Leslie's succulent page 26b

Echeveria x 'Katella II' D. Wright
Occurrence: A cultivated garden hybrid produced from American breeder Dick Wright.
It is similar to the x 'Katella IV' but larger with a rosette up to 30 cm in diameter, and forms slowly forms branches from the base, not known to offset.
The leaves are green with pink, crenate margins. In the autumn and winter all the leaf surface is overlaid with purplish pink and red.

The inflorescence is a straggly stem 1 metre long, with 3-5 branches at the end, each branch bearing four to six, reddish orange flowers.

Flowering time is early autumn to late winter in the Northern hemisphere. The flowers last a long time in the cooler season.

This plant has a tall single growth habit, which needs beheading every two or three years, the topped piece being used as a new cutting, which is not too hard to root.

CULTIVATION:
Fairly easy in normal C&S compost with some added slow release fertiliser. In the growing season growth is fairly rapid so repot when the plant outgrows it's container. In the winter, conditions should be just enough water to stop drying out at a temperature of 4/6ºC, plus good air circulation and maximum light is essential otherwise leaf colour is not as its best.
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PROPAGATION:
Fairly easy in Spring and early Summer by topping the stem.
The flowering stem technique is very successful with the inflorescence stems produced by this plant.
As with all these hybrids raising from seed is difficult, any progeny is likely to result be reversions.
Leaf cuttings are unlikely to be successful.

REF_1: "Echeverias A guide to cultivation and identification"
by L. CARRUTHERS and R. GINNS @ 1973.
E. x 'Katella II'. Originated by D. Wright.
This is a vigorous growing plant and slowly forms a stem branching from the base. The leaves are green, undulating, broad and spatulate, covered in an overlay of pink bloom which deepens to red in bright sunlight, margins crenate, edged a deep pink. The loose rosette is large, up to 30 cm in diameter.

REF_2: "Cadley Miniature Plants - 1973 Plant List of ECHEVERIAS & OTHER SUCCULENTS L. Carruthers and M. Carruthers."
"Katella 2 & 4
These plants slowly form stems topped with a loose rosette of broad green leaves. The leaves are undulating with red margins, edges crenulate, although similar Katella 2 is the larger growing of the two plants.
3"dia,...................................................................£1.50 each."
NOTE: Katella 4 did not appear in the 1975 catalogue.

REF_3: "Dick and Ruth Wright ECHEVERIA and other succulent plants (undated list)."
"KATELLA IV
Very curly green leaves with pink margins.
2½"................................$4.00"

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