Aloe africana

(Spiny Aloe, Uitenhage Aloe)

Taxonomy

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Kingdom: Plantae
- Phylum: Magnoliophyta - Flowering Plants
  - Class: Liliopsida - Monocotyledons
    - Order: Asparagales
      - Family: Noctuoidea
        Genus: Aloe (AL-oh) Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 1: 319. 1753; Gen. Pl. ed. 5, 150. 1754. - Aloe [Arabic alloeh, a name for these or similar plants]
        Specific epithet: africana Mill.
        Botanical name: Aloe africana Mill.

Notes:

An accepted name in the RHS Horticultural Database.

Physical Description

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Genus Aloe:

Plants succulent, shrubby or arborescent, scapose. Stems erect, clambering or ascending, branched or not. Leaves succulent, crowded, often rosulate or distichous; blade margins spiny-toothed or entire. Inflorescences axillary or terminal, paniculate to more often racemose, dense, bracteate. Flowers usually nodding; perianth red to yellow; tepals connate basally to almost entirely into tube; stamens 3 or 6; style slender; pedicel not articulate. Capsules papery to woody. x = 7.

Species 300 or more: introduced; primarily s and tropical Africa; also Madagascar, Arabian peninsula, and Atlantic islands (Madeira, Canary, and Cape Verde) ; naturalized in the Mediterranean region, India, and China.^[1]

Habit: Evergreen.

Flowers: Bloom Period: January, February. • Flower Color: gold, yellow-orange

Images:

Aloe africana Aloe africana Photographer: David Stang Date Taken: March 30, 2006
Location Taken: the New York Botanical Garden Copyright: © 2006 the BayScience Foundation ZipcodeZoo Photo ID: 125566

Distribution

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Range and Population

Southeastern Cape, South Africa.

Growth

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Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun.

Moisture: Drought Tolerance: High

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 9b, 10a, 10b, 11. (map)

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Aloe:

There are approximately 1,199 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus. Here are just 100 of them: A. abhaica · A. beguinii · A. imbricata · A. imerinensis · A. lapaixii · A. lynchii · A. mortolensis · A. perfectior · A. qaharensis · A. 'Black Beauty' (Aloe) · A. 'Blue Elf' (Aloe) · A. 'Brass Hat' (Aloe) · A. 'Cholula' (Aloe) · A. 'Crosby's Prolific' · A. 'Doran Black' (Aloe) · A. 'Green Gold' · A. 'Green Peace' · A. 'Harry Butterfield' (Aloe) · A. 'Hey Babe' (Aloe) · A. 'Humvir' · A. 'Johnson's Hybrid' (Aloe) · A. 'Kid's Kandy' (Aloe) · A. 'Lavender Beauty' (Aloe) · A. 'Little Porker' (Aloe) · A. 'Lizard Lips' (Aloe) · A. 'Midas' · A. 'Minibelle' (Aloe) · A. 'Park AVenue' · A. 'Pink Lace' (Aloe) · A. 'Pink Perfection' (Aloe) · A. 'Quick Silver' (Aloe) · A. 'Quicksilver' (Aloe) · A. 'Red Hot Chile' (Aloe) · A. 'Rooikappie' (Aloe) · A. 'Sophie' (Aloe) · A. 'Sparkling Burgundy' (Aloe) · A. 'Tingtinkie' (Aloe) · A. 'Tiny Gem' · A. 'Walmsley's Blue' (Walmsley's Blue Aloe) · A. 'White Stag' (Aloe) · A. 'William Hertrich' (Hybrid Aloe) · A. aageodonta · A. abhica · A. abyssicola · A. abyssinica · A. acinacifolia · A. aculeata (Aloe) · A. acuminata · A. acutissima (Aloe) · A. acutissima var. antanimorensis (Aloe) · A. acutissima var. fiherenensis · A. acutissima var. isaloana · A. adigratana · A. adigratona · A. aethiopica · A. affinis (Aloe) · A. africana (Spiny Aloe) · A. agavefolia · A. agrophila · A. ahmarensis · A. albicans · A. albida · A. albida × haworthioides · A. albiflora (Aloe) · A. albispina · A. albocincta · A. albopicta · A. albostriata · A. albovestita · A. aldabrense · A. aldabrensis · A. alexandrei · A. alfredii · A. alooides (Aloe) · A. altilinea · A. amanensis · A. ambigens · A. ambositrae · A. ambrensis · A. americana · A. amicorum · A. ammophila · A. amoena · A. amudatensis (Aloe) · A. andohahelensis · A. andongensis (Aloe) · A. andongensis var. repens · A. andringitrensis (Aloe) · A. angelica (Aloe) · A. angiensis · A. angolensis · A. angulata · A. angusta · A. angustifolia · A. anivoranoensis · A. ankaranensis · A. ankoberensis · A. antandroi · A. antandroy · A. antonii

Members of the genus Euphorbia:

Bibliography

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Moran, R. 1992. Aloe wild in California. Cact. Succ. J. (Los Angeles) 64: 55-56.
Reynolds, G. W. 1982. The Aloes of South Africa, ed. 4. Rotterdam.

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Notes

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Contributors:

Bisby FA, Roskov YR, Orrell TM, Nicolson D, Paglinawan LE, Bailly N, Kirk PM, Bourgoin T, van Hertum J, eds (2008). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2008 Annual Checklist Taxonomic Classification. CD-ROM; Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
World Checklist of Selected Plant Families

Identifiers:

Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 14975153
Globally Unique Identifier: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:529177-1
Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 708054

Footnotes:

"Aloe". in Flora of North America Vol. 26 Page 410. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org.

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Last Revised: June 11, 2008