Puya Bromeliad Species

had a gemination rate of nearly 100%. bought the seeds (online shop) and stored them dry at about 4°C for 5 month. sowed about 50 seeds ...Read Moreon flatened cocos humus and kept the soil very wet. the pot is in a reptile tank lighted 18 hours by two fluorescent tubes by high air humidity and about 22°C. sprayed pure wather on the seeds and in the tank, nearly every day. now, after 2 weeks i count 50 baby plants.

Sow superficial, NEEDS LIGHT!!! about 70 % germination rate can be assured if you comply with it

Seed sown 24th April zone 8a Uk in sunny greenhouse with some shading. Seed tiny bits of brown, flat, looks like debris, sown on surface...Read More of leafy/gritty/moss peat mix, covered loosely with plastic. Long time to germinate, most surviving, ended up with 13, bulk of growth put on late summer/early autumn. Cool summer, often less than 20C, seemed to like it. Quickly filling pot, unsure whether to prick out now or spring, will be keeping inside over winter this year, may try some outside when larger. I have sandy, stony river-bed soil, frosts rarely beyond -5C, can be to -9C and have had to -20C winter 1982 prolonged frost and snow. Last prolonged frost 2000 to -9C, history indicates this cycle is every 18-20 years, so I remain optimistic! Also sowed puya alpestris with no result.

This is an impressive xeriphytic bromeliad great for large cactus gardens where a silver-colored plant would be desired. It is a prolifi...Read Morec suckerer, as many bromeliads are, and though it's supposed to be monocarpic, each sucker lasts a long time before flowering and hardly affects the plant as a whole at all. The flowers are huge and showy relative to the size of the leaves (curve, thin and very sharp). A Chilean native.