Plate 151.
ALOE Schlechteri.
Cape Province, Namaqualand.
Liliaceae. Tribe Aloineae.
Aloe, Linn.; Benth. et Hook. f. Gen. Plant. vol. iii. p. 776.
Aloe Schlechteri, Schonl. in Records Albany Mus. vol. i. p. 45.
This somewhat rare Aloe was first described by Dr. Schönland from material collected by Max Schlechter at Pella, S.W. Africa. The Division of Botany in 1921 received living specimens from Dr. W. Borchards of Upington, and these subsequently flowered at Pretoria.
Aloe Schlechteri is found growing on the bare veld. The short stems are decumbent and the rosette of leaves almost at right angles to the stems, giving the plant, when viewed from a little distance, an acaulescent appearance. The plants are invariably found in groups, and the individual plants are so arranged that the group forms a half-circle or sometimes a complete circle on the ground. The inflorescence appears to be always forked.
Our illustration was made from the specimens collected by Dr. Borchards.