Featured Plants
Neoregelia
'Peggy's Peach'
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The Bromeliads
The family Bromeliaceae is restricted to the subtropical and tropical
regions of the Americas and are most famous among the gardeners
of the area. They are found in diverse places such as thousands
of feet above sea level, rainforests and deserts. The plants that
you see growing on telephones lines are Bromeliads, and those on
the branches of trees are also likely to be them. They are not parasites,
but epiphytes: plants that grow on other plants, but derive their
nutrition from the air or rain.
Bromeliads are one of the most easy-to-grow plants. They may be
ignored for days and still thrive. A healthy bromeliad will require
well-draining soil, preferably having a bark mix.
Tillandsia
edithae,
one of the Bromeliads without roots.
Orthuphytum
gurkenii
Aechmea
nidularioides, a Bromeliad that flowers
Neoregelia
concentrica showing
off its water holding capacity |
It is better that they be watered from the top for, the rosette
configuration (the base of the leaves gather to form a structure)
allows the plant to hold water and use it according to its will.
They use the water collected most efficiently because at places
such as treetops, where the Bromeliads are usually found, there
is a danger of drying out.
Aechmea
weilobachii
and its pup |
They need to be kept near a light source. However, bright light
may burn their foliage. The right intensity of light will bring
out their natural colors and pattern. Cutting the shoot from the
main plant and potting it propagates bromeliads. However, these
'pups' (the shoots) should not be removed until a strong root structure
is seen.
Two species of Bromeliad have the ability to trap insects. A wax-like
powder, coating the leaf bases, help in the entrapment. The powder
reflects ultraviolet light, which confuses insects, which perceive
the plant to be the sky and fly directly into the Bromeliad. The
slippery powder hinders the insects from escaping. Some bromeliads
may also emanate a sweet odor for entrapment of insects.
Bromeitiella
brevifolia,
a xerophytic Bromeliad |
Bromeliads, today, are grown mostly for their ornamental value.
The color, pattern and flower of a Bromeliad, makes all the difference.
One member of the Bromeliads, the pineapple, is grown for food.
Pineapple stems are a source of the commercial protein-digesting
enzyme bromelain, used as a meat tenderizer. Bromelain is also used
to produce natural antacids.
Weraulhia
sanguinolenta
has a rusty brown foliage
Vriesea hieroglyphica
Tillandsia
usneoides 'Spanish moss'
amidst other members of the
Orchid House in the Talcott Greenhouse
Billibergia
'Louise'
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