How do you look after an aloe vera plant?

Question

My wonderfull boyfriend has just brought me one :)

Answer 1

It's almost impossible to kill one. You practically have to deliberately try to kill one for it to actually die. Just give it about three table spoons of water a day and plenty of sun light and it should be fine.

Really, you could rip a prong off and stick it almost anywhere in the ground and it'll sprout a new plant just as easily as that.


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Answer 2

Aloe Vera belongs to the same family as a cacti. It only requires very little water to survive as it stores most of them in its leaves to go through the desert days.
Water it once a week only with a cup full or 2, depends on the size of your plant. The other thing it commonly requires like the rest of the plants is Sunlight. Be sure you put it near the Sun and in open area because it needs all the air it could breathe too.
Apart from that, you would also like to clear all the kind of weeds that are growing around the soil in the pot every 2 weeks or a month.
Aloe Vera is also a good hiding and breeding place for ants and spiders,so if you don't like them,be sure you clear the weeds regularly.

Have fun!

Answer 3

Great plant to have on hand. The pulp you can use for burns, it really works well by cutting a leaf and placing the pulp on the burn. The pulp also makes a great facial. Aloe vera plants like to be in a sandy mixture of soil with good drainage. They like a bright light window but not to direct light or sun, it will burn your plant. They also don't like to be too wet just watered weekly in most cases. The aloe also will have baby plants that once they get about 3 inches long you can gently separate from the mother plant and plant a new one. Good Luck and enjoy!

Answer 4

Aloe Vera is a succulent, like a cactus, and should be treated the same. When you transplant it make sure to plant it in cactus soil and a porous pot. You can buy cactus soil at Wal-Mart, Lowe's, or Home Depot. Place it in a sunny location in your house and water it sparingly, only when the soil is mostly dried out. Feed it with cactus food once in a while and it should pretty much take care of itself. Cactus food comes in a bottle with a dropper and can be bought at the above mentioned stores. It is made by SHULTZ. The most important thing is that like a cactus, you just want to be careful not to love it to death. Enjoy The New Aloe!!!

Answer 5

An aloe is an easy to look after plant - a bright window be careful not to overwater it - water from the bottom of the pot - just pour water in the tray and let it drink it up from the bottom - remove any standing water in the tray after about a half hour.

Answer 6

It depends where you live. If you live in the UK or anywhere where you can get a hard frost in winter, then keep the plant indoors during cold months,near plenty of light, and water when dry or when "leaves" lose their rich green colour. If you live in warmer climes then it thrives very well outdoors. In it's natural warm climate it will eventually flower. The flowers have long tall stems with an orange point of flower on top. Cut these stems off when the flower dies. When plant gets too big, you can, if you want to, divide it up and replant the new "babies".

Answer 7

I have had one for over a year now. It likes the window with morning to early afternoon sun. I only water it 2 times a week and it seems to be happy. Every 3 months I have given it food (plant sticks, walmart .88cents) and once this summer I fed it miracle grown. Its roots must have really enjoyed that because its thriving and healthy. But since you just got it...if its in a small pot that you dont see it being in very long...I would get a nice larger one, transplant it and give it one of those food sticks to start.

Answer 8

I have to disagree with the other answers. Aloe needs very little water and it need indirect sun. yes it is in the cactus family but it can sunburn! I have grown them for years and I have burned them by setting them in direct sun.
I basically set mine outside and then water it about once a month! Mine sits under the carport so it gets lots of sun but not directly!
Overwatering and direct sunlight are two ways to kill one really fast.

Answer 9

Plenty of water and sunshine. You also might want to put it in a bigger pot ot transplant some outside because can it can grow like weeds.

Answer 10

Really easy. Sunlight and some water. They grow wild really fine all over the Mediterranean. If your outdoor weather is anything like ours, it'll be fine.