For instance, place it on your kitchen windowsill so it gets 3 or 4 hours of morning light. Then, move it to a table in your dining or living room for 3 or 4 more hours of midday and afternoon sunshine. Do this every day during the winter and spring months to increase the chances that your aloe vera plant will bloom. The aloe plant will not bloom in any season other than spring, so don’t try to force it to bloom during the summer, fall, or winter.
Don’t put the plant in a place where its leaves are touching a window. The excess heat or cold coming from the window could burn the leaves and cause browning. If you see any brown sunspots appear on the leaves, move the plant to a cooler room and only give it indirect sunlight for 4 to 5 days until the sunspots go away. Avoid placing the plant next to a heater, A/C unit, fan, television, or any other source of heat or drafts.
If it gets colder than 60°F at night where you live, you’ll need to bring your plant inside. Choose a spot that gets at least 8 hours of direct sunlight.
For example, if your plant is 10 inches (25 cm) to 18 inches (46 cm) wide, position the bulb 10 inches (25 cm) to 18 inches (46 cm) away from the top of the plant. A white fluorescent LED lamp will give you a soft, white light that will complement any room, but a red or blue LED lamp might be better able to give your plant the right kind of photosynthetic light it needs. If you notice the leaves start to turn brown after using a grow lamp, decrease the power of the lamp if you can or, decrease the amount of time you use the lamp. If you have 2 plants that are each 6 inches (15 cm) across, place them side by side and adjust the bulb so it’s 12 inches (30 cm) away from the tops of the plants.
Exposing the plant to more light will make it dry out faster, so stick to a regular schedule so your plant doesn’t get too dry if you forget to do it on the 7th day. If the soil is slightly damp near the tip of your finger, don’t water it for another 1 or 2 days. If it’s sopping wet, leave it alone for 1 week. Slowly pour water onto the soil until you notice water draining from the pot’s drainage hole. If you’ve placed your aloe vera plant outside, bring it inside or cover it when it rains so it doesn’t take in too much water.
The 3 numbers on plant fertilizers correspond to the ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Worm castings, manure, or compost are great alternatives to store-bought fertilizer.
For instance, if the directions on the package say to mix 1/2 teaspoon (2. 5 g) of fertilizer with 128 fluid ounces (3,800 mL), use 1/4 teaspoon (1 to 1. 3 g) instead.
If the soil is damp, wait 1 or 2 days before testing the soil again. Do this once a month in the early spring and midsummer (e. g. , March, April, June, and July).
Removing the pups will allow the mother plant to focus its energy on growing flowers. Don’t toss the pups because they can be transferred into smaller containers—that means more aloe plants for you! If you see some pups that are just starting to sprout, you can remove those too. Just know that these premature pups may not survive being put in a new pot.
The idea is the pull the plant out of the pot intact. If you plan to replace it into the same pot, dump out the old potting soil. You can reuse it, but using fresh potting mix will give the plant more nutrients.
Be careful not to drive the tool into the center of any of the root systems. If you meet resistance, wiggle a knife into the soil between the pup and the mother to loosen the pup’s root system. Repeat this process for each pup that is growing around the mother plant.
It’s okay to leave them laying out for up to 6 days if you can’t re-pot them after the first 24 hours. After the first 24 hours, you might notice the cut parts on the roots have dried up into calluses. (This is a good thing. )
The ideal succulent potting mix has ingredients like perlite, lava rock, and coarse sand. Don’t reuse the old soil in the pot. It won’t harm the mother plant, but it’s not as good as using fresh potting soil if you want your mother plant to bloom.
While it’s not necessary, keeping the plant out of direct sunlight for the first 3 days may help it adjust faster.
If you have too many pups and not enough pots, feel free to plant 3 or 4 pups together in a larger pot. Make sure each pup has at least 3 inches (7. 6 cm) to 4 inches (10 cm) of space around it. Note that you’ll eventually have to transfer them into their own larger pots if you want them to keep growing.
Waiting 3 weeks to water the pups will force their new roots to grow in search of water. After the initial 3 weeks, water them once a week and follow basic care instructions so they can grow up to be mature, flowering aloe vera plants just like their mother!
