Aloe saponaria
Common Names: soap aloe, African aloe
Family: Liliaceae (lily Family)
Perennial Cactus Attracts Hummingbirds Drought Tolerant Can be Grown
in Containers Has evergreen foliage Flowers
Description
Soap aloe grows in a stemless rosette, and produces little offset
rosettes around its margin. The main rosette gets up to about a foot
and a half tall and just as wide. The lance-shaped leaves are thick
and succulent, pale green with white speckles, and 10-12 in
(25.4-30.5 cm) long. The leaf margins are armed with sharp, dark
brown teeth. Throughout much of the summer, soap aloe sends up a
purplish branched stalk about 2 ft (0.6 m) tall, bearing showy
tubular yellow, orange or red flowers.
Location
Soap aloe is native to arid regions in eastern South Africa,
Botswana and Zimbabwe.
Culture
Soap aloe is very easy to grow in sandy or gravelly soils with good
drainage. A single plant will expand considerably as it produces
offsets. Divide the crowded clumps periodically.
Light: Full sun to partial shade. Plants grown in partial shade
usually look healthier and more succulent.
Moisture: This aloe is very tolerant of drought, although the tips
of the leaves may wither and curl during hot, dry periods.
Supplemental watering will keep the leaves plump and juicy.
Hardiness: USDA Zones 8B - 11. Soap aloe is damaged in hard freezes,
but recovers quickly.
Propagation: Soap aloe is easy to propagate by separating the little
"pups" that develop around the outside of the main rosette.
Usage
Soap aloe is very salt tolerant, and a good choice for seaside
gardens. It is also very drought tolerant. Soap aloe is perfect for
rock or cactus gardens. Use it as a ground cover under palms, agaves
or large cacti. Soap aloe makes a great container plant and will
live for years in very little soil.
Features
Hummingbirds are attracted to the showy flowers. The sap from the
juicy leaves makes suds in water and can be used as a soap
substitute.
There are about 300 species of Aloe, mostly from Africa. The
aloes are sometimes confused with the agaves, but the latter (in the
family Agavaceae) have fibrous leaves whereas the leaves of aloes
are juicy and not at all fibrous. Aloe vera, the medicinal aloe, is
well known for the soothing and healing properties of its sap.
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