Aloe Plant Care

The aloe vera plant is an impressive yet simple succulent that makes for a perfect indoor companion. This botanical beauty is also very useful, due to the fact its juice can be applied topically to soothe pain from scrapes and burns when it’s needed most. Here’s how you can grow and take care of aloe vera plants at home!

It’s no surprise why so many people keep these plants around the house. To ensure they thrive, though, you have to take care of them properly first. Aloe Vera plants are easy to identify thanks to their fleshy and thick stems; therefore, it’s best to keep them in dry conditions and in bright, indirect light. And while they’re pretty tolerant when it comes to infrequent watering – only needing a good watering every two weeks – your plant may sometimes produce aloes that are called aloe pups which basically just means you’ll get an entirely new plant!

How to Grow Aloe Vera Indoors

Aloe’s popularity among homeowners is thanks to its hardiness and tolerance of infrequent watering. To keep it healthy, plant aloe in a container made from clay urns that drain quickly, such as terra cotta pots. Avoid using large containers (the pot will dry out too slowly) or those made from plastic or glazed clay (water will sit inside the pot and rot your aloe).

If you notice your aloe leaning due to the weight of its leaves, then repot them -but otherwise do not try to give this low-maintenance plant more space than what it already needs.

Place your succulent in a well-lit, sunny area of your home. If not, it will become dormant and cease growth. Give the plant water about once every two weeks (wait until its soil has dried out fully) because this succulent thrives in arid conditions. Keep an eye on limp or brown leaves too – they signify that you may have overwatered the plant.

If you like, you can bring your potted succulent outside during summer time but do so gradually – and slowly shift it to an increasingly brighter area (in stages) so as to avoid sudden exposure and harm.

How to Grow Aloe Vera Outdoors

If you live in Zone 10 or higher on the USDA Plant Hardiness Map, then it’s possible to grow your aloe outside. Freezing temperatures will kill the leaves, but you really have to worry about iced-over soil; if this happens then your aloe plant won’t survive and new sprouts won’t emerge.

When picking a spot, look for a well-drained bed—you shouldn’t need to water your aloe with the exception of droughts. In fact, if it hasn’t rained in months (or if you’ve been really forgetful about watering), take the plant outdoors and give it a good soak before letting the soil dry out again.

How to Care for Aloe Vera

As an added bonus, your aloe plant will occasionally produce a tall stalk of small bell-shaped flowers. Once the blooms die, you can cut them off at the base. Even better, aloe plants also produce new smaller plants perfect for propagation.

If you notice one of these pups, dump out the dirt and tease apart the roots of each individual plant – planting them separately in their own pots. If you’re keen to give aloe plants to friends or family members, you can start your own by cutting off a few leaves from an established plant – trimming them so they are about 3 inches long from the leaf tip before putting them into potting soil with good drainage. Some may not take root but if they do grow tiny little leaves at their base after only a couple of weeks – just wait until it grows another inch or two before re-potting again.

How to Grow an Aloe Plant

The first step in caring for an aloe vera plant is realizing that it’s a succulent. Like cacti, succulents thrive under dry conditions. While planting an aloe vera plant, use a cactus potting soil mix or regular potting soil mixed with additional perlite or building sand to ensure good drainage. Ensure that the container also has plenty of drainage holes so it doesn’t over-saturate while watering.

Care of Aloe Houseplants

Aloe plants are very easy to take care of. One important way to make sure that an aloe plant lives a long life is to understand how they should be watered – let them stay dry, then soak them fully when they are due for it. Watering needs depend on the type of container they’re in; don’t let them stay wet after soaking.

Another important step in caring for an aloe vera plant (that some forget) is fertilizing them once per year during the spring months with something rich in phosphorus and other trace minerals available via a water-based solution such as a full-strength MiracleGro® Garden Starter Kit 16 oz each Jar.

As long as you take care of your newly acquired fauna, he will live on well beyond expectations – becoming the greatest healer you could hope for under even the worst circumstances with less than conventional means because now there’s nothing stopping this adventurous planter from achieving greatness!

Where to grow Aloe vera

A bright windowsill or shelf is an ideal spot for an Aloe plant. They can take a bit of direct sunlight, but too much will cause the leaves to burn.

Caring for Aloe vera

Aloe Vera plants store water in their leaves. It is important not to overwater them—water when the top few centimeters of soil has dried out between waterings. If it does happen, make sure you let the water drain away fully—do not let the plant sit in water for too long as this may cause the roots to rot.

Aloes require very little water during winter and can take a while before they grow large enough to be replanted again. Provide monthly feeding (in spring through summer) with weak plant food and wipe down leaves occasionally, if needed, to keep dirt off the leaf surface which may cause other problems.

HOW MUCH LIGHT DO ALOE VERA PLANTS NEED?

Aloe vera thrives in lots of bright indirect light – or even direct sunlight if you’re able to provide that sort of environment. Placing them in spaces without adequate amounts of light will cause their leaves to begin to yellow and droop downward, explains Pangborn.

Basically, as a rough guide, an aloe plant should be placed on a sunny windowsill where it will receive at least six hours of really bright light each day. If daylight isn’t available, there are plenty of grow lights available – from changing out your regular bulb for one meant specifically for plants, all the way up to growing indoors with fluorescent bulbs.

The trickier part is temperature. Aloe vera does well in dry environments but doesn’t require extra humidity. It thrives best around normal room temperatures between 18-29 degrees Celsius (65-85 degrees Fahrenheit).

SHOULD I PRUNE ALOE VERA?

Aloe plants don’t usually need to be pruned, but they might require occasional tidying up. You can also remove its leaves when extracting gel. If the plant becomes too dry between watering, says Pangborn, the lower leaves might start to shrivel and brown. In this case, use a sharp cutting tool to remove them for aesthetic purposes.

And if you know how to divide plants, you can propagate these to create new aloe plants. The key is having enough light, adds Pangborn. If so, he says, your aloe will produce an inflorescence with spikes containing small white flowers. Once the flower has withered away from the spike, it’s time for you to cut off at the base of the flowering stalk where it attaches on top of the Aloe plant—or simply wait until next year.

HOW TO REPORT ALOE PLANTS

As an aloe vera plant grows slowly, it will not require repotting very often – usually only do this if the plant has outgrown its pot or become lanky. You’ll need a slightly larger pot made of porous material such as terracotta which would have drainage holes at the bottom and can accommodate any stem that’s present on the plant. Fresh potting mix with just 6 parts soil to 4 parts grit (such as pumice, perlite, or coarse sand) is necessary; most store-bought brands don’t provide enough drainage, said Detrinidad.

If you notice brown leaves on your plant and any new growth coming in from offset plants, take those off now but take care not to damage the root system when you’re doing so. After repotting, wait for a few days before watering your aloe vera again because there will already be some moisture provided by the potting mix in the container.

PESTS AND PROBLEMS

Pests are uncommon for the plant but happen sometimes. Your aloe vera could become affected by red spider mites or mealy bugs; however, if you keep an eye on your plant frequently then spotting them early is easy.

The biggest problem that impacts the care of aloe plants is usually overwatering – so look out for common signs such as brown or yellow wilted stalks and plants that feel soft to the touch. During the winter seasons, your aloe vera should be watered less often.

Identifying aloe vera

There are over 300 different aloe plants! Says Kujawa. The best way to identify your plant is by the stem, shape, size, growth pattern, and whether or not it has flowers. Aloe vera (also known as true aloe) is the most common type of plant you’ll find and it’s identified by its long, fat succulent green stalk with spikes along the edges. Most varieties come in different colors such as red or purple; some even have shorter leaves while others may grow more than one stalk from each root system.

Aloe Vera Plant Characteristics

Adaptable to USDA hardiness zones 8 through 11, aloe vera (Aloe barbadensis miller) is a fast-growing plant. This plant grows to a height of 24 to 39 inches in the wild, with fleshy, serrated leaves ranging in color from light green to dark green.

During its growing season-which occurs during the summer-it blooms with red, yellow, or orange flowers. It may take years for your alo houseplant to bloom for the first time; don’t be disappointed if it doesn’t.

Selecting Soil for Aloe Plants

The best way to ensure optimal drainage is to plant it in a terra-cotta pot that has a drainage hole. Aloe needs a suitable drainage mix so choose cacti and succulents. If you don’t want to add perlite to your existing container of soil, you could add coarse sand or coarse sand.

For starters, aloe is a good choice because of its ability to handle small spaces and will not need to be replanted until its large leaves start to droop down from too much weight. Choosing heavy pots will prevent this from happening (potentially). If you do plan on repotting your aloe plant, wait at least one week before watering them afterward so as not to introduce any root rot complications!

Safety Considerations

Despite being used in consumable products, ingestion of aloe vera gel (in high doses) has been known to be toxic. When consumed orally, decolorized aloe vera leaf extract is found to be potentially carcinogenic by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.

Consumption by humans should use only small amounts of non-decolorized products and speak with a physician before ingesting anything else not intended for human consumption, as they may interact negatively with some prescription drugs – including those meant to treat diabetes, heart disease, and blood clots. However, some people may experience an adverse skin reaction from touching or consuming aloe.

Potential Pests and Diseases

Infestations with aphids, spider mites, scale insects, or mealybugs are rare among aloe plants, but they can still occur sometimes. To remove these pests manually, pick them off the leaves or rinse the plant with water.

Alternatively, you can apply neem oil, which is a natural insecticide. There are several types of aloe vera plant diseases that can lead to major aloe vera plant problems if left untreated. These include root rot, soft rot, fungal stem rot, and leaf rot. This is why it’s important not to overwater your plant and wait until the soil has completely dried out before watering again.

Light

Aloe vera plants need natural, bright light to thrive. They thrive best outdoors – you’ll want 6 hours or more of full sun each day (with a small reprieve from direct rays in the afternoon). Indoors, place your aloe vera plants in windows with strong, but indirect sunlight. Direct sunlight will burn its sensitive skin, but if it doesn’t receive enough light it will become leggy and weak-leaving its leaves crinkled and scraggly.

Soil

Aloe vera likes to grow in dry, nutrient-poor soil conditions. This means they prefer to do best when they are planted on sandy slopes with guaranteed drainage and pots made from a cactus potting mix or traditional potting soil mixed with perlite and coarse sand. Aloe prefers its soil slightly acidic, hovering around 6.0, but it is highly adaptable and can also grow in neutral or alkaline soils if need be.

Water

If it has been a while since you last watered them, they may shrivel up and pucker slightly. They will grow back if you provide water again, but if the environment becomes too stressful – either because there isn’t enough water or because there’s too much – the leaves will start turning yellow and eventually die.

Don’t water plants when it is raining outside! Aloe can go dormant in colder climates – as long as they had plenty of water throughout their active season – so they don’t need anything other than rainwater in those climates.

Temperature and Humidity

In order to help an aloe thrive, you’ll need an environment that replicates the kind of environment it would grow in naturally – arid, tropical, or semi-tropical. 

Do not leave your pot plant outdoors when there is a risk of overnight lows being below 40 degrees Fahrenheit (-4 degrees Celsius), as aloes cannot tolerate frost. However, some types of aloes can withstand occasional temperatures near freezing. Aloes can handle dry air well enough but may benefit from higher levels of humidity—about 40% relative humidity is perfect.

Fertilizer

Aloe Vera is known to grow best in poor soil conditions (adapting to nutrient-poor desert soil). As such, it doesn’t need any fertilization at all. Nonetheless, feeding potted Aloe every year during the first week of Spring – diluted liquid 10-40-10 houseplant fertilizer – can help maintain a vibrant growth. Outdoors, Aloe plants typically don’t need any supplementation whatsoever.

FAQ about Aloe Plant Care