Hey I was just thinking of buying this from a local nursery. But I have a long history of disagreement with spiky plants. The label said Aloe ferox.

Thank you! I think you may be right!

Aloe peglerae?

Peglerae looks even more similar to mine, thank you. I’m so bad at identifying aloe, many have so many similarities but this one seems close

I would go with A. ferox. The leaves of A. peglerae wouldn't be this large until it was very mature.

Thank you for the input aloebot! Looking at the old google machine, the spikes on my plant appear to be larger and meaner than what I’m seeing for a. Ferox. My plant also seems to have quite a few more spikes on it. What would be “very mature” in this case. I’m not sure of the exact age since I’ve only just inherited it, but I’m fairly certain it’s several years old. I have almost zero knowledge when it comes to aloe (outside of my aloe Vera), so of course I value the opinions of those who know better than I :)

It's hard to say how old the plant is for sure. It depends on how fast the original grower pushed it (with fertilizer or not). In any case, it looks at least 3 years old to me. Even at this age it is hard to be certain what species it is from a picture. African aloes that have this size/many spikes at this age are relatively few. The choices would be; A. marlothii, A. spectabilis, A. ferox, A. candelabrum, A. excelsa, and A. aculeata. Four of these become less spikey as they mature; A.ferox, A. spectabilis, A. candelabrum, and A. excelsa. A. marlothii and A. aculeata keep the spine density into maturity. One interesting thing in your picture that I didn't notice before is the raised white bumps that end in the spike. This is a characteristic of most A. aculeata which is the only one of the six which doesn't become a tree. Whichever species you have will become a very nice specimen as it matures. Be sure to give it as much light as is possible in your circumstance. All of these would love to be in the ground. The best you can do is give it a lot of root room in the pot and get it outside in the sun (gradually) when the weather permits.

Thanks so much for the guidance aloebot! You’re a wealth of information! Whatever it is I love it dearly and have kept the name given to it by the original owner, Seymour. I think it’s quite fitting! Anyway, I grow mostly echeveria and have them all under grow lights during the winter months. Since this aloe will need lots of light, do you think it will do well under lights until I can get it outside? They are T5 fluorescent. Once outside, I imagine a full sun position would be ideal? Also, what are your thoughts on soil. Most of my plants are in a gritty mix. Will Seymour do well in that also? And fertilizer? I’m sorry for so many questions, I just have very little experience with aloe and I really want to see this guy to his full potential. Many thanks!!!

I have no experience with lights because of my favorable climate. I don't think you need to fertilize because the plant looks very healthy. Fertilizing at this stage might make this grow unusually since you can't provide optimum light at this time. Maybe one of our northern growers who use winter lighting might have a better answer to this. The soil I use in pots is 50/50 or 60/40 perlite or pumice to dirt. Dirt defined here as my soil which is Very decomposed granite (cant see grains easily) 60% with compost 40%. I don't water much. If I see something in a pot looking thirsty I will water if I remember (I'm on an acre and get distracted easily). I rarely water any of my in ground Aloes. They are loving it now because we are getting some rain (the weeds love it more!) I can take some photos of some possible Seymour relatives if you like.

Great information, thank you! Hopefully someone will be able to provide some guidance on the grow lights, if not I have a nice sunny south facing window that should work for now while I wait for nicer weather (soon fingers crossed!). And yes please! I’d love to see some of your aloes! Thanks again!

Wow! They’re gorgeous! Have you grown any in containers before? I’m just curious if my Seymour will ever get to that point if he’s stuck indoors half the year. Ive got some serious research to do over the weekend I think. Anywho, thanks for sharing, your aloes are amazing!

I don't have such amazing plants, but grow few aloes in containers. They are much smaller, and I keep most of them under lights during winter. That is approx. 6mo - unfortunately, it isn't usually warm enough here (nighttime temps) for succulents to be outdoors, until almost end of May.

I do have A. maculata that gets bigger, and have few younger plants in space without any supplemental lights. It is also quite cool there, so they are not watered. Some leaves are 'curling' slightly, probably because of not enough of light, and maybe they are getting thirsty by now.

My vote is aculeata!

Those are fantastic specimens, aloebot.

Here is another aloe that has been under lights since it came indoors, and grew at least 4 new leaves (another is emerging):

I have agave that is under lights - pup has grown bigger, and he roots are popping out of the mix::All of my succulents are in very gritty mix (no soil), and hardly ever get any fertilizer - maybe once or twice in Summer, if I have leftover water with ferts in it, from watering vegetable garden.

The big Aloes need light and room to get large. The optimum condition is in the ground. If you could make a mini greenhouse to cover the plant until you absolutely have to take it in you might get better growth. Some people make raised beds and then put a plant in a fairly large pot in the bed. The roots can grow out the drain holes during the growing season. At the end of the season you dig down into the raised bed to sever the outgrown roots and take the potted plant inside. It is work but the results may be worth it.

Thanks rina, this helps a lot! Looks like you and I are in the same boat in terms of climate so I’m grateful for your feedback. I’m going to bring mine home this evening and get him under the lights, in a bigger pot, and into a gritty mix. Would you suggest gradually putting under my lights? He’s lived in a window his whole life as far as I know. I really don’t want to damage him.

Be careful getting him home if it's snowing out. You need to keep him warm. I made the mistake of just carrying a plant across the parking lot in the snow, then getting in my cold car...by the time I got it home it had suffered some damage :(

Anna

I always acclimatize them to more light - better safe than sorry :)

Thanks for the tip Pluto! Luckily it isn’t snowing here anymore, but it is pretty chilly. 29 when I left for work this morning. Maybe I can bundle it up in my oversized scarf to help keep it warm I transit :)

Thanks rina! I appreciate it. I’ll gradually work him in :)

If you have a cardboard box and newspaper, that will provide insulation around the plant while you transfer it. I would only do this is the plant is relatively dry. If the plant has wet roots/potting media, you should probably wait until it warms up above freezing (just to be safe since Aloes aren't hardy, I lost a few last fall/winter transition)

Just for size comparison: aloe I showed in my previous post is 9 3/4" tall from the soil line.

I agree with very good protection if cold/windy and especially if the office is quite warm. Or wait few more days :)

Thanks guys. I guess I’ll leave him at work a little while longer to avoid any damage. I’d hate to lose him, he’s so beautiful. And ferocious!