Bromeliad

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Born to perch beneath a rainforest canopy: a north room or a desk under overhead lights suits it fine, and more light works too, as long as the sun stays off its leaves.

In the wild it perches on trees in the rainforests of tropical America and the West Indies (NC State). Its outdoor ratings there are dappled shade, deep shade, and partial shade with 2-6 hours of sun (NC State). Indoors, those translate to a bright room with the sun’s beam kept off its leaves, which is what it needs to grow well (Missouri Botanical Garden).

It forgives dimmer spots too. That tolerance has made it a fixture of shopping malls and office buildings, where it does well in low and artificial light (Missouri Botanical Garden). A windowless reception desk, its overheads on all day, can carry it through a bloom.

A little morning sun is fine, and a south room works if the plant sits well back from the sunbeams. On light, think of the branch it would perch on: shade overhead, a soft glow all around.

Refill the cup every 7-10 days in summer and every 10-14 in winter, and give the roots just a splash. In the wild its roots mostly grip a tree, so keep the potting mix on the dry side.

Its overlapping leaves form a vase, a tank in NC State’s word, built to hold water. Every so often, tip out what’s sitting there and pour in fresh, letting the overflow trickle down to the roots. Feed it there too: half-strength liquid fertilizer goes in the cup while it’s growing (NC State).

Roots that evolved to cling to bark do best in bark: an orchid mix lets air reach them and drains off quickly (NC State; Missouri Botanical Garden).

Dry winter indoor air is its harder test, since it wants humid air to prosper (Missouri Botanical Garden). If it summers on a balcony, change the cup water often; standing water outdoors can breed mosquitoes.

Gone for a while? Two weeks is fine if the mix is watered and the cup topped up the day you leave.

A low vase of strap-shaped leaves that slowly reaches 1-2 feet tall and wide. Set it low to look down into its cup; a glance at the leaves as you refill can catch any scale or mealybugs.

Its leaves can run 18 inches long (NC State), all arching out from one point, so even a modest plant spreads close to its own height.

The flower stalk usually stays shorter than the leaves (Missouri Botanical Garden), so the red sits down inside the vase, best seen from above. That makes it a natural for low furniture: a side table by a sofa, a wide counter, a low bookcase.

In the wild it perches on trunks and branches, and NC State notes it can do the same at home: bound to a piece of wood with its roots wrapped in sphagnum moss, then hung on a wall.

The ASPCA lists it, under the name orange star, as non-toxic to dogs and cats, and no source lists it as harmful to kids.

Good news all around, and the ASPCA’s non-toxic listing even covers horses. Its leaves have smooth edges, without the teeth that line some of its relatives' leaves (NC State; Kew), so there’s nothing to scratch a curious hand.

Eating any plant can upset a pet’s stomach, so a cat that shreds a leaf may vomit, though it isn’t expected to be serious (ASPCA).

For the parent or pet owner, keep an eye on one thing, the water in its cup. If your dog or cat drinks from it, skip the fertilizer there and change the water often. Beyond that, it suits most spots in the house.

1. ASPCA: safe for dogs.
2. ASPCA: safe for cats.

Cats and dogs: The ASPCA lists it as non-⁠toxic.

Kids: No poison-centre listing; rated from university extension sources.

Keep it at 60-85°F, away from cold glass in winter. It wants about 35% humidity or more, so average room air suits it.

Temperature

60-85°F

Scale and mealybugs are the pests that most often find it. Look on the leaf surfaces and down at the leaf bases and axils inside the rosette. Spider mites are occasional, on leaf undersides.

• Scale
• Mealybugs
• Spider mites

Not many: UF/IFAS calls it fairly pest-free. Scale and mealybugs turn up now and then, and root rot if the mix stays wet.

Scale looks like small brown bumps stuck to the leaves; mealybugs look like tufts of white cotton down between them. Wipe them off with a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol (a fingernail lifts scale), then check again next week.

Spider mites are rarer: fine webbing and a dusty, speckled look, mostly in dry winter air. Rinse the plant in the shower, then try insecticidal soap if they come back.

Rot shows as soft, brown leaves at the base. Let the mix dry out and water less often; if the rosette is lost, pot up any healthy pups.

Flush the cup with fresh water about 6 times a year: tip it out, then refill. Feed 3 times in summer with half-strength liquid fertilizer, misted on the leaves too. In mid spring, cut off pups and pot them.

• Clean leaves6× a year
• Feed3× a year
• Divide1× a year
• Prune1× a year

A chunky mix that drains fast, like an orchid or bromeliad mix of bark and perlite, in a small pot with a drainage hole. Its roots want air, not soggy soil.

Repot rarely, if ever: each rosette flowers once and slowly declines over a year or two, so the pups get their own pots instead (see Propagation).

Food is optional: a houseplant fertilizer at a third to half strength, on the mix every month or two through spring and summer, is plenty.

Long, strap-shaped leaves in one plain green fan out from the center into a vase. The surface has a little texture and sheen, and the leaves cover only part of the soil.