Boy, if there is a good thing about being sick......besides finding out who supports you,
I was given so many plants, most I have experience with but two I have none....
I have already gotten help with the orchids ....
I received a bromeliad. It is doing real well, it has a baby now, , when is the best time to separate>
The medium seems to be mostly if not all peat. Is the the proper way to pot them up?
Thanks for your help

I don't separate my pups until they are approximately 6" tall. Many people won't separate them at all, preferring to let them continue growing along side the dying "mother" plant. I do that with my mounted plants, removing the dying leaves 1-2 at a time until only the pup(s) remain.

I use a well-draining potting media. Keep in mind, the major function of the bromeliad's roots are anchorage, not water/nutrient uptake.

Thank you @DrDawg
So they are like agaves and the mother plant will die after it blooms or is it when the pups start growing

No, bromeliads will die after blooming. The mother plant can grow pups just before, during, or even months after blooming. But the mother plant will die regardless whether pups have formed or not.

My Aechmea fasciata takes a full year after the blooms are finished (and they last a long time) before the mother dies. By then the pups are ready to bloom.

Aww, that's sad. It was blooming when I received it and that was months ago. It doesn't look like it is fading or dying the bloom and the leaves look real good. I hope this one lasts a year,
So more than likely there will be more pups? Thanks for your help

My experience has been like Carol's the mother plant can take forever to expire. Frankly, I don't think I have ever seen an actual dead mother plant, they just seem to fade away quietly and by that time the little ones have filled the area.

This neoregalia lives outdoors and normally it is nestled in a large piece of driftwood. I removed it for a demonstration in a Master Gardener class last week. It must have had a mother plant in the middle originally. You can see the little pot only anchors the plant. It looks raggedy now because it is winter. It will get all new, brightly colored leaves as the weather warms. The hanging basket with the red leaves is the same plant, that is how it will look in summer.

That's a really nice plant, Alice. Good growing. I like the way the pups grow away from the mother plant, year by year. None of the bromeliads I have grow that way.

That is a really cool plant. . Thanks for the info. I do hope it fades quietly,

drdawg said:That's a really nice plant, Alice. Good growing. I like the way the pups grow away from the mother plant, year by year. None of the bromeliads I have grow that way.

The same here. They look lovely growing that way. I can't wait to get my hands on some of the smaller ones.

I'm glad my addictive nature is only focused on plants
If it wasn't bad enough, now it involves bromeliads and orchids. I always admired them but now I am online looking to purchase, my addictive personality says very much! My pocket book says....no comment,

drdawg said:That's a really nice plant, Alice. Good growing. I like the way the pups grow away from the mother plant, year by year. None of the bromeliads I have grow that way.

I agree that is a really nice plant. I do not know much about Bromelaids but that is very interesting because I did not know any grew pups away from the mother plant.

The plant is a Neoregalia 'Zoe'. I understand it is a hybrid of 'Fireball' but I have another one, 'Violet Rose Fireball' and they do not share any characteristics.