I was wandering through the Discovery Garden at the Hillsborough County Extension Office (Seffner, FL) this week and was fascinated by two enormous planters full of what I was told were Bromeliads. However, the staff could not give me the botanical name for the plants. Can any one identify this variety.?Thanks.
Because of its size and color, I would guess it's Aechmea blanchetiana. Have at look at http://fcbs.org in the Photo Index.
Dave.
I am surprised the staff couldn't answer your question.
They have a hand out that lists everything growing in the gardens, with the exception of some of the annuals.
Aren't the extension office gardens great?! I wish I could pick it up and stick it in my backyard.
I did take a copy of the handout and spent about a half hour trying to match up the plant to the extensive list, but I could not find anything that remotely matched. So I'm befuddled.
Agree with Dave that it's Aechmea blanchetiana!
JG
Thanks for all your help. After looking at a lot of pictures of Aechmea blanchetiana on the Web, I agree.
The plant I saw was out in direct sunlight and slightly frost damaged, so some of the characteristic orange color to the leaves was missing. Actually the leaves had an almost golden color to them, which was striking in the deep green pot.
Thanks again for steering me in the right direction.
I have tons of these, all from one pup I bought at a show many years ago. Mine turn deep orange in full sun, and are more yellow in shadier locations.
When we thin the beds out I give away 20-30 at a time- they are wonderfully prolific!
...one of the few Aechmeas that can really take full sun! I've got room for only one and it's not blooming size yet.
I thought that one was familiar. I just saw it on ebay. I Iove the color.
The auction has ended but it had nice pictures.
http://cgi.ebay.com/BROMELIADS-Aechmea-BLANCHETIANA-Offset_W0QQitemZ330095916590QQcategoryZ25463QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
330095916590
I'll bet those look awesome growing in the landscape.
Kinda like a mini hedge.
Beautiful!!
Janet
This message was edited Mar 8, 2007 6:08 PM
This has been a strange journey. I started this thread just so I could find out the name for the bromeliad. The staff at the Discovery Garden implied that the variety was hard to find and pricey, so I had no expectations of actually growing it. Then when everyone on this forum started raving about the plant and how prolific it was - I figured why not see what they sell for on eBay. Two were for sale at reasonable prices and I bought one! So thanks to everyone for the encouragement.
Well I'll chime in and say I have one too! I got mine at the USF Botanical Gardens. It was one of their big plant festivals and I got it from one of the bromeliad clubs. The spring plant festival is coming up April 14 and 15. I'm already putting money away in savings for it! Hope to see you there!
Cearbhaill:
Next time u have some to give out please keep me in mind........10 q
Well,
I'm new to the bromeliad forum. I have two that have severely overgrown their pots and I'd like to divide them for this summer. If there's a thread already discussing bromeliad division, I'd appreciate a link. Also, could ya'll identify this bromeliad for me? Thanks
Linda
Welcome...
Your plant is Aechmea fasciata - fairly easy to grow and always stunning in bloom.
Here's a link to cultural info including propagation... http://www.bsi.org/brom_info/growing/index.html
Basically you remove the offsets (pups) close to the mother plant when they are about 1/3 the size of the mother plant. For Ae. fasciata you will want to use pruners. You will usually get 3-5 pups depending on the size and vigor of the mother. You don't have to remove the pups - as your own picture shows a clump in bloom is impressive. The original blooming branch of the plant will not grow any more, but will help support the new offsets.
Other Bromeliads aren't quite as easy to propagate since they don't all put out woody stolons. Your growing conditions in Houston are very good for Bromeliads especially Neoregelias. They like that warmth and humidity!
Dave.
So, basically, to keep the impressive look of this bromeliad that sends out multiple blooms, I should just repot it to a larger pot, huh?
What's the best type of potting mix for the bromeliad? I don't know what it's currently planted in. And I do have a lot of trimming of the old dead branches? leaves? arms? What're they called?
Thanks.
Linda
Digital_Dave,
Disregard my post above. The link you sent has all the info I need. Thanks!
RE Bromliads offsets(pups),After removing from the mother plant,can they be planted straight away and is there any special soil mix to use,
