Photos above hijacked from Pinterest:)
Living at the beach you spend a great deal of time outdoors, enjoying the warm sun shine. Your daily dose of Vitamin K has sweet benefits but we all know that too much of a good thing always has a flip side, commonly known as sunburn. I am pretty sure every person I know has experienced the blistering effects of not applying that second or third coat later in the day cause your just having too much fun. These last few years I have become more vigilant in keeping the screen on me and my family as well as providing shady spots to waller around in. Partly because I’m not willing to embrace the weathered look just yet and I’m also not a fan of skin cancer. But when the sun goes down and the red gets redder, I bust out the secret weapon…a leaf of aloe. Now if I was on top of my game, I would smartly place the leaf in the fridge so when the application is needed the healing effects would be accentuated by some additional coolness…but I’m not that good. However, I do have this easy to grow plant right at the front door so it’s always in arms reach when needed.
To Use: break off a leaf and squeeze…a clear gel will ooze out and you can rub it all over your skin. Ta-DA! Easy,Peasy.
Originating from Africa, there are over 500 species of Aloe. The use of the plant for medicinal purposes has been documented on the walls of ancient Egyptian Temples, earning it the historical title “plant of immortality.” There are many proven and unproven claims as to what aloe is capable of :40 right here. But my favorite part (aside from the fact that it really does soothe the skin) is how easy it is to grow. It’s definitely a plant that once you have established it… the best thing to do is forget about it. So even my black thumbed friends will be able to enjoy all the benefits aloe has to offer.
This little guy was forgotten in a window sill with barely a teaspoon of soil and no water for months…still green.
His habitat is now improved.
To grow your own aloe all you need is a friend with plant…for directions to start from a cutting read here or you can divide and propagate here.
Waste no time and start growing some Aloe…your skin will thank you. Cheers!
