are early. Some of my aeoniums are flowering now. Aeonium 'Cyclops' ranks as one of my favorite aeoniums. In fact, I have a huge bush of it about 4 feet tall and wide, though no flower on any of them. For me, they have some of the most fertile aeonium seeds that pop up in random pots across the yard. A picture would help us tell if its old enough or if its even at all flowering.

Ratio - Use a container at least 6-8" deep. In the bottom 1/3 of the pot, use a 2:1 mix of grit to commercial medium (respectively). Make the middle third a 1:1 mixture, and the top 1/3 a 2:1 mix of commercial medium to grit (respectively). As you add a layer, use a fork or stick to mix a little of the material you're using for the middle layer into the the upper half inch of the bottom layer. Repeat for the top layer. Gravel on the bottom is unnecessary. If fact, if you're concerned enough about your soil's water retention you think you might need a drainage layer, you should probably direct your energies toward improving the soil or taking other steps (that WILL work) to mitigate the limitations imposed by excess water retention. There are many things you can do that can turn a soil most experienced growers would consider unusable as it comes from the bag into something that can yield acceptable results. Ideally, your soil should be one you can pour into a pot, insert a plant, and water to beyond the point of total saturation every time you water; this, without need to be concerned the soil will remain wet so long it limits root function and/or causes root health issues. Once you get to that place, consistently maintaining a wide variety of plants in a high state of vitality will involve a lot less guesswork and be much easier. If you're interested in learning more, this would be a good starting point. Al