Grass Aloes in Tarlton - Maree

I only went out for a walk, and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in.
- John Muir (1838 - 1914)



I found a large clump of Grass Aloes not far from home on the road to Magaliesburg, flowering profusely after all the veld fires we have had this winter, spread out over the charred landscape, providing bursts of red colour.

Grass Aloes are an appealing group of deciduous aloes. As the name implies, they grow mainly in grasslands subject to winter fires. Their leaves and colours resemble their habitat, making them difficult to find when not in flower. These largely miniature aloes have very attractive flowers, making them desirable, if difficult, plants to cultivate. Their growing pattern is closely related to the winter fire cycles of the veld, some species responding directly to burning and producing leaves, flowers and later seed after such events.

This interesting aloe belongs to a group of deciduous aloes known as the "Grass Aloes" which are adapted to grassland habitat and are able to survive both fire and frost during the cold dry months. They are often burned during winter by our veld fires and then re-sprout with the onset of spring. Fires are essential ecological processes in grass aloe autecology.

This well known grass aloe is commonly found along rocky ridges and rocky slopes on the Witwatersrand and Magaliesberg as well as in mountainous areas of the Northern Province and Mpumalanga. In years gone by it was even more prolific, but numbers have been greatly reduced due to development on the ridges and from harvesting by succulent collectors. A number of different forms are found throughout its distribution range.



FIRE AND BURNING, THE ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS IN THE LIFE CYCLE OF GRASS ALOES.
Grass fires used to be less frequent in earlier centuries. They were initiated by lightning strikes, on the whole, at the beginning of the rainy season in September and October. These fires were ideal in that they cleared the habitat of moribund grass and other vegetation just before grass aloe species initiated their growth cycles.

Fires are more frequent nowadays and may occur at any time during the dry winter months from May until late spring, October. Plants are as a result, left exposed to harsh conditions for many months before they start to grow. Some species are even starting to appear on the endangered species list.

Info from Succulents.net