#Hechtia

[ruthbancroftgarden]

Hechtia sp.

Hechtia is a large genus in the Bromeliad Family, with species found in many habitats throughout Mexico. Because there is no book devoted to the genus, it can be very hard to identify plants, so we have labeled this one simply as "Hechtia sp." It comes from near the town of Huejuquilla in northern Jalisco, and although the plant pictured has green leaves, these can be red-tinged if grown in a sunny position (our plant has a large Agave growing over it, but perhaps it will have its chance to turn red once the Agave flowers and dies). Hechtias have separate male and female plants, and now that ours has flowered we know that it is a female, with the flowers looking a bit like tiny pineapples with purplish sides and white tops.

-Brian

[jillraggett]

Plant of the Day

Sunday 29 January 2023

Hechtia species are bromeliads that originate from Florida to Brazil but are primarily native to Mexico. This range gives Hechtia special adaptations allowing them to handle conditions other bromeliads will not including thriving in bright, sunny deserts and tolerating colder temperatures. Unlike succulents Hechtia species do not hold water in their tissues to tackle drought but slow their growth when water is not available.

Jill Raggett

[phytophiliac]

Hechtia stenopetala is a Bromeliad endemic to Mexico. It can be solid green but according to several internet pages, can get red margins in bright light and cooler temperatures. #Bromeliad #Hechtiastenopetala #Hechtia #stenopetala #CUgreenhouse #botany (at CU Greenhouse) https://www.instagram.com/p/CmmNAQOLP5_/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[calosphace]

[WIP] Intro to Bromeliads: Surprising Tropicals for the Zone 9a Garden

Bromeliads are a special family of flowering plants from the Americas that have many adaptations for low-water including CAM-photosynthesis (like cacti). Some are terrestrial like your typical plant but others are able to grow on trees and rocks, scientifically known as “epiphytic” and “lithophytic” respectively. Many bromeliads are great both for beginner gardeners and snobs (me) alike.

Bromeliad categories:

Dyckia & Succulent - Dyckia, Puya, Hechtia, Encholichreron are (somewhat) common genera in circulation these are the bromeliads tend to be more terrestrial or lithophytic, growing in low rainfall areas kind of like an agave or a standard cactus

Airplant - Tillandsia species -  these are often wispy plants which gather water from special hairs on their leaves rather than roots which gives them usually a silvery appearance. Airplants are found from South America into the mid-Atlantic USA in a variety of habitats with some even growing on cacti in deserts such as the fragrant and quite large Tillandsia duratti.

Tank & Urn broms aka “classic broms” - common genera are Neoregelia, Aechmea, Billbergia, and Vriesea, these are the popular idea of a brom, plants with stiff leaves that often store water in their centers (known as the “tank”) most of these are native to tropical and subtropical forests in Central and South America. 

Note on Hardiness:

For all marginal plants, especially “tank” bromeliads and mounted plants, the rule of thumb is to provide oak canopy or a similar reliable, evergreen cover. This is crucial in climates like Deep South where freezes typically are short in duration, occurring briefly during cloudless nights in winter. The oak canopy functions as a blanket for the plants and keeps the cold (which comes from above!) setting in and potentially also keeping any morning dew from freezing into frost. Bromeliads cope much better with “dry cold”.  London is zone 9 just like my area, I’ve visited and seen our native Cabbage palms growing big in London, but they cannot grow half the bromeliads we can. This is because the UK has a wetter and longer-lasting cold. [If you are in UK reading this: look on inat at Tillandsia species growing in Argentina and at Aechmea recurvata].

Photo caption: A collection of bromeliads underneath a native Sand live oak (Quercus geminata)

Photo caption: Billbergia nutans mounted to a Southern live oak, this patch has endured temperatures of 23F and several nights in mid-20s after that. It gets no irrigation or fertilizer.

Siting Bromeliads:

Most bromeliads grown are from humid forests where they evolved to grow on trees. Dappled shade and part sun conditions are almost always best for them for this reason. As mentioned above, the canopy cover is also important to protect the plants from extremes in weather temperature.

 If growing in the Southeast, you tend to not have to worry about increasing humidity but I also find localized areas of increased humidity benefit bromeliads and other epiphytes. 

Examples of increased humidity areas in my garden:

Tree over a paved surface (water evaporating off paved surface)

Near an air conditioner (these drip out water all day)

Over my small frog pond

Look for lichens and other epiphytes as evidence of suitable areas for humidity-lovers.

Bromeliads that can be grown both terrestrially and epiphytically are perfect for areas of dry shade/high root competition such as at base of native Cabbage palm or particularly thirsty trees like my Red maple.

Caption: A bed with extreme root competition at base of native Red maple (Acer rubra) and Cabbage palm (Sabal palmetto) featuring many bromeliads.

Mounting bromeliads

I recommend using aluminum wire or a natural twine for mounting bromelaids where needed. Plastics like synthetic rope and fishing lines are dangerous to wildlife and, especially synthetic fibers, degrade into microplastics and nanoplastics which are so small they can cross the blood-brain barrier (if you wouldnt bite into a credit card, you shouldnt be using that stuff basically). 

Sometimes with the bromeliad shape you can get by just putting it on and using Beard airplant wrapped around it. Some also use wood glue but it is important not to cover too much of the plant if it is an airplant as the plant needs to get water through its leaves.

Bromeliads and other epiphytes including orchids tend to favor the following characteristics:

Furrowed bark (easiest to grab onto)

Evergreen canopy (protects from temperature extremes)

“Leakiness” (tree releases more minerals than average = more fertilizer for epis!)

Live oaks satisfy all three of those characteristics which is why they are draped in beard airplants in the Deep South.

Cypress are also “leaky” and favored by airplants but they do not have furrowed bark nor are they evergreen so outside of zone 10b+  they are not as good for marginal species.

If you are unable to have a full-sized Live oak, I recommend the extremely under-utilized small native oak species Quercus myrtifolia  (the record largest is 39 feet but typically they are shorter than two storeys). For reference, the common as sin Japanese Waxleaf privet is a much bigger plant than this and much quicker in growth rate yet I also see it planted right next to houses. You also could try a native holly like the Dahoon or a Weeping yaupon and keep them as small trees.

As far as exotics go,  Bottlebrush has furrowed bark and I can recommend it for all day sun to part sun conditions. For no more than 8 hours of sun, Pineapple guava is great but it does have flaky bark so attachment may not occur.

Good Beginner Tank Broms:

Androlopsis skinneri 'Paradise', very nice huge brom for warmer zone 9a

Aechmea caudata, e.g. 'Santa Catarina' perhaps my favorite of the established zone 9a species

Aechmea disticantha warning that it is a vicious bastard of a plant, but probably the hardiest of the larger Aechmea species to my knowledge Aechmea recurvata "matchstick" bromeliads e.g. Aechmea apocalyptica Aechmea cornata Aechmea cylindrata Aechmea gamosepala (probably the most common) Aechmea x 'Burgundy' hybrid with disticantha parentage but much smaller and less vicious with good foliage color Billbergia nutans Other Billbergia hybrids might be hardy as well, a plant that appears to be the cultivated hybrid 'Hallelujah' bloomed through 3 days of mid-20s night temps under oak in a very sheltered location (notably firebush in same area was of course knocked to the ground). Many Neoregelia hybrids, at work the following had little to no damage during mid-20s: Neoregelia Cruenta Neoregelia Super Fireball Noid that lookes like Neoregelia Raphael Noid that looks like Neoregelia ___

Nidularium innocentii

Androlopsis x Aechmea disticantha = O'Rourke very nice intergeneric likely hardier than Androlopsis parent thanks to disticantha but this also makes it a bit more brutal to handle than Androlopsis

Airplants for zone 9a:

Showy species native to North FL Tillandsia bartramii Tillandsia x floridana Tillandsia usenoides aka "Spanish moss" (i call beard airplant)

South TX Tillandsia baileyi "Southern Cone" airplants such as: Tillandsia aeranthos Tillandsia albertiana Tillandsia stricta Tillandsia tenuifolia

Misc. species Tillandsia ionantha

[random-racehorses]

Random Real Thoroughbred: ALMANSA

ALMANSA is a mare born in Brazil in 1986. By ARIOSTO out of HECHTIA. Link to their pedigreequery page: https://www.pedigreequery.com/almansa5

[flowersandmoreideas]

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[johnny19710506]

少し前に手に入れた #ヘクチア を植え替えた。 メジニアーナmezinianaって名前だったけど、ネットに情報が全然無い。BSIにも載ってない。 つまり、そんな奴はいないってこと? #ブロメリア #ディッキア #多肉植物 #観葉植物 #ビザールプランツ #hechtia #dyckia #bromeliads #succulents #plants https://www.instagram.com/p/COT-chinQrM/?igshid=6wqbwrfsq7dd

[agavex]

Hechtia marnier-lapostollei. Munich Botanical Garden, May 2019.

[tukka-ja-kukka-plants]

🌱 ホンマに綺麗やけどホンマに嫌い(植え替えがね...😅) . . 今週末は暖かくなるみたい 宇治市植物公園でお待ちしてます♪ @kyoto_endemica #kyotoendemica2022 . . #bromeliad #hechtia #dyckia #plantplant #tukkajakukka #tukkajakukka_plants #plantsmakepeoplehappy (宇治市植物公園) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cj7ldWMLCYr/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[eriospermum]

Hechtia marnier-lapostollei L.B.Sm.

[captaindomy]

La coltivazione di Hechtia Succulente originarie del Centro America, Messico, sud degli Stati Uniti. Il genere si compone di 40 specie assai longeve fornite di rosette senza stelo, foglie fibrose, rigide, verde rossiccio, coi margini spinosi. Infiorescenze sorrette da lunghi peduncoli con fiori dioici, unisessuali, di colore biancastro, verdastro o giallo/grigio. Il frutto contiene molti…

[ruthbancroftgarden]

Hechtia argentea

Hechtia is a genus in the Bromeliad Family, with most of the species found in Mexico, though the genus extends across the border northward into Texas and southward into Guatemala. The plants generally have rosettes of sword-like leaves with sharp teeth along their edges, usually with tall wiry flower stalks bearing many small flowers. This one is Hechtia argentea, from the state of Hidalgo in Mexico. Its name refers to the striking silver color seen in mature plants, though our young specimen (flowering only for the second time) has red-tinged leaves. Unlike most bromeliads, the species in Hechtia have separate male and female plants, and the yellow pollen produced by the flowers of our plant show it to be a male.

-Brian

[ryokujinzoku]

Hechtia sp. 2021.2.17 #Hechtia #たかしまえん #人とみどりを結ぶえん #たかしまえんBPOKUTHI #胡蝶蘭 #Plants #Botanical #Orchid #Phalaenopsis #Bromeliad #Tillandsia #Agave #caudex #たかしまえんBPSANCHI #みんなのバナナ #みんなのライチ #みんなのジャボチカバ #みんなのパイナップル #たかしまえんBPCafe #バナナモカスムージー #イチゴバナナ���ムージー #抹茶バナナスムージー #マンゴーバナナスムージー #��イチソーダ #タンドリーチキン #キーマカレー (たかしまえん) https://www.instagram.com/p/CLX71UarrMq/?igshid=yyesvhqxz6ms

[phytophiliac]

Hechtia rosea is a bromeliad native to Mexico.

[therealsucculentsandmore]

Rare #hechtia sighting at a retail nursery, Hechtia 'Tehuacán' (at Plant Depot Nursery) https://www.instagram.com/p/B0tQuzcBYSV/?igshid=1lcm8pd1pr6sb

[albertoguerrae]

Hechtia caerulea #hechtia #bromelia #bromeliacea #mexico #yucatan #naturelovers #nature #caerulea #flores #flor #blommor #blossom #bloom #blomma #blumen #botanical #botanicalillustration #botany #violet #bromelias #illustration #scientificillustration #art #instaart