Streetside aloes, late February 2021

Time to take another look at the aloes blooming along the sidewalk. All too soon, this display—particularly generous this year—will be history. 

The flower colors range from creamy yellows to rich reds. The yellows are courtesy of Aloe 'Moonglow'. There are three separate clumps now. All three came from my half of a 5-gallon can I originally split with a friend—pretty remarkable growth. I've started to give offsets to friends since for whatever reason 'Moonglow' is currently hard to find in retail nurseries.

Aloe 'Moonglow' clump #1

I'm particularly excited about this aloe since it's the first time it has bloomed for me. It's a hybrid between Aloe spectabilis (related to A. marlothii but with vertical instead of horizontal inflorescences) and Aloe vaombe. The flowers give me vaombe vibes while the leaves have the general shape of spectabilis.

Aloe 'Erik the Red', one of the most spectacular larger hybrids on the market

Aloe capitata var. quartziticola (left), Aloe 'Erik the Red' (center), Aloe 'Moonglow' clump #1 (right)

Aloe capitata var. quartziticola, with ×Mangave 'Kaleidoscope'

×Mangave 'Red Wing' (left), Hechtia argentea (center), Yucca 'Bright Star' (right)

Aloe 'Moonglow' clump #2 (left), Aloe wickensii (right), 

Aloe 'Moonglow' clump #2 (left), Aloe wickensii (right), 

Aloe wickensii, with Agave ovatifolia

Aloe 'Moonglow' clump #2, with Agave americana 'Mediopicta Alba' and Yucca rostrata 'Sapphire Skies'

Aloe 'Moonglow' clump #2, with Cantua volcanica, a perennial from southern Peru

Aloe 'Moonglow' clump #2, with Agave macroacantha

Aloe petricola, with an Aloe bulbillifera hybrid on the left. The variegated agave in the middle is Agave 'Ripple Express, a variegated 'Mr. Ripple'.

Agave petricola

Agave parrasana × colorata, a hybrid created by Brian Kemble of the Ruth Bancroft Garden. The silver-leaved plant with blue flowers (left) is the California Flora Nursery form of Teucrium fruticans.

Here you can see the Agave parrasana flower stalk next to Aloidendron 'Hercules'

Aloe 'Moonglow' clump #3

Aloe 'Moonglow' clump #3 and Ceanothus 'Julia Phelps'

Aloe excelsa (left), Yucca 'Bright Star' (middle), Aloe marlothii (right). Interestingly, neither A. excelsa nor A. marlothii flowered this year, although they did last year. I think they didn't get enough water in the summer/fall. A. excelsa, in particular, looks very parched.

Aloe 'Tangerine' (Aloe arborescens × ferox)

Aloe 'Tangerine', with Aloe cameronii in the photo on the left and ×Mangave 'Mayan Queen' on the right

Aloe 'Tangerine' and ×Mangave 'Mayan Queen'

Aloe marlothii (left), with Agave weberi 'Arizona Star' (center)

Aloe marlothii (left), with Agave weberi 'Arizona Star' (right)

I'm sure there'll be one last post on the aloes in our garden since there are some stragglers, including Aloe 'Maui Gem' (A. mawii × globuligemma), Aloe 'Yemeni Gold' (A. sabaea hybrid), and Aloe humilis × ferox 'White Form'.

In addition, I'm planning another trip to the Ruth Bancroft Garden this coming weekend to capture more of their aloes in bloom. No rest for the wicked, as they say!

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