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Aloe cameronii 'Crème Tangerine' (Starfish Aloe) A medium-sized suckering aloe to 2 to 3 feet tall by 3 to 4 feet wide with many upright stems of open rosettes of slightly recurved lanceolate leaves that are medium to dark green with orange-red highlights summer though early winter. In late fall through mid-winter the flowers arise densely clustered at the tips of the 2 1/2 foot tall, branched inflorescence - these flowers start off a deep tangerine orange color and fade to a creamy pale orange.
Plant in full to part sun in a well-drained soil and irrigate only occasionally to enhance the coloration of the foliage, which remains green if in too much shade or when overwatered and in nursery conditions. Hardy to mid to upper 20's° F. This is a very attractive aloe for its red tinged foliage and showy flowers. It is a more robust and taller plant form than the more common form of the species with foliage that does not get as dark red and with larger and taller flowers that are various shades of orange, while the typical Aloe cameronii that has long been grown in California has dark reddish orange flowers and narrower leaves that seasonably can turn a deep maroon red.
Aloe cameronii was first discovered in the central African country of Nyasaland (now Malawi). The smaller plant with dark leaves and reddish flowers has long been in California gardens - for more information about this species, see our listing at Aloe cameronii.
In recent years this other form has become popular in the Southern California nursery trade, radiating out from nurseries in the San Diego area. It is a more robust and upright plant with greener summer coloration and bright orange flowers. This plant is often sold just as Aloe cameronii with a common name Starfish Aloe, but it is a very different variant of the species from the typical form and some thought it might be a hybrid or perhaps be Aloe cameronii var. bondana that is found on exposed granite outcrops from 5,500 to 7,200 feet in elevation in the Nyanga District of Zimbabwe. Until such time that it might be confirmed that this plant is Aloe cameronii var. bondana , we needed a way to distinguish it from the smaller redder flower and foliage form that we have grown since 2005, so we list this variety as Aloe cameronii 'Crème Tangerine'.
We thank Jeff Chemnick of Aloes in Wonderland for coming up with this clever name for this aloe that takes a line from the Beatles song "Savoy Truffle" and describes well how the flowers of this plant start off a tangerine color and fade to a creamy orange. We also thank Tom Jesch of Waterwise Botanicals in Bonsal, California for our initial stock plants of this attractive plant that we purchased in 2017 and continue to grow using the cultivar name 'Crème Tangerine' to distinguish it from the typical form of at Aloe cameronii.
This information about Aloe cameronii 'Creme Tangerine' 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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