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Aloe lineata var. muirii (Muir's Striped Aloe) - A medium-sized clustering species that for many years forms tight 1-foot-wide rosettes close to the ground but with time develops a short trunk to 4 to 8 feet tall. The yellow green leaves have red longitudinal lines on both upper and lower leaf surfaces and along the margins that also bear prominent red teeth - in strong light the red lines seem to bleed into the green giving the leaves a brownish hue. In late winter to late spring arise the showy salmon-orange flowers on multiple, up to four, unbranched stems from each rosette. The tight inflorescence has large fleshy bracts that hide the developing flower buds, which emerge and then hang downwards.
Plant in full sun and irrigate occasionally to very little. This plant's native habitat can get some summer rainfall and plants seem tolerant of both drier conditions and regular summer irrigation. Its cold hardiness has not been well documented, but it survived undamaged in the January 2007 freeze here when we had three nights down to 25° F and the species Aloe lineata (var. lineata) has proved hardy to around 20° F during the 1990 freeze as documented by its survival that year at the Ruth Bancroft Garden and likely variety muirii has similar hardiness. Aloe lineata is very similar to some forms of Aloe glauca and some consider that the two species be combined.
The native habitat of this aloe is in the Western Cape, from Ladismith to George where it grows mostly in the winter rainfall region of the Little Karoo. The name Aloe 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. Thes specific epithet comes from the Latin word 'lineatus' which describes the distinctive longitudinal lines on the leaves. The varietal epithet honors Dr John Muir (1874–1947), a Scottish plant collector, who discovered many new species of South African flora. This variety resembles Aloe lineata var. lineata, but differs in having yellowish green leaves with more distinct red lines, smaller marginal spines and flowers in spring while var. lineata flowers in the fall. We have grown and sold this nice aloe since 2008.
Our stock plants were grown from seed given to us by Brian Kemble of the Ruth Bancroft Garden that had been collected in 2005 at Herold, a hamlet in the George Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Information displayed on this page about Aloe lineata var. muirii 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.
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