Growing an Aloe Vera (or most other Aloe species - there are more than 300 of them!) is not a difficult matter, if a few basic rules are followed: If grown in a pot, allow the root ball plenty of room to grow; aloes are voracious growers, and having space to do so is necessary. When you repot, allow a growing area three to five times the size of the root ball. Use a well-draining soil. The number of soils A. vera will grow in is quite large, but a basic cactus mix available at home improvement centers is quite suitable. You may wish to experiment with other soils, but one thing it needs is to be well draining, so even a home-made concoction of 1/3 sand, 1/3 soil, and 1/3 pumice/gravel is better than straight potting soil. Aloes don't like to be cold and they don't like wet feet. Pot up your aloe in soil up to the root ball. Use top dressing (gravel/pebbles) on top of the soil to give it a finished look, hold down the dirt, and reduce evaporation. Do not water a newly repotted aloe for a few days. This gives it a chance to get used to its new home, as well as allowing time for any roots that have broken to seal themselves. After a few days, a light watering, perhaps with some B-1 in the water, is recommended. Most aloes grow vegetatively from April to October so water regularly with that in mind. The rest of the year, watering twice a month is sufficient. Water when the soil is dry - rainwater is the best - so that may mean twice a month, or once a week, or some combination thereof. Aloes are very forgiving and they can go a long time without water, but they grow best with it. If in doubt about watering, don't water. Don't forget - they shouldn't be cold and wet. Some aloes will withstand a freeze, but many will turn to mush. No one wants a mushy aloe! Fertilize from April through Septrember, twice a month, with a low-nitrogen fertilizer, heavily diluted. You can try Miracle-Gro 15-30-15, diluted to about 1 to 5. Many aloes produce 'pups'. When the pup is fully formed, detach it from the mother plant, let it callus over for a few days in a cool, dry area, and pot it up. If it has roots, pot as you would a regular aloe, allowing for the fact that it is smaller and should be in a suitably sized pot for its size. If it has no roots, let it callus over, place the cut/broken end ON the soil, and support it with top dressing. DO NOT WATER IT-it has no roots, so watering the soil will likely cause rot. Instead, mist it every few days. Roots should start forming within a month. When growth is evident, it can be watered. Aloe vera flowers are yellow, but others flower in hues of pink/red/orange/white/gray. They start as a spike that gradually gets larger and finally opens, lasting a long time. Aloe flowers are beacons for hummingbirds, so be prepared to be buzzed by these lovely creatures if you are amongst your aloes when they are flowering. For more information, seek out fellow succulent plant people, join your local/national society, and take advantage of the advice and experience they are able to offer. Stop by our Cacti and Succulents forum for tips and friendly conversation. Lastly, these are not ironclad rules. What works for others may not work for you. Experiment a little if you think that's what is needed as your growing conditions are likely different. Aloes are very adaptable creatures, within limits, of course.

kjbuhr - there are well over 300 different kinds of Aloe plants. And more hybrids are being developed every day. Aloe vera is one of those kinds, and for some reason many places that sell succulents call all of their Aloes, Aloe vera. I'm not yelling at you or anyone else about calling an Aloe plant by that name, I just want to point that out to you (and others). And here's another thought - some places call all of their similar plants Aloe vera. They may not even be Aloes! SO . . . this is why we would like to see a picture of your plant. First we would like to give you a proper ID for your plant. Then perhaps we can diagnose your problem - if indeed there is one. Let us know what kind of soil/substrate you have it planted in.

I'm with lati above, it's perhaps beyond redemption, but if you want a project..............remove from the soil and allow to dry out. While it's unpotted, and do it soon, core out all of the rotten tissue in the crown of the plant, making sure you get all of the mush out and leaving only solid tissue, and pack the wound with flowers of sulfur (sulfur powder). Repot after cleaning up the roots (the healthy ones will be yellowish) and don't water for a week or so. When you do water, do so very lightly - keep at that for several months, and don't water the crown, only the soil. This method of saving a plant has worked a number of times, and let's hope it will get to you in time to save your plant.

I'd skip sand (as we typically think of sand) and wouldn't even consider garden soil/top soil for a potted plant because the nature of the soil's drainage characteristics change dramatically between garden and pot. A garden soil that might accurately be said to have excellent drainage/aeration in the garden is very, very likely to compact severely (which significantly reduces air porosity) and retain water excessively when moved from garden to container. Even if we consider using garden soil or topsoil as a minor fraction of a container medium, there are much better alternatives. Al