First Love

Common names for First Love

First Love is also commonly called Pink Echeveria.

Growing habits of First Love

First Love is a plant in the Crassulaceae family, Echeveria genus, and summer is its most suitable growing season.

It prefers a warm, dry, and sunny environment, and grows best at 18-25°C.

It is not cold-tolerant, and tolerates partial shade and drought.

Home care often uses leaf cuttings for propagation. Common pests and diseases include: rust disease and root-knot nematodes.

Care tips for First Love

Repotting: First Love is a small to medium-sized plant, and depending on its growth stage it should be repotted every 1-2years. The pot diameter can be larger than the plant diameter by1~2inches,repot every spring. Use a mix of peat and coarse sand for the potting soil, with a small amount of bone meal added.

Watering: During the growing season, water oncea week, and never let the potting soil become too wet. In winter, water only 1-2times and keep the potting soil dry. Pay special attention to the white powder on First Love, and try not to let water touch the leaves when watering, otherwise water lingering too long in the leaf center can easily cause rot.

Fertilizing: During the growing season, fertilize oncea month. Or apply a slow-release fertilizer once every quarter.

Light and temperature: The optimal growing temperature is 18-25°C. First Love needs plenty of sunlight for the leaf color to be vivid, the plant shape to be more compact and attractive, and the leaves to be thick. Too little sunlight leads to leggy growth, pale leaf color, loosely arranged leaves, increased spacing between leaves, and thinner leaves. Apart from paying attention to proper shading in summer, it can receive full sun in all other seasons.

Propagation methods for First Love

Leaf cuttings: In late spring, cut off mature leaves for cuttings and insert them into a sand bed; after about 3weeks they root, and once seedlings grow they can be potted. Make sure the cut is flat, and wait for the cut to dry before inserting.

It can also be grown hydroponically. Cut a section of the top stem and insert it into river sand, then once white new roots grow, transfer it to hydroponic culture. Add nutrient solution to the water in spring and autumn; plain water is sufficient in summer and winter.

Suggested planting combinations: Pachyphytum 'Peach Beauty', Crassula 'Pagoda Village'