Repotting Aloe Vera
I had an Aloe Vera plant that was not looking good. See how I made it a whole lot happier by repotting it and moving it out of the sun.
I love my Aloe vera and use it almost every day. It’s truly a plant with a purpose! It was in a warm, sunny spot my front garden and both the plant and pot were looking a wee bit sad. It was time to take action and make my beloved plant a whole lot happier. By the way, the pot will get a facelift one of these days.
A couple of Winters ago we had a 4 day cold (around 35 degrees…brrrrr) and rainy spell, not too common for us here in Santa Barbara. The succulents were saying: “what’s up with this?”
That in addition to the fact that my poor Aloe was getting too much direct sun and needed repotting had caused the leaves to turn pale and orangish. Here’s something you need to know: the leaves of the Aloe Vera will turn orange if they get sunburned.
I’m sure the environmental stress of that cold rain didn’t help either.
If you want to watch me repotting this Aloe, see what potting mix I used and learn how to remove the baby, then be sure to watch the VIDEO below. Lucy had to help me pull it out of the pot and quite a few of the roots were lost but no worries, this is a tough plant. Almost 3 months later, it’s firmly rooted in and greening back up like crazy.
Related: Answering Your Questions About Aloe Vera
Repotting Aloe Vera
They’re succulents so use a fast-draining mix. Again, refer to the video to see the recipe I used.
They root deep so don’t use a shallow pot, they need room for their roots to grow down. Wait until the babies are a good size to remove them.
Don’t place in hot sun after repotting. Sun is fine as long as it’s not hot & there’s not too much of it.
Don’t water frequently. I water the baby every 3 weeks because it’s in a small pot. The mother gets watered thoroughly about every 2 months.
Thanks for reading,
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Nell, the founder of Joy Us garden, was born into a gardening family and grew up in Connecticut’s countryside. After living in Boston, New York, San Francisco, & Santa Barbara, she now calls the Arizona desert home. She studied horticulture & garden design, working in the field all her life. Nell is a gardener, designer, blogger, Youtube creator, & author. She’s been gardening for a very long time & wants to share what she’s learned with you.
sometimes the sound is not consistent and you are hard for me to understand. But…..having said that I love the fact that you can grow just about anything and love how you share with us ways to propagate plants. Keep up the good work.
Hi Melva – Thank you – I have lots to share! Yes, the sound could be better because I don’t have an external mic. Youtube is not my full time business (it’s just a support to my online business joyusgarden.com) so a new camera is not in the budget right now. Glad you got something out of the video regardless! Nell
XLNT video and blog — to the point, concise & most informative. No difficulties with sound in my corner. Thanks much. Pat
You’re very welcome & thank you so much Pat! Nell
Tried to sign up for your newsletter as I’d definitely appreciate tips on how to look after my aloe Vera but it came up with this
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You’ve still been added to my bookmarks. I’ve still got a lot to learn as I repotted my aloe Vera to a much bigger pot but I put it in a greenhouse (since I live in the UK and temperature is usually 10 to 14 degrees….) I then went on a three week holiday only to find out the temperature has been at least 30 degrees Celsius! My poor plants were burnt but after chopping off the burnt parts I’m determined to look after it right!
Hi Jake – Thank you, I’ll pass your message on to our web person. Aloes are full of water so they’ll burn in strong sun. I keep mine outdoors year round here in the AZ desert but it’s in bright shade. Yours will eventually come back from their burn, just be patient! Nell
Thanks for all the helpful info I thought that maybe aloe could get too much sun and it’s true ha!! Happy holidays all
Laura – Oh yes, many of the Aloe Veras growing in full sun here in Tucson are brownish-red. In the heat their leaves get very thin too. Happy holidays! Nell
Hi, im in the uk , we are in our winter months, i used perlite , building sand and top soil for repotting, the soil is dry, they are placed next to a heater indoor, do get some sunlight in the morning being next to the french doors, temperature 21’c – 26’c all day long, 3 months down the line, the leaves look pale or dull green, the growth is very slow, pls advise.
Hi Scot – Aloe vera leaves turning pale green is generally due to lower than optimum light levels. Also, they don’t need to be next to a heater at this time of year. You won’t see much, if any growth during the winter because the plant is resting. The mix you’re using sounds too heavy with the building sand & topsoil – succulents need a really light & fast draining mix. Hope that helps, Nell
I have a lot of aloe vera in 1 large pot. My roommate has one huge aloe in a small pot. How do you grow one single aloe in 1 pot. Is it because hers is a different variety? The ones in my large pot are making babies all the time. In fact, I believe one of my babies is now in her pot. She had this plant for 2 or so years before I moved in, and she never had a baby in her pot before. I learned about the partial sunlight thing from my mom who had a beautiful deep green aloe that was outside on the patio where the back of the house and the attached outside utility room met (L-shape) where the direct sunlight didn’t quite reach.
Thanks.
Hi Leslie – Yes, there are different species & varieties of aloe. Some pup (produce babies) much more readily than others. Nell
Hi Nell, I’m in Sydney AUST -it’s summer! I have a large Aloe Vera plant in a largish plastic pot. I water it daily. It doesn’t have any pups and I’ve had it six years! Am I watering it too often?
Hi Wynn from Sydney – it’s pretty warm these days here in the Arizona desert too! Some aloes don’t readily produce pups so you may not have an aloe vera. Aloe veras should produce pups readily; especially if practically ignored. They like bright, bright light (out of direct pm sun) & to thoroughly dry out in between watering. Don’t drown it with liquid love! Nell
I bought a couple plants and one was Aloe Vera. We have city water and it’s real bad. It started killing my plants. I now have replanted all and am watering with better water. Every plant is alot better except for my Aloe. (I don’t water a bunch and it’s in I direct sunlight.) It’s brown…Will it turn green again? Or is there no chance?
Hi Helen – It depends. If it’s brown & mushy, it’s too much water. It’s hard for an aloe to recover from that. If it’s brownish yet firm, it’s stressed in some way. Plants turn color due to environmental stress. They will revert back to green once the stress is gone. The aloe veras growing outdoors here in Tucson in full sun are brownish orange. The ones which aren’t, are more green. Nell
Oh, and I replanted it in Cactus soil. It only had 3 roots but they were huge.
That’s fine Helen. The 3 roots, if they’re large, should be enough. Nell
Our aloe has sprouted a long stem with some buds at the top of it. Is this normal?
Yes it is Leo, Aloe veras do flower. You can see a mature one in bloom towards the end of this post: https://www.joyusgarden.com/aloe-vera-an-easy-care-succulent/ Nell
I have brown limp leaves at the bottom of my plant. Should I cut them off?
Yes you can Roseann. Pull or cut any brown leaves off. Limp, brown leaves on an aloe vera can be due to over watering. Nell
Hi there,
I recently put my aloe vera plant outside in direct sunlight with the intention to bring it back inside a few hours later but forgot about it for a day and a half. I am assuming it’s sunburned or just very stressed out as the leaves on the bottom of the plant are all very purple and drooping (the newer growth stayed green though). Will those go green again once it’s no longer stressed or should I cut them off?
Hi Kay – If they’re not too badly damaged, they’ll most likely turn green again. Mine turn orangey-brown in the winter because of cold temps but return to green when the weather warms. The drooping leaves may not recover. Nell
Thank you so much! I bought my first aloe vera plant at my local Walmart and ass-u-me-d it needed full sun. Luckily, with the info you provided here, it is now rescued!
Laura – Yes, they change color in full hot sun & the leaves get smaller. Plus, they don’t contain as much gel. Mine are in shade here in Tucson! Nell
My Aloe is orange, not all over, but definitely something going on. I have an open plan bright flat, no outside space. I had it on the breakfast bar and it was green but got really leggy and someone suggested it needs more sun. I now need to move it back, is it possible my flat isn’t a good home for this plant?
Rachel – A plant changing color is due to environmental stress, ie cold, too much sun, etc. If it’s leggy, then it needs more sun. This much more recent post will help you out: https://www.joyusgarden.com/problems-growing-aloe-vera-indoors/ Nell