Aloe vera Plant Care- How to Grow Aloevera Plant

Aloe vera is a popular houseplant whose leaves contain a soothing gel to treat sunburns and other skin irritations. This tropical succulent, over 300 species (the most common being Aloe barbadensis miller), has fleshy lance-shaped leaves with jagged edges that grow from a basal rosette. Given the proper growing conditions, yellow, red, or orange spiked flowers will appear at the end of stalks. Young plants rarely produce flower stalks, and aloe grown as an indoor plant can take years to produce them. This succulent matures in three to four years and produces pups that can be replanted or given as gifts to other plant enthusiasts. No gardening skills are required; aloe vera plant care is easier than you think. In this post, let’s learn to grow our favourite houseplant and know everything about aloe vera plant care.

Aloe vera Plant Care

Aloe vera needs sandy soil or a potting mix for cacti to grow well in pots. Mix aloe into a xeriscaped border planting, or put it in a pot by itself and put it in the center of an entryway. Aloe in a pot looks nice on decks and patios, and You can also use it to treat burns and bites in a pinch. Outdoors may bloom in late spring or early summer, but usually, they don’t bloom in pots kept inside. Either way, the plant has to be very old before it can bloom, and even then, it might not bloom every year, mainly if you harvest the leaves to make something else. Aloe needs little water and almost no fertilizer, so it’s a good houseplant for people new to gardening. Let’s understand each aspect of aloe vera plant care in detail.

(1) Light 

• Aloe Vera needs bright light from the sun to grow well. Outdoors, you should try to get up to six hours of full sun, with a small break in the afternoon for some shade for proper aloe vera plant care.
• If you want to grow aloe inside, put it near a window that gets bright, indirect sunlight. Direct sun can burn its soft skin, but not getting enough light will make the plant grow tall and weak, which will cause its leaves to fold. 

(2) Soil

• In its natural environment, aloe vera usually grows on sandy slopes with good drainage and soil that is low in nutrients. Use a cactus potting medium or traditional potting soil mixed with perlite and coarse sand to ensure a pot has enough drainage.
• Aloe grows best in slightly acidic soil, around a pH of 6.0, but it is very flexible and can grow in neutral or alkaline soils. 

(3) Water 

• You water aloe vera often, but only if the soil completely dries out between waterings. If the soil stays dry for a long time, the leaves will shrink and pucker.
• The plant will get better when you water them, but if it is under stress for a long time, the leaves will turn yellow and die from too little water or too much. Do not water plants outside when it is raining. 
• If it rains a lot during the winter where you live, you might want to plant aloe in gravel or stones.It will let the water run off and keep the wood from getting moldy. It is an aloe vera plant care hack you must not miss.

(4) Humidity

• Aloe grows best in dry, tropical, and semi-tropical places, so making conditions like these will help it do well for proper aloe vera plant care. Aim for a temperature between 55 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit (F), which You can reach in most indoor settings.
• Don’t leave your container plant outside if the temperature at night has the probability of dropping below 40 F. Aloe can’t handle frost. Still, a few alpine types can sometimes handle temperatures close to freezing. 
• Aloe doesn’t need more humidity because it can grow well in dry air. It’s just right when the relative humidity is 40%. 

(5) Fertilizer

• Aloe vera grows best in nutrient-poor desert soil and doesn’t need any fertilizer. Still, giving aloe in a pot food once a year, in the spring, may help it keep growing well. For a once-a-year feeding, a liquid 10-40-10 fertilizer that you diluted to half strength works best.
• Aloe grows well outside without fertilizer most of the time, so aloe vera plant care doesn’t necessarily involve fertilizers.

Pruning -Aloe Vera Plant Care

1. Unless the leaves are dry and dead, you don’t need to add pruning to your aloe vera plant care regime.
2. You can also cut back branches that the environment has hurt. If the tips of the outer leaves on your aloe vera plant turn brown, cut them back.
3. To do this, use clean garden shears to cut off only the damaged part of the leaf or the whole leaf at its base.
4. Cutting off the bottom leaves, whether alive or dead, will encourage new growth and make the plant look better. Remember this aloe vera plant care point that you should never cut an aloe leaf in the middle. 

 Propagating Aloe Vera– Aloe vera Plant Care

The best way to spread aloe vera is to replant the pups that grow at the base of the plant. Mature plants often make many babies, making it easy to move them to other pots or parts of the garden or give them to friends. 

Collect some gloves, a trowel, a pot, and a potting medium for cacti. 

Put on your gloves and put the potting mix in the pot. 

Find the young plants at the bottom of the mother plant. Grab a cup with a trowel and cut the taproot that connects it to its mother. (Some pups’ root systems may be more prominent than others. Some may not even have roots. All will grow well no matter what happens.) 

Lay the puppy flat and let it dry for a few days in a sunny window. It will help any broken skin heal. 

When you put the pup in the pot, ensure any roots are covered. Just below the main crown, fill in the dirt (where the leaves fan out). 

Put the plant in a sunny window and give it water. It could take between three and four months for roots to grow. Be patient in your aloe vera plant care journey.

Aloe Vera Planting and Repotting 

1. Aloe vera has a shallow, broad root system that spreads out near the surface. As the plant grows and requires repotting, it is preferable to use a larger pot rather than a deeper one.
2. When your aloe becomes root bound, or its puppies appear to be overloaded, repot it for proper aloe vera plant care. Remove the mother plant and pups from their container carefully, being careful not to harm the foliage.
3. Remove the pups from the mother, let them dry, and then replant them on their own. Fill a larger pot halfway with cactus soil medium. Repot the mother so the soil line is slightly below the main crown and all the roots are covered.
4. Water all the plants thoroughly and allow the soil to dry fully before watering again to avoid overwatering in aloe vera plant care. 

Overwintering 

Because aloe vera cannot withstand frost, grow it in containers and bring it indoors for the winter if you live in a cold climate. Outdoor plants in their hardiness zones can be left unwatered in the ground throughout their dormant phase. If a frost is in the forecast, cover your aloe plants with sheets or blankets to keep them warm until the threat of frost has gone for aloe vera plant care. Aloe vera goes to sleep in the winter and doesn’t need any water as long as it gets enough water when growing.

Make your Aloe Flower

Aloe vera plants that are old enough to flower sometimes make a tall flower spike called an inflorescence. It is where dozens of tubular yellow or red flowers grow. Flowering definitely makes the already-interesting aloe even more so. 

 Aloes you keep as houseplants don’t usually bloom because the plant needs almost perfect conditions: lots of light, enough water, and a suitable temperature range. Because of these needs, especially the need for light, aloe flowers is usually only found on plants that grow outside all year in warm climates. 

For your aloe to have the best chance of flowering:  

1. Aloe flowers on a three-foot-tall stiff stalk. The tubular yellow or orange bloom clusters resemble those of red hot poker plants. However, aloe vera is a picky bloomer. Even when it reaches the mature age of four, indoor potted aloe vera may never bloom.
2. It would help if you replicated the plant’s natural arid circumstances to force a bloom. Bright sunlight, mild temperatures, and moderate but infrequent waterings will give your plant the highest chance of blooming in aloe vera plant care.
3. In the summer, You can place potted plants outside for a better chance of flowering. Even if you follow all of the parameters, your aloe vera plant may only send up one stalk and flower, possibly just once per season.

Common Pests and Diseases- Aloe vera Plant Care

Mealybugs, aloe scale, and aloe mites can all attack aloe vera. Mealybugs tend to gather at the base of the plant, where they make a sticky substance that mold can grow. Scale rarely kills a plant, but it makes the leaves look ugly with grey ridges.

Mites can go unnoticed until they feed on a plant and cause cancerous galls to grow. Spray the plant with water and then use a soft cloth to wipe off the mealybugs for aloe vera plant care. You can remove the scale by mixing one tablespoon of insecticidal soap, 1 cup of isopropyl alcohol, and 1 cup of water into a solution. This solution should be sprayed on leaves with scales every three days for 14 days. To get rid of mites, cut away the infected parts of the plant. This aloe vera plant care tip will protect it and other plants nearby. 

Aloe rust is a fungal disease caused by cool temperatures and high humidity. It shows as yellow spots on the leaves that grow and turn brown. This disease usually goes away on its own and doesn’t need treatment.

Bacterial soft rot, a condition that can kill, can also move in. There is no cure for this, but you can prevent it by not giving too much water and providing attentive aloe vera plant care.

(Also Read- Low-maintenance succulents for Every Home)

Conclusion

The aloe vera plant care is simple, while aloe is an appealing succulent that makes an excellent indoor plant. Aloe vera plants are also beneficial because you may use the juice from their leaves externally to treat pain from cuts and burns. This post is about How to Grow and Care for Aloe Vera Plants at Home! Remember, Aloe plants are often overwatered. Root rot and mushy leaves result from damp soil. Root rot can increase bacterium or fungus growth, causing plant degradation, and You can’t remedy root rot and decay in advanced stages. Aloe leaves crack and bend. It means your plant isn’t getting enough light to develop healthy leaves. Move your plant to a brighter place or supplement sunlight with fluorescent light for better aloe vera plant care.