Tillandsia fasciculata

Tillandsia fasciculata, commonly known as the giant airplant[3] or cardinal airplant,[4] is a species of bromeliad that is native to Central America, Mexico, the West Indies, northern South America (Venezuela, Colombia, Suriname, French Guiana, northern Brazil), and the southeastern United States (Georgia and Florida).[2][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] Within the United States, this airplant is at risk of extirpation from the Mexican bromeliad weevil, Metamasius callizona.

Tillandsia fasciculata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Clade:	Commelinids
Order:	Poales
Family:	Bromeliaceae
Genus:	Tillandsia
Subgenus:	Tillandsia subg. Tillandsia
Species:	T. fasciculata
Binomial name
Tillandsia fasciculata Sw.[1]
Synonyms[2]
Tillandsia eminens Lindl. Vriesea glaucophylla Hook. Platystachys glaucophylla (Hook.) Beer Platystachys havanensis Beer Tillandsia havanensis Beer Tillandsia macrostachya Klotzsch ex Beer Tillandsia pungens Mez Tillandsia beutelspacheri Matuda ex L.B.Sm. Tillandsia wilsonii S.Watson Tillandsia hystricina Small

Varieties and cultivars

Four varieties are recognized:[2]

1. Tillandsia fasciculata var. clavispica Mez - Florida, Cuba, southern Mexico, Cayman Islands
2. Tillandsia fasciculata var. densispica Mez - Florida, southern and eastern Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Hispaniola
3. Tillandsia fasciculata var. fasciculata - most of species range
4. Tillandsia fasciculata var. laxispica Mez - central Mexico, Jamaica, Hispaniola, Cuba

Several cultivars have been named:[11]

• Tillandsia 'Beauty'
• Tillandsia 'Casallena'
• Tillandsia 'Cathcart'
• Tillandsia 'Chevalieri'
• Tillandsia 'Chiquininga'
• Tillandsia 'Ervin Wurthmann'
• Tillandsia 'Florida'
• Tillandsia 'Hines Poth'
• Tillandsia 'Jalapa Fortin'
• Tillandsia 'Latas au Pair'
• Tillandsia 'Maria Teresa L.'
• Tillandsia 'Miz Ellen'
• Tillandsia 'Neerdie'
• Tillandsia 'Pachuca'
• Tillandsia 'Silver Bullets'
• Tillandsia 'Summer Dawn'
• Tillandsia 'Sybil Frasier'
• Tillandsia 'Tropiflora'
• Tillandsia 'Unamit'
• Tillandsia 'Verraco'
• Tillandsia 'Veteran'

References

1. Isley, Paul T. Tillandsia: the World's Most Unusual Air Plants. Volume 1. Botanical Press. p. 54.
2. Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
3. "Tillandsia fasciculata". Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Database. USDA. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
4. Flora of North America, cardinal airplant, Tillandsia fasciculata Swartz, Prodr. 56. 1788.
5. Neyland, Ray (2009). Wildflowers of the Coastal Plain: A Field Guide. Louisiana State University Press. p. 87. ISBN 978-0-80-713407-8.
6. An Annotated Checklist of the Bromeliaceae of Costa Rica retrieved 3 November 2009
7. Checklist of Mexican Bromeliaceae with Notes on Species Distribution and Levels of Endemism Archived 2007-10-30 at the Wayback Machine retrieved 3 November 2009
8. Checklist of Venezuelan Bromeliaceae with Notes on Species Distribution by State and Levels of Endemism retrieved 3 November 2009
9. Bromeliaceae of the United States (excluding Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands) retrieved 30 October 2009
10. Biota of North America Program, 2013 county range map
11. BSI Cultivar Registry Retrieved 11 October 2009