Aloe seeds are not tiny. I just wait til the pods ripen but haven't opened to harvest them.

How do you know they're ripe if they haven't opened yet? How long does it take? Is it just one seed per flower then?

They will start to crack a bit at the seams before they open. You can also tie a paper bag around the spike and let them open into the bag. The seeds are small but not tiny like crassulas. There are a bunch in each pod.

I think this is what a ripe Aloe seed pod looks like. Correct me if I'm wrong. =)

Ok, thanks guys. I might try the bag trick. With just 3 fertilized flowers, I can't afford to lose a seed.

I don't suppose there is any information about what various cultivars might revert to if started from seed, or what various crosses will do, is there? I Don't even know whether aloe cultivars are mostly hybrids, of if they're derived from mutations. Still fun to see what I might get from seeds though.

My seed pod didn't explode (above) but it's better to be safe... I had one of my Haworthia pods explode and I'm sure I lost a bunch of seeds from that.

I'll take pics tomorrow of a striata I have that has a bunch of pods in various states of ripeness.

That is a very ripe pod, Ewwmayo.

Those have a way to go, kwie.

If you know what variety you have, you can look up it's parentage. The f2s will show a mix of those, but since aloes are insanely hybridized you can't really know how that parentage will express itself.

In that case, I'll just wait and see what I get (if they grow at all). It'll be fun. I look forward to seeing your seed pods. Thanks!

They can split open before they turn brown however.

That's interesting and encouraging, Hoov. I had read that aloes are difficult to grow from seed- that they "damp off." What medium do you use to start yours? What temperature? Do you sow them as soon as they're ripe, or do you wait for a specific season or temperature? Do you leave them on top of the medium or cover them?

I have a very shallow tray with a mix of perlite and vermiculite...and who-knows-what, on a windowsill that I use to root leaves. I have several other trays also, but something about this particular little box works better than any of the others. I rooted a tiny aloe pup in it, and it's grown crowded with a tangle of happy baby succulents. I thought I'd try a seed or two in it since it's done so well, but it is very, very crowded now.

I've also recently had success with another tray of peat and perlite (finally successfully started my first E. runyonii 'topsy-turvy' leaf in it), so I thought I'd give it a shot. They all sit on a windowsill seed warmer. I have not had good success with straight vermiculite, or with grit or straight Turface for leaf-starting. I presume starting seeds will be similar. Rot rules in the Pacific Northwest. Algae, moss, and fungus thrive here- succulents... not so much. It is cold, damp and grey, even indoors. My succulents spend the winter on heat pads with mirrors behind them. What would you recommend for starting aloe seeds in the gloomiest climate in the country? Peat and perlite? Straight perlite? A peat pellet? Something else?

I made a seed-catcher. :-).

Here are some seed pods in various states of ripeness.

I would avoid vermiculite. I use pure pumice for my succulent seeds.

Thanks, Nil. That's a very helpful picture.

I have pumice, and will give it a try.

Almost all photos and comments here concern Haworthia and a few other common succulent cultivars, not aloes. But there does appear to be a small Aloe seedling or pup near the bottom edge of Kwie2011's upper plant tray.