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[2nd Image]
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| Category: Succulent |
| Family: Aloeaceae (now Asphodeloideae) |
| Origin: Ethiopia (Africa) |
| Evergreen: Yes |
| Variegated Foliage: Yes |
| Flower Color: Orange Red |
| Bloomtime: Spring |
| Height: 2-3 feet |
| Width: 2-3 feet |
| Exposure: Full Sun |
| Summer Dry: Yes |
| Irrigation (H2O Info): Low Water Needs |
| Winter Hardiness: 25-30° F |
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Aloe harlana (Harla Aloe) A stemless and usually solitary plant but sometimes forming small clusters with individual rosettes to about 2 feet tall and having 20 inch long by 4 to 6 inch wide lance-shaped stiff leaves with long narrow tips. The leaves are uniformly semi-glossy, dark olive-green with attractive light longitudinal streaks and dashes and brown teeth. The flowers appear in spring on a 2 to 3 foot well-branched (3-7 branches) flower stalk. Branching from below the middle of the inflorescence each branch holds a conical raceme of flowers that are deep wine red in bud and turn a pale orange as they begin to open from the bottom of the raceme upwards so in the early stages both the red buds and orange flowers are displayed at the same time. Plant in full sun in a well-drained soil and irrigate occasionally to very little. We have found this plant hardy to at least 28 degrees without damage. Aloe harlana comes from grassy slopes from around 5,000 to 6,000 feet in elevation near the village of Harla in the Harerghe Province south of the Great Rift Valley in Ethiopia. The specific epithet comes from the location (Harla, 9 miles East of Dive Dawa) where this plant was discovered by Gilbert Westacott Reynolds in 1957 though Kew has record of a collection in 1933 of what was determined to be this same plant made by the Kew botanist Jan Bevington Gillett from 30 km SW of Hare. Plants often grown under this name are actually the somewhat similarly but marked Aloe hemmingii or Aloe somaliensis, both of which are much smaller plants with deeper green colored, and more spotted leaves that have paler pinkish flowers held in a more open raceme. Aloe hemmingii is the smaller of the group and also has an unbranched or few-branched inflorescence – most plants we have seen called Aloe harlana seem to be this species. We first received this plant from Phil Favel or Escondido, one of the founders of the Institute of Aloe Studies. This plant is sometimes called the Mosaic Aloe.
This information about Aloe harlana 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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