Are you growing your own aloe plant at home? If not, this is your chance to add an attractive ornamental succulent to your houseplant collection that offers tons of utility as well, as part of your homegrown medicine cabinet.
Those of us who spend a lot of time outdoors, tending our gardens and growing our own produce often have to take steps to protect ourselves from the harsh rays of the sun.
But even with the best sun protection, we sometimes still manage to get sunburned.
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And every single time I used to get a sunburn, I ran to the nearest grocery store to buy a bottle of aloe vera gel. Let me tell you, there’s nothing so soothing as that cool gel sliding over a patch of lobster-colored skin.
But since I started growing my own aloe vera, I’ve got a plant at the ready for some fresh gel, free from all the dye and preservatives contained in store bought products.
Research suggests that aloe vera gel can shorten the healing time for first- and second-degree sunburns by about eight days.
We’ll talk more about its uses in a moment, but suffice to say that this is one of the coolest succulents you’ll ever meet.
Ready to learn more? Here’s what I’ll cover:
What Is Aloe Vera?Aloe vera may resemble a cactus, but taxonomically it’s actually a member of the Asphodelaceae family, not the cactus family.
While its botanical name is A. vera, various synonyms abound for this evergreen perennial: A. barbadensis, A. indica, A. elongata, and more. Other common names are the first aid plant, burn aloe, and true aloe.
The name aloe is derived from the Arabic word alloeh which translates as “shining
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