My aloe had a baby.....and now has babIES UPDATE!

Discussion in 'Cacti and Succulents' started by JenRi, Jan 24, 2009.

  1. JenRi

    JenRi Active Member

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    When I was checking my Aloe earlier to see if it wanted a drink, I spotted a teeny weeny pup (see photos) i didn't realise they pupped so far away from the Mother, for some reason I assumed they pupped from the base of the mother plant like other succulents....its all very exciting!

    Question is what do I do now? I can see he's too small to be moved but I'm a bit concerned about where he's situated, will he be alright that close to the wall of the pot? Should I re-pot the Aloe (even if it doesn't need it) for one that is a bit wider the top so he has room to grow? How big does he need to be before I give him his own pot?

    Thanks!
     

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  2. joclyn

    joclyn Rising Contributor

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    i'd leave it be for the moment...one, it's too early to repot and two, it's too young to take the pup off the mother plant.

    it'll be fine even if it's against the side of the container.
     
  3. togata57

    togata57 Generous Contributor 10 Years

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Congratulations!
     
  4. Chungii V

    Chungii V Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Naming time?
    You can leave pup in there for ages. I find that succulents like aloes and agave will pup more profusely once they have become rootbound in their pots. I am not sure why this is but have seen it a lot where once the pot has been filled with roots pups start being produced more than when kept in fresher pots. (Anyone agree? please add....)
    As for how far from parent plant pups are, depends on species some form really tight clumps where others will spread. A. saponaria is one that runs a bit further then some and is a declared weed of untended areas.
     
  5. JenRi

    JenRi Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Thankyou:)

    Very possibly.....should probably take this opportunity to name Mum too, any suggestions? Anyone?

    Well in that case I'll probably wait til March to re-pot, and by then baby will probably be big enough to have his own pot.

    Hmmm....so do you think it might not be Aloe Aristrata (as I thought) after all? Where it pups could be another clue to finding its identity, might do a bit more research later!

    Thanks for your advice everyone, tis much appreciated, I'm glad baby will be okay where he is for the moment.
     
  6. togata57

    togata57 Generous Contributor 10 Years

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Yes, Chungii, I agree: from my experience I think rootboundedness creates more baby aloes. ("Aloe-ettes"?)
     
  7. Chester

    Chester Active Member 10 Years

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Vera and the Aloe-ettes?
     
  8. togata57

    togata57 Generous Contributor 10 Years

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    ...performing their hit single---"Be My...Be My Baby"!

    Good one, Chester.
     
  9. JenRi

    JenRi Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Haha yes I second that, togata!
     
  10. JenRi

    JenRi Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    I should maybe save 'Vera' for the Aloe Vera plant I plan on getting....at some point, or is that just too obvious?

    I like the term 'Aloe-ettes' though, maybe I can name them all things that end it ette? Male names that end in ette anyone? LOL
     
  11. togata57

    togata57 Generous Contributor 10 Years

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Ooh. Well, "ette" is in itself a feminine ending. Perhaps Marquette...manly hoops and all...ah, how well I remember Pere Marquette State Park in Illinois. (Pause for past-blasting.) A question to be researched!
     
  12. togata57

    togata57 Generous Contributor 10 Years

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Arnette
    Burdette
    Fayette
    Gillette
    Lafayette
    Everette
    ???
     
  13. JenRi

    JenRi Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Gillette! I like Gillette, any subsequent pups will just have to be female!
     
  14. JenRi

    JenRi Active Member

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    Thanks for the suggestions tog bw:)
     
  15. Wolvie150

    Wolvie150 Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

     
  16. Wolvie150

    Wolvie150 Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Just an semi-I-might-be-educated guess is that the roots are rhizomatous (sp?), and that the growth of buds is the result of the roots having no where to go, so the nodes start becoming more of a plant meristem than a root tip?

    Any one notice this with non succulent plants? (ivy/pothos might be a case - do they bush faster when root bound for given stem lengths?) Any help or suggestions on searches please let us know!
     
  17. Wolvie150

    Wolvie150 Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    ps. how 'bout Flora and Florette?
     
  18. JenRi

    JenRi Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Interesting theory....that could well be why they do what Chungii said. I didn't think my aloe was rootbound, there are certainly no roots coming out the bottom but then again it has grown a lot in the last two months - it must like my windowsill! I'm still gonna leave repotting to March and see if it has anymore babies lol.

    p.s. I think I decided on Jilly and Gillette but thanks all the same:)
     
  19. Laticauda

    Laticauda Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Don't the Gillette brand razors and shaving gels have ALOE in them? (sorry for blatant obviousness!)

    As for the plants making more "babies" after it's root-bound, I am pretty sure it is because the plant is no longer growing, so it has to take all that extra energy, and nutrients to make something, and since it isn't going into growth, it goes into making more babies. Same thing with spider plants and their little babies, the more root-bound it is, the more babies it makes.
     
  20. AlexandraNS

    AlexandraNS Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    First of all I have to say I love the way you talk about your plant. So cute:) You made me smile:) (I’m in the habit of naming my plants too, hehe)
    I have to tell you though that there is a smaaaall chance for this particular baby to die, so I wouldn’t be naming him yet >_< I hope not but there is a possibility. It happened to me :( My aloe plant, which I named Aleister and was the same size as yours, had a baby exactly like yours, but after some time it started looking sadder and sadder. Until it died :( But less than a year later Aleister started growing stronger and taller. At that point some new babies popped up. Two of them close to mother plant and 1 closer to the edge of the pot. Now, 3 months later they are all growing strong and big and healthy. My aloe was rather small like yours when the first baby popped up so maybe since the mother plant was in the “growing up†stage it “ate†all the food and vitamins and the baby plant just wasn’t strong enough to survive. (Very scientific explanation don’t you think? lol)

    I’m sure nothing will happen to your pup though ;)
     
  21. JenRi

    JenRi Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    Laticauda.....seems sensible enough, but yes I believe some types of Gillette shaving gel do contain aloe vera extract, although probably the products for females!

    Haha thanks alexandra, i would just like to point out that I wasn't the one that suggested naming it LOL. Yes I did wonder whether it would survive myself, we'll see and in any case I have plenty of other things to be happy about, my coleus seeds germinated so they'll add some nice colour when they grow up and I got my swiss cheese plant seed to germinate after just 2 weeks (its supposed to take at least 4!) so if it does die I won't beat myself up too much:).

    I wish you and Aleister good luck in the future!
     
  22. AlexandraNS

    AlexandraNS Active Member

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    Re: My aloe had a baby:)

    :)))
     
  23. JenRi

    JenRi Active Member

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    Hello everyone, apologies for resurrecting an old thread but my Aloe now has a total of 6 babies all of which are between an inch and two inches so probably big enough to have their own pot (and Mum probably wants a bigger pot too...) so I was just wondering how to go about separating them?

    I've included pictures of the new babies and also a picture of my Aloe Humilis, which has just grown an offset with another one on the way:)

    Thanks
     

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    Last edited: Aug 7, 2009

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