Puya Bromeliad Species, Blue Puya

I already grew puya alpestris then started some seedlings of this so called P. Berteroniana . The alpestris has thinner leaves and mor...Read Moree controlled growth. While the berteronianas took off like crazy and have become HUGE. They now have several big multiple heads. They have wider leaves, and bigger thorns ( armature) . A word of warning......give them plenty of room. Most puyas are as drought hardy as cactus. I hardly ever water mine except when I see a flower spike starting. While my alpestris blooms regularly every 2-3 years none of my berteroniana have even considered it. They are under 10 years old .Don't know how many years it will take. But I expect the bloom spikes will be 6 ft. tall ( alpestris spikes are much shorter) and have the same beautiful flowers as alpestris. Frost hardiness seems as good as for alpestris. Although here in Santa Rosa we haven't had anything near the teens of the big freeze in the 90s. As with alpestris and I believe most puyas, you will need two plants for cross pollination if you want to get seeds. One final warning.....berteronianas with their larger armature are quite dangerous to be near & deal with.

In 2013, (Zizka et al, 2013) it was shown that what has been called Puya berteroniana in the past is actually referrable to a population ...Read Moreof Puya alpestris (which they name, Puya alpestris ssp zoellneri); "true" Puya berteroniana is probably of hybrid origin and is only known from the original collection.

I'm trying to get them to grow, no luck so far. It's been three weeks.

I saw this plant on EBAY and the seeds go for big money. I obtained seeds from TradeWindsFruit for 2.00 including shipping. First time I ...Read Morehad no luck and am on my second try.