Stunning.
Well worth the wait.

Very nice, naoh123 (apologize for the spelling error of noah123 in my original post - kind of like calling someone Ken when their name is actually Kathy:)). Thanks for sharing.

Grown outside? How long of a timeframe before you noticed the red blush and flowering?

This post was edited by o2tiller on Wed, Sep 25, 13 at 2:16

Very nice, indeed. I, too, want to know your cultural conditions. Especially (if 60107 is your zip code) how you overwintered it.

tj

Thanks! I got this guy back in May. It has stayed outside since it came home. I would estimate it was 1/4 less the overall size you see in the picture when I got it and it bloomed the day I posted this, so mid September. The blushing was surprisingly fast, something like day 1 noticed some tinted edges, day 2 the color completely filled in, day 3 multiple blooms.

Yeah, IL is nowhere near ideal for Tillandsias but as soon as it stops dropping under 40's it's tolerable and during summer it's pretty perfect. I've been keeping a close eye on the humidity since growing these guys and the only thing I can say for this region concerning growing air plants is when the season is here we get the humidity--most nights pop well over 80% and day time humidity usually stays in the upper 50's to low 60's. As far as temperature goes we had a week or two that cropped up into the 90's, but I think on average it was 60's in the evening and 80's during the day.

Overwintering is the upcoming project. They will be set up in front of a window with some extra lighting since the direct sun is only a few hours during winter. The plan is to keep the artificial lighting timed with the current sunset/sunrise schedule in order to keep their biological clocks in "sync." I'll be sure to let ya'll know how it goes.

Good luck noah. It will be a fun project. With proper humidity and air circulation it will be successful.

How's the 'overwintering project' progressing for you?