Those darn wannabe geophyte things
Joe Shaw (Sun, 16 Jul 2006 17:01:41 PDT)

Hi Gang,

I purchased seeds of Aloe cooperi a few years back from Silverhill Seeds.
The seeds germinated easily, and the plants have grow well, so well that I
gave some away.

In the beginning, I was not sure what to expect, and kept the plants in a
position that was not sunny enough. I was sure they would die with the
least provocation.

However, they did survive, and I potted them up to 2-gallon containers are
year ago (or so). I put in lots of scoria, perlite, and very coarse sand.
The plants hardly blinked when temperatures dropped to 23 F for an hour or
two in the past 2 winters (about -5 C). They certainly did not lose their
leaves; in fact they never lose their leaves, perhaps it is just not cold
enough or dry enough here. The leaves reach to about 24 inches in length,
and may get a bit of tip damage in winter, but they don't die back.

This year the plants are tall, leaves over 24 inches, and the biggest plant
has 4-5 leaf clumps; the scape reaches higher than the leaves. They don't
make seed unless I hand pollinate them; I think they are lacking the right
bird or insect. What keepers! The flowers are not exactly super gorgeous,
but growing aloes outdoors in Houston is not a usual occurance.

I have some more seedlings coming on (2 years behind), and some A. ecklonis
and a few other things. I don't know if fungicides are helping, but I have
always provided myclobutanil for the outside aloes, the seed grown Aloes
from Silverhill. I use the Spectracide lawn granules/meal and put it over
the top of the soil (they grow in pots), several times a year. Maybe they
would do OK without fungicide, I can't say. However, from experience
growing cacti here, I take no chances with plants from arid climates.

Cordially,

Joe