Species library › Aloe › Aloe fimbrialis
Succulents Partly documented

Aloe fimbrialis

A small, critically endangered grass aloe from north-western Zambia, near the source of the Zambezi on the Angolan border. It forms a small caudex up to about 5 cm across with short leaves around 10 cm long and sends up a tall spike, up to 90 cm, of coral-pink flowers. It grows on termite mounds in a region with a hot wet summer and a long, cool dry winter.

Aloe fimbrialis
Photo: Abu Shawka, CC0, 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 in the ground

Where it grows wild

Known from very few sites in north-western Zambia, where it usually grows on termite mounds. Termite mounds in this grassland and open woodland country are better drained and richer than the surrounding sandy, seasonally wet soils. It was first collected in 1964, described by Susan Carter in 1996 from herbarium material, and found alive again in 2002 by Graham Williamson near the Zambia–Angola border.

No elevation data were measured. The upper Zambezi headwaters in north-western Zambia lie on a plateau at roughly 1,200–1,500 m.

North-western ZambiaPossibly Tanzania

🔒 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 CC0 licence, unmodified.