What kind of succulent is this?
March 15, 2016 9:50 AM   Subscribe

I just bought this succulent at Trader Joe's. There is no identifying label. Does anyone know what this is? How do I keep it alive?
posted by ilovewinter to Home & Garden (6 answers total)
 
Looks like an Aloe vera.

See here.
posted by cool breeze at 9:55 AM on March 15, 2016 [1 favorite]


Best answer: The tips are a little stubby, but it looks a lot like Aloe rupestris .

I'd bet that general "keep succulents alive" tips like lots of sun, making sure the soil is well-drained, letting the soil dry out completely before watering, etc. would help this pretty guy.
posted by sparklemotion at 9:55 AM on March 15, 2016 [2 favorites]


I think it is some kind of aloe (there are many). Usually it's hard to kill an aloe. Generally it's best to let the soil dry out between watering and give plenty of direct sunlight.
posted by WalkerWestridge at 10:12 AM on March 15, 2016 [1 favorite]


Put it in a hot, sunny window. Water it sometimes.

It can survive some cold temperatures, but if you run the air conditioner constantly and you don't have it in a warm spot, that can do it in. It will survive neglect, forgetting to water it for long periods, poisonous soils and all kinds of hardship, but too much cold will kill it. They can look dead from lack of water and spring back with a little care. They can look dead from poisonous soil filled with too many cigarette butts, and miraculously recover. But too much cold will do them in. These are the sorts of plants you bring at night if it is going to get too close to freezing.

(At enough extremes, too much heat will kikl it too. I left one in the back window of a black car in summer in Georgia and it died. But, in a home, that would probably involve literally cooking it in the oven, not cranking the heat in winter.)
posted by Michele in California at 12:27 PM on March 15, 2016 [3 favorites]


The juice is good for minor burns. Snap off a bit and rub,
posted by IndigoJones at 6:14 AM on March 16, 2016


Best answer: It's an Aloe, but it is emphatically not an Aloe vera (surprisingly, neither are about 40-50% of the images in cool breeze's link).

Rubbing it on burns might not hurt you, but I wouldn't expect it to be terribly helpful, either.
posted by Spathe Cadet at 10:41 AM on March 16, 2016 [1 favorite]


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