Best in full sun along the coast to light shade inland with occasional summer watering, but will tolerate periodic drought conditions. Cold hardy to short duration temperatures from 25 to 28° F. A nice landscape plant that can grow well along the coast and also in the hot desert - used extensively in the median strips of Palm Springs! It is also useful for its medicinal qualities with anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and wound-healing properties. Used topically for skin issues such as on burns and psoriasis as well as orally as a mouthwash and ingested for a range of other maladies.

Aloe vera is thought to be originally native to the south-east Arabian Peninsula in the Hajar Mountains in north-eastern Oman and eastern United Arab Emirates. Part of the problem is that there is no known native occurrence of the species, and it is thought to have been in cultivation for nearly four millennia with plants naturalized along trade routes throughout much of the world, which makes it pretty hard to track its origins. It has naturalized in North Africa, Sudan and other neighboring countries, so it is difficult to know where the species originated. The name for the genus comes from ancient Greek name aloe that was derived from the Arabian word 'alloch' that was used to describe the plant or its juice that was used as medicine. The specific epithet is the Latin word meaning "true," "real," or "genuine". Common names include Chinese Aloe, Indian Aloe, True Aloe, Barbados Aloe, Burn Aloe and First Aid Plant

The scientific name assigned to this aloe has been changed several times in the last few years from Aloe vera to Aloe barbadensis and then finally back to Aloe vera. It seems that this controversy dates back to the two names being published a couple weeks apart in April 1768. In The Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants: Monocotyledons (Edited by Urs Eggli, Springer-Verlag 2001) L.E. Lewis, the author on the section Aloaceae, lists the plant as Aloe vera (Linné) Burman and notes that Linné (Carl von Linné or Carolus Linnaeus) did not publish the combinations of Aloe vera as a numbered species. Gilbert Westacott Reynolds in The Aloes of tropical Africa and Madagascar (1966) argued that the name should be Aloe barbadensis but had overlooked the combination published by N.L. Burman (not later than April 6, 1768), which has priority over Miller's name, Aloe barbadensis. Lewis cites as reference for this information L.E. Newton's article "In defense of the name Aloe vera" in the Cactus and Succulent Journal of Great Britain (1979:41-2).

This is not the common plant typically sold in supermarkets erroneously as Aloe vera that has shorter spotted leaves and orange flowers. This other plant has been commonly known as Aloe vera var. chinensis or Aloe indica but is thought to be a hybrid, a form of Aloe officinalis or possibly Aloe massawana. 

Information displayed on this page about Aloe vera is based on our research conducted about this plant in our nursery library as well as from information provided by reliable online resources. We also include our own observations made about it as it has grown in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant performed in the containers in our nursery field. We will also include comments received from others and welcome hearing from anyone who has information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information aiding others to better grow it.