Introducing Aloe
Aloe vera is truly a magical plant. It’s gorgeous, it’s medicinal, it’s easy to care for, and it makes for a truly wonderful house plant that brings a tropical feel to any space.
The aloe genus contains over 500 different species of succulent plant species. These are all evergreen perennial plants that are used to living in desert conditions in the wild, but are surprisingly adaptable to living indoors.
Growing aloe vera can easily be accomplished by any level of gardener. Through this article we will go through everything you need to know about aloe vera and how to successfully grow aloe vera indoors!
What do Aloe Vera Plants Look Like?
Aloe vera is a succulent species, meaning that it has thick and fleshy leaves that contain a lot of water. This is an adaptation characteristic of succulent and cactus species that are used to living in arid and desert conditions.
Each aloe vera leaf is thick, fleshy, and a lovely green color. The aloe vera leaf will have a serrated margin of tiny white teeth. These green leaves make up the overall height of the plant (as they are stemless) and will range between 20-40 inches tall.
If the plant flowers indoors, it will emerge from a tall flowering stalk – up to 35 inches tall – in the summer. Each flower is pendulous and yellow in color.
Aloe vera reproduces through seed, but it also reproduces through offsets, or they are sometimes called pups. They will sprout up alongside the mother plant and have the same genetic makeup as her.
Where does Aloe Vera Come From?
Aloe vera plants are originally native to the Arabian Peninsula, but have become cultivated and naturalized all over the world. They can grow in tropical and subtropical climates, as well as arid climates.
Aloe vera can grow happily outdoors, all year round, in USDA growing zones 8 through 11. This means that they require a ton of heat and a ton of sunlight. They are not tolerant to winter temperatures or to frost. Outside of these direct zones they should be kept as house plants outside of the summer months.
How is an Aloe Plant Used?
Ornamental – gardeners love growing aloe vera for its tropical appeal. Those long fleshy leaves are appealing to the eye and their striking growth habit is different to most other common house plants.
Aloe vera leaves are also evergreen, meaning that they persist and remain green all year long. This brings ornamental interest to your home even in the coldest winter months.
Because of their tolerance to living in areas with low amounts of natural rainfall, they make the perfect addition to rockeries, rock gardens, and other low-water gardens.
Cosmetic/Medicinal – aloe vera is super widely cultivated for commercial distribution. This is because the aloe gel inside the leaves has medicinal benefits.
Aloe vera gel is often added to skin lotions and moisturizers and is a very well known ointment that helps soothe minor burns and sunburns. Aloe barbadensis is the most commonly grown medicinal variety.
Aloe vera gel is also used to add to drinks! Aloe gel and aloe vera juice is added to create a very light and refreshing beverage that replenishes electrolytes.
How do you Grow Aloe Vera Indoors?
Now it’s time to learn all about growing aloe indoor. Not everybody knows just how easy it is to maintain aloe as an indoor plant, and aloe vera plant care can easily be incorporated into your regular gardening routine. First, you will need a few things:
- aloe vera seed/aloe vera pups
- terracotta pots
- cactus/succulent potting mix
- pebbles/gravel/sand
- grow light (potentially)
Soil Mix – the moist important feature that your soil mix should have is extremely good drainage. Good drainage is characteristic of cactus specific soil (there’s even sometimes mix called “aloe vera grow” for sale!)
You can also take a regular potting soil and incorporate some pebbles, perlite, gravel, or sand to increase the drainage of the potting mix. This is integral to aloe plant care.
Watering – watering an aloe plant is pretty straight forward. Knowing that it is a desert species, it’s not hard to guess that it’s a drought tolerant species and shouldn’t have wet feet.
The best rule of thumb is to just let the potting soil dry out completely before watering again. This will prevent any type of issues correlated with over watering your plant, like root rot.
This is also why it’s important to plant aloe vera in terracotta pots as they are very porous and allow the soil to dry out properly through evaporation.
The frequency at which you water aloe will also depending on the temperature, the growing season of the plant, and how much sun the houseplants are receiving.
Sun Exposure – aloes are sun loving creatures when growing in the wild and are used to living in direct sunlight exposure for an entire day.
When living in your home, they should be receiving a ton of direct sun too. Placing your plants in a south facing window with at least 6 hours of direct sunlight is ideal.
If you don’t have a south facing window, you may have to introduce supplemental lighting by a grow light. Set your grow light timer to 10 hours for a sufficient amount of sun exposure.
Indoor aloe vera can also become a little bit overwhelmed by receiving too much sunlight – but this usually happens when growing outdoors. They’ll tell you they’re getting too much sun when their leaves are tinged red, this is called a “burn plant”.
Fertilizer – aloe plants don’t actually need fertilizer in order to thrive. This can sometimes actually result in leaf wilting, so avoid fertilizer. They are used to living in poor soil in the wild.
Potting – aloe vera plants are rather fast growing and can quickly become crowded by their little offsets that grow alongside the mother plant. Your plant will have to be repotted once or twice a year depending on its rate of growth. You can also pluck the offsets to propagate new specimens.
Propagating – you can easily propagate new plants by simply planting the pups that grow around the soil of the mother plant to create a whole new population of indoor plant babies. Make sure to divide the root ball neatly.
Simply divide the young plants and leave the young pups outside of any soil to let it cut end dry out. This step is important to ensure proper propagation. You can also do the same thing with a leaf cutting from the main plant.
Young plants can be a little bit sensitive to too much sunlight, so keep them in bright indirect sunlight as they are getting established. It’s also important to avoid watering your young plants as they are getting established. Wait until they have taken root – it will take 2-3 weeks.
FAQs
Are aloe vera plants deer resistant?
Another reason why gardeners love planting aloe vera is that it is entirely resistant to grazing from larger pests like deer, rabbits, and squirrels.
What are the damaging agents to aloe vera plants?
The greatest damage that can happen to an aloe vera plant is living in poor draining soil. This will very quickly lead to root rot.
Are aloe plants perennials?
Aloe plants are evergreen perennials, meaning that they have leaves that will remain green and persist all year round, and it will produce flower blossoms each year as long as its ideal growing conditions are met and maintained.
What is lace aloe?
Lace aloe is a plant species that is part of the aristaloe genus, and it is not an actual aloe plant though it does look very similar with that aloe leaf shape, hence the common.
Are aloe plants an invasive species?
In certain regions aloe plants are considered as being an invasive species, so make sure to do your research before deciding to incorporate one into your garden or landscape. Houseplants don’t matter so much.
What USDA growing zone can an aloe plant grow in?
Aloe vera can grow happily outdoors, all year round, in USDA growing zones 8 through 11. This means that they require a ton of heat and a ton of sunlight. They are not tolerant to winter temperatures or to frost. Outside of these direct zones they should be kept as house plants outside of the summer months.
How often should an aloe vera plant be watered?
Watering an aloe plant is pretty straight forward. Knowing that it is a desert species, it’s not hard to guess that it’s a drought tolerant species and shouldn’t have wet feet.
The best rule of thumb is to just let the potting soil dry out completely before watering again. This will prevent any type of issues correlated with over watering your plant, like root rot.
This is also why it’s important to plant aloe vera in terracotta pots as they are very porous and allow the soil to dry out properly through evaporation.
The frequency at which you water aloe will also depending on the temperature, the growing season of the plant, and how much sun the houseplants are receiving.
Should an aloe plant be pruned?
The only time that an aloe plant needs to be pruned is if it has a leaf that is experience leaf burn and it can be snipped away.
Do aloe vera plants prefer full sun or partial shade?
Aloes are sun loving creatures when growing in the wild and are used to living in direct sunlight exposure for an entire day.
When living in your home, they should be receiving a ton of direct sun too. Placing your plants in a south facing window with at least 6 hours of direct sunlight is ideal.
If you don’t have a south facing window, you may have to introduce supplemental lighting by a grow light. Set your grow light timer to 10 hours for a sufficient amount of sun exposure.
Indoor aloe vera can also become a little bit overwhelmed by receiving too much sunlight – but this usually happens when growing outdoors. They’ll tell you they’re getting too much sun when their leaves are tinged red, this is called a “burn plant”.
Where can I buy aloe vera seeds?
Aloe vera seeds can probably be found for sale at your local garden centre or nursery, or you can purchase them easily online.
What is the ideal soil type for an aloe plant?
The moist important feature that your soil mix should have is extremely good drainage. Good drainage is characteristic of cactus specific soil (there’s even sometimes mix called “aloe vera grow” for sale!)
You can also take a regular potting soil and incorporate some pebbles, perlite, gravel, or sand to increase the drainage of the potting mix. This is integral to aloe plant care.
What is the easiest way to propagate aloe plants?
You can easily propagate new plants by simply planting the pups that grow around the soil of the mother plant to create a whole new population of indoor plant babies. Make sure to divide the root ball neatly.
Simply divide the young plants and leave the young pups outside of any soil to let it cut end dry out. This step is important to ensure proper propagation. You can also do the same thing with a leaf cutting from the main plant.
Young plants can be a little bit sensitive to too much sunlight, so keep them in bright indirect sunlight as they are getting established. It’s also important to avoid watering your young plants as they are getting established. Wait until they have taken root – it will take 2-3 weeks.
How tall do aloe vera plants get?
Aloe vera is a succulent species, meaning that it has thick and fleshy leaves that contain a lot of water. This is an adaptation characteristic of succulent and cactus species that are used to living in arid and desert conditions.
Each aloe vera leaf is thick, fleshy, and a lovely green color. The aloe vera leaf will have a serrated margin of tiny white teeth. These green leaves make up the overall height of the plant (as they are stemless) and will range between 20-40 inches tall.
If the plant flowers indoors, it will emerge from a tall flowering stalk – up to 35 inches tall – in the summer. Each flower is pendulous and yellow in color.
