Flaming Sword Plant

Does anyone else have one of these? I got it from a friend and the person they got it from they had a bird that chewed the leaves. Do I cut the chewed places off of the leaves or just leave it alone? It is blooming and is very wet, I thought I would leave it alone and try to see if it would dry out, is there any way to dry it faster? I don't want to lose it to root rot.

Here is some info for you. Your plant is Vriesea splendens, a member of the bromeliad family. I would remove it from the wet soil as most that I see are attached to driftwood with a bit of sphagnum moss covering the roots. It is my understanding that the plant dies back after flowering, but puts out new plants from the base before that happens, so I wouldn't worry with the chewed leaves. These links offer care advice.

http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/bromeliad/flaming-sword-plants.htm

http://houseplants.about.com/od/bromeliad1/p/Vriesea.htm

http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/plant-finder/plant-details/kc/b572/vriesea-splendens.aspx

Can I put the flaming sword plant in the green vase that once held my amaryllis bulb? I don't have any more potting soil or orchid mix. I did not see anywhere that it's roots have to have air, so do you think that would be alright?

I would give it a try, but no water in the vase...keep the cup of the plant supplied with water and see how it goes.

I think it is in trouble, I tried to get it out and the plant came off the roots, I went ahead and put it in the vase, and put water in the cup. Do you think it will still be ok? The soil was so wet it was compacted and wet that it held the roots in and the rest popped out. I will take a picture of it and maybe you can tell me if it will survive.

From what I can see, it looks like the crown may have rotted away. All you can do is adopt a wait and see attitude now. If there is any crown left, it may resprout roots, but the fact that it has bloomed means the mother plant is reaching the end of its life....it may yet send out a pup. Fingers crossed for ya.

It won't hold water now, I tried to put water in the cup of leaves and it went to the bottom of the vase. But I will keep the water in the vase, maybe it will survive long enough to throw a pup, not sure though. The other one is doing quite well, I think there is a pup there, but I am not going to tear anything out or off of it yet.

I ended throwing it away, it ended up dying on me but at least I was able to enjoy it for awhile. It dried out and died. But the other one is doing quite well. This is the other air plant I have, as you can see it is growing quite good. And this is my mother-in-law plant, I cut some of it off at the soil level because that part was dying. This is what is left and these are new plants(babies) if you want to call them that.

They both look like they are doing better. neither one wants to be wet though so let the sanseiveria dry out a bit between waterings.

How can I tell where the pup is on the Bromeliad? There is a lot of leaves and the parent plant is turing brown on the flower spike, I went to the video where it shows how to harvest the pups but I don't think mine is big enough yet, I will send you a picture and maybe you can tell me if it is or if I should let it grow somemore. I took 3 to show you the different views of the Bromeliad, so maybe you can give me some good advice.

I do not see any offsets as yet, but it takes time. You usually see them at the base of the plant or perched above the bottom set of leaves....but they can appear a bit higher up also. ( some folks report the pup showing up in the center. I found some info for you about offsets (pups). You do not have to rush to remove them.It is better to let them gain some size before you try cutting them off.

http://www.bromeliads.info/archives/beginners-guide-bromeliad-pups

http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/1648/

Thank you themoonhowl, I figured it was better to be safe than sorry. It is still pretty although the flower is turning brown as you can see. I am going to try to grow a pup on its own when it gets big enough to cut off. I have never heard of these kind of flowers before my neighbor gave me this one. So it is new to me, but I LOVE a challenge as you guys know!:)

Just follow the general quidelines and all should go well. Be sure to post when the pups start forming.