Aloe vera makes for a beautiful low-maintenance houseplant that becomes more attractive the larger it gets.
In this article, we’ll be looking at all the elements of care you’ll need to keep an eye on if you want your aloe vera plant to grow big and beautiful.
Table of Contents
Will My Aloe Vera Plant Get Bigger?
Your aloe vera plant will get bigger if you provide it around six hours of direct sunlight each day and fertilize it in the springtime to encourage growth.
Lots of full sun will encourage your aloe to grow, just be sure to slowly expose your plant to direct sunlight over time.
If your plant is used to getting lots of indirect light, don’t suddenly move it to a spot where it will receive strong direct light.
These plants are prone to sunburn if they are not slowly introduced to direct sunlight.
Aloe Vera Plants Usually Grow Tall And Not Bushy
Aloe vera plants tend to grow tall and lanky instead of wide and bushy.
These plants have a very shallow root system so once they get to a certain height, they can become quite unstable and begin to tip over because their roots can no longer anchor them in the soil.
Encouraging your aloe vera to grow like crazy may not be the best idea because it will not grow wide and bushy, it will become tall, unstable, and at risk of falling out of its pot.
Do Aloe Plants Keep Growing?
Aloe plants will keep growing as long as they are watered when their soil becomes dry and are getting lots of bright sunlight each day.
If aloe vera plants don’t receive enough sunlight or an even amount of sunlight, their growth will become deformed and the parts of the plant that are not receiving enough light will begin to reach and stretch for it.
These plants need lots of bright sunlight to produce healthy growth.
they don’t take well to low light conditions and too much shade may cause your aloe vera to weaken, go into a state of dormancy and stop growing.
related Article: Why Is My Aloe Vera Plant Spreading Out?
How To Grow An Aloe Vera Plant Bigger
If you want to grow your aloe vera plant bigger, you’ll have to make sure that all the elements of its care are just right.
In particular, you’ll have to ensure that it’s getting as much light as possible, especially if you’re keeping it indoors.
Sunlight
You’ll want your aloe vera to get lots of bright sunlight if you want it to get bigger.
When indoors, just be careful not to put your plant too close to the window because sometimes the glass can magnify the sunlight’s intensity and cause sunburn.
Likewise, if your plant is used to the shade, don’t move it directly into full sun or it may also get sunburned.
Slowly introduce your plant to more and more sunlight.
But keep in mind that these plants are prone to sunburn (more than other succulents).
If they get too many hours of full, intense summer sun their leaves may burn.
If it’s a scorching hot day in the middle of summer and you have your aloe plant outside, it might be best to give it plenty of morning sun and then move it into a spot during the afternoon where it will get lots of bright, indirect sunlight.
These plants can handle more full sun in winter than they can during the hot summer.
Temperature
If you want your aloe vera to grow to its full potential, you’ll have to keep it within the temperature range that it likes best.
These plants grow well when they’re kept at a temperature between 55 and 80 degrees F.
Try to keep your aloe vera on the higher side of that range if you want it to grow to its maximum potential.
Soil
Like other succulents and cacti, aloe vera plants do not like to have their roots wet.
You won’t go too far wrong with any quality, fast-draining cactus mix.
Never use regular garden soil or a standard plant potting mix for this plant because it holds on to far too much moisture and could cause its roots to rot.
Repotting
If you want your aloe vera to continue to grow as much as possible you will need to repot it if it becomes rootbound.
Simply lift your plant out of its pot and if it looks like there are way more roots than there is soil, it’s probably time to find a pot that’s 1 or 2 inches bigger.
If it stays rootbound, it won’t be receiving as many nutrients from the soil as it otherwise would in a bigger pot with more soil and more space for its roots to grow.
Watering
If you overwater your aloe vera plant, it may begin to rot and die.
And if you continually underwater it, it will grow less and produce thinner leaves in an attempt to conserve moisture.
Your plant will need watering at different intervals depending on how hot and humid its environment is.
It is safest to let your aloe tell you when it needs water.
Test the soil with your finger and only water it when the top 1or 2 inches becomes dry to the touch.
If you feel any bit of moisture in the top 1 or 2 inches of soil, hold off on watering for a couple of days and then test again.
You are way better off underwatering this plant than overwatering it.
Fertilizing
Aloe vera are light feeders but a bit of fertilizing in spring and again in summer will encourage them to grow bigger.
Any good liquid cactus or succulent plant food will work well.
How Long Does It Take For Aloe Vera To Grow?
When being kept as indoor plants, aloe veras usually grow to maturity within about 3 or 4 years – provided they are given at least 4 to 6 hours of direct sunlight each day.
You can also encourage your aloe vera to reach maturity faster by fertilizing it once a year in the springtime a water-based, phosphorus-heavy fertilizer at half regular strength.
These plants usually reach maturity faster when grown outdoors and given full sun all day long.
How Big Will My Aloe Vera Plant Get?
If your aloe vera plant is well looked after and receiving lots of bright sunlight, it may grow to be about 3 feet in height.
And if your plant is not being kept in optimum growing conditions, it may only grow to 1 or 2 feet in height.
Be aware that as aloe vera plants become bigger, they often become quite unstable because of their shallow roots structure.
So be careful when handling big ones so that they don’t tip out of their pots.
How Do I Get My Aloe Vera Plant To Grow Straight?
To get your aloe vera plant to grow straight you will have to ensure that it is receiving an even amount of sunlight and that it is in a big enough pot so that its roots can become strong.
If one side of your plant is receiving more sunlight than the other it will begin to grow unevenly as the side that isn’t receiving enough light begins to stretch for it.
To stop this from happening, ensure your plant is receiving enough light and also rotate the pot every few days to ensure that an even amount of sunlight is falling on its leaves.
Aloe vera plants don’t naturally have deep or strong roots, and when they are kept in a container that is too shallow, their roots grow even weaker and they tend to lean over to one side.
To protect against this, replant your aloe vera into a deeper and sturdier pot that will provide it better support and allow its roots to grow deeper.
Final Thoughts
Aloe vera makes a beautiful indoor plant and they are pretty easy to encourage to grow bigger.
But many people expect these plants to get big and bushy, which they rarely do.
They usually grow tall and become unstable due to their shallow root structure.
Sometimes you’re better off separating your aloe vera plant when it gets too big so that it’s not constantly at risk of being uprooted.
