Grow a Renewable Aloe Vera Plant to Treat Minor Skin Ailments and Help the Environment

The Aloe Vera plant holds relief for mild burns, scrapes and rashes inside of its stems. Keeping one growing around your house or garden is an excellent way to use an amazing little natural resource instantly available to be used for its healing properties. Even better it is a renewable medicine that won't pollute the environment. Its packaging is recyclable. When one branch is gone you don't have to throw the whole package out. It renews itself as long as you give it the proper care and placement it needs to grow and flourish.

*Aloe Vera is a succulent in the cactus family. It isn't the most beautiful plant in the world but inside those stiff pointed branches is a amazing gelatinous substance that can help with many skin ailments. If you look at the labels of many commercial sun burn or skin treatment creams you will see that often one of the listed ingredients is Aloe Vera.

*You can buy an Aloe Vera plant at most garden centers. Some florist shops, discount stores and grocery stores even carry them too. They aren't overly expensive.

*Aloe Vera are easy to grow and maintain as a house plant. They need a well drained soil in a pot with a good drainage hole. Clay pots work well. They don't like to sit in soggy soil for long. Water them and let them dry between watering times.

*Being a succulent they hold and store a lot of water in their roots and branches. A once a year spring feeding with a 10-40-10 flower fertilizer does the job for the mighty little Aloe Vera plant.

*It likes a well lit area near a nice sunny window. A good place to keep your Aloe Vera plant in your kitchen if it has decent outside lighting. That way it is right there and easily accessible if you need to use it for any minor burns or skin rashes.

*To use the medicine in the Aloe Vera plant you can either cut a small portion from a single branch at a time or cut a whole branch off at once using a sharp paring knife.

*To get the gel from the inside of the plant you simply slice the piece or Aloe Vera plant open and scrape off the gel from the inside of the plant. Wash and clean the rash, scrape or mild burn first. Then rub the gel onto the affected area and let it sit. You can apply more later of you need to. Aloe Vera helps sunburns too.

*When you are done with the cut piece of Alie Vera, throw it in a compost pile or clipping pile. This is biodegradable packaging at its best.

*Do be careful to watch for any adverse reaction to the Aloe Vera gel.

*Take care of your Aloe Vera plant and it will take care of your abrasions and minor burns and help the environment by keeping packaging out of landfills. It's an amazing plant.