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| Category: Succulent |
| Family: Aloeaceae (now Asphodeloideae) |
| Origin: South Africa (Africa) |
| Evergreen: Yes |
| Flower Color: Yellow & Orange |
| Bloomtime: Fall/Winter |
| Synonyms: [A. arborescens ssp. mutabilis] |
| Height: 3-5 feet |
| Width: 4-6 feet |
| Exposure: Sun or Shade |
| Seaside: Yes |
| Summer Dry: Yes |
| Deer Tolerant: Yes |
| Irrigation (H2O Info): Low Water Needs |
| Winter Hardiness: 20-25° F |
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Aloe mutabilis - A medium size sparsely branching shrubby aloe that typically grows 3 to 4 feet tall with stems upright or laying along the ground and topped by 18 to 24 inch wide rosettes of narrow soft-toothed blue-green leaves. In mid-winter appear unique two toned flowers that rise up on unbranched or few branched inflorescences, often with several inflorescences rising from a single rosette of leaves. These flowers change color as they mature, with the red-orange buds opening to display yellow flowers. Plant in full sun to light shade. This drought tolerant plant does great in coastal California without any supplementary irrigation and is cold hardy to about 21° F. This plant is attractive to hummingbirds and bees. Aloe mutabilis is similar and closely related to the more common Aloe arborescens. Both bloom in winter but Aloe mutabilis is a smaller plant with less dense branching and bluer leaves. Its flowers are also on shorter pedicils with petals more flared and have red-orange buds that open to yellow while Aloe arborescens has buds and more tubular flowers of the same color, most often dark red-orange. Aloe mutabilis is a little hardier as well so can be grown in areas too cold for its larger cousin, Aloe arbrorescens. The type locality of Aloe mutabilis is the vertical rock faces in the Witwatersrand National Botanical Garden, now known as Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden near Johannesburg, capital of the province of Gauteng in South Africa and is found from elevations between 4,600 and 6,000 feet on cliffs and steep slopes in the mountainous areas of what was previously known, prior to the fall of apartheid, as southern and central Transvaal. First described in 1933 by South African botanist Neville Stuart Pillans, for whom Aloe pillansii was named, though some maintain that Aloe mutabilis is close enough to Aloe arborescens that it should be classed as a subspecies or a Highveld form, rather than a species in its own right. It is listed in Aloe: The Definitive Guide as a distinct species and we follow this treatment of it. The specific epithet is the Latin word for "changeable" and it is thought that this is a reference to the changing color of the flowers as they mature but may also describe the variability of the plant. Our plants came from the Institute of Aloe Studies in 2009 as IAS 09-49.
This information about Aloe mutabilis displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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