Peninsula Rambling aloe

Aloiampelos commixta

Scientific name

Aloe commixta flowers in late winter (August and September). A stout inflorescence shoots up, bearing reddish erect buds that open into dense, bright orange-yellow flowers. In its natural habitat in the fynbos vegetation of Table Mountain, its flowers are pollinated by sunbirds and honey bees.

Cape Town's very own unique Aloe, this species is indigenous (and endemic) to the Cape Peninsula. Within this tiny natural range, Aloe commixta is particularly concentrated in the central region of the Peninsula, in the area around Kommetjie, Kalk Bay, Fishhoek, Simonstown and Miller's Point (although smaller, outlying populations exist elsewhere on the Table Mountain chain). This elegant little aloe is also one of only three aloes that are indigenous to the city of Cape Town (the others being the Fynbos Aloe and the Soap Aloe).