Aloe africana limb drop

[Tracy]

 

This last rain created some challenges in my garden.  First thing was the inflorescence weighting down an agave, causing it to fall into the street, then last night I noticed a limb dropped off my multi-trunked Aloe africana.  I took the limb off to the side, as it fortunately missed my Encephalartos laevifolius.  I'm wondering if anyone has had success with this Aloe species rooting a limb which has fallen off.  Aloe africana is purported to be a non-trunking species, but I know others who have had specimens form trunks which split into more than one head.  Looks like at least one other head will fall eventually, so that creates another decision, wait for it to fall or take it off preemptively to avoid it damaging anything when it falls.

I'm leaning (yes, pun intended) toward allowing it to harden off and try potting the broken off limb and see if it survives. 

[Gonzer]

We've had so many broken limbs from our Hercules at work that I stopped counting. The unusually large outbreak of mass flowering is a bitch too if you're a bromeliad nursery.

[Tracy]

10 hours ago, Gonzer said:

We've had so many broken limbs from our Hercules at work that I stopped counting.

I'm looking at limbs on mine that I might trim off before they come down of their own accord.  The height mine will fall from combined with their weight would cause serious damage to anything below.  I'm not sure when you say mass flowering if you are referring to the bromeliads all flowering right now or other plants.

[Gonzer]

12 hours ago, Tracy said:

  I'm not sure when you say mass flowering if you are referring to the bromeliads all flowering right now or other plants.

No, talking about all the Hercules on the lower part of property. Six huge trees all flowered at once creating a blanket of spent blooms everywhere.

[Silas_Sancona]

On 12/31/2020 at 7:55 PM, Tracy said:

 

This last rain created some challenges in my garden.  First thing was the inflorescence weighting down an agave, causing it to fall into the street, then last night I noticed a limb dropped off my multi-trunked Aloe africana.  I took the limb off to the side, as it fortunately missed my Encephalartos laevifolius.  I'm wondering if anyone has had success with this Aloe species rooting a limb which has fallen off.  Aloe africana is purported to be a non-trunking species, but I know others who have had specimens form trunks which split into more than one head.  Looks like at least one other head will fall eventually, so that creates another decision, wait for it to fall or take it off preemptively to avoid it damaging anything when it falls.

I'm leaning (yes, pun intended) toward allowing it to harden off and try potting the broken off limb and see if it survives. 

 

 

 

 

 

Should be simple to re- root..  trim off all old leaves, maybe a few green ones ( leave a stub and let whats left naturally be shed../ any rot on the stem where it detached from the rest of the specimen, and set in a gritty soil mix.. Should easily root like my Hercules did ( unless that species is harder to root  - don't think it is though- ) esp. this time of year, headed towards/into Spring.

[Tracy]

3 hours ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Should be simple to re- root..  trim off all old leaves, maybe a few green ones ( leave a stub and let whats left naturally be shed../ any rot on the stem where it detached from the rest of the specimen, and set in a gritty soil mix.. Should easily root like my Hercules did ( unless that species is harder to root  - don't think it is though- ) esp. this time of year, headed towards/into Spring.

I thought I would give it a try, but in that Aloe africana isn't normally a multi-trunked species, I wasn't sure if it would root like the tree Aloes, now Aloidendrons.  I had an A. marlothii tip over a few years ago and break off the head.  I replanted the head with success, but the old trunk never sprouted any growth, which went along with the common thoughts on this forum.

[Tracy]

Well, I had a repeat this morning, with another limb/head splitting and falling off my Aloe africana.  The other split was just off to the other side of the trunk, which now leaves it with a narrow spot on the trunk.   I have 3 more heads emerging at the top and all are about to push out nice big colorful inflorescence.  Unfortunately, I expect that it is too top heavy and eventually will snap off at the narrow point.  My dilemma is whether to enjoy one more flowering or proactively remove it.  I potted the previous head that fell off in December already and could pot these as well.  I just am reluctant to leave it in too long, with some nice Encephalartos species in the drop zone.  Removal will present an opportunity though, which is trying something new in the spot.  This just never was going to have the trunk to support multiple heads like some of its Aloidendron cousins that develop multiple heads but develop much stouter bases.

[Tracy]

On the alternatives front for replanting, I don't want to put one of the cuttings in this spot and have the same problem.  As noted, Aloidendron's like the Hercules below develop much stouter bases for the massive head weight they carry and I've already started proactively removing limbs  on mine that are growing at an angle such that they will eventually break.  In the bullpen, I have 3 different looking plants all acquired as Aloidendron ramosissimum.  The last one is what I would expect of the species while the other two could be potential hybrids of A. ramosissimum and A dichotomum (both formerly in the Aloe family).  The last one I think I could plant with confidence that it wouldn't get excessively tall for the spot, but the other two I just don't know about. Of course I'm not locked into another Aloe/Aloidendron but it does pose a fun challenge to solve.

[Garcia3]

Always a great problem to have, lol.  This is a common issue I experience growing A. Marlothii, and A Ferox out here in AZ, but beheading and re-rooting is my standard resolution.   Traumatic but it works.  A. ramosissimum and A dichotomum are both beautiful specimens, their form is stunning in a lot of garden settings.  My only suggestion would be to consider form versus flowering.  I LOVE!! the Aloidendron trees, but their flowering impact pails in comparison to other cousins like  A. Vaombe, A. Speciosa,  A. Thraskii, or A Rupestris.     

[Garcia3]

Here are two hybrids of A. ramosissimum and A dichotomum, I have growing 

[Darold Petty]

I don't wish to hijack this thread,  so will start a new topic, aloe advice needed !

[Tracy]

21 minutes ago, Garcia3 said:

Always a great problem to have, lol.  This is a common issue I experience growing A. Marlothii, and A Ferox out here in AZ, but beheading and re-rooting is my standard resolution.   Traumatic but it works.  A. ramosissimum and A dichotomum are both beautiful specimens, their form is stunning in a lot of garden settings.  My only suggestion would be to consider form versus flowering.  I LOVE!! the Aloidendron trees, but their flowering impact pails in comparison to other cousins like  A. Vaombe, A. Speciosa,  A. Thraskii, or A Rupestris.     

Yes, I have lots of smaller Aloes like the A microstigmas in one of the photos,  in this planter for flowers and a lower profile.  I used A marlothii and ferox in other parts of the yard along with A speciosa, and they do put up beautiful displays.  I have only had problems with my A ferox toppling due to planting them too close to a wall which caused them to lean but otherwise they seem to do fine here.  One of my neighbor's has one of each marlothii and ferox, that are probably about 9'-10' tall, so if planted properly they seem to do fine here.  I've replanted one of my ferox heads a few years back and its doing well. 

 

5 minutes ago, Darold Petty said:

I don't wish to hijack this thread,  so will start a new topic, aloe advice needed !

Darold, you are welcome to add to or post new if you want to keep the responses to your need more focused.  Diversions in a thread can be helpful sometimes though.

[Garcia3]

Nice, please post pictures when you have your solution, I always enjoy seeing others gardens and yours is a very photogenic one.   

[Tracy]

On 2/8/2021 at 11:06 AM, Garcia3 said:

A. Marlothii, and A Ferox out here in AZ, but beheading and re-rooting is my standard resolution. 

So I already replanted the Aloe ferox head in the first photo surrounded by the Agaves.  Unfortunately, bad planting on my part for the original planting.  First too close to the wall followed by shade from the adjacent Cycas thouarsii, which further caused it to lean out from the wall and become too top heavy (like the second one is doing now).  I will probably need to replant the second Aloe ferox pictured at some point.

[GeneAZ]

Since these problem plants can't seem to form the girth of trunk necessary to support their crowns, perhaps they should be grown more snake-like along the ground, possibly forcing or creating offsets in time, then the apex could be removed along with the section of bare trunk and you're left with just keeping a ground-level plant at all times.  They are quite beautiful crowns.

[Tracy]

On 2/12/2021 at 9:48 AM, GeneAZ said:

Since these problem plants can't seem to form the girth of trunk necessary to support their crowns, perhaps they should be grown more snake-like along the ground, possibly forcing or creating offsets in time, then the apex could be removed along with the section of bare trunk and you're left with just keeping a ground-level plant at all times.  They are quite beautiful crowns.

Good recommendation Gene that may work well for others.  Unfortunately, I don't have the space to dedicate to a prone version of either of the Aloes.  I kept one head of the A. africana which I'm growing in a pot.  After a few weeks, it appears to be growing and pushing out the inflorescence that had already formed before it fell off.  I will probably lop the top off the existing stem, and put it in a pot to grow as well.  The Aloe ferox problems were more of a poor planting on my part.... what I like to refer to as "operator error" as opposed to an offense by the Aloe itself.

[Tracy]

On 12/31/2020 at 6:55 PM, Tracy said:

 

I would say that my effort in attempting to root this broken off head is making decent progress!

[Tracy]

On 2/8/2021 at 8:52 AM, Tracy said:

I had a repeat this morning, with another limb/head splitting and falling off my Aloe africana.  The other split was just off to the other side of the trunk, which now leaves it with a narrow spot on the trunk.   I have 3 more heads emerging at the top and all are about to push out nice big colorful inflorescence.  Unfortunately, I expect that it is too top heavy and eventually will snap off at the narrow point.  My dilemma is whether to enjoy one more flowering or proactively remove it.  I potted the previous head that fell off in December already and could pot these as well.  I just am reluctant to leave it in too long, with some nice Encephalartos species in the drop zone.  Removal will present an opportunity though, which is trying something new in the spot.  This just never was going to have the trunk to support multiple heads like some of its Aloidendron cousins that develop multiple heads but develop much stouter bases.

 

Given the weakness of the main stalk after the two fractured off heads, I decided to remove my Aloe africana after it finished blooming.  I still have the one head which is doing fine in a pot, but am now trying to decide whether to dig up the base and plant something else or leave the spot open.  Here is the new look without the Aloe africana.  My wife is inclined to leave the spot open.  Dypsis decipiens which has split into 4 trunks is inching along after a decade behind the Encephalartos lehmannii.  Someday it may be large, but at this rate, it will be a long time.  The other two smaller Encephalartos are not large growing species and rather slow growers as well. 

[Reyes Vargas]

3 hours ago, Tracy said:

Given the weakness of the main stalk after the two fractured off heads, I decided to remove my Aloe africana after it finished blooming.  I still have the one head which is doing fine in a pot, but am now trying to decide whether to dig up the base and plant something else or leave the spot open.  Here is the new look without the Aloe africana.  My wife is inclined to leave the spot open.  Dypsis decipiens which has split into 4 trunks is inching along after a decade behind the Encephalartos lehmannii.  Someday it may be large, but at this rate, it will be a long time.  The other two smaller Encephalartos are not large growing species and rather slow growers as well. 

I would listen to you wife.  It does look good without the Aloe africana.

[Tracy]

20 hours ago, Reyes Vargas said:

I would listen to you wife.  It does look good without the Aloe africana.

What doesn't come through well in the other photos is the depth of the planter.  The Aloe africana was located between the two small Encephalartos cycads.  The Aloidendron ramosissimum will take forever to get as tall as the Aloe africana was and will get much wider rather than taller.  My A ramosissimum is outgrowing the pot at this point which is another motivation for putting it in the ground here.

[Merlyn]

4 hours ago, Tracy said:

Given the weakness of the main stalk after the two fractured off heads, I decided to remove my Aloe africana after it finished blooming. 

That sounds like a wise choice.  It may have been just a matter of time before the weakened trunk let the last head fall on something valuable.  Given the big Hercules on the left, maybe put something narrow and tall in that spot?  I picked up a couple of hybrids of Rupestris x Speciosa, they are supposed to be rapid growers and water tolerant.  Or maybe Vaombe, which is supposed to be relatively quick growing and fairly skinny?

[Tracy]

On 5/13/2021 at 11:30 AM, Merlyn said:

Given the big Hercules on the left, maybe put something narrow and tall in that spot? 

Given the Dypsis decipiens just back a little and off to one side, I don't want to go tall here.  Inside the fence there is also a small Dypsis pilulifera behind the E longifolius which will eventually be going up too, so I want to keep things relatively low.  Hence the thought of the Aloidendron ramosissimum, although I may even stay closer to the ground and just put some Echeveria in the spot.  I just dug up the A africana root, so will continue contemplating before rushing into a decision.