Aloe macroclada

Aloe macroclada
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Asparagales
Family:	Asphodelaceae
Subfamily:	Asphodeloideae
Genus:	Aloe
Species:	A. macroclada
Binomial name
Aloe macroclada Baker, 1883

Aloe macroclada is a plant species in the genus Aloe native to Madagascar.

Description

The species grows slowly, and flowers when it is four to five years old. Flowering time is in the latter half of the dry season, from August to October, in Madagascar. Its large raceme is erect and normally unbranched, and it has many small flowers that are orange or yellow.

The wide, thick leaves are orderly with symmetrical 3-leaf ~120 degrees apart stacked pattern and can grow over 1 m (3.3 ft) in length, over 20 cm (7.9 in) in width at the base, and over 3 cm (1.2 in) thick. The leaves normally curve slightly upward, so can curve sideways when growing on sloped ground. They are arranged in a dense apical rosette and are spreading with a medium to dark green surface which turns reddish under stress. Each leaf's margins are armed with lines of small, reddish to yellow teeth, a feature common in the genus Aloe.

The distinguishing features of this species include: yellow-orange flowers that cover the top 30–60 cm (12–24 in) of a typically single flower stalk; racemes that are large, tall and tapering to a point; wide spreading leaves, arranged in a relatively untidy rosette. The oldest leaves lay against the ground and no stalk or trunk is formed. No "pups" or shoots are known to be formed.