Aloiampelos striatula, formerly Aloe striatula, the hardy aloe or striped-stemmed aloe, is a sturdy succulent plant that naturally occurs on the summits of mountains along the south of the Karoo region of South Africa.
Aloiampelos striatula is a robust rambling plant that can form a large shrub of up to 2 m in height. It is closely related to Cape Town's Aloiampelos commixta, but it is easily distinguished from it by the distinctive dark green stripes on the stems and leaf sheaths (its species name, striatula, means "little stripes"), and by its thin, recurved leaves (which, like its flowers, are more densely packed). The leaves of striatula are dark green and strongly recurved, with numerous small white teeth along their margins. The flowers are reddish-orange and appear densely on tall (400 mm), un-branched, cone-shaped racemes throughout the summer. Aloiampelos striatula naturally occurs in the mountains of the Karoo region of South Africa, between the towns of Graaf-reinet and Queenstown in the Eastern Cape, extending into the Free State and Lesotho. It is very tough and hardy however and has been planted widely in gardens - in South Africa and around the world.
