Aloe vera blooming

[dado potato]

On my sunporch a big aloe produced a flowering stalk about a yard in height. I don't think I ever had an aloe bloom on me before, so I am quite expectant and keen to see this! The stalk is topped with 12-13" of flowers and buds at this time, but the buds are just beginning to open at the bottom.

I asked my dear wife to hold a newspaper behind the bloom, in case you may be wondering about the NYT coverage of the Masters Golf Tournament.
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[razz]

I had never thought about an aloe blooming or what it might look like so this is interesting. Would you please share a photo of when the blooms open.

[dado potato]

Razz,

Sure. The flowers at the bottom open first. Six are open today. I estimate there are about 100 flower buds in total. When the the last flowers open at the top, I don't know if the flowers at the bottom will still be open.

[iris lilies]

I haven’t seen an aloe plant flower either, cool.

[Tybee]

Wow, this is really neat. Please post picture with open blooms!

[dado potato]

The flowers on the entire spike have opened now. The bottom flowers have wilted and fallen off the spike. The attached picture shows the open flowers at the tippity top. And you might also get a sense of what it's like on my sun porch at 6 PM, looking SW.
It has been a grand pleasure to see the flowering of this aloe vera, day by day.

Most days I have told Alexa to play the Netherlands National Anthem (long version) on the sun porch... not just for the aloe vera... but also for the marigolds and nasturtiums that are growing from seed. Along with the Dutch, I revere the possibilities of the orange.

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[catherine]

Beautiful! I've never seen aloe either!

[razz]

It is nothing like what I expected so thank you for posting this. How long is each bloom - it seems like about 6". Imagine the poor plant handling all that extra weight. Did you have to provide support at any point or is the stem itself strong enough?

[razz]

It is nothing like what I expected so thank you for posting this. How long is each bloom - it seems like about 6". Imagine the poor plant handling all that extra weight. Did you have to provide support at any point or is the stem itself strong enough? Wonder how the bloom is pollinated and which creation of nature has that role?
So many questions, Dado.

[dado potato]

Each of the blossoms is about one inch long. Perspective with a tree out in the yard may make the blossoms appear much larger. There were about 100 blossoms, so I think the stalk (about one yard tall) has been a tower of strength. I did nothing to support the stalk... but the aloe plant is very large, and the roots are packed into the 12" diameter pot. The spread of this aloe plant is about 42 inches.

I like to think a pollinator did its thing on some occasion during the past 3 weeks. But I did not observe. "What happens on my sunporch stays on my sunporch."

[razz]

Thanks, Dado. Perspective is hard to gain from a photo. Your discretion re sunporch activities is admirable:D

[dado potato]

Today, all the blossoms had fallen from the spike.

The flower spike was removed, and the aloe vera was potted in some new soil, out on the deck. Eight "babies" were separated from the mother plant and given starter pots of their own.

"Octuplets"!

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"Empty-Nester"

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[razz]

:D Octuplets! So what does that make you? A new grandad?

[dado potato]

We had neighbors. When they moved away three years ago, they gave us an aloe vera. Now the aloe has multiplied (octuplets). I would bet we can find homes for the eight baby aloes by the end of August. Full-bore cycle of life.

Also, the Empty Nester may look kinda like a spent force tonight, but as The Song of Mehitabel goes: "there's a dance in the old dame yet."