Tillandsia mallemontii

[mrhappyrotter]

I mentioned this species of Bromeliad in another thread, so I figured I'd show it off a bit more in its own post.

T. mallemontii is vegetatively similar to Spanish Moss (Tillandsia usneoides), just a slightly larger version of it, like Spanish Moss on steroids. You can see both species in these photos, and even out of bloom, they are easy to tell apart because of the difference in size of the growths.

There are many nice qualities to discuss with this species. At least in the USA, it's inexpensive and relatively easy to acquire. It's super easy to grow and bloom. It blooms almost non-stop year round, except perhaps in the height of winter when it slows down a bit. The flowers are fairly large for a Tillandsia and relative to the size of the plant. And the best part is, the flowers are nicely fragrant. They are very similar to the fragrance of Spanish Moss, both of which are very similar to Brugmansias in scent if that's one you're familiar with. It's heavy. It's gaudy. It's perfumey. And it's wonderful!

 

[Paphluvr]

I’ve tried growing Spanish moss here in MI that I had collected while down south on business. I didn’t have much luck with it which I attribute to our humidity not being consistently high enough. I did, at one time though, grow a number of other Tillandsia with the orchids.