Puya coerulea Lindl.
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Authority
Smith, Lyman B. & Downs, Robert J. 1974. Pitcairnioideae (Bromeliaceae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 14 (1): 1-658. (Published by NYBG Press)
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Family
Bromeliaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Description - Plant extremely variable but with all forms intergrading, flowering 1-2 m high; stem well developed, erect, stout. Leaves rosulate at the summit of the stem, numerous, spreading, 4-6 dm long; sheaths suborbicular, dark castaneous; blades 1-2 cm wide, covered with appressed cinereous scales on both sides but becoming glabrous above, laxly serrate with antrorse uncinate red brown spines 3-5 mm long. Scape erect, to 2 cm thick at base, finely tomentulose-lepidote to glabrous and glaucous; scape-bracts erect, the lower imbricate, lance-ovate, filiform-laminate, the upper ovate, apiculate. Inflorescence amply bipinnate or rarely simple, white-tomentulose when young; primary bracts like the upper scape-bracts, many times shorter than the branches; branches spreading or subspreading, 5-30 cm long with a long to short sterile base, laxly or sublaxly flowered. Floral bracts from ovate and exceeding the pedicels to lanceolate and much shorter; pedicels slender, 1-2 cm long; flowers more or less upwardly secund, very variable in size and indument. Sepals lance-triangular to oblong-ovate, rounded and apiculate, 12-24 mm long, obtusely carinate at base; petals tubular-erect, elliptic, obtuse, to 5 cm long, dark blue becoming almost black on drying, bearing 2 vertically attached appendages near base; stamens included. Capsule ovoid or ellipsoid, shorter than the sepals.