![]() Although the plant is hardy to 20 degrees, subfreezing temperatures can damage the flower, as was the case this year in my garden. It also is a winter bloomer, throwing a multi-bract inflorescence bearing red-orange flowers.īut beware. The foliage, like the plant itself, is super-sized, dark gray in color and heavily toothed. The unbranched Mountain Aloe can grow to 10 feet high and 4 feet wide, often carrying persistent older leaves that make a natural skirt, giving it a rustic and untamed look. It’s a striking, robust and large single-stemmed Aloe with a majestic presence. Once established, it can thrive on natural rainfall alone.įor a bolder, can’t-miss-it solitary look, use Aloe marlothii. Torch Aloe grows in thick clusters to 8 feet tall and wide, sporting dense, gray-green lightly toothed leaves, making it a logical choice for screening or as a large, massing bank cover. The bright red blooming Torch Aloe is the classic winter-blooming Aloe often seen along the coast, especially in Southern California. It’s exceptionally cold hardy as well, aptly earning it the common name “Hardy Aloe”. striatula can be trained into multi-trunk shapes that can become treelike in appearance, albeit on a miniature, bonsai-like scale.Īfter it’s first year in the ground, it can likely go without any supplemental water and still look great. It grows in large clumps to about 3 feet high and has bright yellow flowers in spring.Ī. It sports dark green foliage that contrasts nicely against silver-hued plants. This aloe is a fantastic landscape plant that I’ve used for years. ![]() It is an exceptionally long-lived plant that will freely create offsets and by doing so, over time, will cover large expanses with it’s attractive mottled lime-green foliage and vivid orange blooms. The Soap Aloe is one of the more common types of Aloes seen in local gardens and for good reason - you can’t kill it no matter how hard you try. The gelatinous sap from the leaves lathers up nicely. Give it some extra moisture and it will reward you all year.Īloe saponaria is popularly known as the Soap Aloe. It’s so tough that even in a pot it can likely survive the entire dry season without any supplemental water, although it will shrivel and protest. It works well in combination with other drought-tolerant plantings or massed as a dominant ground cover. In the garden, Aloe vera grows to about 2 feet tall with yellow flower spikes reaching to 3 feet. It’s medicinal, it’s colorful, it’s easy to grow, its drought tolerant and reasonably hardy. ![]() Flower colors run the spectrum from pale yellow to fire engine red. The 400 or so species of Aloe range from stemless, minuscule plants that, when mature, can fit into the palm of your hand to expansive ground covers, high climbing vines and 45-foot tall tree-forming giants. Not only will it cool your skin, it may help you on your quest to become a timeless icon of beauty like Cleopatra. Break off some fresh foliage, filet it into thin strips, and rub the oozing gelatinous flesh over your body. She, like so many Egyptians, used Aloe vera gel on their skin as a moisturizer to create a radiant glow and to look forever young.įollowing her lead, I have a plant next to my chaise lounge on my sun patio, as should you. We all know that Cleopatra was a babe, but one of the reasons may have been because of Aloe vera. Many know the genus Aloeaceae through a single species - the much-heralded medicinal Aloe vera, which has left a long trail through history. ![]() But with spring at hand, it’s time to brighten things up by planting some of the best late winter blooming plants of all - Aloes.Īloes are rosette-forming succulents native mostly to Africa, with a handful of species from Madagascar and the Arabian Peninsula. THIS WINTER we got walloped with many a dark sky and big rains that muddied our shoes and dampened our moods.
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