Plant Resources of Tropical Africa

Aloe arborescens is a succulent shrub up to 5 m tall; with solitary stems that are branching at or near the base. It is one of the ca 315 species of Aloe that occur in mainland Africa.

Aloe arborescens is native to southern Africa and occurs in Malawi, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique as well as South Africa. In its native range it occurs in montane grassland, in open evergreen forest and in coastal forests from sea-level to 2100(–2800) m altitude. It has been imported in many countries in the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental and medicinal plant. In Italy it is commercially grown for its medicinal and cosmetic uses and in Japan for both medicine and food. In Japan, where it was first introduced in the 17th century, it has become naturalized. Commercial growing of Aloe arborescens has started recently in Israel and China.

The split or crushed fresh leaves of Aloe arborescens are widely used to treat burns and wounds. In South Africa a leaf decoction is given to women to ease childbirth. In Japan the leaves are used as a vegetable and as a health food because they are thought to overcome constipation. Worldwide attention was drawn to the possible value of gel prepared from Aloe arborescens after the second World War, when skin burns of victims of the nuclear bombs on Japan were successfully treated with this gel. Apart from the mediicinal and ornamental uses it is planted in southern Africa as a living fence.

So far Aloe arborescens is, surprisingly, little used as a medicinal in its native range and surprisingly highly esteemed in Asia and the Mediterranean. Future developments will depend on competitive advantages of Aloe arborescens over Aloe vera.