Re: Aloes for ground cover


> Sean Ohara wrote:
> > 
> > >Hey Glenn -
> > >
> > >I'm curious if you can suggest some small, ground
> hugging Aloes that adapt
> > >to garden conditions well?  I'm looking for
> ground cover types that can be
> > >combined with other plants in the garden.  They
> should be able to go dry in
> > >summer (i.e. winter rainfall species)

Fellow medit gardeners,

The following Aloe species may be too common to meet
Sean's interest,(I'm sure he is already growing all of
these), but are easily available in the California
trade and perform very well as low growing ground
covers in coastal California, easily tolerating light
frosts to perhaps 28F without damage.  Most Aloes here
will survive without summer irrigation, but in hotter
inland climates the large and softer leaved species
will show dried leaf tips and shriveled leaves by late
summer, in cooler, more maritime locations this is not
a problem.  Most of these species will also handle
regular garden watering without problem.

All below 6 inches in height and quickly creating
clumps: A. aristata, A. brevifolia, A. humilis, A.
johnsonii hybrids(can be everblooming) A. jucunda(not
personally familiar with this one), A. virens. 
Unfortunately none are yellow blooming, but the A.
Johnsonii hybrids are a softer peach color.

For larger height and spread, to perhaps 18"/24" in
height: A. saponaria(one of the most common in
California, and will even bloom in considerable
shade), and A. striata- a more refined plant than A.
saponaria, with beautiful leaves whose edges are
smooth, not toothed.

A. plicatilis is a more shrubby type, which is only
marginally hardy here in the SF Bay Area, but performs
very well as a container plant which can be moved for
winter protection from excessive cold and rain.  Prone
to getting spotted leaves from a fungus if not kept
dry.

For those with the room and mild enough climate, the
large A. arborescens and A. ferox are both
spectacular, and are currently in bloom here in
California.  A. arborescens also has a yellow bloom
form.

Brian Kemble, who has spent considerable time both
hybridizing and collecting Aloes is a great local
resource, and can be contacted through the Ruth
Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek.  I find Brian most
helpful in supplying an Aloe with particular
characteristics, and have always returned from visits
with him with new things to try in the garden.  Hummel
hybrids are also worth seeking out, and are the result
of a southern California nurseryman who hybridized
many succulents as well as Bromeliads.

In reply to whether Aloes combine well with other
types of plants, one can always play it safe and
combine them with other succulents.  The bold reds and
oranges of their blooms also come at a time of year
when they usually stand alone, so don't often compete
with softer colors.  They combine very well, and
overlap the bloom season, of our native Eschsolzia
californica/California poppy, as well as the South
African Leucospermum cordifolium/Pincushion Protea. 
They also combine very well with the Aeoniums and
Echiums of the Canary Islands, the Sedums,
Graptopetalums and Echeverias of Mexico, and Agaves,
Dasylirions and Daleas of the American Southwest.
Having always thought of Aloes as full sun plants as
they are usually seen here in California, it was
interesting to find out that many grow in the shade of
taller shrubs in their native habitats.

Another interesting Aloe which is also very hardy,
even tolerating snow and ice in its native Drakensburg
Mountains is the Spiral Aloe/Aloe polyphylla.  This is
a medium sized grower which is a solitary clumper, and
makes an excellent accent container plant.  There is a
local grower in Santa Cruz, Ca. who is propagating
this from seed, and it has become a much collected
plant here in the SF Bay Area, as it no longer retails
for  $1000 per plant as it did when it first arrived
here!

For those who might be in the area, I would recommend
visiting the Taft Garden/Internation Center for Earth
Concerns in Ojai, California. (Open by appointment to
the public-805-649-3535)  This garden is spectacular
in late winter/early spring, and the 4 acre meadow of
Aloes and Proteas in full bloom is simply incredible. 

There is also a very good collection of Australian
proteacea shrubs, which can be purchased from Joe
O'Connell at Australian Native Plants Nursery in
Casitas Springs, Ca.(805 649 3362), if you are bitten
by the Banksia/Grevillea bug after seeing them at the
Taft Garden.

Best wishes to all for the New Year,
David Feix  

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