Melinda's Garden Moment Radio Tips

Grow your own burn ointment by adding Aloe vera to your indoor plant collection.

The gel inside the leaves of Aloe vera has been used for thousands of years to treat burns, wounds and more. Plant aloe in a container with drainage holes filled with a cacti and succulent potting mix. Grow this plant in a sunny window along with your other cacti and succulents. Water thoroughly whenever the soil is dry.

Start new plants from a leaf or division.  Remove a leaf from the plant.  Let the cut end dry for a day or two.  Then bury the bottom inch or two of the leaf in a well-drained potting mix, vermiculite, perlite or sand to root. Or slide the aloe plant out of its container.  Use a sharp knife to divide the parent plant (roots and all) from any smaller plants that have formed. Repot the divisions in containers an inch or two larger than the remaining root system.

A bit more information:  Aloe vera also improves your indoor living conditions. In the NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) clean air study done in conjunction with the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (now the National Association of Landscape Professionals) researchers found Aloe helped remove formaldehyde and benzes from the air. Both contribute to sick building syndrome. But be sure to keep it away from dogs and cats as it can be toxic to them.