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Aloe 'Zanzibar' (Narrow-leafed Tiger Tooth Aloe) - An attractive and unusual succulent with 1- to 2-foot-long stems that are at first erect but later arch over and are covered from the base with short lanceolate shaped bright toothy-margined green leaves flecked with lighter green to white spots on inner and outer surfaces. The stems are densely stacked and tipped with a spiky tight rosette. When grown in full sun the leaves often take on reddish to brown tones. This plant suckers profusely to make a dense stand or ground cover and can trail downwards over rocks or walls. Like the species it is presumed to be derived from, this plant does not flower regularly but when it does it is in mid to late summer and is an unbranched spike with orange-red flowers.
Plant in a well-drained soil in light shade to full sun, but red coloration best with bright light. Give regular to occasional water in summer and avoid overwatering in winter - tolerates winter rainfall if soil drains well and is great in containers of even a hanging basket. Has proven hardy in our garden to 25 F. This plant is very similar to Aloe juvenna but has narrower leaves.
This plant is often sold as Aloe zanzibarica which was an older name for Aloe juvenna, a compact species with very short leaves that comes from Kenya and it has been in the past been called Aloe zanzibarica and A. concinna, though these names are also used as synonyms for the similar looking but slower growing Socotran species, Aloe squarrosa, which is a more open plant with longer more recurved leaves and bare stems. Most plants sold in the trade as Aloe squarrosa are likely to actually be Aloe juvenna or this hybrid that we have sold since 2013.
The information displayed on this page about Aloe 'Zanzibar' is based on the research we have conducted about it in our nursery library as well as from information provided by reliable online resources. We also include our own observations made about this plant as it grows in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant have performed in the containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we have received from others and welcome hearing from anyone with information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information that will aid others to better grow it.
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