Hang them in glass ornamentals from your ceiling or simply display them on a bookshelf. Not to mention, Mosses pair well with air plants! Place your air plants on a bed of moss, either in a terrarium or a ceramic bow, and mist the moss every couple of days.
Aeriums are ideal for displaying Air Plants. They are just like Terrariums, but without the soil. Find a decorative glass container and start creating your work of art. To make an Aerium, use colorful selections of SuperMoss® like bright green reindeer moss or a moss mix.
It's a myth that you can grow air plants anywhere: Air plants need bright, indirect light in order to thrive long-term. Rooms with southern or eastern facing windows are best, but other bright rooms can be fine, as long as the plants don't get roasted in too much intense direct sun.
They can be placed in terrariums or attached to anything from magnets to driftwood for creating your own interesting displays using a bit of hot glue or translucent fishing line to secure them. Tillandsia species also make fine companions on a branch with orchids because they like the same conditions.
1. Misting Your Air Plants With a water plant mister or spray bottle, you can simply spray your air plant 2-3 times a week. Make sure the entire plant is sprayed. Once sprayed make sure there is plenty of air circulation so the plant can dry quickly. Air plants can rot if they are in spaces without plenty of air.
Identifying Overwatered Air Plants
The most obvious signs to look out for are soft, mushy leaves and discoloration. If your air plant's leaves feel more like wilted lettuce than the stiff, healthy texture they're supposed to have, you could be dealing with overwatering.
First, fill a sink or bowl with room-temperature water, deep enough to completely submerge each air plant. Let your plants soak for 30 to 60 minutes.
It's easier to damage air plants through overwatering than under-watering, as they are prone to rotting if left in standing water for a long period. To water them properly, you can opt for misting or soaking.
Every one to two weeks, soak your air plant in room temperature tap water (or rain/pond water if you can find it) for 5-10 minutes. After soaking gently shake excess water from your plant. Turn it upside down and place it on a towel in a bright space. This is very important!
Feed them once a month by adding water-soluble fertilizer for epiphytes, bromeliads or air plants to the water you dunk them in. These specialized fertilizers contain nitrogen in a form they can absorb. Air plants like temperatures ranging between the 50s and 90s. They thrive with temperature fluctuations.
Tip: Tillandsia don't love to be handled. Besides our clumsy hands snapping the occasional leaf, the oils in our fingers actually clog the air plant's sensitive leaves. All Airplantman designs keep this in mind so that it is easy to give your Tillandsia the water it needs without touching it directly!
For starters, air plants do not need soil. So, given the proper conditions for growth, some species of air plant can live anywhere from several months to a few years.
For best results and an extra boost of nutrients, add one pump of Miracle-Gro® Indoor Plant Food to the soaking water or mist your air plant once a week with Miracle-Gro® Ready-to-Use Orchid Plant Food Mist.
Grow air plants in bright but indirect light, such as near a window. They can tolerate some direct sunlight, but too much can cause their leaves to burn. Air plants require temperatures between 10-32°C and moderate humidity levels, around 40-60 percent, making them ideal for growing in terrariums and bathrooms.
Air plants often grow on trees or in moist areas with partial shade. In these conditions, they receive bright, indirect light. This means that indoors they do best in high light environments. Rooms with southern or eastern facing windows are best.
Roots: Air plants anchor themselves to objects by their roots and need to be attached to something in order to grow.
A good rule to follow is most air plants that have an abundance of trichomes (xeric plants) should often be dunked or misted, while plants with bright green leaves and less trichomes (mesic plants) prefer to be soaked once a week.
You can make a mini terrarium in the teardrop, or you can simply place the air plant on its lonesome. Hang them from the ceiling or even hang them on your Christmas tree this year. They look great just about anywhere.
A healthy air plant will have wide open leaves while a dehydrated air plant will have closed and curled leaves! Never submerge the bloom or flower, as it can cause the flower to rot. If you are using tap water, let the water stand for several hours to dissipate any chemicals prior to watering the plants.
Air plants that are under-watered will display curled leaves, browning leaves, might feel soft to the touch, and might completely fall apart due to dry rot. One of the most common reasons that air plants die is that they aren't receiving enough light.
You should soak your air plants every week or every ten days.
Therefore, any kind of wood-based container or surface is absolutely ideal for the Tillandsia variety. If you search online, you'll get some attractive options—for example, wood air plant holders with curved wires at the top. Simple rustic style wooden vases go well too with all kinds of indoor decor.
Yes, you can use tap water on your air plants.
Do Air Plants Grow Bigger? If your air plant is a pup (baby air plant) then it will grow to full size depending on its species. As stated above, air plants range in size from two inches to seven feet so research your variety to find out more about how big it will grow.