Origin:
Mutation of Aeonium ‘Velour’.

Known names:
‘Medusa’ (the most widely used name), 美杜莎.

Date of origin / Creator:
Discovered in the Netherlands in 2016, then developed and distributed in China by Wu Ning of Vivum Garden.

An earlier form may have been observed in France as early as 2011 under a similar identity, although it remains difficult today to determine whether it was the same cultivar or an independent mutation. Further research is still needed to clarify this earlier occurrence.

The Story Behind Aeonium ‘Medusa’

Aeonium ‘Medusa’ holds a special place in the recent history of variegated Aeoniums. Many collectors consider it one of the cultivars that played a major role in the growing worldwide enthusiasm for modern variegated Aeoniums.

Its commonly accepted story begins in the Netherlands in 2016, when a grower discovered a particularly striking new variegated Aeonium. The grower shared the discovery on social media, drawing attention to this unusual plant.

The post quickly caught the attention of Wu Ning, founder of Vivum Garden in China, who was captivated by the Aeonium and its remarkable coloration. Convinced of its ornamental and commercial potential, he began a lengthy process to acquire a specimen of the mutation.

After several discussions and negotiations, Wu Ning finally succeeded in purchasing a plant in August 2017 for what was considered an extraordinary price at the time: €1,000. He personally traveled to the Netherlands to collect this unique specimen.

A few months later, toward the end of 2017, he returned to the Netherlands and entered into further negotiations with the Dutch grower to acquire all the available plants. An agreement was eventually reached, allowing the cultivar to be propagated and gradually introduced to the Chinese market.

Wu Ning et l’horticulteur hollandais Photo1 et le post Facebook suite à cet acquisition (26/08/2017)

Wu Ning and the Dutch grower — Photo 1 and Facebook post following the acquisition (August 26, 2017).

It was also Wu Ning who chose the name ‘Medusa’, referring to the famous figure from Greek mythology. Medusa, one of the Gorgons, is traditionally depicted with snakes for hair and a gaze capable of turning living beings to stone.

The name was probably inspired by the spectacular appearance of this Aeonium. Its extremely dark, almost black areas contrasting with vivid red margins give it a mysterious and fascinating appearance reminiscent of the mythological figure who became an enduring symbol of dangerous beauty.

Botanical Description

Aeonium ‘Medusa’ is a shrubby variegated Aeonium resulting from a mutation of Aeonium ‘Velour’.

It is characterized by highly graphic rosettes with exceptional contrast between the different areas of pigmentation.

During winter, when light levels are lower, the foliage generally displays:

a central stripe ranging from medium to dark green;
two lateral bands ranging from cream to pale yellow;
frequent red or pinkish tones along the leaf margins.

The center of the rosette retains a bright appearance thanks to the combination of the green central stripe and the surrounding cream-colored areas.

Spectacular Seasonal Color Changes

One of the most remarkable characteristics of Aeonium ‘Medusa’ is the dramatic way its coloration changes according to growing conditions.

As light intensity and temperatures increase and the plant experiences greater summer water stress:

the central green stripe gradually becomes darker;
it can develop almost black tones at the height of summer;
the peripheral cream-colored areas become increasingly red, eventually developing an intense bright-red coloration.

This seasonal transformation is one of the main reasons for the cultivar’s immense popularity among collectors.

The same plant can therefore look dramatically different between winter and summer, changing from elegant cream-and-green foliage to spectacular rosettes dominated by striking black and red contrasts.

Cultivation and Growth Habit

Aeonium ‘Medusa’ is generally considered a relatively easy cultivar to grow.

Its main horticultural characteristics include:

Growth rate: fairly fast;
Branching and offset production: excellent;
Overall sensitivity: relatively low under suitable growing conditions;
Tolerance: good tolerance of sun and heat.

Unlike some heavily depigmented variegated Aeoniums, ‘Medusa’ generally retains enough chlorophyll to maintain good vigor.

Like all Aeoniums, however, it remains sensitive to frost and prolonged freezing temperatures.

Bright light helps the plant develop its most spectacular coloration, although careful watering remains essential during hot weather to avoid problems caused by excessive moisture when the plant enters its period of reduced growth.

Aeonium ‘Medusa’: New Evidence That Could Rewrite Its Origin Story

The history of Aeonium ‘Medusa’ may have an unexpected new chapter.

Until recently, the commonly accepted origin of this variegated Aeonium dated back to 2016, when a mutation of Aeonium ‘Velour’ was reportedly commercialized by a succulent grower in the Netherlands before being further developed and propagated in China.

But one question remained unanswered:

Did this Aeonium really first appear in the Netherlands in 2016?

After extensive research through the archives of specialized forums and discussions with dedicated collectors, I came across a discovery that could challenge the origin story that has become widely accepted today.

A Possible First Appearance as Early as 2011… in France

While searching through old posts on a French forum dedicated to cacti and succulents, I discovered a particularly intriguing piece of information.

In 2011, a French collector documented a spontaneous mutation that had appeared on an Aeonium ‘Velour’. The plant already displayed the characteristics of a variegated mutation of this cultivar: unusual growth, variegated sectors, and an overall appearance strikingly similar to what we now know as Aeonium ‘Medusa’.

This would therefore represent, as far as currently known, the earliest photographic evidence of a variegated Aeonium originating from ‘Velour’.

The discovery predates the currently accepted appearance of ‘Medusa’ in the Netherlands by five years.

Several months later, on the cutting that had been taken.

First photograph showing the beginning of variegation on a rosette of ‘Velour’.

2013: A Striking Resemblance to Today’s ‘Medusa’

Two years later, in 2013, the same collector published another photograph showing how the plant had developed.

By this stage, the similarities with the modern Aeonium ‘Medusa’ had become particularly striking:

the shape of the rosettes;
the distribution of the variegated areas;
the contrast between the green and cream tissues;
and the plant’s overall appearance.

This photograph could therefore represent the earliest known image of an Aeonium visually corresponding to the ‘Medusa’ we know today.

The plant quickly attracted the attention of other forum members. Many collectors expressed an interest in obtaining cuttings, and several specimens were reportedly distributed or sold.

Unfortunately, the future of this mutation proved uncertain.

According to the available discussions, the various cuttings that were distributed do not appear to have survived over the long term. The collector eventually lost the original mother plant during the summer of 2016.

In 2018, he even expressed the hope that one of the cuttings distributed several years earlier might still be alive somewhere in another collector’s collection.

A Hypothesis: A Possible Connection with the Netherlands

This timeline raises an intriguing possibility.

One of the cuttings distributed between 2013 and 2016 may eventually have found its way to the Netherlands, where it could have been grown, stabilized, propagated, and later commercialized under the name ‘Medusa’.

The dates fit this scenario remarkably well.

Of course, there is currently no definitive evidence confirming such a connection.

Another possibility is that a very similar mutation appeared independently on another Aeonium ‘Velour’ in the Netherlands around the same period.

After all, spontaneous mutations can occur independently more than once under similar circumstances.

However, it is also worth remembering that Aeonium ‘Velour’, created in 1976, apparently produced no widely documented variegated mutation for several decades. The possibility that two virtually identical mutations appeared independently, only a few hundred miles apart, within a relatively short period in the early 2010s therefore remains possible—but statistically rather unlikely.

Searching for the Missing Link

In an attempt to solve this botanical mystery, I eventually contacted the author of those old forum posts on November 24, 2025.

I have to admit, the prospect of making that call was rather exciting. After all this research, I was beginning to feel like a botanical detective searching for a long-forgotten clue—a sort of “Inspector Columbo of Aeoniums.”

Unfortunately, reality proved considerably less dramatic.

The person I contacted now has very few memories of the mutation that appeared in his collection more than fourteen years ago. As Aeoniums were not his particular specialty, the plant had not necessarily seemed like an extraordinary event to him at the time.

We may therefore never know with certainty whether this French mutation discovered in 2011 was truly the very first Aeonium ‘Medusa’ in history.

An Appeal to Aeonium Enthusiasts

But perhaps the investigation is not over yet.

So today, I am sending out a message in a bottle—or rather, into the vast world of the World Wide Web.

If you received a cutting of this old French variegated Aeonium ‘Velour’, if you know someone who may have preserved this lineage, or if you have any information that could help trace its journey, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Every detail, however small, could help reconstruct another piece of this fascinating story.

Because behind every plant mutation lies a unique adventure: the story of a plant that appeared entirely by chance, was passed from collector to collector, and sometimes went on to become a cultivar known around the world.

The story of Aeonium ‘Medusa’ may not have revealed all its secrets yet.