Species library › Aloe › Aloe andongensis
Succulents Partly documented

Aloe andongensis

A small, short-stemmed aloe from west-central Angola. Its stems sprawl and then turn upward, its leaves are spotted, and it bears orange-red flowers. It grows on bare rock outcrops in savanna, such as the conglomerate towers of Pungo Andongo and the granite hills around Gabela. Treat it as a sun-loving rock aloe from a summer-rainfall plateau: give it gritty soil, strong light and a dry, cooler winter.

Aloe andongensis
Photo: Stickpen, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry
Light Full sunDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows on rock (lithophyte)

Where it grows wild

Herbarium labels describe plants living on rocks: on conglomerate rock at Pungo Andongo, the type locality, and on rounded granite hills east of Gabela, where it grows with Euphorbia atrocarmesina and Huernia volkartii. Plants are succulent and 30–50 cm tall, with short stems that lie down and then turn upward, spotted leaves, and orange to salmon-red tubular flowers. The variety repens is a creeping form.

Most specimen labels give about 1000–1300 m on the Angolan plateau (1140 m at Pungo Andongo, 1300 m near Santa Comba). One collection comes from about 100 m on the Cubal river near the coast.

Angola

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its Public domain licence, unmodified.