Africana Advice

[johnbecker]

Here's my young Aloe africana. First pic is just after I got it last year from Arid Lands, second pic is this morning. I'm thinking about its longterm health and beauty and thus considering chopping the stem and rerooting it just below the bottom leaf on the newer picture. The curved stem just bugs me a bit, and it looks leggy to me, like it didn't get enough sun as a seedling. It's really well rooted in the pot, but it's definitely still wobbly on that tall, thin stem.

Would you chop it? Am I overthinking it and should just let it grow?

[Spination]

I can see your point of view and concerns. It is leggy, and for the reasons you surmise (not enough light earlier on). I have successfully re-rooted such growing trunked aloes, although my reasons were different (winter/wet/cold/rot) - mainly salvaging an otherwise dying plant (rupestris, marlothii, etc). I think part of my success was that there was a good rosette on top, thick with a number of nicely stacked leaves that provided the energy for the cut off section to push out new roots, but also to survive during the time it took for this process to complete while creating enough roots to once again uptake water so that the plant could resume growing. During this process, the lowest leaves dry up and are sacrificed by the plant. So long as there are enough good leaves left on top once the roots come in, the plant can resume normal photosynthesis which allows the plant to switch and turn around from sacrificing lowest leaves to just growing new ones.

I can see that the thin trunk could be very problematic in that if that plant now grew a heavy rosette on top, it would be top heavy and could easily bend over and break on it's own or with a little help (wind).

The thing is, your plant doesn't have a big rosette yet on top and a large store of energy or reserves to draw on while making a new root system. It might work, or it could result in a severely depleted plant which will be miles away from where it is now in terms of overall growth/progress.

I think the bottom line is that you can do this procedure any time. Now, or even much later, when you could foresee-ably have a good rosette on top to easily complete the process of growing a whole new system of roots without a major setback. So, my thinking is why not wait? In the meantime, who knows... the trunk might thicken, and strengthen, and the plant perhaps fix itself over time. Maybe not necessary now, but at some point when you've got a thick/heavy head/rosette on top, I would use some sticks to support the trunk while it continues to grow a stronger one. I have done this same sort of thing with a couple of plants - one similar plant is the hybrid Aloe 'Sunset', a plant I had been growing for years and was very top heavy for a time and a stick-thin trunk proportionately. No more cheater sticks now needed, they were removed last year.. the trunk is now quite strong enough to support the weight of all it's leaves... Had I not given it a helping hand (or helping sticks rather) when needed, I'm sure it would have fallen over. I could have chopped it, but the benefit is that not doing it, the plant fixed itself and is way ahead in development (at least a year) than if I had taken some drastic measures.

[johnbecker]

Derp. Well, in the meantime, my brash buddy was all "Chop it!" so it got cut and is hardening off in a nice shady spot at the moment. I'm planning on giving it a few weeks then replanting it in soil with root hormone and we'll see how it goes. I'll keep you updated on its progress!

[Agave_fan]

It confuses me why you would start a thread to post with a help question and almost immediately decide to take a drastic step before even waiting for a response to your question?

My suggestion, if someone is going to post for help on this forum, at least have the courtesy to wait a little bit to evaluate answers provided to your question that knowledgeable people on this website sit down and take the time to write out.

My reason for posting is not to be antagonistic, it is to preserve the helpful attitude I have experienced on this forum when posting for answers. While I am grateful to everyone that has helped me and others on this forum, I am sure that replying to posts every day for people can get old and I bet making the decision to take the time to write out a detailed, thoughtful answer might be even less appealing if one feels the time might be wasted.

[Spination]

No worries here. Interested to see how it goes. Best of luck!

[Melt in the Sun]

Did you keep the rooted stem? Many aloes will resprout new heads, but I have no idea if africana is one of them.

I asked a similar question last year re: an outlandishly tall underpotted A. pseudorubroviolacea, and was given the advice to just bury the stem. I wonder if that would have worked here, in a deep pot?

[johnbecker]

Huh. I still have the stem; maybe I'll just leave it in its pot and see. My wife asked the same question, since we've been watching our neighbor's horribly butchered arborescens resprout like mad.

Any more experience folks know if africana will resprout a new head?

It kind of stands to reason that burying it deeply might've done the trick--it's going to get replanted with several nodes below the soil anyway so that the new stem has a solid foundation. I've always inferred that I should be worried about rot with burying aloe stems, but this one was in really well draining soil. Who knows.

[johnbecker]

Just wanted to give an update on this Africana. I cut the stem several leaf nodes down and let it harden off, then dusted it with root hormone and potted it up in a one gallon. It woke up a few weeks back and has been looking happier and happier. I finally checked today and there were roots coming out every hole in the bottom. Potted it up into a three gallon and it'll go in the ground next spring!

[Melt in the Sun]

Looking great! Any sprouts from the stem?

[Spination]

You wanted a shorter plant, and you did it... great job! Congrats.

[johnbecker]

Looking great! Any sprouts from the stem?

No, none. Gave it weeks and weeks and no signs of life. The top will be healthier, at least.

[mickthecactus]

I had the same with eminens and was about to dump it but found healthy roots so just waited. Eventually shoots arrived! Patience is a virtue....