Aloes are very popular and some of the most rewarding plants to cultivate. They make excellent accent plants owing to their often strange and inspiring architectures, as well as the bright flowers that offset the grey-green leaves. They are also very suitable as container plants and small aloes can be used very effectively as border plants at the edge of a bed. Although aloes are most often included in rockeries, their application in horticulture is not limited to this feature and they can be used in almost any setting and in conjunction with most common garden plants. Their natural adaptation to harsh and often arid climates makes aloes outstanding subjects for the water-wise garden. Aloe is a genus in the Asphodeloideae family containing about 600 species of flowering succulent plants. Aloes are sometimes confused with Agaves. Contrarily to Agaves, Aloe leaves contain a gel like sap. Another difference is that Aloes don’t die after blooming as most Agaves do.

Aloe excelsa or commonly known as Zimbabwe Aloe is naturally found growing in Zimbabwe. The specie name ‘excelsa’ means ‘lofty’ or ‘high’ and it refers to the height of the plant. Aloe excelsa grows to an impressive 4 meters. Leaves are a dull-green to reddish-green colour depending on the amount od sunlight it receives. The upper leaf surface is smooth while the lower leaf surface has some thorns present, especially in juvenile plants. The leaf margins are armed with sharp reddish-brown teeth. Aloe excelsa flowers from winter to spring.