I think redness is more of an environmental issue than anything else. I have some that are red, orange and green and that seems to just depend on where they grow.

there are two ..one is yellow to orange color in the sun...the other it is orange to red in the sun...red is a smaller plant,narrow leaves and not as many spines
And no they are not rare

There are more that just two-- there are as many as there are seedlings, which is infinite! I've got oodles of seedling blanchetianas and they're variable as to foliage color and shape of inflorescence, although most of them come out with plain green leaves.

I also have a plant that I grew many years ago from seed collected from what was ostensibly Ae. mulfordii, but it came out glossy and red like the one in the photo-- nothing like the parent! This has managed to get distributed around quite a bit by people other than myself, and I know John Anderson got one years ago and said he thought it must have crossed with blanchetiana. I'm wondering if that could be what they're calling a "red blanchetiana". It's redder than the orange form, and somewhat smaller and more upright, with narrower leaves. The inflorescence is kind of lax and not as showy as a straight blanchetiana.

I saw a picture of what looked just like that inflorescence a while back on FCBS, in a sort of "who am I?" section where they had a bunch of numbered photos they wanted people to help identify, but now I can't find that section at all. Anyone know what I'm talking about? Unfortunately that photo didn't show the foliage, but if I saw the two together I could say for sure.

the color isnt great..its winter here
{{gwi:436804}}

I meant the flower and the foliage together. Either one alone is not enough to call it, but it could be that.

Where did you get that plant, HDD? Can it be traced back to John?

Plants in the back is reg blanch the ones in front are red clones and one is from John and the other from Odean

didnt think it was rare

Brom phil,
There has been a lot of controversy about the supposed red blanchetiana.
At the Australian Brom Conference (Port Macquarie) in September last year, Pamela Hyatt (nee Koide) showed photos of a very red form with dark tips growing in California, and it is definitely different to the usual orange form grown in the same light/conditions.
A brom that might not be considered 'rare' in America, could be rare in Australia, due to when it was imported, how fast it reproduces, and availability. The reason the price is going so high for the red blanchetiana on ebay, is because they are hard to get and very desirable - so in Australia, the true red blanchetiana IS rare. The orange form is readily available, hence much cheaper.
Conversely, some Aussie hybrids, like Neo. 'Charm' and other long-established Grace Goode hybrids, and newer Allan Freeman hybrids, and many others', are much harder to get in America, so are more desirable and 'rare' and subsequently more expensive over there, than here in Australia. The import costs are great, quarantine restrictions tight (with many losses due to spraying with methyl bromide)and many varieties need time to establish - so the fewer available, the more expensive they are. Like most things in life....

Hope this clears up a few issues.
Cheers,
Kerry

Grace Goode hybrids are abundant in America,,Charm I have had many years Many of Allan's hybrids are available also..the Bromagic stuff has few that are even desireable...too many look like's...'rare' and 'not available yet' are not the same

O.K. - point taken, HDD, but I was surprised to see, in Michael's list, several Aussie hybrids at quite high prices, compared to here in Australia. I just assumed they had not been imported for long. I agree with you about the (too) numerous neo hybrids from Bromagic, and I wrongly assumed they were desirable elsewhere. But the red blanchetiana is rare here, and desirable, and not many available yet. I don't have one, and am waiting for the price to come down, as it did eventually for the orange form after first being made available.

It does cost to import or export the plants.Gov has to have their fee's etc... I think the costs are quite fair over here. I'm proud someone loves these plants enough to import them where we can all enjoy their beauty :)

It's true, "rare" is a relative term which can vary from region to region. Michael gets quite a bit of material from Australia though, and I don't think they are necessarily priced any higher than hybrids coming out of Costa Rica, Hawaii, or for that matter, Florida. The prices on his list reflect a lot of factors, and one of them is undoubtedly how recently the plant was introduced and how many of them are in circulation in his part of the world. There are several other factors, though. A cross from a known hybridizer will be priced higher than one of unknown origin, and a named cultivar will fetch more than an unnamed one with only a parentage formula, even if they are of equal beauty. Ease of propagation is another factor. If it grows like a weed and pups like mad it will become common and therefore valued less then that illusive and tempermental slowpoke that may be considerably less attractive. BTW, this is all based on what sells for his customer base, which is primarily collectors. The same criteria won't work for someone selling mostly to the general public, as they could care less about any of these things.

Now back to the rare/not rare red blanchetiana-- doesn't anyone have a picture of the flower?????

I will look around for a photo....the blooms look alike to me on these plants and Im not impressed with most blooms from this genus so very few photo's get taken..Most of what I grow is for foilage color(I know selfish me for wanting color now)

Is this just a made up cv name? or is it not grown alot anymore?

Here is a link that might be useful: Rare

I think that in 10-25 years, this will all seem quite quaint as we id plants using a relatively cheap, semi-realtime genetic test. I wonder what people will be willing to pay for a test? I have a feeling that $5/plant will be critical mass. Of course, soon afterwards we should be able to "build-a-plant" with whatever genetic features we want. That should make some patent lawyers rich.

lol looks like i am in the wrong business time to take up legal studies NOT

It looks like PTH you are in California- how do they handle a cold winter? I keep hearing they are extra tender. I would like to try up here in the bay area.

stanofh I can only speak for what they do here in San Clemente which is at the beach. The temp range here is usually from 40-85f. The only thing that bothers them is the chlorine in the tap water which burns the tips at times. This year for the first time I've ever seen in 30 years it hailed. That froze the cells in the plant and split the leaves but the plants recovered in as little as 6 months. It hailed so bad that the plants looked like snow cones. I'd say they're not cold tender IMHO. They remain my favorite bromeliad for they're simple hot colored beauty. I hopes this helps.