Tillandsia Best in Class troubleshooting

9 years ago

last modified: 9 years ago

Please help! I'm new to tillandsia, and I have a T. Best in Class. It's developed this reddish colour in the centre the past few days and the middle leaves feel wiggly (but they are firm when I tug on it gently).

I've had to soak for 3 hours or overnight once every 2-3 weeks b/c having issues* with keeping it hydrated with misting in a dry apartment with winter heating. Is it ok to continue soaking it?

Is something wrong with it? And if so is it too late to fix it?

*(The way I figured it was dehydrated was the leaves started curly very very tightly - much more than when I first bought it from the greenhouse and the bottom leaves were drying out starting at the tips).

Featured Answer

raxidor

9 years ago

Fast pale growth in the plant center is usually a sign of preparations for blooming. The plant looks perfectly ok now. Be careful with the soaking, few minutes should be enough, if you can't water you plant properly by misting.

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Comments (7)

Iris (8b, Vancouver, Canada)
Original Author
9 years ago
Would it be ok to still do a fast soak when it's preparing to bloom?

Thanks for your help!
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raxidor
9 years ago
Yes, keep normal care. Regular misting and if it looks dehydrated, fast soak will help.
Iris (8b, Vancouver, Canada) thanked raxidor
Kei Seya
9 years ago
Looks good. Once your baby does grow a flower bract, try to keep that part from getting soaked. I did that in the early days (the bad old days) and that always resulted in the stunting of the blooms.
Iris (8b, Vancouver, Canada) thanked Kei Seya
melanie_lebarre
9 years ago
I have noticed tips of leaves turning brown. I mist and have a humidifier going in same room. Approx. 10 hours a day. Why does this happen ?
raxidor
9 years ago
Tillandsias with long curly leaves usually have a bit of dry tips, it's natural. But if you have suspicion that in this case it's not natural, too much humidity might be the cause. After every watering, all surplus water should naturally evaporate - fresh air, higher temperature and a bit of sunlight help with that. And it's possible that your humidifier is slowing down this process, but I can't say for sure ...
Iris (8b, Vancouver, Canada)
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Melanie, your watering regimen seems really intensive! I always get dry tips on my tillandsia but given up because my home will never be a greenhouse. (I document details of my care regimen here if you're interested: https://plantangst.com/blog/wintercaretillandsia )

All I can contribute is that this happens when the environment is dry as well.