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Are you able to develop Spanish Moss indoors? You positive can! It’s not simply the cool plant that you just see hanging off oak timber and bald cypress timber within the southern United States. You may truly take pleasure in this uncommon plant indoors and it may be surprisingly straightforward to take care of.
Preserve studying to study extra about easy methods to develop this plant indoors.
ABOUT SPANISH MOSS
Earlier than I get into Spanish Moss care, let me talk about just a few details about this distinctive plant. It is extremely useful to study just a few issues about this plant so as to perceive its care.
WHAT IS SPANISH MOSS?
However first, what’s Spanish Moss? The scientific title for this plant is Tillandsia usneoides. Chances are you’ll be conversant in many different Tillandsia varieties (generally generally known as air crops).
Spanish moss is certainly an air plant. Different frequent names for Tillandsia usneoides aside from Spanish Moss embrace Spanish Beard and Outdated Man’s Beard.
French explorers usually known as it Spanish Beard as a result of resemblance of the beards of Spanish Conquistadors, whereas the Spanish usually known as it French Hair.
Spanish Moss is an epiphytic plant, which signifies that it grows on different crops, usually timber. Though one of many frequent names for this plant is Spanish Moss, it’s not a moss in any respect, and is a part of the bromeliad household.
WHERE DOES SPANISH MOSS COME FROM?
You’ll usually see this delicate silvery-grey air plant hanging on tree branches of their host tree within the southern components of North America, however they’re additionally native to fairly just a few nations in Central America and South America.
CAN YOU GROW SPANISH MOSS ON ANY TREE?
I’ll get to indoor care subsequent, however outdoor, Spanish moss tends to favor southern reside oaks and bald cypress. It could possibly simply be grown although on different timber although. It’s an epiphyte and NOT a parasite so it is not going to hurt no matter tree that it grows on.
Not like different Tillandsia (air crops) that develop roots to connect themselves onto timber, Spanish Moss has no roots. They’ve tiny little scales on the leaves which they use to cling onto their host tree.
SPANISH MOSS AIR PLANT CARE GUIDE
1. DISPLAYING
The fantastic thing about rising Spanish Moss is that there isn’t a soil and all you must do is dangle your crops nevertheless you’d like. In some ways, they’re simpler than displaying different varieties of air crops as a result of Spanish Moss could be very versatile and you’ll wrap the hair-like strands round something.
So long as your mild is suitable (see the subsequent part), you may drape them over a potted plant, dangle them from a ceiling hook, and even drape them over a plant stand. Your creativeness is the restrict!
You may even dangle them in your bathe you probably have sufficient mild, and even make a residing curtain. They make a pure companion plant to orchids and bromeliads, that are fellow epiphytes.
Spanish moss can be bought dried, so this isn’t the type that you really want. You’ll need to buy residing Spanish moss. I prefer to buy Tillandsia crops from Air Plant Metropolis.
They’ve affordable costs and a pleasant choice, and the crops are at all times good and wholesome!
2. LIGHT
If you concentrate on how this plant grows in nature, it hangs off branches of enormous timber, so it will get filtered mild or dappled solar.
Indoors nevertheless, we’ve got to do not forget that the sunshine depth is quite a bit lower than it’s outdoor (I discuss this intimately in my e book, Houseplant Warrior: 7 Keys to Unlocking the Mysteries of Houseplant Care (hyperlink to Amazon).
Due to this fact, it’s OK (and useful!) to present your Spanish Moss some direct solar indoors. Proper in entrance of an Japanese going through window (with direct daylight within the morning) is good.
Western-facing home windows are additionally nice.
You’ll need to keep away from home windows which have solar all day as a result of this can rapidly dry them out and it will likely be exhausting to maintain up with watering.
If you happen to solely have home windows that haven’t any direct solar in any respect and solely “brilliant oblique mild”, be sure you place your Spanish Moss instantly in entrance of the window. Mild depth drops very quickly with even quick distances the additional you progress away from a window.
3. WATERING
Watering your Spanish Moss is easy. Pure water sources, like rainwater, are greatest, however faucet water may also do. Attempt to use room temperature water and never chilly water.
Common watering indoors (significantly you probably have dry air) is essential, as is offering good air circulation.
There are a few methods to water your Spanish Moss. Relying on how you have got your crops displayed, you may both soak your crops in a bucket of water or in a sink for about half-hour, or mist them. You can even use a mix of each.
I develop my Spanish moss in my greenhouse and I often mist it each single day, however I actually try to soak it till it’s dripping. I take advantage of a stress sprayer with the wand set on the continual spraying setting) in order that I don’t have to carry the set off on the nozzle down and fatigue my hand.
Indoors, the best option to water your Spanish Moss is to present your crops a great soaking about as soon as per week or so, after which mist it 2-3 instances per week in between the soaking. If it’s not sensible to soak in a sink or bucket of water, you may mist on a regular basis or at the very least each different day.
You’ll know should you’re not offering sufficient water as a result of the strands will dry up and switch brown.
Once you mist, try to soak your plant till water begins dripping off. Chances are you’ll need to convey your crops to the bathe or bathtub so that you’re not making a large number.
When you’ve got a dense clump of moss, it’s much more essential to be thorough in watering. If you happen to discover that it’s too exhausting to get the strands moist on the within of your clump, chances are you’ll need to tease a few of the crops out to skinny out the clump.
Then you should use the crops that you just’ve thinned out to position elsewhere.
Scaling down the crops will make it simpler for mild to get to the middle, in addition to make watering simpler. When you’ve got a clump that’s too dense, you may even see the crops on the within begin to die.
Chances are you’ll need to think about putting your Spanish Moss crops outdoor throughout the heat summer time months. The heat, rainwater, and humid circumstances will profit your crops.
Place them below a tree, or hanging on tree branches, the place they’ll be within the shade or dappled solar.
So far as fertilizing goes, perhaps as soon as a month or so throughout the rising season, I’ll fertilize it with Dyna-Gro Develop.
I take advantage of this for all my tropical crops, and for Spanish Moss, I merely combine in 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon per gallon and spray it down with this resolution.
That is an incredible fertilizer and it accommodates all of the macro and micro vitamins that crops must be wholesome. I’ve been utilizing this fertilizer for years with fantastic outcomes!
SPANISH MOSS VARIETIES, CULTIVARS & HYBRIDS
Tillandsia ‘Maurice’s Robusta’
This cultivar is a thicker type of the species T. usneoides that was collected within the wild by Marice Kellett.
Tillandsia ‘Munro’s Filiformis’
It is a pure selection with inexperienced leaves and is native to Paraguay.
Tillandsia ‘Odin’s Genuina’
That is one other pure selection with brown flowers and is native to Guatemala and Mexico.
Tillandsia ‘Spanish Gold’
It is a type of T. usneoides with yellow flowers.
Tillandsia ‘Tight and Curly’
It is a type of T. usneodies that’s bought by California Gardens.
Tillandsia ‘Nezley’ (Tillandsia usneoides x mallemontii)
Tillandsia ‘Kimberly’ (Tillandsia usneoides x recurvata)
Tillandsia “Outdated Man’s Gold’ (Tillandsia crocata x usneoides)
I hope you’ve loved this submit on Spanish Moss air plant care. Have you ever tried rising Spanish moss? Remark beneath. I’d love to listen to!
