Question
Bromeliad
Hello,
I bought two bromeliad plats from garden centre last year and they seemed to be quite happy for several months. Over they past few weeks they have started to die/turn grey. The leaves are fine, it is just the blooms that don't seem to happy.
I live in the UK and they are kept in a warm room but I have no idea how I should be treating them. The plants came with no instructions and both are in some kind of soil.
On the attached image, the plant on the right was a much brighter red a few weeks ago. It looked like they were both growing. The large red plant on the left grew more yellow blooms grew at the top and more shoots appeared within the leaves. And the quill on the plant on the right started to also grow shoots. But then it all stopped. Please can you give me some advice on what I should be doing? They are really pretty.
Kind regards
Natalie
AnswerNatalie,
Your bromeliads appear to be varities of Aechmea. You can learn a lot more about bromeliads at the following website: http://www.bsi.org/
Read especiallly the frequently asked questions.
Like most bromeliads, urn plant only blooms once then dies. When the flower is ugly you can cut it off and enjoy the leaves for several more months. Allow the plant to die back naturally. After flowering, you can expect each plant to produce 2-3 pups that will grow up from the base of the plant. Remove them when they are about 5 months old and at least 6 in (15 cm) tall and plant them in their own containers. Propagating its offsets that grow at the base of the plant will allow you to enjoy these beautiful plants for years to come. More questions write again. Good luck.
Darlene
