Observations on aloe polyphylla and summer heat stress.

8 years ago

As many of you know, I have several ap's, ranging in size from 3"/6 leaves to 17"/95 leaves. I'm no expert, but I do know that these plants suffer if the temperature in their pots gets to 85°F or more.

With the peak of summer heat here in southern New England, this has become more of a concern than even last year. Most of my larger ap's are in a southern exposure, and I try to keep the medium moist, and the pots shaded. As I watered them today, I noticed that many of the leaves, which are normally plump and turgid, were either slightly soft, or even flattened due to all this heat, in spite of regular watering. The smaller the plant, the worse the stress. The largest in a 22" plastic half barrel seemed pretty good. Another sign of stress is if the leaves, which are normally in an open rosette, start to look like they're closing the rosette a little. If yours shows any of these signs, take action!

I took all the stressed aloes and put them in shade under the porch where there's a good breeze and no direct sun, where they'll stay for the next 2 weeks, or until the leaves recover. If you're growing this species, it might be a good idea to check on them--just remember: moist and cool.

There's someone on line selling ap's, who's giving bad advice to buyers by stressing: "seriously INFREQUENT water, and lots of direct sun". There'll be a lot of dead ap's out there if that advice is followed.

Here's an excellent explanation of ap physiology and general care by Alan Beverly: (you may have to copy/paste this into your browser.)

content://com.sec.android.app.sbrowser/readinglist/0722022514.mhtml

Rick in CT

Comments (8)

notolover
8 years ago
I love Aps, wish I lived where I could plant one in the ground. Sounds like you know what you are doing if you can keep them alive in pots. My one time try had disasterous results.
hoovb zone 9 sunset 23
8 years ago
They are really alpine or sub-alpine plants more than anything else. cool summers. they thrive along the CA central coast where summer daytime temps stay in the 60's.
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Thank you for all the great feedback. My primary worry has shifted from temperature to root rot. But I guess there isn't a whole lot I can do about drainage until I re-pot or get another one to practice on. I'm hoping by refraining from watering until a moisture meter reads dry at the middle of the pot will help it from drowning. I just have to hope that the wetness before it begins to dry out isn't too much for the plant. If it does do well, then that is good news and means the roots can handle high moisture levels for 2-3 days. @Stush I don't have any good ground spots with the right lighting conditions to bury it. Plus I wanted to try moving it to a full sun position when winter nears. @wanto I'm a nut when it comes to growing things that shouldn't be grown in my local environment. I tried to think about everything that could logically help the plant without needing daily attention. I will definitely come back in later months with updates. This forum was my primary source for ideas, supplemented by the expert knowledge of the head propagator at UC Berkeley botanical gardens. @david I was thinking about moving it to a full sun position when winter and rain come. But I will keep it very tilted to avoid the crown rot I see reported on the forums.
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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
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stanofh 10a Hayward,Ca S.F. bay area
8 years ago
I had to dig mine up in the non tropical climate of Hayward. It did the whole artichoke look as time went by. It was put back into a pot and within a week looked better and now,2 months later shockingly healthy. Bright light shade,and a media that's fast draining using a lot of crushed lava rock and the dust that has. Along with Perlite and a handful or two of potting soil.

It was really something to see it just hate our clay soils and full sun in ground.
rredbbeard
Original Author
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
That's good to hear. I always think that these can take bright sunlight all day, but at these lower elevations the associated heat is damaging to them. The flattened leaves on mine are still flat, but possibly showing signs of recovery.

Rick in CT
Ben was 10a/26, now 7a/34
8 years ago
as hoovb said -- very alpine. They are apparently very frost hardy, and can survive snow cover much like sempervivums.
Stush2049 Pitts. PA, zone 6
8 years ago
Hey Rick, I bet that other person is sell something other than AP and that's why his advise is different. Last year I purchased 100 AP seeds from China and got maybe 10 different kinds. I like the looks but I know I'll be lucky if 5 turn out to be true AP. Here that are in their germination pots.

And right after I potted them up.

There's about 6 more still too small to disturb. Not shown.

Stush
rredbbeard
Original Author
8 years ago
Well....there don't seem to be any chia there....they love sending those! I would say the ones with pink, yellow or splotches/bands aren't ap. Sorry! Some of the smaller green ones could be, but the detail isn't clear enough. Small ap sprouts are solid light green, and after the first 2 secondary leaves appear, all the rest come at different angles. Even the very small secondary leaves show the dull 'barbs' on the edges early on.

If only you could leave negative feedback for an entire country....

I ordered henglan clivia seeds, and the 1st small order was fine, and a 2nd henglan order the following year turned out to be variegated instead. Of course with variegated genetics, the seeds are 1/4 normal green, 1/4 albino (dead), and 1/2 variegated. I was lucky--the variegated ones were a good 'consolation prize'.

Silverhill is highly reliable if you decide to try again. Good luck!

--Rick in CT
Stush2049 Pitts. PA, zone 6
8 years ago
Rick,

I was successful the first time around growing A.P. seeds. I got 20 seeds from Ebay from Calf. and was just as yours. I got about 8 total and gave them away to start over with these China seeds. I sorta knew they may not be true but was hopping they were X hybrids with other aloes and may carry some traits into there DNA. The picture they showed was of many different Aloes and also A.P. I am still happy to get some of these exciting new kinds for me. And if I only get one or two A.P. well that's just great. I think I am thru growing seeds.

Stush

Observations on aloe polyphylla and summer heat stress.

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notolover

hoovb zone 9 sunset 23

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Observations on aloe polyphylla and summer heat stress.

Comments (8)

notolover

hoovb zone 9 sunset 23

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