Good to know Cinta. I though hey grow on dirt:

Gigi, I think there are some that do grow roots in a soil medium, as they do not grow a cup/vase to keep filled. Maybe @DrDawg can tell us the difference.

I have only grown the "urn-bromeliads". I plant then in potting media and mount them. By the way, Bromeliads are air-plants, and Tillandsia are in the family of Bromeliad.

Yes they are. A friend had a huge blooming Tillandsia that she wanted to enter in a Flower Show. Took them awhile to figure out what to enter it as. One of the persons (judges?) at time of entry tried to tell her she couldn't enter it because they couldn't Judge it. Then another person said yes it is in the Bromeliad family and the Judges are trained to judge them. She ended up with Best in Show.

Thank you for the info.

IbisFla said:

In Florida, many office buildings have bromeliads in their lobbies. The blooms last for such a long time, and when they're done, they just replace the plant. They probably only have to replace them once or twice a year. That's still cheaper than buying cut flowers every week.

There are also several that can take partial sun or full sun even. I get those sometimes because the foliage colors are so pretty. Very versatile.

Zoe - small bromeliad whose leaves turn more red with higher light intensity.

• Bromeliad (Neoregelia 'Zoe')
• Uploaded by IbisFla

And my Fireballs in my spill pot - you can see how some of the plants are more green (grown in more shade) and some are more red (higher light)

Ahhhhhh I have to go in search of that one. I like the small one so I purchase the Cryptanthus.

Many years you will see a lot of bromeliads at the Philadelphia Flower show, it's the ideal plant and can survive the stress of a week under lights and iffy water.

I have a bromiliad (not sure what kind), and suddenly the leaves are turning light yellow. The mother plant bloomed, then the pups showed up and I recently cut away the mother (I had tried removing the pups and planting them last year but none of them survived -(where is that brown thumb emoji?)). It was doing fine, now this. Thoughts? He is in a south / south-west window with my new orchids. Maybe they don't like each other?

Darcy, that looks like one of the Vriesea bromeliads. I am confused though. Is this a "mother" plant that has bloomed, a pup that you salvaged from a previous mother plant, or a plant you have purchased that has not yet bloomed? It is not unusual for the lower leaves of bromeliads to yellow, then brown, and then fall off.

These are the pups. I removed the mother plant (cut it away and left the roots), and these were what was left.

OK, then they have not bloomed. It is simply the aging process, with the plants occasionally losing their lower leaves. Just be sure to keep some water in the "urn", allowing it to overflow when you water so that the potting soil gets moistened. I also add a very weak solution of fertilizer every so often (1/4 the recommended rate), especially when the plants are inside.

@drdawg,
Here is a photo of where I cut off the mother:



This is what is happening to the leaves on the remaining pups





and this is one of the pups I planted in his own - you can see the tip is yellow and other leaves are turning funny colors

This is what can/will happen secondary to the stress of being separated and potted. Just keep the plants misted, warm, and in fairly bright, indirect light so that these leaves can stabilize. When no more yellowing is occurring, you can then do some judicious trimming to improve the esthetics of the plants. If you wish, after 2-3 months, you can cut off the lower leaves that had to be trimmed, and just plant them a bit deeper in the potting soil, so that the de-leafed stem will be out of sight. The plants should be fine. I would not fertilize for a couple of months and then only use fertilizer that has been diluted 1/4 of its recommended dilution ratio.

Ken this would make a great article/tutorial on how to propagate/care for Vriesea bromeliads, or other bromeliads.
Very informative information here, would be a shame to loose it in a long thread.

Thank you for saying so, Lynn. I think Trish/Dave are probably tired of seeing my articles. I probably should give them both a rest for a little while. I have a couple in the queue.

Well, I for one thoroughly enjoy your articles, Ken! Thank you for all your help!!

Ken, I very much enjoy reading your info on my new addiction.

That's a "good" addiction, Jolana. Thank you for your kind words.