Spanish Moss

Spanish Moss Care

Tillandsia usneoides

What is the plant

If you are tired of cleaning the soil and no pot fits your interior, Tillandsia usneoides is a perfect choice because this plant grows without anything.

Tillandsia usneoides is known as Black Moss, Vegetable Hhorsehair, Long Moss, Spanish Beard, Tree Hair, and Spanish moss. In nature, the plant grows in the southern United States and in some regions of Central and South America.

This is a unique air plant that is easy to care for. It can grow up to 25 feet (8 m) in length.

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Humidity

High

Lighting

Part Sun

Hardiness zone

9a - 12b

Difficulty

Medium

How to Care for the Plant

Water
Proper watering is the only tricky point in caring for this unusual plant. However, everything is clear here because you only need to simulate rain, so soak your Tillandsia usneoides in water for a few minutes. The plant must dry completely between waterings.
Pruning
You can prune the plant to form a good shape, but don't do it too often as it grows slowly.
Fertilizer
Use special fertilizers for air plants. If you have an aquarium, your Spanish Moss is in luck because you can soak it in this water, where the plant will receive additional nutrients.

Disease diagnosis

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Sunlight
In nature, Spanish Moss grows in the crowns of trees or under them, so this plant is not used to direct sun. That is why the best place for him will be any windowsill, except for the Southern one.
Soil
By identification, this is an air plant, so you won't need any soil mix.
Propagation
You can try growing Tillandsia usneoides from seed, but this process takes longer. A much simpler way is to separate groups of strands. Each group will continue to grow further.

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Temperature
Tillandsia usneoides is not very capricious about the temperature regime and grows perfectly in room conditions. However, try to keep the room temperature below 22ºF (-5ºC).
Container
Good news — this air plant does not need a pot at all, so you can place it in your interior on any stand and shelf, depending on your preferences.
Fun fact
Native Americans call it "itla-okla" which means 'tree hair'.