10 fabulous WINTER BLOOMERS

1 Light my fire

hails from south-east Africa, where it grows from the coast to the mountains. With its tell-tale succulent symmetry, the mildly spiky leaves form rosettes that with time form sizeable clumps. Because new growth hides the old, the clump always looks fresh and neat. From each rosette emerges a fiery orange raceme, which gives the candelabra aloe its popular name. This aloe is easy to propagate – break off a rosette and plant it in the sun in free-draining soil. The gel in its leaves is said to have higher concentrations of the medicinal qualities than its cousin, aloe vera, from anti-itch to anti-arthritis