Good job:)! I bet the bigger one looked terrible. When I got mine it looked terrible and that was May 30th. So I could imagine 2 months later with the same treatment how terrible they look. It's sad because the person who owns DG has probably been growing succulents for decades and knows what he's doing, but I don't think he has enough help. When I went he had all these Agave attenuatas under a shade cloth. I'm like switch those with the Spirals. I'm actually suprized they're doing so bad. Where DG is located the weather is pretty mild. More mild than Martinez or San Jose. The Bay is like a ten minute drive from there.

I never saw the smaller ones. If I did I would have got that instead of the crispy big one. The big guy was like an artichoke when I first got him:(. I thought it was gonna die. He was so crispy and the leaves were flat.

I got the smaller one at Annie's Annuals. This one was definitely heat stressed, but the root system was way better than the big guy.

I'm excited to see how they do in the winter. I think they will just start looking better and better once it gets cooler. It'll be nice to not have to worry about these things freezing in our zone. I'm gonna probably have to repot both at the rate they're growing.

I water mine pretty regularly. Especially when it's hot. Like about every 6 days. I definitely don't think I wait a week. I use drinking water. I find this embarrassing, but I don't think the plants like the tap. I can't give all my plants drinking water. I wish I could collect rain water, but how do you do that when it doesn't rain for 6 months outta the year.

I don't know how the Spiral Aloe stays alive at Ruth Bancroft it gets hot out there. It is protected by a Eucalyptus, but still. They don't like their roots above 80F.

They're such beautiful Aloes:).

yes what water to use is always a dilemma when no rain is around. I use filtered drinking water when I start my seeds, it's never a lot at the end. I use a hose filter that removes organic chemicals (Chlorines, chloramines and other bad stuff like pesticides etc) for the younglings (the veggie garden too!). I don't think that filter removes other chemicals like minerals though. Then tap water goes to all the older plants :(

I have been watering once a week but do give a light refill mid-week during heat-waves. I have it in the sun for a couple of hours in the mornings.

The small ones were pretty well hidden in a shaded area on some shelves right in front of the office door. Would not have seen them either but they were just behind me when I asked if they had any small ones!!

I have to ask: The 2nd picture at the beginning of this thread shows a blasted/dead aloe polyphylla, but it looks like it attempted to flower, bc there are what look like failed inflorescences there. What happened?

Rick in CT

rredbbeard, the Aloe in that picture is up-side down. Those are roots.

Optical illusion Rredbbeard you're looking at the roots;). They're both still alive;). It's too dark to take a pic, but the bigger one I can start to see the spiral forming just a little;).

That's exciting! I did a little happy dance when I saw my first plant forming a spiral. You'll see yours soon I think.

I just repotted both a few days ago. They were getting way too big for their containers. Hopefully I won't have to repot for a couple years. When do you notice yours growing the most?

I surprised some of the more experienced growers by keeping them indoors @~60°, under bright LED's, and they continued producing healthy growth year round. Basically, mine were growing 2X as fast because dormancy in this species is not obligate. Inadequate light combined with relative warmth, however, is fatal. Etoliation causes weak leaf growth from the center, which then fall out, and the plant is dead at that point. This is why i get very concerned by recommendations that a.p. be moved to a low-light environment. If you'e going to keep them in low light or darkness, the temperature had better be close to freezing, at least that's my experience. I soak mine every day when they're outdoors.

Fifths time a charm with writing this update. I think since there are issues with uploading pics I will do what Stush suggested and add the pics later after I hit submit. I’m also going to break it up into two comments. Get it together Houzz!

Around Dec2018 I noticed my bigger A. polyphylla was starting to look like how it did when I first bought it, an artichoke. So I quickly unpotted it. I found a pot full of wet soggy dead roots. Along with a rotting stem:(.

I cut and cut until all the rot was gone, placed the cutting into an empty plastic pot. I put the cutting into a pot because if I were to lie the Aloe down it would become floppy and lose some of its shape. I kept the soil out because I wanted to be able to check for roots without pulling it out of soil possibly ripping fresh new roots off. Kept it by an east facing window away from any heater vents. I needed this guy to stay cool and turgid, not warm and droopy. It took a good 8-12 weeks for roots to grow. I want to say around March is when I noticed roots. It lost tons of bottom leaves and became etiolated.

EDIT: I can’t add the pics.

Second half of my update:

Once the roots grew I potted it up into pure pumice then put out on my front porch. Where I knew it would be protected from winter/spring rains, but recieves bright light. I watered it about a week later and once a week from there after.

In July I decided it was time to unpot to check the roots and go up a pot size. The roots were decent, but they were all fine, and not the big thick stereotypical Aloe roots.

As of today the Aloe is looking a lot better. The leaves are plump with only a few etiolated leaves left at the base. On their way out;).

For some reason I can add this pic.

My second smaller Aloe polyphylla is doing good. It’s crazy with all the drama the bigger one went through the smaller one is pretty much the same size.

Kara--you did a great job in saving that a.polyphylla! I found out the hard way several years ago that etoliation is usually the death knell for this species. Warm temps with inadequate light is how to kill them fast. I keep my a.p. pots on a south wall where it's warm during summer, but also gives them full sun all day. The pots themselves are always protected from sun, and are usually terra cotta bc the evaporation helps keep their feet cool. Here are a few pics which may convince people that they prefer cool and damp! The temperature that March morning was as low as 27°F--no problem! Largest pot is 22", weighs >225 pounds.

Bear with me while I try to add a picture. This site is really messed up lately....

Thanks:)

After my experience with my Aloe polyphylla I can totally see how etiolation would end up killing the plant. These are thick leaved compact Aloes and lack of light turns them into the opposite of what they’re suppose to be. I’m pretty sure if mine didn’t grow roots within another month I would have lost it. I honestly don’t think I could have brought it back with four more weeks of etiolation. I was stuck between a rock and a hard place because I was worried a south facing window would have melted it. Plus the south facing window I would have used is right by a heater vent.

I am glad this happened during the winter. At least I didn’t have to contend with summer sun and temps.

I think once they get a little bigger I will start giving them a little more sun in the summer. Maybe morning sun? Afternoon sun would cook them. If I lived about 15 mins west of me they would be able to go into the ground. Berkeley has tons of spirals:).

For some reason my smaller one has always been more yellow.

How are the Spirals doing?

Kara, Just saw this. Nice growing. They are fussy and have heard so many who failed. You know there are no pure A. polyphylla. Heard they hybridize with some others to fertilize them. So you can expect some variations in them.

Stush,

There are pure A. p., both plants and seeds.

Jeff, this was the info I got when I googled it. It was over a year ago when I was interested in them and supposedly Aloe poly flowers are one sexed and they relied on another aloe (which I can't recall) to fertilize it. I'll recheck into this. Thanks for the info.

My two Aloes are doing ok. Tbh they look pretty much the same since I posted in Oct.

My Aloe suprafoliata aka mustache Aloe is looking nice so I threw him in the pic. Thanks Alain:)!

The yellow one kept getting crispy ends, but the new growth doesn’t seem to have it. I think that’s from not enough moisture, but maybe someone can help me figure out what causes crispy tips. It’s not on my more blue one.

The one I almost lost is doing really good.

I think they’re about to have a growth spurt because in the center of both there’s a bunch of new leaves.

I will be repotting soon and will let you guys know what I find below the surface:).

Anyone have any advice on what shape of pot is best for Aloe roots?

What I was told was a shallow pot is best but whatever your doing is working out great for you.

Nice going Kara! went back to that nursery to find a replacement for mine but came back with nothing. They all looked in pretty bad shape, but I will find one this spring...:)

Our voter info guide arrived about a week ago and look what’s on the front:).

You guys look at what I found at Lowes yesterday!

They were beautiful specimens and can’t imagine they will be there for much longer.

I bought one of course and measured it. They were $35, which I think is a steal considering how big they were.

It’s 9” wide, between 5”-6” tall, and in 2 gallon pots.

Kara, Is that the light playing tricks? Looks a little variegated? Still a good deal. Our Lowe's in zone 6 will never sell them. Lucky find. Once in a while Home Depot will get something nice in. It pays to look at the same store name in different areas because they do get different plants in.

I still say your yellow one is a hybrid and very nice and rare. Hope it stays healthy for you. Can't wait to see bloom stocks.

The light is just going through the leaves and making the leaves look like they have striations.

Every once in awhile big box stores will have some cool plants. IMO this is the best I’ve ever found. I was pretty excited when I spotted them. I couldn’t believe how healthy they look. Some of the leaves are broken, but I think that’s par for the course coming from Lowe’s:).

If I was in the business of selling succulents I would have bought them all, then sell them for a nice little penny;). I could at least get double for what I paid, but I’m sure I could sell ‘em for $100+. Someone would buy them. There were four left and something tells me they will all be gone very soon.

Ya that yellow one is a mystery. We’ll see if it stays that color as it grows. I always associate yellow plants with sick plants, but I don’t that’s the case with this guy.

I bought these Spiral Aloes from Alan Beverly in Santa Cruz Ca. He grows them from seed & seems to be the foremost authority on these succulents. He has a website & did his masters thesis about them. Santa Cruz weather is perfect for them & they thrive. We have moved near Portland OR and they are doing fine here too. The cold weather doesn’t seem to bother them. I do cover them with frost cloths the rare nights it gets down below 30*.

It takes many years to grow them at that size from Lowe's and SammyTheDog, those must be about 15 years on the big one? Has it bloomed yet?

Kara you made my weekend. I have never thrown down my computer and dashed out the door as fast as I did when I saw your post. I don’t think I’d even finished my first cup of coffee and I definitely hadn’t even read your post all the way through as I was amazed to see how big these plants are. I’ve seen them half this size going for more than twice as much. I got 2. :)

This Lowe’s had them just in with the other random landscape plants, not even with the succulents. Hanging out with the agapanthus like they’re no big deal. Thanks for posting such a great find!!

I keep looking but they don’t seem to have any in my area. Maybe it’s just too hot.

You have to do what I do, everywhere I go, I stop in all the stores and see their plant section. Drives the wife crazy. Her words, 'No More Plants'. My words, 'Just one More'.

I know they don’t start spiraling right away. Hoping I know the juvenile plants when I see them. So many of the aloes that are not Aloe vera are simple labeled as “Aloe” or “succulent”. Not much help.

Tyler, look for the Aloe that most resembles an Echeveria.

Keep them cool all of the time in SD, Tyler. Hot roots = dead plant. The beautiful ones I saw growing there were always on drip.

Thank you Jeff. Will do. I’m going to need all the help I can get. I was reading some good info here.

https://www.ecotree.net/images/docs/shipping-care-and-cultivation-guide-2019.pdf

Seems like the roots need to stay cool. So no direct sun?

It can have direct sun, but the base of the plant should always be cool. My friend's prize-winning plants grew in 50% pumice and 50% Supersoil, grown in halved wine barrels and overpotted deliberately, aside from being on drip.

I love these. I tried to grow a small one a number of years ago. It didn't go well. Maybe it's time to try again?

Yes. It just might be...

https://www.ecotree.net/11-aloe-polyphylla/7-aloe-polyphylla-the-gem-of-the-drakensberg

Edited to add - Be sure to check out the FAQs closer to the bottom of the page in the link. Lots of good info there and some videos, too.

I grew from seed once and got about a 10% germination. Sadly I gave all the ones I had out and tried again with 100 seed purchase. Turned out to be bogus seed and many more rip offs out there. Most anything from China. Never was successful again. Maybe I'll try again with new good seed. You pay for what you get. $1 a seed is a good price. Thanks Stewart.

Here is one of Alan Beverly’s YouTube videos on seed germination.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uUF8IxS9_Zk&t=17s

Jeff, when you said “overpot” you weren’t kidding.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vwE0VYycqNw

Stewart, thanks for being an enabler... I bought some seeds. Wish me luck :-)

Thanks for that link, I better go watch it. Both links.

Wow, that pot is huge. I never would have thought to put a plant that size in that large a pot. What kind of potting mix is best for these?

A couple more videos. I hope you find these as helpful as I do.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=g8csP_bA9to

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TyFZuua69oE

Thank you to Kara for starting this post and also to sammythedog for the Alan Beverly tip.

SLD, check out the 2nd link in my post right below yours. There, Alan Beverly describes the growing medium he uses.

In both videos you can see his plants in barrels in the background. They are stunning behemoths.

Watching those videos I remember why I gave mine away. They get too large to handle. But sill love them and might still give them another try. Now if I can get a variegated dwarf version, wow. I know, get a echeveria instead.

Their new homes. Ridiculously overpotted. And these aren’t even half whiskey barrels! Wish me luck!

Well, I ordered a packet of 25 seeds, and received a packet of 100 seeds! I was going to give some away, but then noticed the seeds were from 2018, so I decided to plant them all, figuring I wouldn't get very good germination. I would guess that they sent more seeds, since they weren't super fresh.

Anyway, here they are....

Lots have germinated, I think somewhere around 50 or 60. I've tried to count them, but keep losing track half way through. Now to see if I can keep them alive. In a perfect world, maybe I'll have seedlings to give away :-) Better not count my chickens, though!

Good (I mean Great) for you. Keep me in mind for two.

Will do! I'm hoping I can keep them alive :-)

I wanted to show the progress of my two A. polyphylla, but having issues adding the photos so bare with me a moment...

I got them both in late March of this year. I had some better photos where my hand was beside them when I first potted them up, but I’m having trouble getting them from the cloud. Hopefully you can get the idea.

Ok so the first two are the same plant end of March 2020 and then today. It’s grown quite a bit but no spiral yet. The ruler in the top pic shows that it was about 4 inches across in March.

Edited to add: I finally got the March pictures from the cloud. WHEW!

Thanks in advance for any advice you can share.