Dave's Garden - Gardening Community
Sponsored Links: Winter Landscaping - Gardeners Supply - Mail Order Plants - Flowering Bulbs - Landscape Design - Plant Nurseries Mail Order

PlantFiles: Clanwilliam Aloe
Aloe comosa

 
  Welcome!  
You've found the famous Dave's Garden website! Join this friendly global community that shares tips and ideas for home and gardens, along with seeds and plants!

Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site.

  Login  
If you don't have an account yet, visit the registration page to sign up.

Username:

Password:

Family: Aloaceae
Genus: Aloe (AL-oh) (Info)
Species: comosa (kom-OH-suh) (Info)

2 members have or want this plant for trade.

Category:
Cactus and Succulents

Height:
12-18 in. (30-45 cm)
18-24 in. (45-60 cm)
24-36 in. (60-90 cm)
36-48 in. (90-120 cm)
4-6 ft. (1.2-1.8 m)

Spacing:
18-24 in. (45-60 cm)
24-36 in. (60-90 cm)

Hardiness:
USDA Zone 9b: to -3.8 °C (25 °F)
USDA Zone 10a: to -1.1 °C (30 °F)
USDA Zone 10b: to 1.7 °C (35 °F)
USDA Zone 11: above 4.5 °C (40 °F)

Sun Exposure:
Sun to Partial Shade

Danger:
N/A

Bloom Color:
Pale Pink

Bloom Time:
Mid Summer

Foliage:
Unknown - Tell us

Other details:
Drought-tolerant; suitable for xeriscaping

Soil pH requirements:
Unknown - Tell us

Patent Information:
Unknown - Tell us

Propagation Methods:
By dividing rhizomes, tubers, corms or bulbs (including offsets)
From seed; germinate in vitro in gelatin, agar or other medium

Seed Collecting:
Unknown - Tell us

Click thumbnail
to view:

By palmbob
Thumbnail #1 of Aloe comosa by palmbob

By RWhiz
Thumbnail #2 of Aloe comosa by RWhiz

By palmbob
Thumbnail #3 of Aloe comosa by palmbob

By palmbob
Thumbnail #4 of Aloe comosa by palmbob

By thistlesifter
Thumbnail #5 of Aloe comosa by thistlesifter

By ALTER_EGO
Thumbnail #6 of Aloe comosa by ALTER_EGO

By palmbob
Thumbnail #7 of Aloe comosa by palmbob

There are a total of 13 photos.
Click here to view them all!

Profile:

4 positives
No neutrals
No negatives

Gardeners' Notes:

RatingAuthorComment
Positive Little_things On Aug 27, 2008, Little_things from Kimberley
South Africa (Zone 9a) wrote:

Occurs in a restricted area near Clanwilliam in the Western Cape of South Africa at 300-600m (990-2000ft). It is vulnerable due to small world populations. Comosa means "bearing a tuft of leaves" and commonly its also called the Clanwilliam aloe.

Positive Porphyrostachys On Jun 11, 2007, Porphyrostachys from Apache Jct., AZ (Zone 9b) wrote:

This Aloe seems to like the arid conditions of the Phoenix area in Arizona. The plant in my photos is rather small but has flowered at least twice prior and this year sent up TWO inflors. This plant is in the yard of a friend and we're both rather surprised it survived the evil frost of 2007.
Aloe comosa, by the way, does not sucker. ;-)

-j.

Positive thistlesifter On Aug 22, 2006, thistlesifter from Vista, CA wrote:

I have grown 3 of these. All were acquired at fairly mature sizes. One is flowering size has not flowered for me.

In Southern California these should not be given any water from the top for the first couple of months in the summer. The morning dew will stand in the growth center of the plant. The growth center is highly vernerable during this period of the summer and rot sets in within a day or so.

I water it lightly from the base beginning in late August. Light June rain can cause rot if the growth center is not dried as soon as possible. I use shop towels to absorb all the water in the top as soon as the weather clears up.

bob
:>

Positive palmbob On Feb 17, 2004, palmbob from Tarzana, CA (Zone 9b) wrote:

Attractive short-stemmed aloe with pale blue-green leaves to pink in winter. Has some spines up middle of ventral leaf surface, and marginal spines. Enventually, with many years, will form an unbranched trunk. Rare in cultivation, as well as the wild. Most distinguishing characteristic (which I have yet to witness) are the exceptionally tall, unbranched racemes of pale pink flowers in summer (flowers can be up to 9' tall)... as Porphyrostachys mentioned, does not sucker (not sure why I said it did, earlier).

Now that I have grown one of these for over 6 years I can confidently claim that this is one of the slowest growing aloes on the planet (at least in my climate)! My seedling has put on 3 leaves in 6 years and at this rate it will be flowering long after the planet has been covered by ice again.

Regional...

This plant has been said to grow in the following regions:

Tempe, Arizona
Mission Viejo, California
Spring Valley, California
Tarzana, California
Vista, California



We recommend Firefox
Overwhelmed? There's a lot to see here. Try starting at our homepage.

[ Home | About | Advertise | Mission | Acceptable Use Policy | Tour | Privacy Policy | Contact Us ]

Back to the top

Copyright © 2000-2009 Dave's Garden. All Rights Reserved.
 

NameMedia Home and Gardens
Share on FacebookShare on Stumbleupon

Hope for America