Aloe ballyi (the "rat aloe") is a species of flowering plant in the family Asphodelaceae, native to Kenya and Tanzania.
Aloe ballyi | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Order: | Asparagales |
Family: | Asphodelaceae |
Subfamily: | Asphodeloideae |
Genus: | Aloe |
Species: | A. ballyi
|
Binomial name | |
Aloe ballyi Reynolds[2]
|
This species of Aloe forms tall, slender stems of up to 6 meters. The leaves are long, slender, and mostly straight - only recurving slightly towards the tips. Dead leaves do not long remain on the stem, unlike in the case of most aloes. Unlike most aloes, the "rat aloe" is poisonous.[3]
The flowers are only mildly tubular, with their segments united for 1/3 of their length.
It is native to the Eastern Arc Mountains and coastal forests of Kenya and Tanzania. This rare aloe grows in the bush with acacias and succulents.[1]