Tillandsia aeranthos
Tillandsia aeranthos is an epiphyte from the family of bromeliads, native to South America – especially in the dry highlands of Brazil, Uruguay, and northern Argentina. It was first scientifically described in 1825 by the French botanist Charles Gaudichaud-Beaupré.
The name comes from Greek: "aer" = air, "anthos" = flower → "air flower", which indicates its epiphytic lifestyle.
Characteristics:
It grows without soil, has narrow gray-green leaves in a rosette form, and displays pink-purple flowers.
Care instructions:
Light: Bright, but no direct sunlight.
Water: Spray 1–3 times a week with low-calcium water or briefly submerge. Allow to dry well.
Humidity: Low (below 50%), good ventilation is important.
Fertilizer: We recommend using our special tillandsia or orchid fertilizer in diluted form 1–2 times per month in spring and summer.
Temperature: Ideal: 18–28 °C, not below 10 °C.
Note: No substrate needed – can be placed decoratively on wood, stone, or in containers.
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.
