I recently noticed that my aloe vera plant has two new plants growing near the base of the original plant. Each is only about 1/4" tall. I'm not sure if I should leave them there or transplant them into ta different pot? And if I transplant, when do i do this?
These are called "off shoots". If you want to transplant them then it would be bet to wait until they are bigger. If they are at soil level then wait for the off shoot to grow some of it's own roots before transplanting. You could also just leave them there. It depends on if you want a bigger plant or more plants.... I always go for more ;)
I tend to go for more plants, too. Is there an easy way to tell if the off shoot has developed its own roots other than removing the whole plant from the soil? Also, one of the off shoots is growing right up against the base of the main plant. Can that one be removed without harming the large plant?
Try scratching some of the soil away from the off shoots and see if they have roots. Try using your finger. I think that you should be able to cut it away safely or just break the off shoot from the mother plant with your thumb and everything would be fine. Personally I would wait until they were quite a bit bigger before I did anything drastic.
Mikki: I guess I'm fortunate to live where aloe can be a scourge. Many people in warmer climes grow aloe just to have it around for sunburn, hot object burns, etc. Usually, it will be growing in an out of the way place because it is only used in case of a burn. Because it IS out of the way, it can grow like Topsy without anyone noticing that it is taking over the world. At that point, it is usually ripped out to a more manageable size and pitched in the trash, or given to friends. I have three adult plants and each has eight or ten 'offshoots', although we call this 'throwing pups'. The pups are all 8-10 inches tall. Be patient. The pups will grow, (and grow) and you can separate them anytime this year or even next. No biggie!
