1026.000 Aloe L. - Aloe

CHORTOLIRION A. Berger

Carter, S. (2001) Aloaceae Flora Zambesiaca 12(3)

Fowler, D.G. (2007) Zambian Plants: Their Vernacular Names and Uses, Kew Publishing

Grace, O.M., Klopper, R.R., Smith, G.F., Crouch, N.R., Figueiredo, E., Rønsted, N., Van Wyk, A.E. (2013) A revised generic classification for Aloe (Xanthorrhoeaceae subfam. Asphodeloideae) Phytotaxa 76(1) 7-14

Harding, T.B.C. (1979) Aloes of the World: A Checklist, Index and Code as at December 1979. Excelsa 9

Reynolds, G.W. (1966) The Aloes of Tropical Africa and Madagascar. The Aloes Book Fund, Mbabane, Swaziland.

Williamson, G. (2002) Notes on Zambian Aloes Aloe 39(3&4) 83-91

Description of the genus

Succulent perennials, sometimes large and shrub-like, but not dichotomously branched trees or large shrubs. Leaves borne in rosettes or distichous, usually stiff, succulent, with hard-toothed or spiny margins, spotted or unspotted; dried leaves persistent or not. Inflorescence variously branched or simple. Flowers usually brightly coloured, actinomorphic, only rarely ± 2-lipped, variously shaped, with or without a pronounced constriction above a bulbous basal swelling. A well known genus of mainly winter-flowering species.

Derivation of name: Aloe is the Greek name for Aloe vera, one of the bitter aloes of medicine.

Worldwide: c.365 species, tropics and especially southern Africa, Madagascar, Arabia and Canary Isles.

Zimbabwe: 9 cultivated taxa.

Aloe excelsa var. excelsa

Links to cultivated taxa    View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this genus

SpeciesContent
arborescens Mill.Description, Image
dawei A. Berger
excelsa A. Berger var. excelsa Description, Image
ferox Mill.
littoralis Baker
munchii ChristianDescription, Image
perdita EllertDescription
spicata L.f.Description, Image
vera (L.) Burm. f.

Other sources of information about Aloe:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Aloe
Flora of Burundi: Aloe
Flora of Caprivi: Aloe
Flora of the DRC: Aloe
Flora of Malawi: Aloe
Flora of Mozambique: Aloe
Flora of Zambia: Aloe
Flora of Zambia: cultivated Aloe
Flora of Zimbabwe: Aloe

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Aloe
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Aloe
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Aloe
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Aloe
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Aloe
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Aloe
JSTOR Plant Science: Aloe
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Aloe
Plants of the World Online: Aloe
Tropicos: Aloe
Wikipedia: Aloe

Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2002-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Zimbabwe: Cultivated plants: genus page: Aloe.
https://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/cult/genus.php?genus_id=340, retrieved 7 December 2024

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