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catkim_gw

Personal question--?

20 years ago

During a garden tour the other day, someone asked me how many bromeliads I had. I really didn't know, I thought maybe 200, which seemed like a LOT to me for a small southern California garden. Then I went home and tried to count them. It came out to 300+ pots, clumps and "arrangements" (not individual plants). But hey, most of them are pretty small, right? I mean, I still have room for more... : D

So, if you don't mind me asking such a personal question, how many bromeliads are in your personal collection? Commercial growing grounds not counted in this question, just your personal collection.

And, by the way, how many is "enough"? Or how do you know you *really* have >>too manyPersonally, I feel my collection is nowhere near complete; like there are "holes" in the collection I would like to fill, although this is not to say I am being the least bit methodical in my collecting. I sincerely intend for all these to fit into my garden, not merely sit on shelves in pots. Is there a method to your, er, madness?

Comments (16)

  • 20 years ago

    1500 + lost count after that

  • 20 years ago

    500+ Tillandsias and about 200 potted and terra firma varied genera. It's gonna be really tough counting the individual plants on all my Spanish Moss clumps Kim but I'll give it a shot ;-)

  • 20 years ago

    Kim, I'm guessing here too,but I'd say around 300-350 pots,with some being lg. clumps.I'm trying to dedicate to dyckia,hechtia,[about 100]some smaller puya,cryptanthus,[about 60]and billbergias,[about 40].I have many other genera,that I'm trying to phase out to gain some room.Fortunatly,I have an outlet at the Buffalo Bot. Gdns.,where I can donate plants,so this helps in rotating what I'm currently collecting. Too many,is when you have no more room for them,which is where I find myself at the moment.As a volunteer at the bbg,I get to see the plants I've donated,and so,its like a home away from home to me.
    Nice set-up,no? ;-))
    Bob

  • 20 years ago

    I would guess I have close to 500 different kinds. Probably well over a hundred Neos. Lots of Vrieseas, Aechmeas, Billbergias, and Orthophytums. Decent representation from another dozen genera or so, ranging from a few nice spiny types, to some (still small) Alcantareas. Also a few bigenerics. Here are a couple of pictures of my 9' x 27' attached greenhouse loaded up for the winter. I've got 9 poles loaded up with an average of 35 plants per pole, plus limited bench space, hanging baskets,Tillandsias on the walls, and a flourescent light cart with room for 12 standard nursery flats. It's too crowded for winter, but the price one pays when one can't make decisions!

    {{gwi:512804}}

    {{gwi:512806}}

  • 20 years ago

    Bromeliaddict, your photos explain your name. Looks heavenly to me! : ) Based on gonzer and hotdd, I am only in the very early stages of the disease, so I'm not going to seek therapy yet. Bob it sounds to me like you have it under control, thanks to your special outlet at the bbg. Very nice set up, I agree!

  • 20 years ago

    P.S. I see the rest of you who didn't respond are either in total denial or are still outside counting...!

  • 20 years ago

    Bromeliadict,Ah yes,the winter storage puzzle.Your place looks like my place,but I have more space to walk,whereas,you only have a foot or so. Watering can be a real chore,yes? I don't have a greenhouse,[dang!]but a heated sunroom facing SSE,10'x18'. I'll try for some pics when we get a sunny day.Your plants look to be in great shape!
    PS,you don't have too many broms,if there is still space to walk ;)
    Bob

  • 20 years ago

    You only asked about personal collections not how many total. I had to decide at one point to finance my umm.. err...well.."addiction" to propagate and sell out of my collection.

  • 20 years ago

    I don't have a "personal collection" per se, so I didn't really know how to answer. I don't sell everything I have, but it's just a question of how many of that variety I have and how many I want to keep for stock. I'm pretty small scale as far as commercial producers go, but I've got thousands of plants, and always making more! I tried to do an inventory once years ago, just to put an estimated dollar value on everything, and it was almost impossible because as soon as a pup starts forming I consider it another plant.

    My shadehouse is packed to the gills, so I'm always having to toss out the ones that don't measure up. We've got a lot of acreage to toss them to, and sometimes they make it on their own and sometimes they don't, but I don't tend them or have any broms in my house. I have a big Werrauhia on the lanai, and that's it. So I guess that's my personal collection at the moment: 1 plant.

  • 20 years ago

    I am bromeliad challenged, I only have 6 neos, and they are all older varieties. I don't have much room to keep them over the winter here in Ohio. I'm going to add 6 to 12 more, and possibly replace a couple of my older ones. I want to do some hybridizing, and I figure my daughter will be moving out in the next year or 2 and I can use her room for plants. I want to put in large sliding glass doors and add a deck. This will put me in the shade garden, where my plants spend spring, summer, and fall anyway. I put them out in May and bring them in in September.

  • 20 years ago

    Bromeliaddict.....most fine!

  • 20 years ago

    I have mine all inventoried (for the most part) on my tradelist....but I have multiples of many and some I know I never included. Let me go do a count....

  • 20 years ago

    about 650-700

  • 20 years ago

    Hi all, up to date this morning is about 300 pots of nearly 250 different kinds,
    mostly are spiny, such as Dyckia : 70, Deuterocohnia : 10, Orthophytum : 45,
    Hechtia : 20, Encholirium : 10, Cryptanthus : 40, Tillandsia :20, and other genus 20.

    And as my plan, next week, a german friend will visit here with a dozen of Tillandsia and some spinies, such as Pitcairnia heterophylla etc.

    Yet, next week, a good friend of mine will be in CA for my spiny hunting that I hope he could get some most sought after stuffs back to Thailand before Christmas!!!

    LOL...Catkim..The world not enough (if you have bucks...:-)

  • 20 years ago

    I only have about 6, if I had more room I'd have lots more. I have too many other plants and always buy new ones even though I don't have the room! I need a greenhouse.

    Tom

  • 20 years ago

    I am fortunate as is Lisa to be able to keep plants outside or in screened shadehouses with only an occasional short cold spell. All of our collection is personal; although, with cryptanthus I sell at local sales and shows and WBCs, more to get these plants into cultivation and circulation. So although we may have 3000+ plants on my small lot and screened areas, nearly a third are cryptanthus. When you ask "How many are enough?", and you are on a quest to preserve any crypt species or hybrid cryptanthus introduced into cultivation, from extinction, the way I see it, as far as cryptanthus are concerned, when you are growing any and all of them that are still around, is enough. As you can see my addiction has a bit of obcessive/compulsion added.

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