Tillandsia (Air Plant)

By Serena Yeh

Occupying the precious window sill real estate along with my baby succulent is my air plant. I bought a white ceramic pot some time ago, and its head actually had a small sack of grass seeds. It didn’t work out with the grass seeds though—I probably drowned it with too much water. The pot didn’t have a drainage hole either, so I initially thought there wasn’t much I could do with the pot. Until I had a moment of insight- I could plant an air plant in it! I bought a small air plant years ago at a specialty shop in Half Moon Bay. It was only a couple dollars, and it seemed so cool to me. It had no roots, so you could put it anywhere. The shop displayed it inside some sea urchin shells, and showed how you could put it up anywhere. After that, I placed it outside, and it multiplied and grew quickly. Just like most succulents, it’s easy to have these air plants reproduce. When it reaches about the size of the fist, I gently separate the parts of the air plants. Also like most succulents, it's easy to forget about watering them. Even though they’re called air plants, they do need water to live! Online, they give tips about soaking your air plants in water once a week, but I’ve found that spritzing some water once a week works just as well. Of course, they shouldn’t be drowning in water for their lifetime, but just enough to keep their leaves plump. Because they have no roots, it makes for cool decoration inside and outside. They can be found inside my metal flamingo shaped pot, on a bird’s watering plate, and more. Occasionally, they flower too. They have thin purple buds that only last a couple days, but its short lifetime makes it more special.