Aloe dorotheae is my favorite plant in the garden (this week)…

If ever there was a plant that requires nothing but gives everything it is Aloe dorotheae. I have three, bought over consecutive years at Rare Plant Research. All they require for happiness is a winter stay in the warm house and a summer vacation on the patio. Since they aren’t a large growing aloe that’s not a difficult thing to do.

So what makes this plant special? It colors up dramatically, in fact its common name is sunset aloe. This one’s my oldest, in a (rare for me) combo container on the patio table.

The white spots are an added bonus, unlike the spots on that baby agave to it's right. Those were caused by a powerful hail storm.

This one's in a lot more shade, and as a result it's coloring is rather subtle.

But still gorgeous.

The stats on Aloe dorotheae:

• hardy to USDA Zones 10-11, heat and drought tolerant
• prefers sun to light shade
• forms colonies which can reach 1' tall and 1-2 ' wide, individual plants stay quite small
• native to east Africa (Tanzania)
• blooms in mid to late winter, although I have had summer blooms on 2 of my plants

And a couple of "fun facts" from the Denver Zoo (not that's not a typo, the zoo, not the Denver Botanical Garden)...

• this aloe can be difficult to successfully pollinate in cultivation
• most all the plants available in the U.S. are clones of a very small gene pool

So tell us what plant in your garden it is you're enjoying this first week of July...

All material © 2009-2014 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude