Tillandsia albertiana Pulk
Epiphytic tropical Tillandsia from South America. It requires no soil, thrives well in semi-shaded locations, and absorbs moisture through its leaves.
Tillandsia albertiana is a compact, epiphytic bromeliad from the humid mountain regions of northern Argentina. It was named and described in 1981 by the botanist Lyman B. Smith.
The name honors Alberto Castellanos, an Argentine botanist.
Characteristics:
It forms dense rosettes with fleshy, reddish-green leaves. The striking feature is the bright red to carmine red, tubular flowers that often appear multiple times a year.
Care Instructions:
Light: Bright to partially shaded, no direct midday sun.
Water: Spray 3–5 times a week with low-calcium water or briefly water. Allow to dry well afterward.
Humidity: High (at least 50%), with good air circulation.
Fertilizer: In spring and summer, 1–2 times a month with our special Tillandsia or orchid fertilizer in diluted form.
Temperature: Optimal 18–28 °C, briefly cooler is acceptable but frost-free.
Note: Does not require substrate – well suited for wood pieces, stones, or decorative holders.
Our greenhouses are equipped with modern energy screens and double glazing to efficiently save on heating costs. Additionally, we collect rainwater over the entire roof area of 9,000 square meters and use only this water to irrigate all our crops. We collect the rainwater in underground tanks with a total volume of 600,000 liters.
Since 2007, we have been heating our entire operation with a fully automated 850 kW wood chip heating system and a 100,000-liter buffer storage tank. Environmentally friendly and CO2-neutral. Only to support during very cold winter days and nights is a conventional oil heating system available.
Since 2014, the heating has been supported by a solar thermal system with an annual yield of about 20 megawatt-hours.
In 2020, we installed a photovoltaic system with 30 kW peak and have been producing more green electricity per year than our entire operation requires.
Since 2021, we use exclusively pots for our self-produced plants that are not only 100% recyclable but are also entirely made from recycled pots. To this end, we collect all used pots that arise in our operation and have them picked up in big bags by our pot supplier Göttinger. There, the pots are cleaned and processed in a water-free recycling facility into new pots that come back to us.
