Dark colour with depth
Burgundy and aubergine shift with light, creating a richer effect than flat black.
Echeveria ‘Black Prince’ 8.5cm — Care & Tips
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Black goes with everything 🖤
Family: Crassulaceae · Pot diameter: 8.5 cm
Echeveria ‘Black Prince’ is the dark rosette that adds immediate depth to any collection. Thick triangular leaves begin green at the centre and, under abundant quality light, mature to deep burgundy, aubergine and nearly black in the outer rows. Clean symmetry makes the colour feel even more intense, while reddish flower stalks can add a second warm note. This is a classic cultivar with a genuine history rather than a passing trend—ideal for customers seeking strong design and botanical substance together.
Documented origin makes ‘Black Prince’ even more appealing: it was created by noted hybridiser Frank Reinelt in California from Echeveria shaviana × Echeveria affinis and introduced to cultivation in 1970. This parentage helps explain the balance between sculptural rosette and dark colour. To retain its premium appearance it needs abundant light, clean leaves, airflow and careful watering beneath the rosette, never persistent moisture in the crown.
Three details that turn its botanical identity into genuine presence for a collection and interior or outdoor setting.
Burgundy and aubergine shift with light, creating a richer effect than flat black.
Parents, breeder and introduction year are known, unusually valuable information for a trade cultivar.
The low symmetric form acts as a dark anchor beside silver, green or pastel plants.
Why you will love it: it is one of the few dark succulents with such a clear verifiable history—classic, dramatic and always easy to style.
Place it in white, pale grey, natural clay or metallic ceramic to emphasise the dark rosette. It needs a very bright window or protected outdoor site with sun after acclimation. Keep the rosette visible from above and leave space for air around the leaves.
Pair it with plants that genuinely share its light, substrate and seasonal rhythm. Separate pots keep care precise for every plant.
Very strong light and gradual gentle sun for deep colour and a tight rosette.
Water beneath the rosette only after the mix dries completely.
Airflow, warmth without stagnant humidity and protection from frost or cold wet foliage.
Not a food plant, with limited cultivar-specific ingestion data. Keep it out of reach of chewing.
Deep colour depends on strong light, but hot sun must be introduced gradually. In low light the green centre enlarges, leaves open and the rosette loses its compact premium appearance.
Confirm that the mix is dry to the bottom, then water around the base and allow complete drainage. Do not leave water in the crown, especially at night or in cool weather. Lower leaves act as reserves and do not call for frequent small sips.
Air movement between leaves helps the rosette dry and limits fungi and mealybugs. Remove only lower leaves that have dried completely.
It grows under strong light in mild to warm periods but may slow in extreme heat. Winter calls for bright protection and longer dry intervals.
Use a porous Echeveria mix with a high mineral fraction and a pot with a drainage hole. Keep the base above the surface so lower leaves do not rest on damp material.
Feed lightly while new central growth is visible. With fresh Sybasoil, wait about two months before diluted Cactus & Succulent Focus.
Echeveria ‘Black Prince’ is not a wild species and has no natural range of its own. The cultivar name is maintained through vegetative propagation of selected plants.
Reliable horticultural sources attribute its creation to Frank Reinelt in Capitola, California. Introduced in 1970, it became an international classic among dark succulents.
The documented parentage is Echeveria shaviana × Echeveria affinis. Modern trade stock may include clones with minor differences, but the historical origin remains clear.
From natural habitat to care: Because it is a cultivated hybrid, there is no invented habitat to imitate; we combine the functional needs of its Mexican parent species. Strong light builds dark colour, airflow protects the rosette and a complete dry-down cycle keeps roots healthy.
The dark appearance comes mainly from high anthocyanin concentrations over chlorophyll rather than a truly black pigment.
Spiral arrangement reduces complete leaf overlap and organises compact light capture.
Hybrid status does not confer immunity to rot or low light; selection preserves an appearance, not unlimited resilience.
Clonal offsets retain the known appearance, while seedlings recombine traits and may not be ‘Black Prince’.
Useful answers about light, watering, seasonal rhythm and the plant’s correct identity.
Deep colour depends on strong light, but hot sun must be introduced gradually. In low light the green centre enlarges, leaves open and the rosette loses its compact premium appearance.
Confirm that the mix is dry to the bottom, then water around the base and allow complete drainage. Do not leave water in the crown, especially at night or in cool weather. Lower leaves act as reserves and do not call for frequent small sips.
New growth often begins greener, but a persistently pale loose rosette indicates insufficient light. Increase intensity gradually.
No. It is a historic cultivated hybrid with known parents, breeder and introduction year. That precise history is part of its value.
Use a porous Echeveria mix with a high mineral fraction and a pot with a drainage hole. Keep the base above the surface so lower leaves do not rest on damp material. Feed lightly while new central growth is visible. With fresh Sybasoil, wait about two months before diluted Cactus & Succulent Focus.
Not a food plant, with limited cultivar-specific ingestion data. Keep it out of reach of chewing.