• Family : LILIACEAE
  (LILY FAMILY)
• Family (as per The Plant List) : Xanthorrhoeaceae
• Species : Aloe vera
• Basionym : Aloe perfoliata var. vera L.
• Species Name (as per The Plant List) : Aloe vera (L.) Burm.f.
• Common name : True Aloe, Indian Aloe, Barbados Aloe
• Vernacular name : Ghee-kunwar, Ghikumari (Hin.); Lolesara (Kan.); Chottu katthaalai (Tam.); Chinnakala banda (Tel.); Kumari, Ghrtakumari (San.)
• Key identification features : A large perennial herb. Roots are slender and fibrous. Leaves arise from the base of the plant, all from the same level. They are thick, fleshy with apex drawn out into a pointed structure with prickly margins. Flowers arise on a terminal elongated erect inflorescence, older ones being at the base and the youngest at the apex. Stamens are six and shortly exserted. Fruit is an ellipsoidal and three-angled capsule.
• Habit : Herb
• Flower, Fruit : September-December
• Native : Mediterranean, Arabian Peninsula
• Comments : Occasional in scrub jungles, wastelands and foothills among rocks. Commonly planted in gardens and houses. The plant extract is used for treatment of skin ailments.
• Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
• Distribution Locality : Throughout Eastern Ghats
• World Distribution : Introduced in most parts of the world
• Literature : H.O. Saxena & M. Brahmam, 1995- Flora of Orissa Vol. 3 ; R. S. Rao et al., 1986 - Flora of West Godavari District ; R. S. Rao and S. H. Sreeramulu, 1986 - Flora of Srikakulam District; N.P.Singh, 1988. Flora of Eastern Karnataka; Matthew, K.M., The Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (2). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983.
• Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Arun Singh R., Deepak Kumar, Raja K Swamy and Navendu Page (2016). Digital Flora of Eastern Ghats. http://easternghats.ces.iisc.ernet.in/plants.php?name=Aloe vera. Downloaded on 4 November 2025.

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