There may not be too many readers who could name a lot of plants belonging to the plant family called the Bromeliaceae, and yet it is one of the most important groups of plants in the Central and South American tropics. In some parts of the world one member of the family is of major economic importance. That one bromeliad is called the pineapple. Other members of the family such as the Billbergia, Aechmea, Nidularium, and Vriesea have attained economic importance because they are much sought after as ornamental house plants, and I suspect are known to many of you by sight, if not too well by name. Those of you who have travelled through the warmer, more humid states of the USA may have seen Spanish moss hanging in profusion over the telephone and powers lines. That is also a relative of the pineapple called Tillandsia.
Most plants in the Bromeliaceae are epiphytic, spending their life growing in trees or on rocks. Many are terrestrial growing in the ground like most of the plants in our garden. They are generally known as ‘urn’ plants, and are designed to collect rainwater in the tight>cup or vase formed by their leaves. In fact they thrive in areas where natural ground water is often very scarce because the drainage is very rapid, and are often the only source of standing water for tree frogs, and many other forms of life including plants like the bladderwort. The flower heads are produced from the centre of the circle of leaves making the ‘urn’ arising through the water like some spectacular floral rocket. Once an urn has produced a flower it never does so again. To maintain itself it produces offsets which generally make for a cluster of urns.
Most people acquire the most attractive bromeliads as gifts from friends, and initially grow them in pots. In this case the only watering required is keeping the urn filled with water and the soil in the pots just a little bit moist. When the plant has finished flowering, it is normally knocked out of its pot and placed in a tree where it will remain attractive for many months, and also start producing new shoots. In the past I’ve tied a few bromeliads into the fork of trees with strong twine and this has been sufficient, but you need to put some leaf mould or fibre around the base to encourage the fibrous roots it produces. Among the best bromeliad plants to grow for pleasure is Aechmea trifasciata which has grey green foliage and a gorgeous pink flower; Nidularium fulgens the centre leaves of which turn crimson near to flowering time. Vriesea splendens with its dark striped leaves and brilliant scarlet flower spike, which I might add brings joy to the plant enthusiast when seen growing in its native Guyana rain forest. The last bromeliad I want to mention in an ornamental sense is the pineapple. Not the edible variety, but a variegated form called Ananus comosus variegata. It’s a spiny individual, but none the less attractive for all that. Hard as nails in the home situation, and producing many little plants from the base if it’s enjoying life with you. It will of course eventually produce a fruit like a pineapple. Like the commercial plant the variegated form can be propagated by wrenching the top off the fruit when it’s ripe and planting that in a sandy compost. It will also produce little shoots just below the fruit, all of which can be rooted. And it will produce shoots from its base which can be rooted as well. So you could end up with many young plants to give away to your gardening friends.
Until next week may your God go with you wherever you may be.
