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Cactus identification?

vic.martin.beKYBiy8bivic.martin.beKYBiy8bi Posts: 5
in Plants
Hi.
Can anyone help me with identifying a cactus? (Aloe or Agave family, I think, but I'm not really sure.)
It's grown sort of wild and I'd like to know how to deal with it.
Thanks.
Vic

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Posts

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    edited December 2022
    Hello @vic.martin.beKYBiy8bi and welcome to the forum  :)

    It looks like an Aloe Vera to me. Marvellous for treating burns in the kitchen. They can get a bit rampant.  You can cut them hard back and then trim and root the offcuts in gritty compost.  

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • coccinellacoccinella Posts: 1,428
    I think @Dovefromabove is right. It looks like an Aloe arborescens.

    Luxembourg
  • thevictorianthevictorian Posts: 1,279
    It's definitely an aloe but I don't think it's arborescens because that has stout stems. I have the exact same one and it's pretty floppy and I think aloe nobilis is a possibility.
    I tend to give mine a bit of a tidy up every so often. The old desiccated leaves can be great for annoying mealy bugs to hide in so I remover them and then in spring, chop off the top growth and root it to freshen the plant up. You will get new growth from the old parts.  
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    My Aloe vera sprawls just like that, given the opportunity ... and I've seen very old neglected ones that were just like the one in the OP's picture.

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • vic.martin.beKYBiy8bivic.martin.beKYBiy8bi Posts: 5
    What confuses me is that all of the plants you're all mentioning, are large. (At least that's how I see it.)
    The sprouts on mine are only about 10 cm. or so (the green part). The individual leaves about 4 cm. And that's as big as they get.
  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    The short leaved aloe is Aloe brevifolia. Have a look at that and see if it matches.
  • SkandiSkandi Posts: 1,723
    It's also possible it's small because it's bonsaied its self.
  • MikeOxgreenMikeOxgreen Posts: 812
    It's not a cacti, but a succulent.
  • Paul B3Paul B3 Posts: 3,154
    edited December 2022
    At long last , someone who recognises an Aloe is not (or never will be) a cactus .
  • vic.martin.beKYBiy8bivic.martin.beKYBiy8bi Posts: 5
    edited December 2022
    @MikeOxgreen
    Thanks Mike, but do you know which one? ;-)

    I just looked. It's the same as the square/rectangle relationship.
    (Nearly) All cacti are succulents, but not all succulents are cacti.
    I learned something. ;-)
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