Aloe polyphylla - Spiral Aloe - 5 Seed Pack - Exotic Lesotho Succulent - Worldwide Shipping, NEW

The beautiful and rare Spiral Aloe's habitat is restricted to the high Maluti Mountains of Lesotho. The Spiral Aloe is single stemmed, though it will sometimes grow in very dense groups, with leaves that are perfectly arranged, either clockwise or anti-clockwise. The plant consists of about 5 layers of leaves, each with 15-30 leaves. They do not form offsets so the only means of propagation is from seed. It has become a prized collector's item which could be why its numbers in the wild has diminished. Aloe polyphylla was recently added to the red list of endangered species. Plants have approximately 150 leaves each, which explain the name "polyphylla". "Poly" means "many" and "phylla" is Greek for "leaves". The leaves themselves are broad and have a grey-green colour. The tips usually become dark, purplish brown and are quite sharp. The margins are irregularly toothed. The Spiral Aloe has beautiful red to pink flowers that are compacted on the inflorescence during spring and early summer. It is a criminal offence to remove plants or seed of Aloe polyphylla from the natural habitat or to buy plants from roadside vendors.
Worst of all, plants which have been removed from their habitat usually do not survive for more than a few years. You may bid with confidence, as these seeds were not collected from the wild. This rare, endangered aloe is a prime example of ex-situ conservation, where there are more plants in cultivation than in the wild. More about the Aloe genus below.

Aloes are very popular and some of the most rewarding plants to cultivate. They make excellent accent plants owing to their often strange and inspiring architectures, as well as the bright flowers that offset the grey-green leaves. They are also very suitable as container plants and small aloes can be used very effectively as border plants at the edge of a bed. Although aloes are most often included in rockeries, their application in horticulture is not limited to this feature and they can be used in almost any setting and in conjunction with most common garden plants. Their natural adaptation to harsh and often arid climates makes aloes outstanding subjects for the water-wise garden. Aloes can tolerate long periods of drought, but it is not true that watering should be withheld to obtain optimal growth. Stressed plants are more susceptible to insects and pests. Plants flourish, flower better and are more resistant when given adequate water during the growing season. Aloes generally need soils with good drainage and do best in warm climates. When planted in rich soil that are frequently mulched they will do well for many years without interference making them very low-maintenance plants once established. Aloe is a genus in the Asphodeloideae family containing about 600 species of flowering succulent plants. The most common and well known of these is Aloe vera. The genus is mostly native to Africa with about 125 being indigenous to South Africa. About 405 species can be found in Africa while about 45 species are found in the Arabian Peninsula. Socotra has 4 natural species and the Mascarene and other Western Indian Ocean Islands share about 7 species. Madagascar, for its size, has a pretty extensive collection of about 145 species.
Aloes are sometimes confused with Agaves. Contrarily to Agaves, Aloe leaves contain a gel like sap. Another difference is that Aloes don't die after blooming as most Agaves do.
For an extensive list of documented Aloe species please see this Wikipedia page.