Aloe Plant

The Aloe plant, known as Aloe Vera (Aloe vera, Aloaceae), is a cultivable plant in gardens and farms in Riyadh Province, located in the center of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It belongs to the Aloe family and is resistant to sun exposure and drought. Its native habitat is North Africa.

The Aloe plant consists of upright, succulent basal leaves that are dense and arranged in an orderly manner. The leaves have serrated spines along their edges and are bluish-green in color, turning light red under certain conditions. They grow up to sixty cm in length. In spring, the leaves are arranged in a spiral pattern. The plant produces yellow or orange flowers with capsule-like fruits on an inflorescence stalk that reaches a height of approximately ninety cm.

Aloe is cultivated in well-drained pots using seeds that germinate quickly, although they require a longer time to reach full maturity. The seeds ripen when the fruit dries and are dispersed by the wind. Aloe is pollinated by birds and insects. Its soil consists of gravelly, acidic, and moist soil, and it is fertilized with solid fertilizer that decomposes slowly in the soil, applied once in spring and once in summer. Young aloe seedlings require increased watering and proper ventilation to grow rapidly.

Aloe is a resilient plant that is not affected by sunlight. Even without regular care, it remains hardy and expands its colonies. It is rarely attacked by pests, except for occasional infestations by larvae and scale insects. To maintain the plant’s health, dead leaves and dry inflorescence stalks should be removed manually.