Aloa Vera Truly Beautiful!

This time of the year, the Aloe Vera plant is beautiful with its poker red blooms creating a contrast between the blue sky and the green rubbery plant.

Aloe Vera can be seen planted all over the island, along roadsides, communal gardens, seafront gardens, hotel gardens, private gardens. It can be a small plant or very large. We have around a dozen medium size in our own garden, but it is only at this time of the year we see its true beauty.

During the periods of no rain, these plant turn a light brown and can look forgotten and dead! But they are not, a sprinkle of water will have them back to light green colour in no time. Mentioning, rain, we have had no real rain here for around ten months!

But Aloe Vera is not just any plant, it is a healing plant and creams and lotions are sold in abundance on the island. The extracts from the plant help heal irritated skin, ease the irritation of shingles, helps re-hydrate skin as well as keeping skin soft and smooth. If you have a tad too much sun and your skin is burning, the way to sooth the soreness is to snip at the Aloe Vera, squeeze out the green jelly type fluid then rub directly onto the burnt skin. It is almost instant in its effect at taking out the sting.

As well as being excellent for the skin, I know of a local lady who drinks the juice from the Aloe Vera plant to help heal her stomach, I have no idea if this is normal, so can not recommend it, but this person insists it is good for her!

Just one of the exotic plants we have on our little pebble in the ocean.