Tillandsia aka Air Plants
These fun and amazing plants are Epiphytes and members of the Bromeliad family. An epiphyte is a plant that grows on another plant and lives symbiotically. They have no roots and will develop little tendrils to attach themselves to a tree branch or a rock. They grow naturally in South and Central America and can be found in some of the southern areas of the United States. With over 500 known species and a wide range of habitat including forests, mountains and even deserts, Tillandsia are wonderful plants to grow and enjoy. They have become extremely popular because of their ease of care and portability. Below are a few examples of some of the Tillandsia we have in our collection.
This one's flower is almost spent.
This particular Xerographica measures 7" across. Some specimens can grow to be over 3' in size!
This one's flower is almost spent.
Tillandsia Care
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Prefers Bright, Indirect sunlight or bright fluorescent home/office lighting
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There are two methods of watering Tillandsia
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Soak in room temperature water for 20-30 minutes every 7-14 days and mist until wet intermittently between soakings
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Mist until wet every 2 to3 days
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Immediately after watering gently shake out excess water to avoid rot and let your airplant dry upside down to make sure no water stays in between the leaves
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Remove oldest leaves as they dry out if needed
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Fertilizing Tillandsia is not required to keep it alive, however, feeding your air plant helps it thrive, promotes blooming, and produce offsets ("pups")
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Air plants prefer temperatures between 50-90 degrees F. Our home and office temperatures of 65-78 degrees F are optimal.
In the warm weather months we have found that our airplants LOVE to live outside in the shade (We're in Central Pennsylvania, zone 6b). We keep our tillandsia under a shade cloth covered hoop house as soon as temperatures allow them to stay out overnight. We've noticed that they grow faster outside with the bright filtered sunlight and the humidity. When it rains we just make sure to gently shake the excess water out of the plants and let them dry upside down for a bit so they don't hold the water between their leaves. We hardly ever need to water our airplants during the summer months as we have mother nature taking care of it.