I do not use it at all, as it retains too much water. I do use a bit when potting orchids, and I make an orchid mix that has sphagnum moss mixed in, but I use more bark with orchids than I do with bromeliads. For bromeliads, I use a cactus/succulent mix, and it has served me well so far. Tillandsias I have mostly hanging freely in my apple tree with no soil or moss, and I mist them frequently. I've tried mounting some on grape wood, but they tend to fall off after a while, and so I mostly use special aluminum wire to suspend them.

Thanks Lars,

best I not use it then. I get the distinct impression the more i fuss over them the worst it is. It's fairly wet in Winter where I am so keeping them as dry as possible seems to be the go in terms of planting mediums.Have some Tillandsias hanging in my dwarf cherry tree which seem to be doing well,

chers

Hi everyone.

Len – A couple of things you must remember when using
Sphagnum Moss and most importantly is the fact that it can hold 16–26 times as
much water as its dry weight. The cells readily absorb water and retain it, and
even if the water could be squeezed out, the Moss does not collapse completely,and
like a sponge, is ready to take in fluid again as soon as it becomes available.
So when using it the key word is “Caution”.

I can only tell you how much I use when putting it around
the heel of pups to help promote roots, a technique I have used successfully
many times in my area with my growing conditions.

To give an idea of how much I use, it would be no more
than about 1/3 of a cup-full loosely packed and probably even less. You just
need a comfortable layer contacting the area of the heel where the new roots emerge
from and just wind it around that area to hold it in place until the plant is potted and the surrounding potting
mix holds it in position. If you use too much the base of the pup can
stay too wet and possibly rot especially in the colder months.

As for mixing it in with your potting mix, in my opinion,
I think this would keep the potting mix too wet. You must remember that almost
all of the bromeliads we grow are epiphytes which in habitat naturally grow on
trees, we only grow them in pots for our own convenience.

On trees, the roots can become soaked in a downpour but
shortly after the rain stops, they quickly dry out due the abundant circulating
air which you don’t get in a pot full of potting mix. If you also add Sphagnum
to the equation, the water retaining qualities of the Sphagnum only make the
situation worse and the plant stays far too wet in my experience.

We do read about growers who do this, but they may have
different conditions to us or a better chance to monitor the moisture in the
pots and adjust it accordingly. If you want to try something new, just do it on
a plant that isn’t valuable and one that you have spares of and record the
results you find, this is how we all learn what’s best for our plants.

One thing that's well known and agreed upon by numerous growers: more plants are killed by being too wet than too dry.

All the best, Nev.

Thanks Nev for the wealth of information and past experience. Given I have purchased 99% of my plants from the one supplier. I've around 50 plants and it's addictive.From talking to him in depth and information from this forum continue to learn. Just potted 20 plus plants in 4 inch pots and repotted my others down from 8 inch to 4 inch pots. My pots were too big. I'm a lot happier now that I've done that.ive given them a spray and will leave them alone. Looking forward to Spring and Summer and the warmer weather. My mx was damp and my fussing sent warning bells to the chap I purchased them from. It's all good and thanks again for the advice and clarity

cheers Len

Hi everyone.

Len - That's a good move using smaller pots for your plants.

Because they don't make an enormous root system, they don't need a large pot and besides, the excess potting mix in a large pot wouldn't be used up by the roots and it would only sour and stay far too wet causing problems.

I think talking to your supplier "in depth" is great as it builds up a relationship of trust between you and him/her and most importantly, he knows what bromeliads are best suited to your local conditions.

As you say, you are learning from forum information as well as your plant provider; and although there's some good advice to be found on forums and in books, always be aware that much of this advice is often written for conditions in other countries. Local knowledge is always the best, especially when it comes from an experienced grower you are buying your plants from.

All the best, Nev.