 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|||
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|||||||||
 |
|
||||||||||||
| MEDIA | |||
|
The Other Orchid: Bold, Brazen and Beautiful Bromeliad
(San Diego, CA) -- Place a Bromeliad in a room and it turns heads. With its exotic nature, unusual shape and brilliant colors, the bold Bromeliad evokes the mystery of the jungle, where it grows alongside the more well-known Orchid. Deep in the tropical rainforest, Bromeliad paints the forest with dazzling dollops of color and form on the floor beneath, among the branches and even on top of the dense jungle canopy. A bold Bromeliad holds its own as a stunning scene-stealer. Bring it indoors and it refuses to be pampered, showing off its impressive bloom up to three or four months, with little need for water, fertilizer or special treatment. Most of us are more familiar with Bromeliad’s less flashy cousins, the juicy Pineapple and air-feeding Spanish moss. With its brilliant colors and enchanting forms, the Bromeliad thrives in tropical rainforests, clinging to trees or rocks or nestled on the ground. Many collect water in the cup formed by tight rosettes of leaves (called tanks), creating tiny ecosystems for beetles, butterflies, hummingbirds and other creatures of the jungle. Bringing the Bromeliad from the rainforest into the home or garden has been an on-going, but successful process. Scientists have cataloged more than 3,000 species of Bromeliad, most unsuitable for domestic use. It’s taken many years of careful hybridization for this primal plant to become widely available to the plant-loving public. Jeffrey Kent, a biochemist and professional Bromeliad hunter and pollinator, has been a major force in the domestication of Bromeliads. An integral partner in family-owned Kent’s Bromeliad Nursery in San Diego, California, Kent regularly ventures into the jungles of South and Central America to scout new Bromeliad varieties. Encountering aggressive guerrilla fighters, poisonous snakes and hazardous terrain along the way, Kent has discovered more than 20 new |
