Aloes were never my thing, but gradually, as I have come to appreciate flowers more, and realised what immense variety exists within the aloe kingdom, I have slowly been adding aloes to my garden, especially seeing that we live on the drier, hotter side of Pietermaritzburg, KZN, South Africa. They are real survivors, giving the most beautiful splash of colour when everything else looks drab. Not only are there the aloes with which we as, South Africans, are familiar, but nowadays there are all sorts of hybrids that have been bred to entice us into buying more! And, oh boy, I fall into that trap so easily!
Aloes are also a real attraction for bees hungrily searching for pollen in the Winter months when so little else is flowering. It is not just bees, however, that regularly visit, but also the a plethora of other little insects as well as the cutest little sunbirds. To this end, the Sunbird range of aloes has been developed and, wow, what a joy to behold all the different varieties.
This is my aloe Baby Cloud that flowers quite prolifically roundabout June. These ones will have to be moved to a sunnier spot. They have not done well this year as the tree in our neighbour's garden has become so much bigger and has created too much shade. This photo was taken in a different year, it has not even sent out spikes this year.
This is one of my earlier flowering aloes, simply called aloe Orange which usually gets going about April.
Below is another hybrid, the aloe Hedgehog. We have battled to keep it free from aloe cancer caused by the pesky little gall mite and one has to keep a careful watch so that you remove the cancer as soon as you see it!
Another two tone aloe like Aloe Orange is aloe Caroline which usually only flowers in late July/early August. We have moved this aloe as well as it was getting way too much shade and consequently did not flower this year.
One of the more well-known indigenous aloes is the aloe arborescens or krantz aloe which develops into a multiheaded shrub 2 -3m high with striking grey green leaves arranged in attractive rosettes. It generally flowers in June. It has also been susceptible to cancer, but as soon as I see it on a flower head, it gets pinched off.
Another hybrid aloe that i have is aloe Red Rooster which starts in June and flowers in July.
It has also been so exciting to see how the seeds of the aloe maculata (yellow version) that hubby germinated about 2 to 3 years ago and which we planted last year during the first Winter lockdown period, have formed pups and flowered for the first time this year in June. They bear seeds prolifically, so we are hoping some germinate naturally as they fall to the ground.
A new aloe added to my collection this year for our front garden which gets very hot, is the aloe suprafoliata or book aloe whose leaves open like the leaves of a book. It sends out tall flower spikes in June. It is the aloe in the middle of the picture, the others being maculata and hedgehog.
When visiting the Hackland aloe garden in Bishopstowe this year (June 2021) we added two aloes to our collection, the first being aloe globuligemma which, when it grows bigger, will be spectacular. It already had a small spike emerging and, fortunately, it has survived the transplant (it was just dug out of their nursery). I can't wait to see the little spike which has already grown significantly (as you can see in the photo) open. The flower stalk has horizontal branches which carry upturned flowers. Flower buds are red but turn a dull pinkish-cream at maturity.
Edit: What a delight the flowers are with their easily accessible pollen for all the pollinators!
We also bought a Sunbird aloe, the aloe Red Dwarf which will only flower for the first time next year (hopefully). I am really looking forward to that.
Another aloe that has flowered for the first time this year in March (so, an early-flowering aloe) is aloe Gertsnerii which we affectionately call Gerty.
Then there is the famous aloe Vera due to it's medicinal, healing properties. Its gel that comes from the leaves, is used to soothe sunburn and other skin ailments as well as for health drinks and facial products.
A small aloe we bought, is the aloe Somaliensis that flowered in April last year and January this year (2021).
Another small aloe we bought was the aloe Descoingesii which has just recently (August 2021) sent out a flower stalk.
The Tiger aloe also has slender flower spikes and easily forms pups. Where we planted it originally has become quite shaded, so we will need to move a few of the plants to encourage their flowering.
A similarly named aloe, the Tiger tooth aloe or aloe Juvenna is one I hope will flower at some point. It has a very interesting columnar shape.
A smaller aloe is the aloe Aristata that also easily produces pups.
This journey with aloes has been so rewarding, but also a learning curve as to when they flower (which is so dependant on weather conditions in a specific year) and what positions they favour. As long as we are brave enough to move them when needed, they reward us most handsomely. It is great to have Summer and Winter flowering aloes that keep us enthralled throughout the year.