Air plants have become a top contender in being the most wanted houseplant, and with indoor plants already being such a huge trend, that’s saying something. They don’t need any soil so you’re free to move them around and display them as you like. Plus, they’re as low maintenance as a plant can be. Read on to get all the details on this must-have plant!
Tillandsia (a.k.a. air plants) is the largest genus in the bromeliad family. There are more than 600 known species and countless hybrids. They’re native to Central and South America and even a small part of the Southern US. Did you know – Tillandsia are epiphytes, which means they typically live on on a branch, trunk, rock, or other place that isn’t soil so they aren’t saturated in water for long.Tillandsia roots are purely for attachment to tree branches or whatever surface they chose to attach to. So you don’t even have to worry about watering them!
Where to put your air plants to keep them healthy?
Air plants love indirect bright light. So placing your plant in a room with sunlight coming in will work best for them. You can also use artificial light if any of your rooms don’t have the best light. Just remember to use the light 12 hour at a time. ( 6am-6pm)
Air plants prefer temperatures in the range of 50-60 degrees F at night rising to 80-90 degrees during the day. In other words, they’ll be pretty happy inside the average home, temperature-wise. What doesn’t make some of them so happy in the average home is the lack of humidity. (Mesics, I’m especially looking at you.) Keep your air plants away from heating vents and fires.
Overall, they prefer humidity in the 50-70% range. So its not too far off from the average indoor humidity level, which often falls around 40-60%, but not enough for them to do well without supplemental water.
Air Plant Watering
When it comes to air plants, there are some who swear by misting, others by soaking, or a combination. I will lay it out from the get-go; I fall into the soaking camp. I have a couple of reasons why I think this is easier and more practical.
If you choose to mist, to give your air plants enough moisture, misting needs to happen roughly every other day, depending on your tillandsia type and your conditions. (Again, less if you live in Miami, more if you live in Palm Desert.)
If you have just one air plant, that may be a realistic schedule to stick to. Just keep your mister nearby, whip it out and mist every other day or so.
Air Plant “Bath Day”
About every week I pick a day where I take all the air plants and place them in groups and dunk them into my water jug with collected rainwater. I soak them for at least 7-8 minutes then when the time is up I place them upside down to air dry completely before placing them back into their space near the window.
Did you know that air plants bloom! …
When air plants bloom, they will eventually die. It’s a slow process that may take several months or even more than a year, but it will happen. However, the upside is that it should produce pups which you can gently twist off and then you’ll have a new, smaller, air plant.
You can visit our Etsy shop to see over 50 different style air plant planters for your little air plant to show off in your space!
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