Stush, trust me on this one, It's an Agave Joe hoax. Looks exactly like hoovb and Denise's , I'll tell you a secret too stush on how I got them , I actually had to do a little detective work to catch this guy, I had to make a few phone calls and finally got permission to remove the pups which were all removed with roots, ( that's a big plus,). I tried to give them something in Exchange but they insisted they don't want to add anything to their collection right now cause they don't have the time, (bummer.) And if I see any other plants growing feel free to help myself. Wow!!! Kinda like a blank check. I was very thankful and cleaned up the area also I was so appreciative. He actually rents that house out and doesn't even live in it that's why I had to make phone calls but my persistence paid off. Stush, those are very expensive agave's on the streets, and in the stores I've seen them in and their not aS common as most others, just happy to be able to help with the clean up around the hens and snatch up the chicks in the process. Plus they are simply gorgeous. Greg

They are readily available here in the San Francisco Bay Area, where they thrive as landscape plants in our cool, maritime mediterranean climate. The plants can take winter cold, but should be tipped on their side in winter if left out unprotected, as they do not get lots of precipitation in winter in habitat, as Lesotho is a summer rainfall climate. The other key growing concern is that as a container plant, the roots do not like to get hot or dry, and black plastic nursery pots can cook the roots in summer. It is probably best to grow them in glazed ceramic or wood containers, to keep the roots cooler. A fantastically beautiful Aloe species that can certainly handle the cold of a Seattle winter, but will need careful management to avoid rotting out from too much winter rains. Also remember that this grows at altitude, with summer thundershowers, and will not like it hot and dry in summer. I'd suggest that growing it as a container plant with a cactus mix soil and time release fertilizer in an acidic mix, and keeping it cool and out of the rain in winter is best. The roots on this are extensive, so I would also suggest not trying to keep it in too small a pot as it gets bigger, especially when it can get almost 2.5 feet across when mature. If you are down here in the San Francisco Bay Area, this plant is regularly available as one or five gallon sized plants at either The Dry Garden Nursery in Oakland on Shattuck Ave, or at Flora Grub Nursery in San Francisco in the Bayview District. There is also a grower in Santa Cruz who first made this locally available in California, as he was the first to have local seed, and does ship mail order if I am not mistaken. In any case, this Aloe is still abit pricey, and 1 gallon sized plants will be $25 to $45 retail, but good sized and filling the pot. A 5 gallon plant can cost about $100. Still, these local prices will be cheaper than buying a small 2"/4" from Plant Delights Nursery and shipping to Washington state, especially if you will be coming to the SF Bay Area anyway...

Hi, This is the follow up. The seeds are all germinated that are going to germinate (I guess). They have mostly done well. Some of them sulked a while and turned very brown, or brown-red. An email hint (on the Yahoo Aloe List) mentined that some Aloe seedlings can turn brown when they want a little nitrogen. So, I added some dilute Miracle Gro (30-10-10)and that has helped. They are getting greener. I used the WalMart generic equivalent of Miracle Gro, it is just fine. I'll post photos when I figure out how to work a new camera. They like the lights, they like my house temperatures and they seem destined to grow all winter under the lights, right by a window (no direct sun). I used the most inexpensive fluorescent bulbs I could find (less than a dollar each), and same for the 4-foot fixtures (about $7 each). I'm sure better fixtures and bulbs could help them grow even better, but they are doing fine as it is. I don't worry about the spectrum of light because they are too small to flower and they get a bit of natural light from the window. They get about 15 hours per day, winter grownging species and summer growing species. Some other succulents are with them and also doing well, agaves, crassulas, yuccas and a few species of Malephora. When the danger of frost is passed, I'll put them outside (March). The new seed supplier has been helpful if I wrote her a question and I think I'll order from her again if I try more aloes. For now, I've got more than enough. Here is a link that might be useful: FROM SEEDS TO ALOES FOR THE GARDEN

I had two tissue-culture plants Aloe Polyphylla ("AP") that I ordered from a nursery in California. Both were approximately the same size when they arrived. After a couple of months the one in the second photo was growing well. The one in the first photo had remained about the same size. About a week ago I was checking a leaf on the smaller one and the whole plant tipped over -- the roots had rotted off. I emailed the nursery and the owner said that this was due to overwatering. I had overpotted the plants to deal with the heat problem (saw that on another forum someplace) and was watering daily. I made sure that no water collected in the crown or leaves of either plant and they were kept in the exact same conditions. I also recently ordered a year-old plant from an eBay seller. Her listing stated, Needs full sun and infrequent water. Seriously, INFREQUENT water ... No returns if it comes back waterlogged! All of the literature I've read, including Alan Beverly and Clark Brunte, states that the AP should be well-watered and Beverly says that this is one way to avoid root damage from high temperatures. As long as the soil drains well, over-watering doesn't seem to be an issue. Obviously people like Rick who have success growing AP can't be wrong, so I would advise you to follow his advice. The temperature where I live only rarely reaches 90 degrees and my plants receive only morning and late afternoon sun, so I don't have to worry about extra high temperatures. One suggestion is to change the plants into a ceramic or terra cotta pot. I think those materials are better at diffusing heat. Here's the link to Alan Beverly's advice on raising AP, including advice on dealing with areas with higher temperatures. http://www.ecotree.net/Care&Cultivation.pdf