About
The fan aloe, now Kumara plicatilis (formerly Aloe plicatilis), is a shrub or small tree from a few mountains of the Western Cape, notable for its fan-shaped leaf clusters.
Care at a glance
- Pet safety
- Not recorded. We have no source on whether this plant is safe for cats, dogs or other pets — that is not the same as safe. Keep it out of reach until you have checked.
- People
- Not recorded.
- Light
- Full sun.
- Soil
- Well-drained, sandy, slightly acidic soil.
- Growth rate
- Very slow.
- Mature size
- 3–5 m tall as a shrub or small tree.
- Hardiness
- Not frost tolerant; grow under glass where it freezes.
Field notes
Morphology
Grows 3–5 m tall with corky, fire-resistant bark and stems that fork repeatedly. Each branch ends in a flat fan of grey-green, strap-shaped leaves about 30 cm long, arranged in two opposite rows, with tiny marginal teeth.
Distribution & habitat
A small area between Franschhoek and Elandskloof in the Western Cape, on steep, rocky south-facing slopes in well-drained, sandy, slightly acidic soil. It is the only tree aloe of the fynbos.
Cultivation notes
An accent plant for sunny, drought-tolerant gardens and rockeries. Very slow and easily smothered by faster neighbours. It does not tolerate frost, so in the UK it is grown under glass and can summer on a sunny terrace. Holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit.
Conservation
Rated Least Concern, but wild plants are illegally collected for the horticultural trade.
Habitat
- Altitude
- Not recorded
- Altitude class
- —
- Native to
- South Africa
- IUCN status
- Least concern
Cultivation
- Difficulty
- Not recorded
Text adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
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