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Archives (2001)
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Bromeliads: the exotic plant
by Rita T. dela Cruz
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October-December
2001
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In Sam Chism's personal reflection on bromeliads,
he said, bromeliads are one of the best kept secrets in the
plant world. They are diverse, fascinating, and relatively
easy to grow.
 Bromeliads
are tropical plants native to the Americas. Its fleshy leaves
form a funnel that holds water. They look quite different
from traditional plants that is why a lot of people consider
them exotic. They grow in diverse places like rain forests,
deserts and coastal areas. There are two types of bromeliads
according to Dr. Ben Vergara, a bromeliad grower in the Philippines.
These are the bromeliads with colorful foliage and the bromeliads
with flowers. The foliage-type grows relatively slow but according
to him, they have higher selling price compared to the flowering-type.
Meanwhile, the flowering bromeliads grow faster and have wider
use. The more flowers they have, the higher the selling price.
Among the flowering bromeliads that are popular in the market
are the guzmania, vriesea, tillandsia and aechmea.
Due to the peculiarity of bromeliads, a lot
of people think they are difficult to grow. As a result, bromeliads
have not caught the attention of plant collectors as much
as other exotic plants.
Bromeliads are shade-and cool-loving plants. Shading them
with fish net is recommended to minimize the intensity of
the sun and to control the temperature. Low temperatures help
the plant produce more colorful flowers and give it a waxy
appearance. For potting purposes, growers may use a wide range
of materials. Coir dust is a favorite among growers due to
its availability and low cost, and has been proven to inhibit
weed growth.
To support plant growth, these bromeliads need
to be nourished with fertilizers. The usual fertilizers are
osmocote, multicote and nutricote, which are readily available
in the market. These fertilizers are a bit more expensive
than the complete fertilizer most growers use. The frequency
of application depends on the fertilizer being applied and
may be as frequent as once every three months or only once
during the lifetime of the plant.
One of the advantages of growing bromeliads
is that it has very few pests. The most serious are "mealy
bugs" which can be easily eliminated by spraying Sevin.
Other pests include plant hoppers, snails and caterpillars.
Meanwhile, the most common disease is rotting, although maintaining
the water level and removing infected plant parts can prevent
this.
Just like any plant, scientists have extensively
hybridized the bromeliads resulting to various cultivars with
more colorful and improved traits. Newly discovered or hybrid
plants often sell to collectors and plant enthusiasts for
a big sum. Many of these new hybridized bromeliads resulted
to more striking plants with both bloom and foliage. These
new plants offer more colors and shades than any other plant.
According to Dr. Vergara, orange and red and their combinations
are the most common and most saleable hybrid of the bromeliads,
although the yellow hybrid is also highly in demand. The whitish
green hybrid is locally available while those with purple
and maroon bracts are the least saleable variants. 
(Source: "Growing bromeliads in Laguna
and Quezon by Ben Vergara; a paper presented during the 6th
Philippine Floriculture Congress, September 6-8, 2001 and
http://www.ghg.net/beyer/bromel.htm)
More Articles:
Vol. 3 No. 4 October-December 2001
»»
Outstanding technologies identified in nat'l R&D week
»» Thailand,
Philippines convene for agri cooperation
»»
Prospects for the ornamental industry in the new millennium
»» UPLB
scientists develop new hybrids of Philippine ornamentals
»» New management
techniques for exportable foliage plants
»» In
focus: a date with the "king of cut flowers"
»» Brighten
your homes with aglaonema
»» King
in red and green
»» Cashing
in with the 'lucky bamboo'
»» Turfgrasses:
the preferred ground cover
»» Catching
the invisible enemy with ELISA
»» Grow
dracaena godseffiana the easy way
»» Bromeliads:
the exotic plant
»» Wag that
fish-tail fern
»» Mass
propagating the 'doņas' through kulob system
»» Beauveria
mold bioinsecticide: safer control against orchid pests
»» Orchids
and mycorrhiza: a lesson from the wild
»» Controlling
white rust in chrysanthemums
»» Ways to
enhance palm seed germination
»» Prolonging
the vase life of cut flowers with ethylene adsorbent and Florafresh
»»
Mass producing the fragrant kamuning
»» The
national RDE program for ornamental crops
»» GMA
presents 2001 Gawad Saka awards
[More
2001 Articles]
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