Aloe seems to love the West Central Florida climate where we live. If you look closely, you'll see a little cold weather damage on the tips of the leaves. It doesn't get cold here in Tampa for long periods, but for a few hours this past winter it did get cold enough to frost.
We keep the container for this aloe plant situated pretty close to the house. We never really move plant inside when the forecast calls for cold weather, but we do cover it with a sheet sometimes in an effort to protect it a little.
Aloe plants are succulents. They don't need large amounts of water and they are very resilient. The frost damage will go away on it's own with time. If I really wanted to, I could clip the damaged ends to speed up the process.
We enjoy aloe vera as an ornamental plant. We certainly haven't used the plant to its' full capacity, but it's handy for healing minor cuts and sunburns.
A few years ago, my sister's family visited for a week and we took them to the National Seashore near Merrit Island. After a day at the beach my brother-in-law developed a medium intensity sunburn. He used his pocket knife to cut off a small piece of the aloe plant and squeezed the juice onto his arms and shoulders and rubbed it into his skin. He said it worked very well for reducing the pain and irritation.
We might need a bigger pot pretty soon. What do you think?
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