One frequently overheard comments at markets and plant shows when people walk past our stand are; ‘Oh those are those airplants, they live just on air’. This Friday we will explain why this isn’t really the case.Tilllandsias (airplants) are a genus of plants from the Bromeliaceae family; what makes them...
Viviparous Tillandsias
True vivipary- where an embryo develops within the fruit and grows to a size before dispersal, such as mangrove, occasionally tomatoes. Pseudovivipary- plants produce plantlets in the place of sexual reproductive structures. This is asexual reproduction. This is really the correct term for what Tillandsias do. For Tillandsias the term...
Fine and Fragrant
In January and February these delicate plants with fragrant flowers start to bloom to great effect. The new word for the week is melittophilous- pollinated by moths and/or butterflies which these frangrant Tillandsias are. Tillandsia mallemontii has thin delicate leaves and stems with dense silvery trichomes. It can form dense...