BROMELIADS - TILLANDSIAS - BROMELIADS - TILLANDSIAS - BROMELIADS
BROMAGIC BROMELIAD NURSERY
421 Hunchy Road, Palmwoods
+61 (07) 54450441
PLEASE NOTE
BROMAGIC is open Wed
to Sat 0930 -1430.
The shop is still
accessible from the Palmwoods side of Hunchy Road during the Razorback Road
closure.
CHECK OUT OUR ONLINE STORE - BROMELIADS-OF-AUSTRALIA
New Alan Freeman
Neoregelia Hybrids - IMAGES
New Alan Freeman
Neoregelia Hybrids - NAMES
Sunshine
Coast Bromeliad Society
Any questions or orders ? bromagic@ozemail.com.au
All contents of this site are subject to Copyright © 1999
Click on thumbnails to see larger images and then click the
back button to return to this page.
Place cursor over the image to see it's name.
· BROMELIADS are native to Central
and South America. The family consists of over 2000 species, and more are
still being discovered. The diversity of Bromeliads ranges from the pineapple
to the "Spanish Moss" or "Old man's beard" we have all seen
in pictures of the Florida everglades, hanging in the trees. Countless hybrids
have been produced from these species and the possibilities are endless. The
Bromeliad family is broken into about 30 different sub-families called genera
and some of the more well known of these are as follows:-
AECHMEA
Aechmeas
could be described as stately in size and form. Their leaves are often strongly
patterned, with flower bracts that usually produce berries that last for
months. Some are quite hardy and will take full sun although others require
semi-shade to full shade. Sizes vary from quite small to huge.
BILLBERGIA
Although their flower is not long lasting, it
is orchid-like and quite beautiful. The plants are mainly tubular in shape and
are very decorative and worthwhile. They prefer good light.
CRYPTANTHUS
Cryptanthus
collecting is fast becoming recognised as a hobby in itself, particularly where
space is limited, and a very rewarding hobby at that. These colourful and
fascinating little plants, commonly called "earth stars", are the one
of the few genera of true terrestrials in the Bromeliad family (apart from
Orthophytums and similar plants). Grow them indoors or out. The light level is
important to their colour development; too much and they will bleach and too
little and they go dark.
GUZMANIA
Possibly some of the
most beautiful Bromeliads are the Guzmanias. With often beautifully coloured
and patterned leaves and long lasting flower bracts, sometimes many months,
they make ideal indoor plants. They often have delicate foliage and should be
grown in a sheltered, semi-shaded position.
NEOREGELIA
Of
all the Bromeliad genera, Neo's as a whole are the most colourful. They do not
have a significant flower but are in demand more for their brilliantly coloured
leaves. Their form is generally rosette and their size varies from about 10cm.
to a metre or more. Neo's need bright light to colour well but may burn in full
sun. Miniature Neos marked. Semi-miniature Neos.
NIDULARIUM
Nidulariums
are probably the most under-used of all the Bromeliad genera. They make
excellent indoor plants or can add spectacular and long-lasting colour and
contrast to a garden. In looks, they are almost a combination of Neos and
Guzmanias having mainly green to purple leaves and a coloured central flower
rosette. They look their best in semi-shade.
TILLANDSIA
Tillandsias are the
most fascinating of all the Bromeliads. They are completely ephiphytic (air
growing) and will grow almost anywhere. Under normal garden conditions they
will grow without additional watering or feeding although these will encourage
extra growth. They vary greatly in growth and flowering habit and so are
difficult to describe. Some are large, some small. some grey, some fuzzy,
others smooth and some have beautifully perfumed flowers (marked P), but they
are all beautiful. They can be glued with most glues (NOT SILICONE ) or tied to
most rough surfaces until the roots take hold.
VRIESEA
Vrieseas
are a worthwhile addition to any garden or greenhouse as well as being an ideal
indoor plant. I divide them into two categories; those with plain leaves and
those I call "fancy" vrieseas. Fancy vrieseas have magnificent leaf
colour and marking, whereas the plain varieties usually have soft green or
purple leaves and striking sword like flower bracts which lasts for months.
They prefer shady conditions.
POTTING Most Bromeliads, except
for a few terrestrials, are either epiphytic or semi-epiphytic and can be tree
mounted or potted. A Cymbidium orchid mix is most commonly recommended but they
seem to do well in any medium provided it is very open and drains well. Pine
barks are the basis for most mixes. The terrestrials (especially Cryptanthus)
prefer a heavier mix e.g. a fern type mix, which will remain moist. Most
Tillandsias need to be mounted on wood, rock, etc. but there are a few
varieties that will do better if potted in a free draining open mix.
WATERING Normal garden
watering is fine. So long as their cups contain some water they will survive.
Whether this is from weekly or more frequent watering or from normal rainfall
does not really matter. It is nearly impossible to over water as the cups will
simply overflow.
FERTILISING Bromeliads require
very little fertilising. Some varieties are able to take more feeding than
others but over fertilising plants such as Neoregelias will result in long
strappy leaves (compact shape is usually better) and loss of colour. A pinch of
slow release fertiliser when first potting these plants is usually sufficient.
Genera such as Cryptanthus and Vrieseas require more feeding.
PESTS Probably the only
pests you will have to worry about with your Broms are various types of scale,
the worst of which is "fly speck scale" which can be seen as small
black spots over the leaves. These scales can be controlled with insecticides
specifically for scale pests. Scales will not be as much of a problem in plants
which are given good light and air movement and where periodic inspection and
maintenance is carried out. NEVER USE WHITE OIL SPRAYS.
PROPAGATION ......is usually by
the removal of offsets which are often called "pups" which can be cut
or broken from the mother plant when they are approximately one third to half
the size of the mother which will often then produce more pups before
deteriorating and dying over a period of months of even a year or so. Pups can
be stood together on top of or slightly into potting mix in a box until they
root and then they can be potted.
LIGHT It is important to
find the right spot for the right Brom as the conditions required to get the
best results vary from variety to variety. One of the major factors in this is
light levels. Plants such as Neos, Ananas, Tillandsias, etc. require good light
whereas Vrieseas, Guzmanias, Canistrums and Nidulariums will look good grown in
shady areas. Most plants will adapt well to 50% or 70% shadecloth under which
there are usually areas that are more shady or more light. It is usually better
to keep your plants in pots and move them around until you find a position
where you feel they respond best. Cryptanthus require semi -shade to look their
best.
TREE MOUNTING Many Bromeliads can
be tree mounted, the stoloniferous varieties such as miniature Neos being the
most suitable. They can be fixed to trees by tying or nailing or tucked in a
suitable fork or crevice. When tree mounting Bromeliads, it is not necessary to
cover the root area but it is important that they remain upright to hold water.
(except for Tillandsias which can hang in any direction)
Would you like to see more pictures? YES
TILLANDSIAS --- GENERAL INFORMATION AND GROWING TIPS.
TILLANDSIAS are probably the most
fascinating genus of the Bromeliad family. There are now over 500 species and
new varieties are still being discovered. Hybrids are also becoming more
common. In nature they range from Florida and Mexico through all of the Central
and South American countries, from deserts to rainforests, from freezing to
tropical conditions. They vary in size from 1 cm or so to plants in excess of 4
m. Habitat altitude ranges from sea level to elevations of 3000 m. Most
Tillandsias are totally epiphytic or "air growing" and are able to
extract all moisture and nutrient required to live through a system of
trichomes or "fine hairs" on their leaves which gives many of them a
silver/grey velvety look. As a general rule, the more silvery they look, the
dryer the climate of their native habitat. This silvery surface also reflects
heat and keeps the plant cooler in the hot desert areas. The forest dwellers
tend to be green or red. Tillandsias vary greatly in size, shape, leaf
formation, colour combinations and general adaptability in their native
habitat. Some have the most beautiful perfumes. Some have dispensed with a root
system and use their leaves to hold onto branches so they do not fall to the
forest floor where they might rot away. However, most do have relatively small
root systems which attach the plants to various mounting materials such as
cacti, bark or branches, rock, sand or leaf litter on the forest floor. They do
not use their roots to feed and are not parasites. These plants are very slow
growing so patience is required. Single plants can be very attractive but they
are at their best when they have formed into larger clumps or colonies. Clumps
in flower can be quite spectacular. After flowering, mother plants will make
new plants in the form of suckers called "pups" or
"offsets". Remember that growth of a clump is slowest in the early
stages. Your first plant might produce 4 pups. They, in turn, might produce 4
each, that's 16. If they produce 4 each that's 64 and so on.
GROWING.........Tillandsias
require very little attention. Provided they have reasonable conditions they
will grow on happily without any fuss whatsoever. However, if a few simple
rules are followed, you will get the best out of your plants
CLIMATE..........Tillandsias
are grown successfully from Cairns to Tasmania. Most of them will adapt to this
climatic range with the exception of a few that are not generally available in
Australia. There may be some that will grow in Cairns that will not grow easily
in Tasmania and others that will grow in Tasmania and not in Cairns unless
special conditions are provided.
GROWING CONDITIONS....Tillandsias
require light, water, and good air movement to grow well. If these requirements
are provided, they can be grown in many and varied situations from open gardens
to indoors, but I recommend outdoor growing and taking the plants indoors for
short periods. Let's look at these one by one.
LIGHT...........As a rule,
the silver/grey varieties will tolerate full sun whereas the green plants will
require some shade. Most of my plants grow well under 50% shadecloth with the
more shade loving plants placed in the shadier positions. Some people use 70%
shadecloth with good results but my philosophy is "you can always add
shade but it's difficult to add light". Plants indoors will do better in a
well lit area than a dark corner.
WATER..........Watering requirements
will vary according to individual situations, i.e. indoor or outdoor growing,
winter or summer, humidity etc. I believe in under watering rather than over
watering because plants can be damaged by over watering whereas they will
normally show signs of under watering before damage is done. My plants get a
reasonable watering once or twice a week summer and winter and I find this
adequate. If plants are not receiving enough water they will show signs of
dehydration or dryness. Tillandsias - bergeri and aeranthos are good indicators
as they usually let you know first by the leaves pinching into a trough shape.
In very severe cases of dehydration, plants can be soaked in a bucket of water
for several hours without harming them. Indoor plants may need regular misting
with an atomiser (maybe once a day) as the atmosphere inside tends to be dryer
particularly if air-conditioned. A thorough watering or soaking once a week is
also a good idea. Although regular watering is desirable, plants will not
usually come to any harm if unattended for several weeks or even longer.
AIR MOVEMENT..........These plants
respond to a nice breezy situation.
MOUNTING..........Tillandsias
can be mounted on a number of different materials. Cork, timber, driftwood
(soak well to remove any salt), grapewood are the most succesful. Rock,
unglazed pottery, shells, etc. can also be used but the plants are not usually
as happy on these surfaces. Generally accepted methods of fixing include gluing
or tying to hold the plant in position until the roots take. I use hot glue
from a glue gun but most other glues (EXCEPT SILICONE) are used. Contact glues
are quite good if you smear some glue on the mount and some on the plant, allow
to dry for a few minutes and press the plant in position. I mount most plants
facing downward as I find that most of them will turn up towards the light and
if the glue lets go after the roots have taken, the plant will hang like a hook
instead of falling away from the mount. Never allow copper or zinc to come into
contact with the plants as it may harm or kill them. I find that some varieties
do better if potted or at least mounted in an upright position. Some of these
would be cyanea, lindenii, most of the fasciculata types, flabellata and most
of the green Vriesea types. Pot in a well drained open mix.
FERTILIZING...Some people apply
foliar fertilizer to their plants, some once a week, others once a month but I
find that it does not make much difference. If you wish to fertilize, use a
fertilizer such as Phostrogen as Tillandsias need their nitrogen in ammonia
form, not urea form. Use foliar fertilizers at half the recommended strength.
REMOVAL OF PUPS...Pups can be removed
from the parent plant if you wish when they are about one third the size of the
parent. Some varieties grow their pups proud of the parent and are easy to
remove but others send their pups up between the leaf -axils and have to be
removed carefully with a knife. If the pups are removed, the parent plant will
produce more. The number of pups can vary from one to a dozen or more
PESTS AND DISEASES.........Pests and
diseases are not usually a problem. Occasionally they may attract mealybugs to
an odd plant. These plants can be dipped or sprayed with a suitable
insecticide.(NEVER USE WHITE OIL OR COPPER SPRAYS.)
FLOWERING........Pups will
normally flower within a year from purchase. Seedling plants may take
substantially longer, sometimes many years. Sometimes individual plants can
skip a year but once a clump is established, you should have a reliable
flowering each year. Each variety has its' own flowering season, so, with a
reasonable collection of Tillandsias, you will have something flowering all
year. Flowers can last from a few days to many months, depending on the
variety. If you have one that should have flowered but doesn't want to, moving
the plant or placing it in a bag with an apple may produce -results. There are
about 20 or 30 varieties that are beautifully perfumed.I trust this information
has given you a little more understanding of these marvellous plants so that
you may receive more pleasure from them.
If you require any further assistance, please contact me.