Tillandsia usneoides - Spanish Moss

General Information Common Name  Spanish Moss Scientific Name  Tillandsia usneoides Sun Tolerance  Full Sun Height  up to 6 m (up to20 ft) Spread  up to 1 m (up to 3.3 ft)  Growth Rate  Fast Bloom Time  Very rear Color  Green Flower Color  Green Type  Creeper Native  USA

Classification Kingdom  Plantae – Plants Subkingdom  Tracheobionta – Vascular plants Superdivision Spermatophyta – Seed plants Division  Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants Class  Liliopsida – Monocotyledons Subclass  Zingiberidae Order  Bromeliales Family  Bromeliaceae – Bromeliad family Genus  Tillandsia L. – airplant Species  T. usneoides

Tillandsia usneoides - Spanish Moss

Tillandsia usneoides common name is Spanish moss. It is native to USA. It is an ornamental plant that grows upon larger trees. Although its name is Spanish moss but it is not biologically related to either mosses or lichens. Instead, it is an angiosperm in the family Bromeliaceae  that grows hanging from tree branches in full sun or partial shade. It looks like a fall. It is growing wherever the climate is warm enough and has a relatively high average humidity. It has been introduced to similar locations around the world, including Hawaii and Australia.

The plant is long and alternate thin, curved or curly, heavily scaled leaves 2–6 cm (0.79–2.36 in) long and 1 mm (0.039 in) broad, that grow vegetative in chain-like fashion to form hanging structures up to 6 m (20 ft) in length. The plant has no aerial roots and its flowers are tiny and inconspicuous. The flower color is green. It propagates both by seed and vegetative by fragments that blow on the wind and stick to tree limbs. 

It absorbs nutrients and water from the air and rain. So it is also known as Air Plant. It grows so fast and sometimes it kills the trees. It also increases wind resistance, which can prove fatal to the host tree in a hurricane. It was introduced to Hawaii in the 19th century, and became a popular ornamental and lei plant. It is planted commercially because it has been used for various purposes, including building insulation, mulch, packing material, mattress stuffing, and fiber. In the early 1900s it was used commercially in the padding of car seats.  In 1939 over 10,000 tons of processed Spanish moss was produced.  It is still collected today in smaller quantities for use in arts and crafts, or for bedding for flower gardens, and as an ingredient in the traditional wall covering material bousillage. It is also uses to cooling the homes and offices much less expensively than using air conditioners in desert or hot area.

Spanish Moss

Spanish Moss Flower

Flower of Spanish Moss

Spanish Moss in wild

Spanish Moss

Spanish Moss in wild

Spanish Moss in wild

Spanish Moss as ornamental

Spanish Moss in garden

Spanish Moss ornamental

Spanish Moss

Spanish Moss

Spanish Moss

Spanish Moss Air Plants