Epiphytes
- Natural terrarium decoration
- Durable moss cushions
- Freshly green when moist, silvery white when dry
- Small Tillandsia from Guatemala
- About 5 - 8 cm high
- Pink-red leaves during bloom
- Epiphyte from Peru and Ecuador
- Exudes a pleasant scent
- Densely branched bushes
- For desert or steppe terrariums
- Rainforest Tillandsia from Central America
- Snake-like curved, thin leaves
- Widened rosette basis
- Small compact Tillandsia
- Narrow and upright growing
- For rainforest terrariums
- Small Grey Tillandsia from Mesoamerica
- About 5 - 8 cm high
- Contrasting colours during bloom
- Striking Tillandsia selection from eastern Mexico
- Relatively small, compact rosette
- Light green to light yellow leaves during flowering time
- White flowers
- Epiphyte and rock plant from the Andean countries
- Forms densely leafy stems
- Suitable for dry forest and semi-desert terrariums
- Sprawling green Tillandsia
- Striking, bizarre appearance
- For rainforest terrariums
- Epiphytic or substrate cultivation
- Compact, colourful rosette of leaves
- Decorative due to bright leaf colours
- Flower inconspicuous, positioned in the centre
- Ideal for humid terrariums
- Also called Philodendron "Mini"
- Small climbing aroid
- Lanceolate leaves
- Rather slow growth
- Suitable for rainforest terrariums
- Delicate variant of Spanish moss
- Forms grey-green curtains and "beards"
- Suitable for rainforest terraria
- Also traded as "Tillandsia argentea var. fuchsii"
- Fine-leaved air plant from Mexico
- Roundish rosettes
- Green Tillandsia from South America
- Solitary deep red flower
- Easy to keep species
- Originates from South America
- Bromeliad family
- Epiphytic growth
- Lance-shaped, striped leaves
- Thrives at 18 - 27 °C
- Compact, rosette-like growth habit
- Colourful leaf pattern
- Low growth height
- Bright, indirect light required
- Ideal for small terrariums
- Epiphytic lifestyle
- Bright flower colours
- Decorative leaf pattern
- Low maintenance requirements
- Humid climate preferred
- Bromeliad cultivar
- Delicate blossoms with intense colour
- Water-retaining rosette
- Sunny to semi-shady
- Prefers warm temperatures
- Stem-forming Tillandsia from the Peruan Andes
- Grows naturally on rock faces
- Suitable for moderately dry terrariums
- Large grey Tillandsia
- Silvery grey-green and velvety
- Recommendable for dry forest terrariums
- Attractive epiphyte from Brazil
- Inflorescences with peach tones
- Recommendable for dry forest terrariums
- Rosette-shaped Tillandsia
- size of 10 - 20 cm
- Red leaves in good light and during flowering
- Blue-purple flowers
- Suitable for rainforest terrariums
- Lichen-like appearance
- Forms silver-grey curtains and "beards"
- Suitable for subtropical humid forest terrariums
- Epiphyte from southern Bolivia and northwestern Argentina
- Laterally twisted leaves
- Broad, fragrant, light pink flowers
Terrarium plants - Epiphytes - Green up your terrarium!
These plants grow on other plants. Algae on aquatic plants are also epiphytes, but here we are talking about those that grow on trees and shrubs. Unlike parasites, they do not tap into the pathways of the host plant to supply themselves with water and nutrients. They are merely sitters that can access more light in this way than on the forest floor. In northern latitudes it is mainly mosses, lichens and algae on the bark of trunks and branches, in the warmer regions of the world there are countless "higher" plant species. There are particularly many epiphytes among the orchids and ferns, and Central and South America is known for its countless epiphytic bromeliads. Even cacti, otherwise inhabitants of dry areas, colonise humid tropical forests there as epiphytes, including rod cactus (Rhipsalis) and Christmas cactus (Schlumbergera). Epiphytes are most common in rainy and foggy areas, but various Tillandsia species can also be found in dry forests and even semi-deserts.
In cultivation, many epiphytes need a loose substrate in which to root. The "atmospheric" epiphytes, on the other hand, only need to be attached to a base because they absorb water and nutrients via their leaves or aerial roots. Epiphytes from rainforests usually need high humidity and frequent humidification. In contrast, the so-called grey tillandsias in particular must not be kept too moist. They should be allowed to dry out after spraying and need air movement.