A small branching aloe for people without space for the larger tree aloes. Although small is a relative term, this is not a dwarf aloe, it can get big. It first made the wants list having seen a lovely one at Kew Gardens.
![]()
You know that "small" term, it is not a big plant it is only about 1.5m across. Having seen Kew's plant, it was only a matter of time until I bought it.
![]()
It all started well, with the plant branching nicely and showing real promise. At this point I thought I would plant it in a bonsai pot in the hope of keeping it small and displaying it nicely.
![]()
It looked great and for a short time everything looked good. Looking back planting it in such a small pot, knowing my lack of watering, was a mistake and where everything went wrong. Instead of getting the lovely branching bushy plant, it got leggy with few leaves. Today I decided to sort it out and decide what next. The old leaves were stripped off and while not an attractive plant it is interesting.
![]()
The lack of leaves is probably due to drying out, most likely with better watering and some food, these will most likely return to being more leafy. What was most interesting was how smooth the trunks are.
![]()
With the old leaves removed, the trunks are silky smooth and have an almost translucent look.
![]()
In the end the trunk made me hesitant to reach for the scissors. No doubt I could cut each head off and plant them up to start again. Normally I would not have hesitated, but the plant looks so odd, it is almost appealing.
![]()
Ok so maybe not appealing, more of an oddity, I now want to see what happens with a bit of care. Ultimately it will probably end up being cut up, but there is rush, lets wait and see what happens.
You know that "small" term, it is not a big plant it is only about 1.5m across. Having seen Kew's plant, it was only a matter of time until I bought it.
It all started well, with the plant branching nicely and showing real promise. At this point I thought I would plant it in a bonsai pot in the hope of keeping it small and displaying it nicely.
It looked great and for a short time everything looked good. Looking back planting it in such a small pot, knowing my lack of watering, was a mistake and where everything went wrong. Instead of getting the lovely branching bushy plant, it got leggy with few leaves. Today I decided to sort it out and decide what next. The old leaves were stripped off and while not an attractive plant it is interesting.
The lack of leaves is probably due to drying out, most likely with better watering and some food, these will most likely return to being more leafy. What was most interesting was how smooth the trunks are.
With the old leaves removed, the trunks are silky smooth and have an almost translucent look.
In the end the trunk made me hesitant to reach for the scissors. No doubt I could cut each head off and plant them up to start again. Normally I would not have hesitated, but the plant looks so odd, it is almost appealing.
Ok so maybe not appealing, more of an oddity, I now want to see what happens with a bit of care. Ultimately it will probably end up being cut up, but there is rush, lets wait and see what happens.