Hort Log

Today marks a milestone....things sure grow fast in the tropics !

This Tillandsia xerographica, seen here posing with the kid, was obtained from a Caucasian expat leaving the country. It had me scratching my head then, as I wondered whether this clump of stiff rootless grey mess was still alive. Well, the mother plant had since flowered; withered and disintegrated and its small pup (no longer, as you can see) is eventually of flowering size, repeating the life and death cycle typical of most Bromeliads. As it dies, a new pup would emerge....I hope.

As fate had it, this Tillandsia was the first of the many air plants I now grow. Typically, people would start with something smaller and more manageable....

OK kiddo, let's try that again, its tee-lan-sii-aaa...no not tarsier ! Alamak the mosquitoes are here, let's hop back to the car .....

Quesnelia marmorata - a Brazilian Bromeliad (from the pineapple family). This is an unusual form with curly leaves and heavy mottling - reminds one of a Cephalopod ....Source: Nesis P15.
The plant has never flowered for me although it can pup - it also appears to be a slow grower here.