Bromeliads

About Bromeliads

The bromeliads sold as houseplants are mostly tree-perching relatives of the pineapple from Florida, the Caribbean and tropical America, with a rosette of leathery, often banded leaves that forms a central cup or 'tank' that holds water (Clemson, NC State). Guzmanias and vrieseas carry a flaming red, orange or yellow bract spike for months, and aechmea, the silver vase plant, holds a pink spike for weeks. Each rosette blooms once and then slowly dies, leaving pups around its base that bloom in a few years.

Hardy outdoors only in zones 10-12 (NC State for guzmania and aechmea); they are grown indoors everywhere and can summer outdoors in shade once nights stay above about 60 F, coming in when temperatures cool (Clemson, NC State).

When to plant

Timing is counted from your average last spring frost (and first fall frost). Sow & Tell works out the actual dates for your ZIP code.

Usually bought as a blooming nursery plant; new plants come from the pups (offsets) that form around the base after flowering (Clemson, NC State).

Growing it indoors

• Light: Bright, filtered light: aechmea and neoregelia take the brightest spots and color up best there, guzmania and vriesea want moderate light, and hot direct sun bleaches and burns the leaves (Clemson, NC State).
• Water: Keep about 1 in of water in the central cup, dump and refill it monthly so it doesn't go stale or build up salts, and water the mix itself only when it has dried out, less in winter (NC State, Clemson). Soft or distilled water is kinder to the cup, and soggy mix is the main way they rot.
• Humidity: Guzmania and vriesea want constantly moist air with good air movement, so mist, group plants or use a pebble tray in dry rooms (Clemson).
• Temperature: Clemson gives 60-85 F for good growth; guzmania and vriesea want steady warmth, and cold or dry air shows as brown leaf tips (NC State).
• Feeding: Lightly: a liquid fertilizer at half strength or less in summer, misted on the leaves or poured into the cup during active growth, and none in winter (Clemson, NC State).
• Repotting: Rarely; pot the pups in a small 4-6 in pot of porous mix when they are about a third the size of the parent (guzmania) or about 6 in tall (aechmea), and leave the old plant to feed them until then (NC State).

Soil

A porous bark-based orchid mix, or houseplant mix with bark and perlite added, in a small pot; the roots are mostly for anchoring and must never sit in soggy mix (NC State, Clemson).

Pot in a porous bark-based orchid mix, or houseplant mix with bark and perlite, in a small pot that drains fast (NC State, Clemson).

Feeding

• Spring and summer, during active growth: liquid houseplant fertilizer at half strength or less. Mist it on the leaves or pour it into the cup, about monthly (Clemson, NC State); Clemson feeds cryptanthus monthly from mid-spring through early fall.
• Fall and winter: none. Stop feeding and water the mix less often (NC State).

Soggy mix and stale water in the cup rot the plant; salts from heavy feeding build up in the cup, so flush it monthly (Clemson, NC State).

Harvest

Each rosette blooms once, often for months (aechmea first at 3-5 years old, vriesea in late winter, guzmania in summer), then slowly dies while pups form at its base (Clemson, NC State). Cut off the faded spike, keep watering the old plant until the pups are a third its size, then pot them up.

Varieties (13)

Clemson HGIC and NC State name these species and cultivars among the common houseplant bromeliads.

Pests to watch for

Scale insects, Mealybugs

Diseases and problems

Root and crown rot, Crown rot, Leaf spot

In the kitchen

Safety: Not listed as poisonous to people (NC State); aechmea leaves carry small black teeth along the edges that can scratch, so handle it with gloves (NC State).

Pets: Non-toxic to dogs and cats (ASPCA, listed as blushing bromeliad, Neoregelia spp.); NC State also tags the silver vase bromeliad (Aechmea fasciata) non-toxic for cats, dogs and horses.