About
Aloe melanacantha is a compact, succulent perennial that reaches heights of up to 50 cm. It features thick, lanceolate leaves that can grow to 20 cm in length, exhibiting a brownish-green hue and edged with sharp black spines. This species produces racemes of red buds that develop into tubular yellow flowers, which have green tips.
About the genus
Aloe consists of evergreen perennials that can grow as mat-forming or shrubby plants. They feature rosettes of thick, fleshy leaves and produce small tubular flowers arranged in racemes or panicles.
Growing conditions
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Soil type
- Loam
- Soil pH
- Acid, Alkaline, Neutral
- Soil moisture
- Well-drained
- Aspect
- South-facing, West-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- UK hardiness
- H1B
Plant details
- Plant type
- Cactus Succulent, Conservatory Greenhouse
- Habit
- Clump forming
- Foliage
- Evergreen
- Height
- 0.1-0.5 metres
- Spread
- 0.1-0.5 metres
- Time to full height
- 10-20 years
- Suggested uses
- Houseplants, Sub-tropical
- Toxicity
- Human/Pets (dogs, cats, rabbits): Harmful if eaten. Wear gloves and other protective equipment when handling For further information and contact numbers regarding pets, see the HTA guide to potentially harmful plants
Care notes
- Cultivation
- Grow indoors in a container of peat-free, cacti potting compost, or peat-free, loam-based potting compost with added horticultural grit. Water moderately when in growth, very sparingly when dormant in winter. Apply a general liquid fertiliser monthly from May to August. Can be placed outdoors in summer, see aloe cultivation for further advice
- Pruning
- No pruning required
- Propagation
- Propagate by seed as soon as ripe, or propagate by separating offsets in spring or early summer. Root offsets in cactus potting compost
- Pest resistance
- May be susceptible to scale insects and mealybugs
- Disease resistance
- Generally disease-free