Almost in every house there will definitely be indoor flowers - the decoration of any apartment. There are an incredible number of varieties, species and subspecies of domestic plants. Someone prefers to purchase the most common ones - for example, ficuses, someone chooses, on the contrary, more rare ones. Among the green pets rarely found in homes is such a flower as drooping billbergia. What is this plant and how to care for it at home?
A little about the southern beauty
Bilbergia drooping is part of the bromeliad family, which is very difficult to guess. If you don’t know this, then you can’t say, because the appearance of the bilbergia does not at all allow it to be attributed to the plants of this family, it, so to speak, stands out from the general list. However, before analyzing the appearance of this amazing flower, let's say a few words about the family itself, to which the bilbergia belongs.
Bromeliads in brief
It would seem that one family, but such different plants belong to it! Here, let's say, pineapple - after all, it also belongs to the bromeliads. BUTlook at him and the drooping billbergia (photo below) - well, nothing in common!
However, this is only at first glance. In fact, all representatives of bromeliads have common features by which one can immediately recognize "one's own". This is a very dense texture of the leaves, as well as the shape in which they are collected - in the form of a funnel. In it, such plants accumulate water, a similar ability arose in them in the process of evolution after dry periods.
Bromeliads in total more than three thousand; they are divided into lithophytes (terrestrial) and epiphytes (plants that settle on other plants, while they are not parasites, they simply survive in this way - they cannot otherwise because of a weak root system). Along with pineapple and some other members of the bromeliad family, drooping billbergia is one of the most common houseplants.
Short description
Bilbergia is an epiphyte, that is, it lives on other plants. In the wild, she prefers to live in tropical rainforests. Like other bromeliads, it is a herbaceous perennial, but in all other respects it is a completely atypical representative of the family. But it is very unpretentious - caring for the drooping billbergia is absolutely simple, and perhaps that is why they love to buy it so much to decorate their home. By the way, it is believed that bilbergia brings harmony to the house.
Bilbergia drooping differs from other plants in that it does not bloom in summer, asthe vast majority, and during the cold period - from October to January. Thus, it seems to warm its owner in the most persistent and severe frosts, gives warmth and a reminder of a hot colorful summer.
Appearance
Like other members of the family, the bilbergia flower has dense leaves collected in a funnel. At the same time, the rest of the leaves of this plant differ markedly from the leaves of other bromeliads: in bilbergia they are narrow, long and as if pointed. They are covered with scales to the touch, and on the sides - as if with spikes. There are one color, but there are different ones (and we are still talking about the leaves, and not about the flowers themselves). As for the flowers, or inflorescences, they, as is clear from the name of the plant itself, are drooping, that is, lowering their "heads" down. At the same time, they seem to be twisted into a small tight spiral, reaching twenty to thirty centimeters. Their color is very unusual and original - bluish-gray at the edges, towards the center it turns into yellow-green-pink. The bracts of bilbergia drooping (or drooping, by the way) are very beautiful: bright fuchsia color.
Bilbergia is quite small in size - half a meter in height at most. But it grows strongly in width, which gives the impression of a huge bush.
Origin story
Bilbergia was first discovered in the eighteenth century, and this discovery was made by a Swedish scientist, a botanist named Bilberg. Traveling through the forests of Central and South America, Gustav Bilberg noticed an unusual,hitherto unknown plant of amazing beauty. Billbergia, described by the scientist in his diary, was brought to Europe, and from there began its victorious march around the world. A little later, she received her name - of course, by the name of the discoverer. By the way, bilbergia also has, so to speak, a popular name - "tears of the queen." The thing is that the flower secretes nectar, which drips from the lowered inflorescences of the plant like real tears. Initially, the cultivation of bilbergia was available only to the we althy segments of the population and was very fascinated by them. Now everyone can grow this flower on their windowsill.
Bilbergia drooping: home care
It has already been said above that the plant of interest to us is extremely unpretentious, and this is true. And it is also very devoted and will easily forgive its owner for small mistakes in taking care of itself, so it is perfect for beginner amateur flower growers. This is a very hardy plant, and even super-busy people with a tight work schedule who are not able to devote a lot of time to a flower will be amazed at how soon this beauty will bloom for them. An important point: bilbergia perfectly adapts to any living conditions, to any climate, so you can grow it both in the Kuban and in cold Siberia.
Next, let's talk about how to properly care for this tropical flower.
How to grow
We are used to the fact that all indoor plants live in decorative pots, and this is logical. However, do not forget that bilbergia is an epiphyte,which settles on other trees, as well as just snags. Therefore, you can plant this flower on the so-called bromeliad tree - in other words, on a large branched snag. It is not difficult to place a bilbergia there: you just need to pull the flower out of the pot, clean the roots from the ground, wrap it in sphagnum moss, and then attach it to the snag. There is only one minus of such an arrangement - the tree is still quite impressive in size, so the room where it will be located should be quite spacious. However, this drawback can also be circumvented: in small rooms, instead of a tree, a small wood block is simply attached to the wall. It looks pretty impressive, and caring for bilbergia in this case comes down solely to maintaining the moisture content of the moss in the proper form.
Lighting
When it comes to lighting, bilbergia definitely outperforms any other plants - the thing is that, in general, it doesn't care at all in what light conditions it grows. She is equally pleased to live both on a sun-drenched windowsill and in the depths of the apartment, where natural light barely penetrates.
However, like any other plant, drooping billbergia has its own preferences. This is diffused light with shading from the midday sun. To achieve this lighting, it is best to place the flower on the windows on the east and / or west side.
Irrigation
Irrigation of bilbergia drooping, living in a pot, depends on the season. If it's summer, then water is required verya lot - so much so that the soil always remains a little wet; however, it is important to monitor the absence of moisture stagnation. During this period, water is also sent to the funnel of leaves. Important: after flowering, it is strictly forbidden to do this, since such an action can lead to rotting of the plant. In winter, the tropical beauty is watered less often, the earth is allowed to dry out, and the leaves are left dry. Water for irrigation at any time of the year should be warm, settled during the day (it is permissible to add acetic or citric acid to soften it).
If the bilbergia lives on a bromeliad tree, then all that needs to be done is to remove the moss when it is completely dry, and immerse it for about twenty minutes in a vessel of water. After this time, the moss is pulled out, excess moisture is allowed to drain and the sphagnum is returned to its place.
Temperature and humidity at care
Bilbergia loves warmth, but not heat. During the active period, you need to take care that the room is warmer - within 25-28 degrees, during the rest period - cooler, from 15 to 18 degrees. The latter is mandatory, since it is the coolness that stimulates the development of the kidneys. However, do not be zealous and lower the temperature too much: Billbergia nutans (this is the Latin name of the flower) can get sick and die.
Humidity should be maintained within 70-80 percent. If it is summer outside or the room is hot and dry all the time, the flower should be sprayed regularly (with the exception of the flowering period). Thereinif the plant lives in a pot, you can put the flowerpot on a tray with water.
Feeding
What else do you need to care for bilbergia drooping at home? In the photo you can see beautiful flowers pleasing to the eye. This result can be achieved if you feed the southern guest correctly and in a timely manner. This should be done exclusively during the growing season.
Once every fourteen days at this time, the flower should be supplied with fertilizers for bromeliads, similar ones for orchids are also suitable, but in half the dose. The main thing is that top dressing contains a minimum of nitrogen, since busting with the latter can lead to the death of the plant.
Soil
As for the soil, there are no special claims. The main thing is that it should be crumbly enough so that water and air can penetrate well through it. There are special soils for bromeliads, which can also be used for planting bilbergia (pictured).
Caring for her, as you can see, is not too burdensome. And in response to the care and attention, the green pet will surely please the owner with original inflorescences.
But back to the soil. According to experienced flower growers, self-preparation of the soil is also acceptable: you need to proportionately mix the leaf, peat, humus, add a little chopped moss and sand. The drainage layer of the substrate must be very good.
Reproduction and transplantation
Bilbergia drooping has a lot of "offspring" - sprouts -branches. The easiest way to propagate the plant is with their help. You can separate them from the nodal part during transplantation, and young shoots will bloom in about a couple of years after rooting. Another option is to divide an adult flower, in which case flowering can be expected as early as next year. There is a third way: seed breeding, but it is the most difficult and suitable, perhaps, for the most patient people, since it involves observing special technologies for germinating seeds and breeding the sprouts themselves.
As for transplanting, it is necessary to do this only when the previous pot becomes small. The thing is that the root system of the plant is not only weak, but also small, slowly developing. “Transplantation”, as a rule, is accompanied by the division of an overgrown flower, and pots and other vessels for plants must be selected in such a way that they are wide enough (and their depth is not at all necessary).
Diseases and pests
Parasites such as aphids, spider mites, mealybugs and scale insects can harm the drooping billbergia. All of them are fairly easily removed with the help of insecticides, which should be used to treat the entire bilbergia as a whole (insecticide will do any appropriate action).
As for diseases, the drooping bilbergia is subject to the following misfortunes: drying of the tips of the leaves in the absence of water in the funnel, rotting of the plant due to its waterlogging, the appearance of lightbrown spots due to sunburn. In addition, in the event of a lack of light, the leaves may become too loose, and their funnel will fall apart. To prevent any of this from happening, you just need to properly care for the plant.
This is the information about an unusual tropical plant - Billbergia drooping.
