1026.000 Aloe L. - Aloe

CHORTOLIRION A. Berger

Carter, S. (2001) Aloaceae Flora Zambesiaca 12(3)

Fowler, D.G. (2007) Zambian Plants: Their Vernacular Names and Uses, Kew Publishing

Grace, O.M., Klopper, R.R., Smith, G.F., Crouch, N.R., Figueiredo, E., Rønsted, N., Van Wyk, A.E. (2013) A revised generic classification for Aloe (Xanthorrhoeaceae subfam. Asphodeloideae) Phytotaxa 76(1) 7-14

Harding, T.B.C. (1979) Aloes of the World: A Checklist, Index and Code as at December 1979. Excelsa 9

Reynolds, G.W. (1966) The Aloes of Tropical Africa and Madagascar. The Aloes Book Fund, Mbabane, Swaziland.

Williamson, G. (2002) Notes on Zambian Aloes Aloe 39(3&4) 83-91

Description of the genus

Succulent perennials, sometimes large and shrub-like, but not dichotomously branched trees or large shrubs. Leaves borne in rosettes or distichous, usually stiff, succulent, with hard-toothed or spiny margins, spotted or unspotted; dried leaves persistent or not. Inflorescence variously branched or simple. Flowers usually brightly coloured, actinomorphic, only rarely ± 2-lipped, variously shaped, with or without a pronounced constriction above a bulbous basal swelling. A well known genus of mainly winter-flowering species.

Derivation of name: Aloe is the Greek name for Aloe vera, one of the bitter aloes of medicine.

Worldwide: c.365 species, tropics and especially southern Africa, Madagascar, Arabia and Canary Isles.

Malawi: 18 taxa.

Aloe mawii

Links to taxa:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this genus

SpeciesFZ divisionsContent
arborescens Mill.C,SDescription, Image
buchananii Baker[End]C,S
bulbicaulis Christian NDescription, Image
cameronii Hemsl. var. cameronii C,SDescription, Image
cameronii Hemsl. var. dedzana Reynolds[End]C,S
canis S. Lane[End][EX?]C
chabaudii Schönland var. chabaudii N,C,SDescription, Image
chabaudii Schonland var. mlanjeana Christian[End]S
christianii ReynoldsN,C,SDescription, Image
cryptopoda BakerN,SDescription, Image
duckeri Christian N,CDescription, Image
excelsa A. Berger var. breviflora L.C. Leach[NrEnd]SDescription, Image
mawii Christian[NrEnd]N,C,SDescription, Image
menyharthii Baker subsp. menyharthii S
myriacantha (Haw.) Schult. & Schult. f.CDescription, Image
mzimbana Christian NDescription, Image
nuttii Baker NDescription, Image
zebrina BakerN,SDescription, Image

Other sources of information about Aloe:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Aloe
Flora of Caprivi: Aloe
Flora of Caprivi: cultivated Aloe
Flora of Mozambique: Aloe
Flora of Zambia: Aloe
Flora of Zambia: cultivated Aloe
Flora of Zimbabwe: Aloe
Flora of Zimbabwe: cultivated Aloe

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Aloe
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Aloe
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Aloe
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Aloe
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Aloe
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Aloe
JSTOR Plant Science: Aloe
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Aloe
Plants of the World Online: Aloe
Tropicos: Aloe
Wikipedia: Aloe

Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2014-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Malawi: Genus page: Aloe.
https://www.malawiflora.com/speciesdata/genus.php?genus_id=340, retrieved 19 April 2024

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