Two Q's about my huge Aloe...

First I would like to know how one can tell how old they are? Also, this plant is huge and when I got it I put it in a very large pot maybe two feet wide. Will it ever need repotting?

Look at it's teeth? I don't know if you can tell the age of these. Aloes tend to grow in clumps that will multiply fairly rapidly if conditions are right. When 1 aloe becomes 10 it will be time to divide it. Here in zone 10, they will cover whatever area you set aside for them.

It is a great looking plant hpluver.

No not teeth, it's not a dog. Try the rings around the stem. Or just ask it.
I have a feeling it a an Aloe Arborescnes. It get very large and clups like said. I don't know how long you can keep it in the pot. I have seen clumps as large as cars, the good news is that is will have a very lovely red/orange flower, and keeping it trimmed will not hurt the plant. Give it as much sun as you can spare.

Thanks... um ... She's going to flower? Never knew she would do that. When do you think that will happen? Is there anything I can do to speed that up aside from sun? It has 26 leaves on it if that's what you mean by the "rings". I also asked her how old she was... No response. I can't wait to see it flower, I really never knew. I thought it was beautiful to begin with and now... i just can't wait. I've got quite a bond with this plant, Her name is Alley and I got her from a creek bed here in South Bristol. Someone didn't want her but didn't want her to die either. So I brought her home.

Mere

This message was edited Jan 15, 2004 5:37 PM

Give her as much sun as you can. They are wonderful plants,must have sun to flower. Mine are in flower at this time. Yours may be a different spedies. Most Aloe flower during our winter, and Afria and Madagascar summer. We have opposite temperatures. I have never seen one flower in the house. Goog luck my friend, and keep us posted if she should flower by the end of February. Reminder, all plants flower or have spores (ferns)(mushrooms)I sure there are several more genera. Norma

hpluver, there is no way to tell how old an aloe is. We were teasing about the teeth and rings. They just get bigger and bunchier and some send out arms. Like Norma says, giver her as much sun as you can now. If recently put in that large pot, she may spend all of her energy on making roots this year instead of flowering. Is she your only aloe? I will get some pics of some big ones around here to show you but it may take a week or so for me to remember to put the camera in the car.

gosh all mighty.......have you all been sucking on rare Cactus Juice????????

Aloes take repotted extremely well, but they also don't seem to mind being root bound. They do grow slower if they get severely root bound, and eventually need to be watered a lot more as the soil gradually disappeasrs. Once all the soil's nearly gone, your aloe will start to look unhappy, but by that point there will roots coming out all over the place (bottom and top of pot). And yes, your flower will probably never bloom indoors. Not sure what species it is.

Wait a minute.
This was found in a creek bed?!?
In NY?
There has to be a story there.
Or there are some Aloe out there that are hardier than any I've ever heard of.

Ric

A friend of mine was going to get rid of this plant, and she had told me a while ago that she was going to do it. Her land backs up to a place that a lot of people hike at. I was there and saw a big wierd looking green thing sticking out of the creek bed by her house and gave her a call. She came out and said she had put it out there about 2 weeks prior. She had to get rid of it because the dog and her now walking baby girl were destroying it. She didn't want to hack it up and freeze it because as you can see, that's a lot of aloe. So it was summer and she put it in the creek. It must have liked it's little vacation, because when I found it it was doing alright. I took it home and repotted it and gave it some lovin' via miracle grow and now it's doing great! I was amazed it had held on for that long. But the water it was in is very clean and the weather had been very nice, I'm glad I found it when I did though.

Nice rescue!
I'm glad it ended up in a good home.

Some also send out roots 10 ft away seeking the souce of water or to hide under rooks that would keep them cool and perhaps dew that might drip down from from the rock because of the fog. Rocks conserve water. Then they will either clump or send out a plant runner, perhaps 5-20 feet away. That is what is happening in my front garden Aloe mound. This is the big month for them to be in flower. They will not flower in the shade, the sun gives them the energy that is needed to produce the flower. Believe me, there is a much better scientific way to explain this, I just don't have the right words. Norma