THIS PLANT IS ON C.I.T.E.S. AND CANNOT BE EXPORTED

A Guatemalan species to about 8 x 10 inches with lovely thick silvery leaves, a bright red, cylindrical, simple spike and purple flowers. Nice for mounting. Considered an endangered species, is rather rare in nature, but very commonly cultivated. Especially easy to grow, a confidence builder for beginners.

Many years ago I acquired my first specimen of this fine Tillandsia from Fred Fuchs, famed orchid collector and explorer, and never dreamed that I would ever see it growing wild. Years later our explorations took us to the arid scrub forests of western Ecuador and northern Peru where this plant was abundant, often in the crowns of towering Bombax trees.

A beautiful species with rather thin, very dark gray, stiff, almost brittle leaves in a symmetrical open rosette that can reach 18 inches across.

The inflorescence, a tall spike with a cluster of short branches, develops slowly, becoming vivid lacquer red and lasting in color for months.

This is a very odd hybrid that doesn’t much resemble either parent. Assuming that the reported cross is correct, the plant does not have the thick leaves of either parent, the long stem or curled leaves of duratii or an inflorescence resembling either parent in any way. The flowers are large, spreading and light blue, borne on a tall scape with green bracts. The foliage is silvery, stiff, straight and forms a leafy rosette. Whether this hybrid is correctly identified remains a question, at least to me, but does not take away from the fact that this is a handsome plant.

An apparent natural hybrid from Mexico of (brachycaulos x paucifolia) as identified by Harry Luther. After acquiring the plant, Bill Timm made a note to ‘Ask Harry’ and I guess the name stuck. Wouldn’t have been my pick, but it is what it is. Anyway, this is a handsome little plant in an upright vase shape of stiff, deeply channeled leaves that are reddish with light silver banding. The inflorescence is fairly short, may or may not branch and is pink with blue flowers. Showy plants. 

A hybrid of (brachycaulos x schiedeana). Upright to 10 inches, it has rather narrow leaves and an attenuated inflorescence that forms a tightly capitate head. A late-spring bloomer, with rosy-blushing silvery leaves and yellow flowers. This is a very interesting and different-looking plant. 

A hybrid of (capitata x streptophylla). An extraordinary beauty that takes on a bulbous shape with wide, recurving, curling leaves coated with silvery scurf.

The inflorescence is fairly short with long, curling scape bracts and a tightly clustered head of red branches and light blue flowers. The whole plant takes on a reddish-peach blush at anthesis. A choice plant. 

A hybrid reported to be a cross of (durangensis x seleriana) by Bill Timm. We grew these from seedlings given to us by Bill. The plants have an open rosette shape of fairly broad, recurving, silvery leaves that can reach almost 20 inches across. 

The inflorescence can reach about 12 inches tall with very long, stiff, leaf-like red bracts. Many short, red branches point upwards from between the bracts and will produce tubular purple-blue flowers.

Honestly we cannot see either parent in the cross, but the plant has been registered and does match the photo in the registry.

This hybrid by Bill Timm is a cultivar of (chiapensis x roland-gosselinii). One of those ‘dream crosses’ using two fantastic plants as parents and getting stunning results. The hybrid is right down the line between the two, taking on the silver leaves and inflorescence shape of the chiapensis parent and the size, and inflorescence coloration closer to the roland-gosselinii parent. Reaching a full 30 inches across, the plant is impressive for size alone, but can also stay in bloom for months. A great plant. 

C.I.T.E.S. - The harrisii parent makes this plant ineligible for shipping outside of the U.S. Sorry!

A beautiful and unusual hybrid of (ionantha x harrisii). A graceful upright rosette with arching, velvety-white leaves that taper to a fine point. The rosette is about ten inches across and nine inches tall with many leaves. The leaf texture is rather soft and the leaves are coated with silvery trichomes on both sides. At anthesis the center few whorls of leaves blush pink and an inflorescence of reddish pink emerges but stays lower in the center of the plant. Flowers are tall and tubular, blue with lighter tips.

We first got this plant from a friend under formula, before the name ‘Nugget’ was given and registered. This is a cultivar of crocata x duratii by Barry Genn, both species highly fragrant but the hybrid of the two barely so. That said, it’s beautiful!

Our plant originally was quite small and ‘wimpy’ with few leaves and kind of scrawny looking. Under the care of Veronica our Tillandsia grower, it has become a much larger, robust plant with a nicely branching inflorescence and curling, silvery leaves.

The flower color is buttercup yellow, kind of surprising with the normally dominant duratii in the mix, but all better for it. We have found that if kept well fed and in good light and air circulation, the plant is vigorous and will produce offsets. Different and attractive. 

An interesting cross of kegeliana x rothii for which we have little information. The plant most certainly show strong influence of the rothii parent with an open rosette shape of wide, fairly stiff leaves and a branched inflorescence of inflated branches. The kegeliana doesn’t manifest itself much but definitely makes the plant look a lot different than a pure rothii. The flowers are white.

A handsome, fairly large growing hybrid by Bill Timm is an unusual cross of (capitata domingensis x dasyliriifolia). The plants are leafy, with fairly narrow leaves tapering from about .75 of an inch to a slender point. The color is reddish, and becomes deeper colored in strong light.

The inflorescence is very tall with many branches held upright to the rachis, deep burgundy red with red bracts. Produces many offsets. Quite showy.