Overview
What aloe vera needs, how big it gets, and whether it suits your home.
Aloe vera has been carried from home to home for thousands of years, passed on as a pup from a friend’s plant, and it is still the plant most people keep for a burn. It thrives on neglect: the one thing that reliably kills it is kindness with the watering can. Give it your brightest window and let it dry out, and it will fill the pot with offsets to give away.
Quick facts
- Botanical name
- Aloe vera
- Feeding
- Light feeder
- Temperature
- 13 – 29 °C
- Hardiness
- USDA zone 12a and warmer
- Height
- Up to 90 cm (35 in)
- Propagation
- Division, Seed
Optimal growth
Keep above 10 °C
Growing details
- Frost sensitivity
- Frost tender
Growing calendar
- Active growth: April, May, June, July, August, September
- Dormant: January, February, November, December
- Repot: April, May, June
- Propagate: April, May, June
Indoors in a cool temperate climate; water and feed now. Water very sparingly and don’t feed. Every two to three years, when it outgrows its pot. Offsets, in spring or early summer.
Is this plant right for you?
- Beginner houseplant
- Windowsill friendly
- Drought tolerant
- Low feeding
- Summer outdoors
- Not frost hardy
Toxic to people and pets
Toxic to dogs, cats and horses if eaten. The yellow latex just under the skin is a strong laxative for people; only the clear inner gel goes on skin.
Before You Grow
A bright window, a pot that drains, and gritty compost are most of the job.
Buy a plant with firm, green leaves and no pests at the base.
What you need
A healthy plant or a pup
Choose firm, green leaves, with no white fluff at the base or brown blobs on the leaves. A pup from a friend’s plant is the traditional way to get one.
A pot with a drainage hole
Terracotta is ideal because it lets the compost dry. See pots and containers.
Cactus compost and grit
A gritty, free-draining mix. See soil and compost.
Your brightest window
South-facing is best. See light.
A weak houseplant feed
Used a few times in summer, if at all. See feeding.
Aloe vera or another aloe?
Aloe vera is the one to grow for the gel. It forms a rosette of fleshy, grey-green leaves edged with soft teeth, and it holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit. Mature size varies: Gardeners’ World gives 60 cm (2 ft) tall, NC State 60 to 90 cm (2 to 3 ft).
If you want the look rather than the gel, or you have little space, the compact aloe hybrids stay far smaller and come in speckled, striped and pink-edged forms. ‘Lime Fizz’ reaches about 15 cm (6 in) tall and 30 cm (12 in) wide.
Most aloes grow the same way: a bright spot, gritty compost and little water. The exception is the spiral aloe (Aloe polyphylla), which needs more water than the rest.
Where aloe vera grows best
Aloe vera comes from hot, dry places and does best in a warm, bright, airy room.
Temperature. It grows best between about 13 and 29 °C (55 and 85 °F), the range of most living rooms. Keep it out of rooms that drop below 10 °C (50 °F); leaves near cold, draughty windows discolour and the tips die back. Frost kills it.
Humidity. None needed. Dry indoor air suits it, and it dislikes a humid atmosphere.
Air. Good ventilation helps, especially in a conservatory or greenhouse.
Outdoors. It can spend summer outside in a sunny, sheltered spot once nights stay warm. Bring it back in before the first frost. It grows outdoors all year only where it never freezes.
- Best range
- 13 to 29 °C (55 to 85 °F)
- Lowest room temperature
- 10 °C (50 °F)
- Humidity
- Dry room air is fine
- Frost
- Kills it
Light
Give aloe vera the brightest spot you have. A south-facing windowsill is ideal; an unobstructed east- or west-facing window also works.
How much direct sun. The sources differ. The RHS and NC State grow it in full sun, while SDSU and Gardeners’ World warn that strong direct sun can scorch the leaves red or brown. A plant used to a bright window copes with sun through the glass; one moved suddenly into hot sun burns.
Too little light makes it stretch: long, weak, drooping leaves and no flowers. Only a plant with plenty of light sends up its tall flower spike.
Soil and compost
Use a free-draining mix: peat-free cactus compost, or peat-free multi-purpose or loam-based compost with horticultural grit, perlite or coarse sand added. Aloes grow naturally in poor soil and need nothing richer.
Top dressing. A layer of grit over the compost keeps the base of the plant dry and helps stop it rotting.
pH. Not critical: aloe vera grows in acid, neutral or alkaline compost.
Planting
Pot it in spring into a pot barely bigger than its roots, and move up a size only when it outgrows it.
Repot every two to three years, in spring, when growth starts.
When to pot and repot
Pot up a new plant, repot an old one or split off pups in spring or early summer, when the plant starts growing again.
How often. Aloe vera grows slowly, so repot only when it has outgrown its pot, usually every two to three years. Offsets crowding the rim are the usual sign.
Avoid winter, while the plant rests.
- Spring or early summer.
- Every two to three years, when it outgrows the pot.
- Not in winter.
How to pot an aloe vera
For a new plant, or a pup with roots of its own.
-
Choose a pot about the size of the root ball
See pots and containers.
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Half fill it with gritty compost
Cactus compost, or multi-purpose with grit or perlite added.
-
Set the plant at the same depth
At the depth it grew before, with the base of the rosette at the surface.
-
Fill around the roots and firm lightly
Hold the plant upright by the base and trickle compost in around it.
-
Top with grit
A thin layer keeps the base dry.
-
Water once, then wait
Water in and let it drain fully. Don’t water again until the compost has dried out.
How to repot an aloe vera
When the plant has outgrown its pot, usually every two to three years, in spring.
-
Let the compost dry first
A dry root ball slides out of the pot more cleanly.
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Tip the plant out
Wear gloves: the leaf edges are toothed. Ease it out by the base, not the leaves.
-
Split off any pups
Now is the time. See propagating.
-
Check the roots
Healthy roots are firm. Soft, brown ones are rot: see diseases.
-
Move up just one pot size
Fill with fresh gritty compost and set the plant at its old depth.
-
Wait before watering
Leave it for a few days, then water and let it drain.
Care
Water when the compost is dry, feed little, and let it rest in winter.
In winter, water only enough to stop the leaves wrinkling.
Care through the year
Spring
Water: more often as it grows · Repot: if it has outgrown the pot
Growth starts again. Repot or split if it is crowded. See when to pot and repot.
Summer
Water: when the compost is dry · Feed: weak, a few times · Outdoors: sheltered, sunny spot
Autumn
Water: less often · Feed: stop
Growth slows. Bring it indoors before the first frost. See where it grows best.
Winter
Water: very sparingly · Feed: none · Watch for: cold draughts
It rests. Keep it bright and above 10 °C (50 °F).
Watering aloe vera
Water thoroughly, then let the compost dry out before you water again. Aloe vera stores water in its leaves and copes with drought far better than with wet compost.
How to tell. Water when the top few centimetres of compost are dry, then let any excess drain away completely. Never leave the pot standing in a saucer of water.
In winter the plant rests. The RHS says water very sparingly; Gardeners’ World says hardly at all. Give just enough to stop the leaves wrinkling.
Signs. The leaves tell you when you have it wrong: see common problems.
Feeding aloe vera
Aloe vera needs very little feed, and the sources range from none to monthly.
Options. SDSU says it usually needs no fertiliser at all. The University of Arizona gives one light feed in spring. Gardeners’ World feeds a weak houseplant food every couple of months from April to September; the RHS gives a general liquid feed monthly from May to August.
Never in winter, while it rests.
Pots and containers
Aloe vera is grown in a pot almost everywhere, and the pot does half the watering work.
Material. Terracotta is ideal: it is porous, so the compost dries between waterings.
Drainage. At least one drainage hole, and several is better. Empty the saucer after watering.
Size. Only a little bigger than the root ball; move up one size when you repot.
Growing aloe vera indoors
Indoors is where most aloe vera lives, and it suits a home well: dry air, steady warmth and a bright windowsill are what it wants.
Placement. Close to your brightest window, but away from a cold pane in winter.
Pruning. None needed.
Dust. Wipe the leaves occasionally so dust doesn’t build up.
Summer outside. It can go out once nights are warm; see light for how to avoid sunburn.
Problems
Most aloe trouble is too much water, too little light or a sudden change of light.
Common aloe vera problems
These are growing problems, not pests or diseases.
Soft, brown or mushy leaves
- Overwatering
- Root rot
Too much water. Let the compost dry out, check the roots, and cut away any that are soft. See watering.
Wrinkled, shrivelled leaves
- Too dry
It is short of water. If it is badly shrivelled, water lightly over a few days rather than soaking cold compost all at once.
Red or brown leaves
- Sun scorch
Too much direct sun, often after a sudden move. Give it bright light out of the strongest sun.
Pale or yellow leaves
- Overwatering
- Low light
Usually too much water or too little light. Check both.
Discoloured leaves or dead tips
- Cold
- Draughts
Cold damage from a room below 10 °C (50 °F) or a draughty window. Move it somewhere warmer.
More problems with aloe vera
Common pests
Mealybugs
White, woolly insects gathered at the base of the plant, leaving sticky honeydew that sooty mould then grows on. Treat with insecticidal soap, following the label.
Scale insects
Brown blobs about 5 mm long on the leaves. Wipe them off with a cotton pad soaked in an organic insecticide.
Aloe mite and aphids
Both are listed as pests of aloe. If you find something you can’t identify, ask your local extension service or a garden centre before treating.
More problems with aloe vera
Common diseases
Aloe vera is generally disease-free when it is kept dry and bright. Most disease follows cold, wet compost or humid air.
Root rot
Caused by overwatering. SDSU warns there is no treatment and it can be fatal if not caught early. If the plant is still firm, stop watering, tip it out, cut away soft roots and repot into dry, gritty compost; a pup with healthy roots is the fallback.
Aloe rust
Yellow spots that turn brown, brought on by cool temperatures and high humidity. It usually needs no treatment: keep the plant warmer and drier.
Sooty mould
A black film on leaves, growing on the honeydew mealybugs leave. Deal with the mealybugs and wipe it off.
Harvest & Use
How to take a leaf for the gel, and what to keep away from skin and mouths.
Taking a leaf for the gel
Use a mature plant, and take one of its outer leaves.
How to cut. Cut the leaf off at its base with a clean knife. Slice it open lengthways and scoop or squeeze out the clear gel. If you need more, slice the leaf again.
Use only the gel. Cut away the green skin and the yellow layer just under it. See using aloe safely for why.
- An outer leaf from a mature plant.
- Cut at the base, slice open, use the clear gel.
- Discard the skin and yellow latex.
Using aloe safely
On skin. Fresh gel is widely used to soothe minor burns, sunburn and insect bites, and clinical research suggests it may speed burn healing. Keep home use to minor cuts, burns and bites, and see a doctor for anything more.
By mouth. Don’t eat the leaf or the latex. Aloe latex taken by mouth causes cramps and diarrhoea, and oral aloe may be unsafe in pregnancy and while breastfeeding. Aloe can also interact with some medicines, including heart drugs such as digoxin.
Pets. The plant is toxic to dogs, cats and horses: keep it out of their reach. If a pet eats some, call your vet or a pet poison line promptly.
Propagation
Split off the pups that crowd the base, dry them, and pot them up.
Propagating aloe vera
Aloe vera makes its own new plants: pups, or offsets, that grow around the base of a mature plant. Separating them is the way to propagate it.
When. In spring or early summer, ideally when you repot. The University of Arizona takes pups at about 5 cm (2 in) tall; Gardeners’ World waits until they are about a fifth of the size of the parent.
How. Tip the plant out and tease the pups away, keeping any roots attached, or cut them off with a clean, sharp knife.
Let the cut dry. Leave a pup with a cut or no roots to dry for a couple of days, and up to a week, so the wound can seal against rot.
Pot up into cactus compost, or multi-purpose with plenty of perlite, water in, and let it drain. Roots form in about a month.
From seed. Possible, sown as soon as it is ripe, but slow, and it does best in a greenhouse.
More to Explore
Quick answers, guides that pair well with aloe vera, and the sources behind this one.
Frequently asked questions
How often should I water aloe vera?
Only when the compost has dried out, then thoroughly, and very little in winter. See watering.
Does aloe vera need direct sun?
It needs your brightest window. It copes with sun through glass once used to it, but sudden strong sun scorches it red or brown.
Why are my aloe vera leaves turning brown?
Usually too much water or too much sudden sun. See common problems.
Why is my aloe vera drooping?
Usually too little light, sometimes too much water. See common problems.
What compost does aloe vera need?
A gritty, free-draining one: cactus compost, or multi-purpose with grit or perlite added.
How do I separate aloe vera pups?
In spring, tip the plant out, tease or cut the pups away, let any cut dry for a couple of days, then pot them up. See propagating.
Can aloe vera live outside?
In summer, in a sheltered, sunny spot, once nights are warm. Bring it in before frost; it lives outdoors year-round only where it never freezes.
Is aloe vera toxic to cats and dogs?
Yes. The ASPCA lists it as toxic to dogs, cats and horses.
Can I use the gel from my plant?
On minor burns, bites and scrapes, yes: use only the clear inner gel. Don’t eat it. See using aloe safely.
Why won’t my aloe vera flower?
It flowers only when mature, from about three years old, and only with plenty of bright light.
Related guides
Sources
- Aloe (opens in a new tab) Royal Horticultural Society
- Aloe vera (Barbados aloe) (opens in a new tab) Royal Horticultural Society
- Aloe (opens in a new tab) ASPCA Animal Poison Control
- Aloe vera (opens in a new tab) NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
- Aloe vera: houseplant how-to (opens in a new tab) South Dakota State University Extension
- What should I know about growing aloe at home? (opens in a new tab) University of New Hampshire Extension
- Aloe vera (Backyard Gardener #169) (opens in a new tab) University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
- One of the most popular houseplants: aloe (opens in a new tab) UF/IFAS Extension Charlotte County
- Aloe vera: usefulness and safety (opens in a new tab) National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NIH)
- How to grow aloe vera (opens in a new tab) BBC Gardeners’ World