Aloe CASTANEA

Aloe CASTANEA - Cat's tail aloe, Chestnut aloe, Castanea aloe.

Aloe is a genus of very popular succulent plants belonging to the family Asphodelaceae. This genus includes approximately 400 species and encompasses a large number of plants that possess fleshy and very juicy leaves with fairly soft spines located on them. There are shrubby, arborescent, and herbaceous forms, as well as lianas. In the wild, aloe can be encountered in Africa, and a large number of species grow on the Arabian Peninsula and in Madagascar. Translated from Arabic, 'aloe' means 'bitter'.

These plants have modest tubular flowers, colored, as a rule, in red, orange, white, or yellow. The flowers are located on a peduncle of fairly substantial length, in a terminal multi-flowered raceme. Indoors, it practically never blooms. Aloe lives in a flowerpot for 5-20 years, for which it is also called 'century plant'.

Absolutely all cultivated species of aloe are suitable for keeping in indoor conditions and can even be used to green children's rooms. It is often used as a 'home doctor'. The plant is very undemanding, and there are, as a rule, never any problems associated with caring for it. This plant can easily endure a lack of light, moisture, and warmth. Those species that were previously grown extremely rarely now increasingly adorn winter gardens. The century plant will make an excellent addition when creating compositions that include slow-growing plants.

Chestnut aloe is a shrubby or arborescent aloe, 1-2 m (3.3-6.6 ft) tall with a single trunk covered with old leaves and sometimes branched in the upper part. The leaves are in a rosette at the end of the trunk, long, narrow, lanceolate, channeled, fleshy, smooth, with small sharp brown teeth along the margins. Inflorescences - snake-like racemes bear openly tubular, small, orange-brown flowers.

Seeds are preliminarily soaked for 4-6 hours in a weak solution of potassium permanganate or fungicide with the addition of stimulants (SUPERthrive, HB-101, Aminosol, Epin, or Zircon), then sown in a moist substrate consisting of leaf mold and river sand, layered over expanded clay pre-scalded with boiling water. A sowing substrate identical to that for adeniums can be used. The sowing is moistened with a spray bottle, placed in a mini-greenhouse or covered with film, and germinated in the light, but not in direct sun at a temperature of 21-26 °C (70-79 °F). Seedlings need ventilation. Waterlogging and desiccation of the sowings must be avoided.

With seed propagation of aloe, cultivar traits may segregate. Seeds usually germinate from 3-4 weeks to 2-3 months, depending on conditions. Pricking out is performed after the appearance of 2-3 true leaves. Young plants are gradually accustomed to lower humidity and brighter light.

An alternative method of germinating seeds in distilled water or a 10% solution of growth stimulants is possible. Seeds are placed in a small container of water, where they float initially, but then sink. Germination occurs unevenly starting from 4 weeks, but can take several months. The water is changed every few days. Seeds are removed one by one as they germinate and placed in a substrate of equal parts sand and compost.

The critical point of this method is embedding the seed into the substrate with the root pointing precisely downward, which may push the seed outward instead of developing inward. Rising seeds are not pressed back in, but sprinkled with a teaspoon of soil on top. Over the course of 4 weeks, it is necessary to closely monitor each seed and guide the sprouts to anchor the root.

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Aloe, like almost all succulents, is undemanding in care. The century plant loves light, and therefore it is best to place it on window sills located in the southern part of the room. However, it can also be grown in shaded places, but it is worth noting that with a severe lack of light, the aloe leaves will stretch and pale. In summer, the plant can be moved to fresh air, but rainwater must not be allowed to fall on it. A century plant that has spent a long time outdoors has clear advantages over one grown exclusively indoors. For instance, it has more robust spines, as well as a well-formed stem.

In the summertime, aloe requires fairly generous watering. In winter, on the contrary, it should be watered very rarely, using exclusively room-temperature water or slightly warmer. If watering is too meager, the leaves will become very thin and will contain little juice. Because the roots of the century plant are very thick and fill the pot completely, when watered, the water rushes almost without delay into the saucer. Therefore, it makes sense to water the plant by pouring water into the tray rather than the pot. In addition, the finest roots that are able to absorb moisture are located at the very bottom. To prevent rot on the roots, any remaining liquid should be poured out of the saucer 30 minutes after watering. Air humidity does not matter for aloe. But occasionally it needs a warm shower to clean dust off the leaves.

In summer, the century plant needs moderate air temperatures, and with the onset of winter it should be moved to a cooler room. The plant tolerates abrupt temperature changes well. Thus, most species are able to withstand temperatures dropping to 6 °C (43 °F). But there are also species that require a temperature of at least 15 °C (59 °F).

You can prepare the potting mix yourself; to do this, mix leaf mold and sod soil with sand and humus in a 1:2:1:1 ratio. Also add charcoal and crushed brick. Peat should not be included in the composition. The soil should have a slightly acidic reaction. You can purchase a ready-made soil mix for cacti. It is recommended to add a little crushed brick and charcoal to it. While the plant is young, repotting is carried out every year. An adult aloe needs repotting much less often, and it is performed once every 2 or 3 years. Deep flowerpots are chosen for this, not forgetting good drainage.

Fertilization is carried out only once every 4 weeks and only during the spring-summer period. For this, a mineral fertilizer for succulents and cacti is used (making a very weak solution). Feeding should be stopped in mid-autumn and not resumed until spring.

Scale insects may take a fancy to the plant. To get rid of them, wipe the leaves as often as possible with a cloth moistened in soapy water.