Bromeliad Plant

A tropical that holds its own water

The Bromeliad grows as a rosette of smooth, arching leaves wrapped tightly enough at the base to form a cup. In the wild that cup catches rainwater and the plant drinks from it, which is why watering a Bromeliad is unlike watering anything else indoors. The rosette is symmetrical and architectural enough to carry a reception desk or a side table on its own.

One thing to know before you buy, because nobody mentions it: a Bromeliad flowers once. The mother rosette puts everything into that display and then slowly declines over the following months, producing offsets — pups — around its base as it goes. That is not the plant failing. It is the normal life cycle, and the pups become the next generation.

Light

Medium to bright indirect light. A position a few feet back from a bright window is right. Direct afternoon sun bleaches and scorches the leaves; deep shade flattens the colour and loosens the rosette. It handles the light levels of a real office better than most tropicals, which is covered further in the office plants guide.

Water

Keep the central cup topped up with clean water, and water the soil only lightly when it dries out. The roots exist mainly to anchor the plant and rot quickly in wet soil.

The cup needs flushing. In our summers, water left standing in a warm rosette for weeks goes stagnant and breeds mosquitoes — tip it out and refill with fresh water every week or two rather than just adding more on top.

Soil and potting

Loose, open, fast-draining mix in a pot with a drainage hole. Bromeliads want a small pot; a large volume of damp soil around that modest root system is the fastest way to lose one. See the repotting guide when a pup is ready to separate.

Winter

Keep it away from cold window glass and out of the direct blast of a heater from November onward. Dry indoor heat is harder on it than the cold itself. The winter care guide has the detail.

Good to know

Bromeliads are non-toxic to cats and dogs, which makes this one of the few genuinely tropical-looking plants that is safe in a house with pets.