Picture via garden
Basic Info
Aloe ‘Black Beauty’ is a beautiful combination of Aloe rauhii and Aloe parvula. As the plant matures you can expect it to reach up to 30 cm (12″) tall and around 20 cm (8″) in diameter. The plant is best known for the green long leaves that turn red when stressed correctly.
Scientific Classification
Care and Propagation Information
Watering
Aloe ‘Black Beauty’ grows best during mid-winter. It is drought resistant as other succulents, so water need of the succulent plant is low. Be careful and do not overwater. This succulent type needs a typical amount of watering for a succulent plant type. The watering process can be done by soaking and drying method.
General Care for Aloe ‘Black Beauty’
The growth rate of Aloe ‘Black Beauty’ is moderate. It can grow both indoor and outdoor environment. Aloe ‘Black Beauty’ loves full sun. Outdoor plants would grow well. If it is an indoor succulent plant, the best spot at home would be a windowsill.
Quick Facts:
- Dark/Black leaves
- Loves Sun to Partial Shade/Light Shade
- Protect from frost
- Loves well-drained soil
- Grows 30 cm (12″) tall
- Has 20 cm (8″) in diameter
- Handle with care can be harmful to animals and people
- Grows best in spring and fall
Where to Plant
Aloe ‘Black Beauty’ is not super friendly with the cold climate. If you live in a cold area, indoor growth is the best choice. As long as this succulent is close to the window, it will grow perfectly. It grows the best in an outdoor garden with full sun. When planting, make sure the succulent is not completely under the shadow.
How to Propagate Aloe ‘Black Beauty’
Like all the other succulent types, a well-drained soil mixture is essential. If you want to know about well-drained soil mixtures, check How to Prepare Well-drained Soil for Succulent Plants.
Generally, Aloe ‘Black Beauty’ does not grow fast and does not need regular repotting. The best time to repot is the spring season. It is essential to repot when purchased. During repotting, divide the root ball carefully. The most successful method of Aloe ‘Black Beauty’ propagation is from offsets with resulting plants immediately.
Propagating this type of succulent from its cuttings rarely become successful. Rooting the succulent from its leaf will not work any better due to the high moisture content. Therefore, the best method is by removal of offsets.
When starting to propagate, you should start an Aloe ‘Black Beauty’ from a pup and wait until it is grown enough to separate from the main plant. Aloe pups are baby plants which grow attached to the main plant sharing the same roots. Wait until this offset is around the 1/5th size of the main plant. If the main succulent is very old, pups can be removed when they are small as well. The offsets must be mature enough to create a new succulent.
When you separate the offset from the main plant, remove the excess soil around it. The offset should have its complete root system. Plant the newly removed offset in a well-drained soil mixture and wait one week before watering. After this process, your new Aloe ‘Black Beauty’ is ready.
