Help me save my aloe vera!

[Shorty]

Hello all.

I've had this aloe vera plant since March last year and it's always seemed a healthy bright green colourand has grown well over the time I've owned it. Just recently, it has turned a rather darker, more murky colour and seems less sturdy/healthy looking and I'm not sure why. Have I over watered it? Is it not getting enough sunlight? I have tried to give it more/less sunlight and more/less water but it's just confusing me more!

I've tried to attach a photo so you can see

Any advice would be very much appreciated. Many thanks in advance.

A keen to succeed novice,

Shorty

 

[Becky]

Welcome to the forum Shorty

Tell us a little more about your plant - how much sunlight has it been getting, does it get direct or indirect light, how often and how much do you water it... etc

 

[Shorty]

Hi Becky,

Thanks for you reply. Last year I kept in in direct sunlight but it started to burn so I moved it to a room with light but away from the window which seemed okay. Then just in the last week or so I put in on the window sill. I went away for the weekend and came back last night to a plant that seems a much darker green. The bottom leaves have also curled inwards, if that means anything. I usually water it every couple of weeks (with just more than a sprinkle of water) because I've heard you should let the soil be quite dry... I am a complete novice though so I'm obviously
doing something wrong!

I'm attaching another photo of the bottom leaves up close.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Brandie]

Still looks pretty healthy. I've found my aloes like to be outside, but in indirect sunlight to full sun...Particularly under trees, close to fences, or under the eaves of the house. Hope you figure it out

 

[Becky]

Aloe vera is usually happiest in full sun, but it should still be ok in bright indirect light too. That being said aloes can get too much sun, but the leaves will probably turn green or brown if that's the case.

In terms of watering, it needs watering through the summer but not much during the winter. Make sure that it is in good, well draining soil and give it a good drink. In terms of how often to water it, wait until the soil feels dry before watering it again.

 

[Shorty]

Thanks so much for your advice. Unfortunately I don't have any outside space but I will try my best to follow your tips and get it into more light!

 

[Beth_B]

I've had aloe plants in the past, yours looks pretty good to me really! Maybe lacking a bit of light is all. Last house I had one that was quite a monster, very tall and lush, we cut it back and divided it frequently. For years it thrived on the corner of a bathtub area with lots of windows and light. But the light was always somewhat filtered by trees and rarely if ever direct.

I think we watered it every few weeks and not at all during (long gloomy cold Michigan) winters.

 

[Becky]

Thanks so much for your advice. Unfortunately I don't have any outside space but I will try my best to follow your tips and get it into more light!

Given you're in the UK it would definitely be best to keep it inside anyway!

 

[Corzhens]

Pardon me for this comment but your aloe vera looks unhealthy. Since it is a family of cactus, it should not be delicate to grow. Just like the dragon fruit or any cactus, it needs sunlight and water. So I guess you have to relocate it for the moment where it can get enough sunlight but please, not excessive sunlight for it might burn (it depends on your climate though). And for good measure, put some mulch to protect the roots.

 

[Novelangel]

I keep my aloe indoors and up high on a shelf near a southern facing window. In other words, it gets more light in the winter than it does in the summer. It is absolutely thriving, and probably should be transplanted soon into a bigger pot. Too much or too little water will present much the way your plant looks in the pictures, with grayish, curled up and limp leaves. I think your issue is not in how often you water your aloe, but in how much. You say that you only sprinkle it with water. I pretty much drench mine and then ignore it for weeks. It seems to like that treatment more than it likes being babied a lot.

 

[Kacie]

Hello all.

I've had this aloe vera plant since March last year and it's always seemed a healthy bright green colourand has grown well over the time I've owned it. Just recently, it has turned a rather darker, more murky colour and seems less sturdy/healthy looking and I'm not sure why. Have I over watered it? Is it not getting enough sunlight? I have tried to give it more/less sunlight and more/less water but it's just confusing me more!

I've tried to attach a photo so you can see

Any advice would be very much appreciated. Many thanks in advance.

A keen to succeed novice,

Shorty

I know that when you water an aloe plant you should only water the soil and not get it on the plant. I leaned this with my first aloe plant, one by one all the leaves turned brown, shriveled up, and fell off. I guess getting the water on the actual plant will rot the plant from the inside. So, now with my new one, I make sure to only water the soil.

 

[Shorty]

Thanks for all your comments. My aloe is now right by my living room window with plenty of light and I have watered the soil rather than the leaves. I'm hoping if I ignore it for a few weeks, it should return to its former glory!

 

[Brandie]

I noticed your plant has some babies! An unhealthy plant usually won't reproduce. you can separate them into other pots if you want a bunch!