Aloe vera is one of the most grateful plants in the plant kingdom. And, when you take good care of it, it not only offers you an elegant and luxurious appearance, even with flowers. But, in addition, it has multiple uses in health, beauty, etc. But, to achieve this, you have to know in detail what the care of Aloe vera.
If you are thinking of having a plant in your house, or perhaps you already have it, here we are going to give you the keys so that it is perfect throughout the year and you can solve the most common problems that the Aloe vera.
What are the care of the Aloe vera?
It is a very grateful plant, and easy to care for. Now, we are going to talk to you about how you have to maintain it, since that way you can enjoy it for a long time:
Aloe vera: indoor or outdoor
The first thing you should know is that it is one of the most resistant plants there is, although up to a certain limit. It needs specific care to make the plant feel good and this will affect its coloring, flowering (provided it is female), etc. But how do you take care of the Aloe vera?
One of the first ones you face is defining whether the Aloe vera it is an indoor or outdoor plant. Actually, it can be in both ways; that is, you can plant it in a pot outside, or in the ground; and, also, you can have it inside your home.
It adapts perfectly to both situations as long as it is given the necessary Aloe vera care.
Sun or shade?
The above is likely to have raised the question. Do you put it in full sun? In shadow? Half shadow? Only natural light indoors? This plant is very grateful to the sun, and it likes (and can) be exposed to the sun for long hours without affecting its health.
Now in the hottest months, When the temperature gets too high, the sun can burn your leaves, or make them look very different.
So our recommendation is that you place it in an area where nothing happens because it gives direct light, but not for many hours, to avoid those burns.
En general, el Aloe vera tolerates between 17 and 27 degrees Celsius, but on the other hand, if the temperature drops below 0 degrees it begins to suffer and the frosts could kill the plant.
Choice of pot
If you are going to plant the Aloe vera in a pot, this can not be just any. This plant, because it develops many roots, will need at least a pot with a depth of 50cm. If it is more, much better. And the more space you give it, the more it will grow and feel good.
For this reason, many choose large pots to be placed on terraces, or inside houses in corners so that, in a few years, the plant grows to be decorative by itself.
What land to put?
If you already have the location and the pot where you are going to place it, the next step is to choose a suitable soil for it. Aloe vera. And it is that this has a series of requirements to meet, such as the fact that it has a lot of organic matter and, at the same time, is airy, padded and draining.
It is not demanding in terms of the type of substrate, but yes in terms of compliance with the above, since the roots need a soil that does not become caked. Otherwise, the plant will not be able to develop properly.
In addition, once a year it is convenient that you add a little humus to give it extra nutrients that help enrich the soil and the plant.
How and when to water Aloe vera
Watering time is the most feared by many because it is the reason for many problems that make plants sick. In the case of Aloe vera, you should know that it is very important since, if you overdo it, you can end up rotting the roots and, with it, losing the plant.
Therefore, irrigation must be "personalized". We explain ourselves: Aloe vera is a plant that likes to have the earth moistened, but not flooded. This means that it likes to feel a bit wet but not so that there are deposits of water that can affect the roots.
Outdoors, a very suitable method to water it is drip irrigation, or even the bottle and rope. Indoors, you can also use irrigations of this type at home.
Is it to be pruned?
El Aloe vera It is not usually a plant that is pruned often. When this task is done it is with the objective of removing the withered leaves, or because one of its stalks is to be used to use it. But, to cut, it is recommended that you wait for spring.
You need to get a sharp knife and cut the sheet you want from its own base, that is, as close to earth as you can. You should only remove those leaves that are drier or more damaged.
It is also the time to reproduce it, because you may find that "suckers" are going to come out, that is, small shoots that will give rise to a new plant.
Main problems that you find in the care of the Aloe vera
If you take into account all the above that we have told you about Aloe vera care, the safest thing is that your plant is healthy. However, it does not mean that you will never have problems. Therefore, here we present the most common solution.
What to do if it turns brown
The usual color, and the one it should have if you comply with all the Aloe vera care, is bright green. However, you may find that green is replaced by a brown color. What happens?
Actually, there are three factors that can be the cause of this problem: irrigation, substrate and non-subscriber. Specific:
- Check that the soil you have can offer you the nutrients you need. If it has been more than two years without changing it, it may be that it is exhausted and needs new soil.
- Cut the watering. Space out the water every 15-20 days to make sure that there are no puddles in the soil (even if you change it, try to have a period of at least 10 days after that first watering).
- Add compost. As we have commented before, Aloe vera needs an annual subscription with earthworm humus. It can help you to recover the plant.
What to do if you have soft leaves
Another common problem with Aloe vera is that the leaves become soft, apparently for no particular reason. In general, it can come for several problems What are they:
- It has suffered a frost or snow has fallen on it.
- You have gone over with the irrigation.
- The earth is caked.
- There are very high temperatures, or excessive humidity.
- For a bacterial disease.
Before doing anything, or thinking about cutting the leaves, it is important that you check the central leaves, do they look healthy? If they are still green and hard, not soft, it means that the plant can be saved.
Now what to do?
- Check the soil and, if it is damp, try to take the plant out of the pot and leave it outside for 1-2 days. Nothing is going to happen to you, so relax.
- Remove leaves that appear to be dead.
- Add rooting powders to help the plant grow more roots to save it.
- Keep the plant in a bright area but without direct sun until you see that it recovers.
You just have to wait to see how he reacts. The Aloe vera it is a very resistant plant, which you can recover if it is not too late.
And if you have doubts about whether it is a true Aloe vera, click here: