Sunday, September 28, 2014

Tillandsia kolbii blooms!

Tillandsia kolbii used to be called Tillandsia ionantha v. scaposa. It certainly fits in well with my  many ionanthas, but on closer inspection, it's very much a different Tillie. It's a small and compact Tillandsia (5-10cm tall, about 3cm wide) with a slight curve to the body, similar to the curve of T. paucifolia. The body is thinner than the ionanthas and the leaves hug each other more, giving it a less bushy appearance. It also likes to be a bit colder and damper than ionanthas. It appreciates extra mistings! Kolbiis prefer less light than ionanthas. Nor do they turn bright red before they bloom as certain ionanthas such as "Fuego" tend to do.
Tillandsia kolbii, formerly T. ionantha v. scaposa, MR, 2014
T. kolbii hails from Guatemala and likes to hang out at elevations of around 1,500 to 2,000m. The bloom is a light lilac as opposed to the bright amethyst of the ionantha. Lovely!

Hope all of you had  wonderful weekend walkabout somewhere beautiful. We have had so much rain that our local walking path grew a lake, which attracted several dozen gregarious ducks.
Neighbor Ducks, MR, 2014

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