Like most hobbies there is just as much fun in the getting as in the having. We planted small portions of our hobby garden at a time, as we got the aloes. We enjoy it as we have the memories how and when we got them. Some planning and designing went into it, but not anything intelligent e.g. by region, climate or species.

My
next project is to create a garden under the Ceratonia siliqua
tree. Half belongs to Rudi (neatly divided like the rest of the garden). I
have no idea what his half would look like, my half is for my smaller aloes and
Gasteria. Gasteria and the small aloes usually grow in the shade of rocks or
bushes and this shady space will suite them well.

Giving some idea of the size of the tree. The space beneath

it is a circle about ten metres wide.

The outside branches of the tree bend down to the ground

forming a secluded area around the tree, but these branches

had to be removed as the aloes would want some direct sun.

The area around the tree was overgrown by trifasciata

which we cleared and replanted elsewhere. The leaves of the

Sansevieria sp. grew dense and long in the shade supporting

each other. Having removed some plants the rest to toppled

over but all will go.

Some nice logs to use for decoration. Watch this space !