It was a wonderful surprise to come across a population of Aloidendron barberae tucked away in a remote valley on Mountainlands. Previously named Aloe barberae and Aloe bainesii, these are Africa’s largest aloes and can grow up to 15 m tall. They are popular garden plants and are easy to grow. Over time they have found their way into gardens across the world. They are not threatened and are found growing naturally from the Eastern Cape Province coastal areas northwards into Mpumalanga. In South Africa there occur five different kinds of tree aloes – some of which prefer the arid north-western regions of the country and others the subtropical eastern areas.
