Authority:

Smith, Lyman B. & Downs, Robert J. 1977. Tillandsioideae (Bromeliaceae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 14 (2): 663-1492. (Published by NYBG Press)

Family:

Bromeliaceae

Synonyms:

Tillandsia tenuifolia L., Tillandsia cubensis Gand., Tillandsia polystachya J.F.Gmel., Platystachys digitata Beer, Tillandsia urbaniana Wittm.

Description:

Description - Plant flowering 13-65 cm high. Leaves many in a dense bulbous rosette, often exceeding the inflorescence if extended but typically recurved, densely and minutely pale-appressed-lepidote throughout, often purple-margined; sheaths ovate, large, inflated, forming an ovoid or ellipsoid pseudobulb to 12 cm long, pale-ferruginous toward the base; blades abruptly spreading or recurved from the apices of the sheaths, linear-triangular, filiform-attenuate, 1 cm wide at the base, usually involute for their entire length. Scape erect or ascending, slender, subglabrous; scape-bracts erect, imbricate, elliptic with long, linear, spreading or reflexed blades, inflated. Inflorescence densely pinnate or subdigitate or rarely simple and distichous-flowered, slenderly fusiform or subcylindric, dense, to 2 dm long; primary bracts like the upper scape-bracts, at least their sheaths shorter than the axillary spikes; spikes sessile, strict, linear, acute, 3-12 cm long, 1 cm wide at anthesis, complanate. Floral bracts erect, imbricate, ovate, obtuse and apiculate but often appearing acute in drying, 15-22 mm long, exceeding the sepals, coriaceous, even or slightly nerved toward apex, glabrous or obscurely lepidote, ecarinate, often bright red; flowers erect; pedicels very short. Sepals lanceolate, acute, coriaceous, even, glabrous, connate posteriorly; petals tubular-erect, ligulate, obtuse, 30-45 mm long, violet; stamens and pistil exserted. Capsule slenderly cylindric, acute, 4 cm long.

Distribution:

United States of America North America| Florida United States of America North America| Mexico North America| Sinaloa Mexico North America| San Luis Potosí Mexico North America| Nayarit Mexico North America| Guerrero Mexico North America| Chiapas Mexico North America| Yucatán Mexico North America| Guatemala Central America| Petén Guatemala Central America| Huehuetenango Guatemala Central America| Guatemala Guatemala Central America| Honduras Central America| Comayagua Honduras Central America| Colón Honduras Central America| El Paraíso Honduras Central America| Valle Honduras Central America| Nicaragua Central America| Matagalpa Nicaragua Central America| Chinandega Nicaragua Central America| Managua Nicaragua Central America| Masaya Nicaragua Central America| Chontales Nicaragua Central America| Costa Rica South America| Alajuela Costa Rica Central America| Panama Central America| Canal Zone Panamá Central America| Colón Panama Central America| Darién Panamá Central America| Cuba South America| Isla de Piños Cuba South America| Piñar del Río Cuba South America| La Habana Cuba South America| Matanzas Cuba South America| Las Villas Cuba West Indies| Camagüey Cuba South America| Oriente Cuba South America| Bahamas South America| Central Eleuthera Bahamas South America| New Providence Bahamas South America| South Andros Bahamas South America| Jamaica South America| Manchester Jamaica South America| Saint James Jamaica South America| Saint Elizabeth Jamaica South America| Westmoreland Jamaica South America| Cayman Islands South America| Turks and Caicos Islands South America| Haiti South America| Dominican Republic South America| Azua Dominican Republic South America| Colombia South America| Magdalena Colombia South America| Antioquia Colombia South America| Venezuela South America| Sucre Venezuela South America| Delta Amacuro Venezuela South America| Distrito Federal Venezuela South America| Aragua Venezuela South America| Yaracuy Venezuela South America| Lara Venezuela South America| Zulia Venezuela South America| Mérida Venezuela South America| Táchira Venezuela South America| Bolívar Venezuela South America|