Many of us grow aloe. The plant is primarily prized for the medicinal properties of the fleshy leaves, and few people know that this succulent is capable of blooming. Such an event occurs very rarely, as the popular rumor says – once every 100 years, which is why the aloe was nicknamed the agave. True, with proper care in an apartment or house, aloe lives for only up to 20 years, but it is quite possible to achieve flowering from this prickly handsome man. You just need to create the necessary conditions for him. You will learn how to do this in our article.
How to make aloe bloom?
Contents:
What kind of aloe grows on your windowsill?
Indoor plant, modest in size, “in the wild” grows up to 3 meters or more. In the vastness of Africa, thickets of aloe resemble a bizarre forest. And often this succulent in nature is decorated with bright long candle flowers of scarlet, yellowish or orange color.
In total, there are about 350 species of aloe, not all well studied. Basically, houses are grown “just aloe”, not trying to find out its exact classification and name. Moreover, many species are similar in appearance.
Most often found as a house plant aloe vera (Aloe vera) Or tree aloe (Aloe arborescens). Both species bloom, their flowering is distinguished by the length of the flowering arrow, the color of the flowers and the duration of the period.
Exotic lovers have scary aloe (Aloe ferox). The species is named so because of its red-orange sharp spines. On a powerful trunk, a rosette of leaves is located closer to the crown. The peduncle of this aloe has 5-12 brushes of fragrant flowers.
Read more about the types of indoor aloe in the article Aloe is back in fashion, or The most decorative types of the familiar succulent.
How to make aloe bloom? We’ll have to work hard and create conditions close to natural.
Blossom of tree-like aloe (Aloe arborescens). Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com plantsystematics
Aloe vera bloom. Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com WoS
Blooming of the awesome aloe (Aloe ferox). Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com Desert Plants of Avalon
When is aloe able to bloom?
The plant belongs to succulents, unpretentious to living conditions, perfectly tolerates prolonged drought. You can safely leave it for 2-3 weeks without worry, leaving on vacation.
Under natural conditions, aloe is exposed to significant temperature changes, experiencing periods of rest and increased activity. It is these changes that the pampered houseplant lacks.
Most often, a flower pot with a succulent plant stands in a room where a comfortable temperature is maintained within 22-25 degrees, water it along with the rest of the plants. In such conditions, flowering cannot be expected.
To awaken the craving for the formation of a peduncle, it is required to artificially create a dormant period for aloe, after which a new life cycle will begin. The winter months are best suited for this.
Aloe must be over 5 years old to bloom. And ideally, you need to have a plant that has already passed the ten-year mark. In the first 3 years of the life of the succulent, leaves and roots are actively formed, therefore, it is impossible to achieve neither medicinal properties nor flowers from aloe at this time.
Creating optimal conditions for aloe flowering
For aloe for the dormant period that precedes flowering, you will have to allocate a separate room. He needs to provide a low temperature, a high level of dryness, long daylight hours.
Important! If it is possible to achieve flowering, it is impossible to stay near the plant for a long time, the intense smell of the flower provokes the appearance of a severe headache.
Temperature change
For the appearance of a peduncle, you will have to find a way to lower the level of heat in the room during the dormant period (winter months) to + 10 … + 14 degrees, or move the plant to another room. Only in an extreme state will aloe wake up the desire for flowering and ripening of seeds.
Collecting aloe seeds at home is useless. Without the hot tropical sun, they do not have time to ripen and are unable to germinate.
Illumination
Daylight hours in winter are short, it is not enough for a tropical inhabitant. The plant should be exposed to light for at least 14-16 hours daily. It is necessary to organize additional lighting without heating effect. For this, phytolamps are used, their choice in stores is large enough. The counters have:
- LED;
- fluorescent;
- sodium;
- induction light sources.
Read more about artificial lighting for plants in our material The right phytolamp – choose a lighting device for supplementary lighting of plants.
As soon as a flowering arrow appears from the axil of leaves, the temperature in the room is gradually increased, or the plant is transferred to a warmer room. Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com WoS
Watering mode
Aloe is native to hot countries with long periods of drought. The closest mode of soil moisture will be watering the plant when the earthen coma is completely dry. At the same time, it is not recommended to fill the pot with water. It is enough to place it in a pan with water for 10-15 minutes, and then let the water drain completely, leaving the soil slightly moist. This method of watering will prevent root rot.
Lowering the temperature in the room for the period of winter dormancy, watering of aloe is stopped altogether.
For succulents, special soil mixtures are preferred. The main requirement is good moisture permeability without the formation of wet lumps. Then, subject to the technology of watering, there is no need to fear for the health of the plant.
Long-awaited flowering
Maintaining suitable conditions results in the appearance of an arrow with a flower. Depending on the type of aloe, it can be single or form a dense bunch. The flower opens according to the gladiolus principle, starting from the lower flowers, gradually moving towards the crown. You will be able to admire its beauty from 3 to 6 months.
As soon as a flowering arrow appears from the leaf axils, the temperature in the room is gradually increased within 2–3 days to + 22 … + 24 ° С (or transferred to a warmer room), regular watering is resumed.
To maintain the strength of the plant during flowering, supplements are made for succulents based on potassium-phosphorus components.
Important! Fertilizer is applied only to moist soil, it is preferable to use liquid forms, applying them after watering.
The brighter the light, the richer the color of the aloe flower petals. For additional lighting, it is allowed to move the plant to the south or southeast side. Aloe is not afraid of changing habitat.
The brighter the light, the richer the color of the aloe flower petals. Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com maicolcaro
How to care for aloe after flowering?
After the last corolla of the flower has wilted, the peduncle is removed with a sharp knife or pruner, disinfected with alcohol, a solution of furacilin or potassium permanganate. Sprinkle the cut with wood ash. The irrigation regime is maintained at the same level, and after 1-2 weeks, it is fed with nitrogen fertilizer to restore and actively grow the green mass.
If the flower was transplanted into a new soil mixture recently, and it has not depleted its reserves, then additional fertilizing after flowering is carried out with minimal dosages or not at all.
Dear readers! Perhaps you have already admired the flowering of aloe at home more than once. Please share your experience in the comments to the article.
