Guzmania (genus, tufted airplant)

Japanese name: グズマニア
Scientific name: Guzmania

[Overview]
A perennial 20–60 cm tall that grows mainly as an epiphyte on trees in tropical rainforests.
The leaves form a rosette; they are sword-shaped with a glossy surface and have no spines on the margins.
The leaf bases overlap to form a tube, where water collects in the plant's native habitat, and the plant grows by absorbing nutrients and moisture through its leaves as well.
The flower stalk is erect and bears a spike-like or compound spike-like inflorescence.
The flowers are small and inconspicuous, and the beautifully colored bracts are the ornamental feature.
The bracts do not fade for several months.
The flowers have 3 petals, the same length as the sepals, and the petals and sepals are either free or fused at the base into a tube.
The petals are white to yellow and have a small ligule at the base.
A plant that has flowered once produces offsets and then dies.
The fruit is a capsule.

[Cultivation]
Propagate by division.
A plant that has flowered once produces offsets and then dies, so the offsets are used to renew the plants.
It is an epiphyte that prefers heat and humidity, so potted plants are planted in sphagnum moss.
For overwintering, 10–12°C is safe, but it tolerates temperatures down to about 5°C.
From spring to autumn, place it in bright shade with good air circulation, and in winter place it by a sunny window or similar.
Direct summer sunlight causes leaf scorch.
From spring to autumn, water by filling the tube formed by the leaves, pouring generously so that the water is replaced each time.
When temperatures begin to fall, turn the plant upside down to empty the water, and in winter leave only a little water in it.
It prefers high air humidity, so mist the leaves throughout the year.
Apply slow-release fertilizer once every 2–3 months from spring to autumn.
When the color of the bracts fades after flowering, cut off the flower stalk so that nutrients go to the offsets.
Pests include scale insects and spider mites.

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