cahdg6891 said:Aloe vera throws off offsets like mad. The only thing they don't like out here is full summer sun. They shrivel and turn bronze and just look miserable.
They do that here, too, in our mild climate. But as soon as it rains in the fall or winter, they come right back. So I have accepted the bronze shrivel as part of their cycle and actually nothing at all to be concerned about beyond aesthetics. All my Aloe veras are growing in day long sun. I think our months-long drought every summer does play a role too.
cahdg6891 said:Keeping them in a big pot helps too, the small plants you buy at a nursery or market are just babies, a mature plant is many times larger.
A big pot does get in the way of ease, for people like Gene who have to ferry their plants to protection every winter. But I would agree that a big pot is better if your goal is to have leaves to harvest. Not enormous, like maybe 3 gallon size (10"), with good drainage, to start with. The spotted medicinal aloe (A. officinalis) is a smaller plant and perhaps more portable in a container.
