Hardier Aloes

[Kailua_Krish]

So Im really starting to be impressed by Aloes, their look is just so different and cool! Unfortunately I seem to be a bit too cold to grow most of the species and having frost doesnt help. I have A. saponaria and A. vera (or whatever it is called now) but no others. Any ideas of other species or hybrids I should try? I suppose I could put some under palms to help protect from frost.

-Krishna

[gilles06]

Aloe striatula and aristata are very hardy...

Ciao.

[fdrc65]

The hardiest is aloe polyphylla, it loves water and grow better from september to april, it does not like the heat of the summer above 32 C

[BigFrond]

The hardiest is aloe polyphylla, it loves water and grow better from september to april, it does not like the heat of the summer above 32 C

No, this aloe is not very hardy. It doesn't like too much sun or too much water. If the soil is too wet, it will rot. I grow lots of aloes and this is one of the whimpiest of them all.

[Kailua_Krish]

The hardiest is aloe polyphylla, it loves water and grow better from september to april, it does not like the heat of the summer above 32 C

No, this aloe is not very hardy. It doesn't like too much sun or too much water. If the soil is too wet, it will rot. I grow lots of aloes and this is one of the whimpiest of them all.

Since Im growing in Florida heat above 32 is a given and so is plenty of water :-D Maybe this wouldnt be the best choice.

-Krishna

[BigFrond]

The hardiest is aloe polyphylla, it loves water and grow better from september to april, it does not like the heat of the summer above 32 C

No, this aloe is not very hardy. It doesn't like too much sun or too much water. If the soil is too wet, it will rot. I grow lots of aloes and this is one of the whimpiest of them all.

Since Im growing in Florida heat above 32 is a given and so is plenty of water :-D Maybe this wouldnt be the best choice.

-Krishna

It's whimpy if the soil is cold and wet. It should be good if your soil doesn't stay wet and cold for long period of time. You should have no problem because of the weather and fast draining soil in FL. This aloe and A. dichotoma prefer fast draining soil to thrive. Remember, it is whimpy in terms of aloe plants. I had one A. polyphylla 3/4 root rotted out. However, it recovered easily by planting it in fast draining soil.

[Sim01]

Hi,

Aloe polyphylla is the most cold hardy for us, in France. I know many people growing it in their garden, even in zone 8a. I find Aloe aristata less hardy.

Simon

[tank]

Krishna,

Funny that you bring it up. I have been researching this as well.

http://www.smgrowers.com/search/basesearch.asp?strSearchText=Aloe&page=1

http://www.oasisdesigns.co.uk/hardy_aloes.htm

I have no idea how accurate these estimates are.

[BigFrond]

Hi,

Aloe polyphylla is the most cold hardy for us, in France. I know many people growing it in their garden, even in zone 8a. I find Aloe aristata less hardy.

Simon

That's pretty interesting to know. Maybe it is more hardy in regard to cold but not overall (cold + soil condition) as tough. Over here in the US (SoCal), Aloe aristata and Aloe arborescens are very hardy. They can grow like weeds. You can see the difference in hardiness just base on the leathery, thick skin of A. aristata to A. polyphylla. My A. aristata was not affected by the 2007 freeze (25F + wet soil). This would've rotted out my A. polyphylla. I dare not plant it in the ground.

[Palm crazy]

Some of the hardiest aloes are 'Grass Aloes' and they can be grown from seed very easy.

Silver Hill seeds from South Africa is a good source.

http://www.silverhillseeds.co.za/ByCategory.asp?pgnum=0

[Kailua_Krish]

Krishna,

Funny that you bring it up. I have been researching this as well.

http://www.smgrowers.com/search/basesearch.asp?strSearchText=Aloe&page=1

http://www.oasisdesigns.co.uk/hardy_aloes.htm

I have no idea how accurate these estimates are.

I worry about relying on California estimates because they just dont have the frost like we do and I hate it when succulents get all black spotted from that I love all the photos from out there though of the large clumps of aloe flowering at the same time! My favorites are the ones with bright red flowers sticking up like candle sticks!

Thanks for all the advice so far everyone!

-Krishna

[fdrc65]

Aloe polyphylla thrives also in northern europe, in Holland and in Great Britain

http://www.cactofili...03346_n_395.jpg

Edited June 14, 2011 by fdrc65

[Kailua_Krish]

While Aloe polyphylla looks really awesome, it seems from what people are saying they hate high temps, which wont work in Florida.

-Krishna

[humgarden]

Might google Yuccado Nursery. Carried several aloes,I remember one was a hybrid said to take temps in the teens , other than a grass aloe. I have A. marlothii (only 16") in the ground 4 years here in Z9a,but only because it is under trees and gets covered in a frost,otherwise it would be gone. Is it A. vaombe that is supposed to grow in Tampa (Daves Garden) but that's not going to help you. I can't get any exciting aloes to grow here, ones in the maculated group about it. Have always wondered if something exciting could be hybridized - a project taking a century. Cold is the biggest problem,of course. The only tree aloes I have heard of that will do heat and humidity are maybe marlothii,vaombe,barberae. I have practically no experience with any of those. Tx,Z9a.

[fdrc65]

<br />While Aloe polyphylla looks really awesome, it seems from what people are saying they hate high temps, which wont work in Florida.<br /><br />-Krishna<br />

<br /><br /><br />

With high temps the plant can stop growing but it survive, it grows in winter too

[monkeyranch]

Aloe 'Johnson's Hybrid' is common in Cali. Kinda grassy or kniphofia-like, but long flowering period. I've also got the hybrid A. X spinossima and all of the above others, and all have seen 22deg F. A. arborescens, A. saponaria, and A. X spinossima had damage but recovered, the rest were undamaged.

[Palm crazy]

If I was you I would research the one that are growing in Fairchild gardens and use all the ones that are hardy to 9b. That should get you started.

[Fouquieria]

Your biggest problem in Florida is the high humidity. Aloe castanea is one of the hardiest that I know. It grows at elevation but it gets big.

[Gbarce]

I have been experimenting with some aloe species and I am always concerned wwith out humidity and abundance of rain but so far so good.

Check out this link:

http://freakofnaturezzz.blogspot.com/2011/06/garden-update-year-15-part-6-odds-and.html

They are somewhere near the end. These have been with me for 4 years now (I thnk) and they have been outside during our rainy season for the past 3 years,

[Kailua_Krish]

Thanks everyone!

-Krishna

[Takil-Explorer]

Well Aloe polyphylla is NOT hardy in Holland and Northern Europe! So if you grow it there overwinter it dry, cool but frostfree!

Ectually there are no true hardy Aloes for our area! And I tried them.

Alexander

[tank]

Found this list and it reminded me of this thread.

Hopefully someone will find it as useful. I found it useful.

http://austincss.com/Cold%20Hardy%20Cacti%20&%20Succulents%2003-11.pdf

[Palmzilla]

last winter I got one night down to a chilly 24 degrees! I thought some of my aloes would have melted! Not one had damage! I have over 30 species here too. I think they are all pretty tough I have noticed that some in the winter when it gets super cold will turn more red and orange and then green up more in the spring. The cold night only lasted a few hours at that temp though then bounced back to the 60s and 70s in the days which prob helped also. Definitly lost some rare palms though!

[Sandy Loam]

Of the cold-hardy aloes mentioned here (tolerating 20 degrees Fahrenheit or -5 degrees celcius for one hour, once each year), which ones have the longest blooming period?  Since this thread was created, Monrovia has been promoting an aloe hybrid which blooms for ten months of the year called Aloe x Always Red.  It may not be very cold-hardy (?) and it may not tolerate my North Florida humidity and rain, and I probably can't find it for sale here anyway.  Nonetheless, these things would be good to know if anyone out there has info about the bloom durations of various aloes (and which nurseries in Florida have good selections of aloes -- anywhere in Florida). Thanks.

[Kevin S]

 If you could grow Aloe vera  then I am pretty sure there's lots of aloes you could grow.  You should be good growing any of the south African aloes.  Some of the aloes over there get snow on every once in a while and they still live.  I will share some of the pictures of my Aloes in flower.

[Kevin S]

 The two previous photos were aloe marlothii and aloe ferox. Aloe ferox and aloe  Excelsa in the two pics here.

[Kevin S]

 And there so many different kinds of spotted aloes.